DC Trip - Gettysburg

> Last October, Gene and I went to Washington DC. We were there for several days, and took the opportunity to not only see the city, but also explored sites all around us. 

> One of those places was Gettysburg, PA. We drove about 2 hours from where we were staying, and even though it was a drizzly, overcast day, it was gorgeous. Gene had been to Gettysburg with his family many years before. His dad had hired a tour guide who they followed, and they would stop to learn about battles, people, and historic events that happened in specific places. We stopped at the visitors center gift shop, and bought a guidebook/map with a tour CD that led us to different locations where we could see the area and learn about the battles and monuments. We liked that we could spend as much or as little time as we wanted at each "programmed" stop on the tour. And we listened to interesting stories as we drove from place to place. We saw several people with actual guides, and we heard some neat stories while we were looking at sties at the same time. I think either way is a great way to experience the area.

> It's a beautiful place, and even though there were plenty of people everywhere, there was a feeling of reverence, quiet. There are lots of markers and monuments—all sizes, and all kinds—lining country roads, in fields, and on rolling hilltops EVERYwhere. It was overwhelming to think about how many battles were fought, and how many lives were lost in this beautiful countryside. I am grateful for those who kept historical records, who built monuments, and who passed down stories for those of us who have interest in learning about the sacrifices that were made then, so all of us can enjoy the freedom and blessings from living in this great nation.

> If you saw my earlier post about leaves, it was in Gettysburg that I found most of them.

> Gettysburg was one of many highlights of our trip. I found it to be beautiful, educational, humbling, and a great way to spend one of our days. Stay tuned for more highlights!

I Got Tagged

> It's that time of year...time when I get show off my promotional gift! From blog posts about other promotions (here, here, here, here, and here), you can probably tell, while I like my gifts to be a design piece, I also like them to be useful. And what's more useful at Christmastime than gift tags?

> The "do not open" one was in my head first, and as I designed it, I loved the way it worked out so well that I decided I wanted the whole set to be typographically playful, bold, and with numbers mixed in. 

> I knew this was not one I wanted to put my logo on. But, I did want to have it branded in some way. I considered switching out the pine-green for "Maralee green", but it just didn't create the rustic Christmas feeling I was after. A little exploration led me to the idea of adding a little pop of my color on the corners, also creating the shape of a corner-cut tag—and it was just right.

> I wanted to use all the space on the front of the tag for my typographic message, so I included the "to" and "from" space on the back. And if I'm paying to print on the back anyway, I'm gonna take in one step further and get my money's worth! A custom pattern for each tag was added.

> Initially I had planned to string each of the tags, but as the end of the first week of December passed, and my workload pushed the promo assembly to after hours, I decided it would be okay to send them with "some assembly required". After all, we're used to that with Christmas gifts anyway, right?

> The feedback has been awesome. I've had a few people tell me they are only going to use them on immediate family, or not use them at all, so they can keep them (I want them to be used, but if they like them THAT much, I get it—and I'm happy and flattered). I had one client tell me I should market them...maybe I'll check into that for next year!

> My husband loved them too, so I adjusted the message of the card a little bit for a second version, and was able to use these for my personal greeting cards from us as well. Bonus! 

>Now that I've finished assembling and sending them out, my after-hours can be spent getting ready for Christmas in other ways, like wrapping and tagging gifts! Whether you got tagged or not, I wish you Merry Christmas!

I'm Different

> Most people have gone through times when they've felt like they were "different" and didn't fit in. When I was a little kid, I was uncomfortably aware of every little thing that made me feel different from other kids. The most obvious difference was my hair. I was one of 2 (maybe 3) redheads in my entire school. People made comments about my hair, but I never heard any comments about other kids' hair, so I knew mine set me apart. I always felt like I was wearing a big beacon on my head (more on that story). 

> Thing is, in a successful business, being unique is a good thing. One of the important questions I ask my clients is, "What sets you apart? What makes you the better choice over your competition? What do you have to offer that they don't?" You want to be different—show off the figurative beacon on your head!

> I've decided to share my own company "beacons" here. To define my strengths, I like to compare myself against the common stereotypes about graphic designers:

• Procrastination  I begin projects immediately, allowing the maximum time to develop then refine the best creative solution.
• Sloppy/Disorganized  I thrive creatively when my work area is neat; and being organized is something on which I pride myself.
• "What's a deadline?"  I don't miss deadlines. A project schedule ensures that the job is finished according to your needs. I'm an independent designer, so no one is making unrealistic promises on my behalf. I know what I can and can't do in a given amount of time. The agreement on a realistic timeline for the work is just as important to me as agreeing on the budget. 
• "Hello, is anyone out there?"  When you contact me, I respond promptly. Unless it's a weekend or holiday, you will never wait more than a day to get a response from me, (and it's usually within the hour). 
• It only has to look good  Quality is more than just great-looking design. Through communication, I make sure we both share the same vision so the finished product will be on target. If I've created something that I love, but you don't feel like it's right for your company, the job isn't finished. It's not successful if you don't like it. Of course if you request changes that will negatively impact what we're trying to achieve, I will give you my professional opinion, and will recommend other ways to accomplish what you want—in an appropriate, attractive way.
• Difficult to work with  Things don't always go as planned, but I strive to make sure each project is a good experience. I see my clients as friends—it's easy to figure out how to resolve problems that arise when you're dealing with friends (I've been told by many clients how easy I am to work with. That's GREAT to hear).
• Glad that's over, gimme the money  Obviously this is a business. I have valued experience, and put a lot of time and effort into my work, so I need a return on that investment; but repeat customers and word of mouth are very important to me. In my opinion, the end of a successful project happens when we both feel like we were treated fairly, with respect; when you walk away feeling like you got what you paid for, that you'd be happy to refer me, and work with me again; and I got paid for the work I provided, and look forward to hearing from you again when you have another project.

> Those "beacons" tell you how I work differently. Look at my portfolio and you'll see another really important beacon. There are lots of designers out there. We're all different, and that's a good thing. It makes it easier for the right client and the right designer to find each other.

Leaf-Hunter

> I think I've been in love with leaves forever—I can't remember when I didn't love them. I've made my husband stop on various drives so I could stop and pick a leaf, I've pressed countless leaves in the pages of books for years, and most recently, I brought home more leaves than souvenirs on the trip we just returned from. In fact, one of my best friends from college calls me "Leaf" (I can't remember how that happened, but it would sound wrong now if I heard her call me anything else).

> I always tell myself (and my husband) that someday I will take these beautiful little pieces of nature and create something really amazing with them. Unfortunately, I've paralyzed myself with the thought that once I make something, if the end product isn't more beautiful than the leaf itself, I will have ruined it. 

> As I mentioned, we just got back from a wonderful, long trip to DC and the surrounding areas. We spent a day in Gettysburg (more to come on the best parts of our trip!), and the path to take us to our parked car was beautiful and wooded, and I found several leaves I NEEDED to have. My husband is a good sport, so he actually waited every time I squealed (okay, I didn't really squeal) and bent to pick each one.

> My greatest disappointment is that I didn't have anything to keep them flat that entire day in the car, then at the hotel, I placed them between the pages of the only thing I had: brochures from places we'd visited. I put them under the corner of my suitcase, but it wasn't as heavy as it needed to be. I did the best I could with what I had, and while they arrived home surprisingly well, they are not as perfect as they could have been.

> Luckily, nature itself is beautifully imperfect, so they are all still imperfectly beautiful to me.

(The gingko leaves—the little fan-shaped ones—are from a tree in front of the Capitol Building. The others all came from various paths in Gettysburg).

Presenting...

"The human brain starts working the moment you are born and never stops until you stand up to speak in public." —George Jessel

> I recently accepted the invitation/assignment/calling to teach an adult Sunday School class every other week in my church. I've been told by a number of people that if I didn't tell anyone I was nervous, they wouldn't know. Truth is, I get horribly nervous and anxious (yep...trigger the stress-induced tension headache which often turns into a multiple-day migraine). Once I get going with the lesson, I'm fine—not comfortable—but, when I'm well-prepared, I get going with my material, then with appropriate interaction from the class, I settle into a flow.

> I've received compliments (for which I'm SO appreciative) and I believe that my college education (even though it was years ago) helps me a lot when it comes to presenting or public speaking. We regularly presented different stages of design projects for rounds of critique from the instructor and fellow students until each round of changes was approved. 

> I don't love public speaking or presenting, but with years of experience in my career and past church obligations, I've learned to hide the signs of my anxiety while I'm on display. But I'm always glad for a bit of advice to help me improve. Following are several teaching/presenting tips I'm working on, from a variety of sources (and here and here). Maybe they'll help you too.

• Smile at the opening and here and there in your presentation. It sends a powerful nonverbal signal that you are self-assured and in control. An occasional smile at appropriate times will help you relax and will increase your rapport with your audience.

• Make eye contact. The people are there for the same reason you are. They can relate to you.

• Don't apologize for any part of the presentation. You're giving people a reason to check out before you even get going (This is not a problem for me with work, but for teaching, I'm making a solid effort. The reason I have people telling me they wouldn't know I was nervous if I didn't say it, is because I started my first couple lessons with some comment about my inadequacy, nervousness, etc. The first time I finally suppressed the urge to be self-deprecating, someone asked if I was still nervous...yeah, I've set a nice precedent for myself ;-)

• Be genuine—be yourself. People almost always respond positively when someone is being genuine (Luckily I've found this to be true. The flow I get into allows me to do this, and I've felt very supported by those in the class. whew!)

• The best presentation is like a conversation with someone you like, where the ideas and thoughts flow naturally, not from looking down and reading every word from notes (I really try to do this by asking questions that will generate a discussion. I love it when lots of hands go up. People are really engaged and wanting to be part of the conversation. Success!)

• Pauses are essential to a strong delivery. Pause after introducing new points to add emphasis (It's really hard to pause when you're nervous, workin' on this one).

• Practice! The more you practice, the less you will have to think about during the actual talk itself. This will increase your confidence, decrease the inevitable jitters, and allow you to focus on other details that are also important to a successful presentation.

> What doesn't kill me makes me stronger...right?  I'm using what I learned from years of design classes, and presenting to clients to help me with this current teaching assignment; and learning to teach better will in turn give me additional experience for presenting design projects to my clients. Win-win.

Golden Anniversary in Silver

> My parents recently celebrated their 50th Anniversary (woohoo!) Despite their resistance to having a big event, my siblings and I planned a day of celebration with extended family that I think we will all remember. We each presented something to them by way of talent, performance, etc. at a program for my parents and their progeny.

> While I grew up with music lessons, I really don't like to perform, but I wanted to share some sort of talent, and worked to find something unique that I could create for them. I designed the invitations, but wanted to do something more—something that felt like a gift. 

> I follow the blogs of several paper artists, and I've been a long-time love of all things paper, so I decided to attempt to design and do a papercut (beware of half the images that will come up if you do a Google search!) 

> Interestingly, paper is the traditional gift for a 1st anniversary. Gold represents the 50th anniversary, but that's a bit out of my budget! I created a typographic design using their names, and added a stock border that I could customize and incorporate with the design. I thought about metallic gold paper, but I decided silver would "go" better with the decor in their home.

> With great optimism, I photographed my process to share here. The curves aren't perfect, I wish they were, (perhaps my first attempt should have been less curvy!) but if you're not looking closely, it looks pretty good—good enough that in a frame, I felt excited to give it to them.

> I think with more practice, this is something I'll do more of!

Inspired by...Humans of New York

> I LOVE this blog so much I follow it on Facebook. Instead of waiting til I have time to catch up on the blogs I follow, I get to see the posts immediately, and I'm always happy when there's a new one.

> It's pretty much one guy—Brandon Stanton—who approaches people in New York City, asks them if he can take their photo, then asks a couple questions, to which he gets some really amazing and insightful glimpses into the lives of people. I recently watched a video clip of part of a speech he gave at a college in Ireland where he explains his process. He seems like a down-to-earth, likable guy which makes me like the blog even more. And hearing about his process really makes you realize how important persistence is in anything we do. It was also interesting to learn how he's able to get (some) people to open up a little.

> Admittedly, I'm a guarded, private person, so I'm amazed at some of the very deeply personal things that people share with him (and everyone...the blog has over 5 million followers), but I realize those are the ones that touch me the most.

> Here are some favorites.

"If you could give one piece of advice to other kids, what would it be?" "If someone is bullying you, and you bully them back, then that makes you a bully." 

"For the longest time, I was so focused on being deaf in my left ear, that I almost forgot my other ear was perfectly fine." 

When my husband was dying, I said: "Moe, how am I supposed to live without you?" He told me: "Take the love you have for me and spread it around." 

These two were acting like complete teenagers. When I walked up, she was nuzzling her head against his shoulder. She giggled the entire time I talked with them, while he kept a big goofy grin on his face. And whenever I asked about their relationship, she clutched his arm, looked at him just like this, giggled, then said: “We’re not telling!”