originals :: paper art & design

I was approached by Seattle Central Community College to design a department logo for their Distance Education and eLearning program.  The SCCC logo is shown in the upper left corner of my sketchbook.  My first round of sketches are shown below and my thought process behind each sketch in writing below it.

Every once in a while I don’t connect with the vision of my client (the first time) and this was one of those times. I was so focused on making the DEeL logo compliment the existing SCCC logo that I didn’t expand the creative field. My client asked me to send a round of new ideas and to please provide a rough electronic version of each rather than sketches… and so I did. Here is round two of the sketches (per their feedback and focus) and quick electronic versions.

Why sketch? you may ask… I’m a believer that by sketching you can get lots of ideas in a short amount of time and then elaborate on the strong ideas. When I work on the computer I tend to perfect everything… and that’s a waste of my time and the client’s money. It doesn’t always work… like in this case, however it usually does. Here is the DEeL logo finalized.

What are your thoughts on the final logo? Care to share your feedback with me? I’m happy with it and believe it’s a nice compliment to SCCC, graphically represents the program and has nice icon appeal. Gotta run! Have a great day!

Allen Goans is organizing the first Kirksville Stars and Stripes Marathon & Half Marathon for July 3, 2010 at 6:00 AM. Not only am I his wife, I am his graphic designer, marketer and PR gal! Here’s the logo we developed together:

The STARS symbolize our midwest athletes… anybody that can run a marathon or half marathon is a STAR in my book! The STRIPES represent the country roads in which the runners will travel for 13.1 or 26.2 miles. And of course the summer sun that will be greeting the runners at 6:00 AM! Your thoughts on our logo…? An official website will be up soon for the Stars and Stripes Marathon/Half Marathon… but for now check out the KIRKSVILLE MULTISPORT blog for race details.

It always amazes me that people are viewing my designs from all over the U.S. and the world.  My web stats indicate this is true, but it really hits home when I get an inquiry or (better yet) an order from afar.

Amber contacted me from Hawaii last month to design her graduation announcements.  She graduates this January from Hawaii Pacific University.  She liked one of my previous graduation announcements (using an Envelopments Envelofold) which expedited the creative process.

Below shows you the hardest part of this announcement ensemble… punching out the seal! Centering the printed seal in the punch itself and holding steady long enough to get a crisp, clean punch was quite tricky… but I did it… 50 times!

And here they are… 50 Hawaii Pacific University seals!  I love the way they look lined up on the production table.

More posts coming this week (really)… check back often!

This is the latest logo I designed for my new office mates SOS Editorial Services.  It was so much fun to design – it’s so expressive! It perfectly depicts the panic that plagues many writers when it comes down to the wire and they need another set of eyes to edit their work. SOS Editorial Services just finished their website. If you’re in the market, click on over and see what they’re all about!

We registered last the winter… our team was drawn in the lottery in May… and here we are packing to start our adventure across Iowa! It’s a seven day ride and we’ll cover about 470+ miles on our bikes. It’s Allen and I, my mom and our friends Beth and Jayme. My mom’s husband, Vic, is our support driver! It’s going to be a great week of riding, camping and lots of laughter (perhaps a few tears too… Iowa is not flat!). HA!

Just got our shirts yesterday! Here’s mine. RAGBRAI 2009 on front with biker-dude…

And full Originals RAGBRAI team logo on back! Our names listed along the bottom! YAY!  Not sure what happened to the tires… it seems somewhere in transition from my computer to the t-shirt shop they went from street tires to trail tires!  I’ll have to ask about that… inquiring minds (mine) want to know.

Gotta run so I can finish packing. I’m on vacation for two weeks… so no more posts until August! Thanks for reading… check back next month as I’ll have lots of RAGBRAI pictures and wedding projects to share! Sunshine & Smiles!

In three weeks Allen and I will be finalizing preparations for our long awaited RAGBRI adventure. RAGBRAI stands for The Register’s Annual Great Bicycle Ride Across Iowa. We’re riding it with two friends and my mom! It’s a seven day ride and covers approximately 470 miles this year. Check out the website if you’re a wee bit curious!

I designed a RAGBRAI team logo for our t-shirts again, it incorporates the biker-dude from our 2008 STP shirts, the state of Iowa, the year of accomplishment and the names of the riders that rode as a team! Fun stuff!

Here’s the 2008 STP (Seattle to Portland) team logo I designed for our ride last summer. We’ve decided the biker-dude will be the one element that will be incorporated in every bike ride logo I design for our future rides!

We haven’t ordered the RAGBRAI shirts yet… but here’s what the STP logo wear looked like. I got a baseball cap with the smaller logo. The smaller logo was also on the front of the t-shirts and full logo on the back. We got many compliments! Some even asked where they could buy this shirt! Hee Hee!

That’s it for today… gotta get back to work! Have a great day… and wonderful weekend!

Cynergy Health is a new medical clinic in Columbia, Missouri. I met Cynthia Hayes years ago when we worked together on her wedding invitations. It was fabulous to reunite with her  and assist her with her logo design and branding efforts. My logo assignments always begin with a client meeting followed by a brainstorming session with pencil and paper. Here’s a peek at my sketches based on my initial meeting with Cynthia.

Below is a close-up snapshot of the chosen concept in my sketchbook.  Once a concept is chosen I use Adobe Illustrator to computer illustrate the logo.  Having sketched the concepts in advance, the time to computerize the chosen concept goes relatively quick.

Here is the final Cynergy Health clinic logo.  We added the floral element to this logo so that we can generate secondary practice logos that “belong” to the clinic.  Read on… you’ll see what I’m referring to.

The allergy practice existed prior to Cynergy Health opening and was called Columbia Allergy and Asthma Specialists.  The boxes in this logo are brought over from her previous logo.  It was important to Marcy that we keep her identity known in this new practice (very smart business decision).  It was a challenge bringing the two together… but here is the combination of the clinic logo and practice logo — when all is said and done they’ll have three practice logos.  Each practice logo will be brown with it’s own secondary color.

And finally… here is the practice logo flying solo.  This logo may be used on their internal forms, marketing materials and possibly even logo wear.

More on Cynergy Health in the coming weeks. The clinic business cards are printing this week and signs are in the queue too. Check back soon for an update!

Graduation Announcements are quickly becoming a favorite project of mine.  It’s your time to shine!  It’s your turn to do what you wanna do!  Show off your personality! Yes, the school offers a package deal… but it’s so predictable.  If you (or somebody you know) will be graduating from college this year OR high school next year, consider having custom announcements designed.  As with all my paper creations… the options are endless!

I computer illustrated this penguin mascot in Illustrator and combined it with the Class of 2009 for a branded look on every piece.  The parents decided what they wanted in their package and how many of each. Again, it’s what you want and need! For instance, they ordered 40 announcements with envelopes, 34 seating cards, and 50 pre-printed thank you notes with envelopes.  No waste… how refreshing!

Inside the graduation announcement are favorite snapshots provided by Colin and his parents.  I arranged them in circles to compliment the mascot shape and picked a font that is both masculine and open to finish the overall look.  I printed this package on my color laser printer, cut everything by hand and assembled them.  All Colin and/or his parents need to do is address the envelopes and drop them in the mail.  (I’ll even do that for you!)

One great thing (worth sharing) that came out of this project was when I sent the invoice… the father wrote back, “Wow, you came in much lower than I was planning on”. Gotta love it when a client says THAT!  On that note, I’ve gotta get back to work!  Thanks for visiting.

Last week I posted the four business card ideas I presented to Sara Fougere Catering and left you wondering which one she chose.  And this is it – this is the one!  I absolutely love it! I must admit the coaster style design would’ve been fun… but we all know it would’ve blown her budget out of the water!  It’s fun to toss something in the mix that’s out of the ordinary… that’s my job!  And I love it, love it, love it!

In addition to using these business cards in the traditional manner, Sara can also use them as labels on boxed lunches, tags on bagged lunches and gift tags when applicable! They’re so fun and fresh… two words Sara used to describe her business during our initial logo brainstorming session.

Check back for more Sara Fougere Catering items in the near future.  Have a great day!

Sara is friends with Lisa from Columbia’s Kitchen (Columbia, Missouri). When she decided it was time to take the big step into branding her catering business, Lisa sent her my direction (thank you Lisa!). Sara and I met and discussed how her catering business operates today, her own business style, and how she’d like her business to fit into the marketplace. The personal interaction with a client helps shape a successful logo design and business branding. I presented Sara with four rough concepts and the final logo presented here is a blend of two. She love’s it and is excited to move forward.

And move forward we did… quickly. These are the business card ideas I presented to her yesterday and she chose one of them as-is from this line up… can you guess which one she chose? Send me a comment on which one you like best! I’ll share with you next week!

Next I’ll be designing menu cards AND window decals for her catering kitchen. I’ll be sure to get pictures once they’re up! Gotta run… lots still to do this afternoon! Have a great day.

When you do something extraordinary, you deserve an extraordinary party, which means one thing, extraordinary invitations! Invitations (and announcements) are the voice of the party!  Make your invitation a keepsake — not a throw away!

These original graduation announcements were created using Envelopments. If you’re unfamiliar with this product line, be sure to click on the link and visit their website. I’m an Envelopments Dealer which means I have access to their entire product line and as a graphic designer I have the vision to create a finished product you’re sure to love!

Loren needed multiple items wrapped up in one: graduation announcement, separate diploma ceremony, cocktail party information and dinner invitation… whew! I incorporated it all into one booklet. The graduation announcement is the first thing these recipients will see when they open the Envelofold — and when they open the announcement I’m certain they’ll “feel” the celebration that awaits them!

It’s probably too late for most of you to order 2009 graduation announcements… but if you know somebody that may be interested for 2010, be sure to pass along my web address! Thank you.

I’ve been blogging for one year!  Doesn’t seem possible.  I used to be much better at multiple posts per week… and now I’m lucky to post one per week.  I promise to work on that in the coming months.  So much to do… so little time.  Somethings gotta to give.  Do you ever feel that way?  OY!

I’m leaving on vacation tomorrow (heading south for some sunshine)… so I thought I’d link you back to my first blog [www.originalspaperart.blogspot.com] and give you something to look at in my absence.  In may be new to some of you… and if so, enjoy!  And for those who have been with me all year… enjoy a trip down creative lane.  Cheers!

I designed this event logo for a friend that hosts an annual Beach Bash… she used it on t-shirts and on the back they said “we don’t skinny dip, we chunky dunk”. They were a hit!