Boutique Branding

I rarely integrate work projects onto this platform, but as a designer, I hardly ever see the work I do in action. Once branding is completed and websites are set up, I usually don't hear from clients again. 

So, I was elated when one of my clients from Australia sent me pictures of her brand new finished boutique. She had her logo laser cut on a piece of round wood for her storefront sign and vinyl decals placed on her windows.

I could not stop talking about how much fun it was to see it all come to life!

Here is a glimpse into the branding process. I'm a huge fan of anything made out of pure wood, and incorporating simple, modern, hand-lettered fonts was the perfect way to contribute to the homemade ethos of the store.

I can't get over how darling this boutique is. Stitch Piece Loop is located in picturesque Noosa Heads and stocks jewelry, toys, fashion, accessories and housewares just to name a few.

Now I just need to take a trip to the land down under so I can visit the quaint boutique in person.

Web Design

As a web designer, I have had the opportunity to work with hundreds of people from all over the world. I have designed sites for clients from all walks of life, including authors, artists, veterinarians, teachers and hairstylists. I don't talk about it very often, but I love my work so much. It constantly challenges me and gives me a creative outlet that I don't find elsewhere. I look forward to opening up my laptop every night when the boys are in bed. Designing graphics, discovering new fonts and learning new web code thrills me to no end.

In the shuffle of the last couple of months, I didn't get to posting about the new site that our design team relaunched. It was in the works for many months and we were all so excited when it went live in August.

I was asked to do the photography for the new site. I don't consider myself a professional photographer by any means but I was flattered by the vote of confidence. The owner of our company and I started collaborating on ideas back in the spring and we met up several times over the course of many months to get the images just right.

Shooting still objects was so different than capturing small children which is my usual schtick. Even though the objects didn't move or complain, getting the placement and lighting and background just right proved to be a challenge. I ended up building a seamless white lightbox during our third attempt which was the ticket to success.

This project was a labor of love but it was also so much fun. And well worth the effort for a new design we are all proud of.

Three of the local designers from our growing international team came over for a training last weekend and I was reminded once again what a blessing this "work" is. 99% of our job is done via email communication, so it was refreshing to get together in person to collaborate and talk about HTML coding tricks.

My husband constantly teases me for becoming such a "coding nerd." But he is also my number one supporter, even if means that I have to take off occasionally on evenings or Saturdays to get some undisturbed work done. Working on my laptop at night also happens to be the perfect way to simultaneously snuggle up my baby while feeling somewhat productive. Win win all around.

MIA

I know, my presence in the blogosphere has been minimal lately. My 3-4 posts a week have dwindled down to 1 or 2 if I'm lucky.

It's partially because we don't have a lot of picturesque events going on this time of year.

And partially because we have been hit by the plague this winter and someone has gotten sick at least once a month.

It's partially because I have a two year old who has learned to throw tantrums.

But it's mostly because all of my spare time has been devoted to designing other blogs instead of updating my own. It's hard to squeeze in time for my own records when I am being paid to work on others'.

However, I'm starting to miss my neglected blog. Today was the first time I pulled out my camera in two weeks. I am still striving to find a good balance of working from home, where there is always more work to do, and it's right at my fingertips. 

I know you are all going though withdrawals too (haha). 

500th

This is my 500th post.

I can hardly believe how much this hobby has evolved in the past four years.

I was skeptical about starting a blog at first. I didn't want to buy into another social media outlet that would waste my time.

But seeing that very first post hit the screen, just days before our first child was born, gave me an enormous rush of triumph.

I quickly discovered after launching our blog that it was an tremendous source of happiness for me. It was also a challenge and often drove me crazy with frustration as I learned to format. But the more I did, the more I wanted to do.

Blogging gave me a new identity, new skills, and a new set of friends. Those things filled me in a way that I never anticipated they would as I shared my tiny corner of the world.

A few months ago, I was asked to teach a class on setting up a blog. I was sure to mention the things that trouble me about blogs. How I sometimes view the "tip of the iceberg" that others portray on their blogs and compare my worst to their best. How I forget that most bloggers keep 90% of their icebergs under the water and hidden from view. And how technology is the latest means of comparing ourselves to others.

But, in preparation for the class, I also gathered my top ten reasons why this hobby has become such a passion of mine, and how the positive aspects make the time spent worthwhile.

1. Our blog keeps a record of family life for myself and our posterity. It makes me feel great to have a record of our lives under my belt. And because of that, I make it a priority.

2. I am able to stay in touch with family members and friends sprawled across the country.

3. I have always been an avid journal keeper so our blog is the perfect step-up from a journal.

4. It is a forum to share photography and creative ideas. I don't think I would have ever started to dabble in photography if it weren't for blogging. And now, even though I am far from professional, it is such a huge part of my life. I dream about lenses and editing techniques and thoroughly enjoy the nitty gritty details.

5. Our blog gives me an avenue to share thoughts that are swirling around in my mind. I don’t have the best memory and I’m always worried that I will forget the details of the moments that matter most. I feel like I must have a photo and writing about things to really grasp them before they slip quietly out of my brain never to be remembered. To me, the photos and written descriptions are like a safety-net, holding on to those things I cherish most in life. I can relax at the end of the day knowing that moments have been recorded and I no longer have to keep the details in the forefront of my memory.

6. Writing and sharing my ideas helps me be more deliberate about my mothering and other personal goals. Somehow spilling out how I feel makes me more conscientious of how I live my life. When I write something on our blog it motivates me to really follow through.

7. It is a way to gather ideas from others. Some of my challenges have literally been answered by friends and strangers from across the world. Just knowing that I’m not alone in certain struggles is so comforting and it really builds me up. I love all the inspiring things people write back and I have taken so many comments to heart.

8. I love to promote the joy and power of motherhood. One of the nicest compliments I ever received was that my blog "makes motherhood 'cool'," and I have carried that close to my heart ever since. Motherhood is the most important "career" in the world and I want to popularize how rewarding it is.

9. I am fortunate enough that my passions of blogging and web design have evolved into a part-time, work-from-home career. The design work challenges and thrills me. Getting to know new people each week and transforming their little corners of the world wide web into something beautiful encompasses everything I love; creativity, organization, mathematical trial and error, positive feedback, and an enormous sense of accomplishment.

10. Writing is a way of reminding myself to savor the moments of everyday life and to pay more attention to people rather than to things. For my own sanity, I feel happier when I am able to put all my thoughts down in the written form.

I can't wait to see where the next 500 posts and beyond will take me.

Rhythm and a Train Park

Part of the reason our trip felt like such a whirlwind was because I was working. A lot.

I was enjoying every second of it, but jumping in full force to a new design venture turned out to be incredibly difficult to balance in the midst of the holidays.

I feel like I have a really good rhythm going now. 

I'm getting quicker and learning some shortcuts that condense the work into the hours that the boys are sleeping (for the most part).

I'm actually getting full nights of sleep again.

Balancing work and home responsibilities, I feel, is allowing the time that I spend with Blake and Nash to be more qualitative. I feel so blessed to be able to do something I love from home. I feel like I'm constantly glowing from the sense of accomplishment that I receive, and, in some odd way, I feel motivated to be a better wife and mom in return.

But those few weeks leading up to the new year were just plain insane. I felt so in over my head as I learned new coding techniques and the ropes of the company. And because every spare minute counted towards getting designs ready for the launch of our new site, I had to pick and choose the outings I participated in. 

I decided to forgo the train park night in exchange for a quality date night with Troy. We visited the train park two years ago, and I knew that the experience would be pretty much the same the second time around. Plus, the boys had plenty of adults to share their excitement with. 

However, knowing that there was still a part of of me that wanted to be there, my brother and his girlfriend captured the moments that I missed.

It made me smile as I looked through the pictures, imagining the things that were putting those huge grins on their faces.