2-D Design

It's Nice to Draw Again

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My buddy, Gary, sent me a text the other day (I mean like 2 months ago) telling me how he wanted the Wario Amiibo but couldn’t get his hands on it. He asked if I could make one for him and he picked out the pose he wanted.

On my Etsy shop, you’ll find a listing for hand-illustrated Animal Crossing Amiibo. While that listing is super specific, if I can find the bin files for a certain Amiibo, I can make it. However, I’m selling it mainly for the custom artwork.

I gave this one to Gary on the house because he does so much for me (like going to his fave comic book store to grab me the newest Pokémon cards), so it seemed fair.

Anyway, it was just so nice to draw again. I haven’t done it in a while, so I’m also a tad rusty. But I love it, even if I’m just doodling. I hope to do this more in my free time!

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New Hobby Alert: Casting Resin

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Aside from working full-time again, I recently picked up a new hobby that I briefly touched on while in college many years ago: casting resin.

I’ve only been doing it for a month or two and I’ve already poured hundreds of dollars into it. The chemicals themselves are very expensive, then you have the inclusions (glitter, dried flowers, gems, etc.), and things to help color your resin (mica powder, alcohol inks, paints, etc.). By the time you’re done, including the time put into it, you better be selling your pieces for DOLLARS.

While the act of casting the resin isn’t difficult, playing around with the inclusions and colors takes time and effort to learn. The first set of dominoes I cast were way too translucent, so they’re not playable unless I add paint or vinyl to the back.

All in all, though, it’s a healthy obsession. Eventually it’ll pitter out and I’ll find a new hobby. But for now, here’s a peek at what I’ve been making. All of these pieces at some point will be on my Etsy for purchase. (And yes, most of these are self-defense weapons.)

Logo: LAR Services

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When you’re a graphic designer, everyone you know will usually come to you for any “creative work” they need. Sometimes it’s dumb, other times it’s fun. This is one of those times where it was fun.

My boyfriend, Luis, during the initial quarantine period last year, experienced a lay off from his job. While home, he decided he wanted to invest in something that would eventually pay for itself: a tractor.

One day, he says to me, “guess what I just bought!” and shows me a picture of what I call a “big, orange bug”. He bought this beautiful, bright pumpkin orange kubota (the actual color is “Kubota Orange”—so innovative, so creative) tractor as well as some accessories for it. That entire week, he rode around in it, built a new shed for his pieces, cleared a section of his yard so we could start a garden, and started telling his friends and family to spread the word. It was decided using this tractor would be a side hustle for him, which was good for some sort of income while unemployed, even if patchy.

With this decision, he wanted to make it a little more professional. Together, we worked on a logo, and put that logo on business cards, signs, and magnets he put on his truck.

His vision was to incorporate both his new toy and the color. He also made it clear that he did not want the tractor to be orange, because he was afraid it wouldn’t stand out enough.

We went through a few (read: several) ideas at first. None of them really spoke to him or how he felt his new venture should be portrayed to a tee, but he did have some partial feelings to a couple. He also insisted the word “backhoe” be used so people had a specific idea of what services he actually offered and that he was not just a handyman.

Although I no longer have these printouts we pinned up to show, I still have the digital version. He circled a couple from this initial round and we took it from there. What we came up with was kind of simple, but was exactly what Luis was looking for.

We kept the tractor black like the “LAR”, but added an orange ring behind it. The orange signified the color of the tractor, the roundness of a circle reflected upon Luis’ well-rounded nature in both his personality and work (despite specifically using the word “backhoe” to identify what he did) and drew attention to the tractor. The words “Backhoe Services” are in a beautiful charcoal gray to avoid too much black logo, and to let the “LAR” (Luis’ initials) and the tractor stand out, thus becoming the key identifiers in the logo.

Copy styles and choices in black and white.

Copy styles and choices in black and white.

Color version of the logo: vertical, horizontal, icon, and logotype.

Luis’ first time using the tractor to try and dig up the surface of the yard before tilling for us to start our garden.

Once Luis signed off on the logo, we went to work making other things for him to get started with: business cards (home-printed to see how it goes), a sign for his garage, and a set of magnets for his truck.

With the signs and the business card, Luis wanted to take it a step further and add on key words that let people know what he can do with his tractor: auger, backhoe, brush hog, and loader—attachments he has for the tractor to get different things done. Over the winter with each snowfall, he was able to go plow for different local businesses, as people began to refer him via WOM (word of mouth).

As things begin to pick up for him, and he feels like he can really make a living with it, he will start to look into making it into an LLC, get real business cards printed, and maybe even find an office space. But for now, we’re just working simply and enjoying his new toy.

I had asked Luis to let me take photos of him holding his business cards for months at this point; by time he was able to let me do it, he already handed out all the good copies of his cards and only had the mistakes left, hence the banding on the one card.

The sign hangs above the garage doors that house the bug.

One of the magnets seated on the door of Luis’ truck.

One of the magnets seated on the door of Luis’ truck.

For anyone in the South Jersey area (for now) looking for work to be done by Luis and his orange tractor, feel free to call the number on the sign, or email the address shown on his card.

50 Years of Chino: A Biographical Photo Book

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My boyfriend turned 50 years old on January 1st.

While decade birthdays are usually special in my book, a half-century decade birthday is triple special! COVID-19 ruined all hope of being able to throw my handsome SO a surprise birthday bash—something I was really looking forward to. I came up with what ended up being the next best thing: a family gift.

His kids will tell you it was all my idea, but the truth is, I wouldn’t have been able to pull it off without their help. I also got his aunts and grandmother to contribute and in the end, a masterpiece was born.

The entirety of this book was handmade: the cover (binders board, book cloth, photo paper, PVA glue), the interior (invitation paper) and the text block (Epson Presentation Paper Matte). I collected images and messages from everyone and designed the layout in InDesign, printed everything out in-house (literally, in my house), and assembled the book on my own.

This project was the most emotionally invested project I’ve worked on in years.

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Special thanks goes to Titis Liz, Luz, and Penny, Grandma, Jocelin, Jasmine, and Ricky. Without you, this gift wouldn’t have been as special. <3

Short Blurb: Adobe MAX Day 1

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I have never been to a design conference.

I’ve always wanted to go to one, but when you see how much they cost… <___<

Anyway, one COVID blessing, I guess, is Adobe MAX being FREE this year! Just need an Adobe ID, and the conference is your oyster!

I, so far, have watched the keynote. Conan O’Brian was hilarious (vice presidents of vice presidents), but the entire presentation was amazing and definitely got me yelling at my iMac the same way I did for one of the last PANTONE presentations I watched. (This is a positive.)

Some things to be aware of:

+ Illustrator for iPad

+ New Recolor Artwork panel

+ An improved way to create patterns

+ Photoshop updates including the Sky Replacement tool and Neuro Filters

I highly recommend watching the keynote, as it’s CHOCK full of information and excitement!

Also, Adobe understands the importance of coloring, so they put together a coloring book for all of us to enjoy.

So…enjoy!