Christmas brings its share of wasted paper and printing. Have you ever walked through your suburb a few days after Christmas and seen the bins overflowing with packaging? It’s estimated that 1 billion Christmas cards alone are recycled every year.

Christmas is a reality and as graphic designers, we contribute to the paper and publishing industry. However, we try, as much as possible, to limit the amount of paper we use -  instead favouring baskets or boxes that can be used many times over.

How do we reduce the impact of Christmas? Some simple suggestions are:

• Send gifts in beautiful baskets that people can reuse
• Find some shipping companies or food banks that need packaging
• Give gifts in reusable bags or boxes
• Send ecards instead of Christmas cards
• Give living gifts like plants and trees

If everyone reduces their paper and packaging output by as little as 1% this year, you won’t even notice it, yet imagine what kind of impact it will create for the environment.

We wish you all a safe and sustainable Merry Christmas!
See our ecard here >>

Just completed piece for ‘A Cry For Help’ benefit for Born Free USA (opens Jan. 8th, 2010) at Thinkspace Gallery in LA.

i am in full speed christmas make presents mode.  this was a cut i had originally made for the lovely lady that gave birth to me almost 31 years ago, but decided that it didn’t stand alone quite well enough.  it is from an old folk tale called the goblin and the grocer.  i have been thinking as of late that i want to do a large series that retell old folktales.  so this was a good study, but i think more panels are necessary for the full retelling.  but this little image is about 9″x12″ and is up for sale if anyone falls in love with it, just email me about the price.  in more exciting news my sister had a baby!!!  i am now auntie stacey.  ezra james lewis was born last thursday, weighing in at 6 lbs. 8 oz.  i saw a picture, and he definitely looks like a newborn alright.  all newborns sort of look like human piglets in a hat.  but i can tell he will be a looker, after all he is half malasky.  if i do not post again until after the holidays, have happy holidays!!!!  oh by the way if you are looking for some last minute gifts my friend eve makes the dreamiest leather bags i have ever seen, check her out her etsy shop.

There’s a reason why so many elementary papercuts are mostly shapes with only straight lines and slights curves.  Circles are hard! That’s all there is to it.  It doesn’t take much to make a paper cut  circle look messy — jagged, uneven, somewhat askew.  So what’s the secret?

Here are several different methods that I’ve seen papercutters use, along with general tips that will help  make any method easier.

1. Small straight cuts – This method avoids using curved lines, which often stray from the circle. Make tiny straight cuts that touch each other all along the circle. The smaller the cuts, the smoother the circle. After the circle is cut out, smooth any irregular edges with your knife or scissors.

2. Perforation — This is a take-off on the straight cut method above. Make pin-sized holes all along the circle, forming a perforated circle. Carefully remove the circle along the perforations, then smooth out with your knife or scissors, carefully maintaining the circle’s shape.

3. Rotate Paper – Rather than focus on moving the knife, rely more on rotating the paper. This allows you to avoid jagged lines that may occur when trying to move the knife along the circle, as well as awkward hand positions.

4. Number 10 blade — This is my method. Most papercutters use a #11 blade for it’s precision and sharpness. I prefer using a #10 blade, which has a curved, rather than straight, edge. I find that this blade works much better in my own designs, which have an organic style. I generally cut the circle in medium size sections, which gives me more control. This also lets me control my hand position in a more comfortable way.

As you can see from my work, being able to create deep curves and circles broadens your arsenal of design techniques. However you choose to cut a circle, be patient. It takes practice, just like any other skill required when you do your papercuttings. So cut lots of circles, and you’ll see the shape and smoothness get better and better over time.

http://kolbo.com/product-reader/asetid/64/product/dreidel_papercut_dancing_children_hand_painted_with_bolder_colors_in_glass_dome_wooden_base.html

Unlike my other cuts where the white is the actual design, here the black cutouts show the design of the woman picking a pomegranate. A simpler design aesthetic.

Industry Trade Shows enhance your corporate profile. Innovative and eye-catching exhibition stands attract and influence people, creating a long lasting impression on prospective customers. A sleek exhibition stand will also enhance and cement your company’s reputation.

Exhibition banners are the focal point of any exhibition, therefore this is where you need to spend the money on professional design. Savvy customers can easily tell the difference between professional and homemade banners. Remember that the corporate image portrayed at an exhibition is what people will remember about you.

Your graphic designer can help you design the perfect banner and other exhibition materials. If you are going to exhibit your services at a trade show, do it professionally and get it right. Using a graphic designer to design your exhibition materials is an investment in your business, an investment that can be used time and time again.

Papercut in Canberra can design all of your exhibition materials for your business. We work with you to create eye-catching designs for your business.

Check out Peter Callesen. I absolutely love his stuff. I can’t remember the last time I said that.

A beauty

Its a lovely sunny day in London and I’m about to head out but as usual I’ve spent the morning on the computer with a cup of tea. I’ve been reading blogs and generally surfing the internet whilst listening to some new music a friend has given me to check out.

On a blog I read regularly and absolutely love I found a nifty little feature! Style Bubble’s Susie has a lovely little map of excellent little places to shop in London. Its a google map where she has marked the location of the shops with a little comment from her. I love it. In fact I might just start my own map! It can be hard to remember where all the little treasures are in this big city and also it’d be great to be able to share places I’ve found with friends. Watch this space as I might just be posting my own shopping map up soon.

Check out Style Bubble’s shopping map, and her lovely blog!

(This lovely papercut map of London is from Famille Summerbelle)

If the girl next to you looks like THIS, please don't annoy her! It's Zelda and she's there for important blog purposes!

Imagine you’re sitting there in the cinema and want to watch New Moon for the 18th time just to swoon a bit more about all the sexy guys. That’s the only reason cause you already know every word of each single dialogue by heart. You remember every tiny detail. This time you just want to sit there and enjoy the little things. The sound of Edward’s voice, the way Jacob takes his shirt off real sloooowly… But then you realize the girl sitting next to you. She’s all dressed up, she even wears a wolf-shirt (Uhoh, bad sign!). By the time the New Moon sign appears on screen she’s already screaming so hard that you’re sure you won’t hear one word of what Edward or Jacob say cause she’ll over-tune everything. So what are you going to do now? Leave the cinema? No way, you paid for the ticket and you want to see the movie. Again. You already know New Moon, you know what’s going to happen. Well, why not giving it all back to this girl and annoy the crap out of her in return? That sound’s fun, right? Don’t know how to do it though? No problem, here comes our “10 things to annoy the person sitting next to you in New Moon” list. Enjoy!

Attention, Jasper's hungry... and sporting an awful wig!

1. As soon as Bella exclaims “Ouch,papercut!” start screaming “Nooo Jasper, don’t eat her, don’t kill Bella, noooo!” and cover your eyes with your hands.

2. Everytime Edward shows up in his new charcoal car, yell “Hey, that’s not silver!”.

3. After Edward left, start asking “Where’s Edward? When does he come back?” every five minutes.

4. Every time something is the tiniest bit different from the book, get your copy of New Moon out of your handbag, start frantically turning the pages while muttering “That’s not right! Stephenie Meyer did not write it like that!”. Then start reading the according passage out loud.

5. Every time Jasper or long-haired Jacob turn up, exclaim “Uhoh, baaad wig.”.

He's seventeen... but legal in Georgia!

6. Whenever Jacob takes off his shirt start muttering “He’s seventeen, he’s seventeen, he’s seventeen…”.

7. Everytime the wolfpack turns up , throw your fist up in the air and start screaming “Jorts!” or “Wolfpack-pride!”.

8. Halfway through the movie change your pattern. Stop the “He’s seventeen” during the shirtless-Taylor-scenes and go for “Legal in Georgia, legal in Georgia, legal in Georgia…” instead.

9. When you see Rob…uhm, Edward standing in Volterra about to walk into the sunlight, start frantically yelling “Ruuun Bella, ruuun!”. Then go on mumbling “Don’t stumble, please don’t stumble…”.

10. Cover your eyes with your hands and scream throughout the whole Volturi fight scene. Go like this: “Noooo, don’t kill him, leave him alone! You can’t kill Edward, he’s too young to die! He’s still a virgin!”

Okay, now go to the cinema, again. If you can’t remember all the points, feel free to print this out, laminate it and put it into your handbag… just in case.

a

Off to stuff my copy of New Moon into my handbag

Saveyoursoul

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PS: Watch out for our great video-special tomorrow!

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Any other ideas what you could do to have a little fun while watching New Moon? How often have you already been to the cinema to watch it? Do you already know everything by heart? What crazy New Moon experience did you have? Leave us a comment or e-mail us!

(images: google and me)

So as Zelda and I are both currently not living in the US, we won’t be able to see New Moon until november 25th (Yeah, I know we already told you that yesterday…). We got tickets to the premiere but still we have to wait five days longer than the rest of you. Our life sucks! We’re so pissed I even considered flying to LA just to watch New Moon a few days earlier. But then I calculated that for the money I would have to invest in a flight ticket I could see the movie about 98 times on the big screen here. 54 times if I buy popcorn and a diet coke every time. 27 times if I always invite Zelda and buy popcorn and a diet coke to share with her. So I decided I can make it through five more days (four by the time this post gets published) by distracting myself with countless blog post. Honestly, I will be so productive! To shorten the time a bit I occupied myself by making a list of things Zelda and I will do in honor to New Moon before the movie finally premieres here. Another top ten list, of course! What else?

1. We will give each other nicely wrapped presents, try to open them, then throw them on the floor while dramatically screaming “Ouch, papercut!” I hope Jasper won’t be anywhere near us, otherwise this might end badly…

Jorts? Check. Tattoo? Check. Abs? Check!

2. We will buy some old motorcycles, find a sexy guy who teaches us riding those and then land ourselves in the emergency room. Honestly, we’re so sure to end up in the hospital…

3. We will cut off our old jeans to have the cool self-made jorts the wolfpack is wearing all the time.

4. We will go to a tattoo studio to get the original wolfpack-pride tattoo. Maybe we won’t be brave enough for that and just paint it on our arms with a black marker… unless we’re drunk as hell… Not impossible but improbable, so it will rather be the black marker version but whatever!

Oh please, let him be the one who saves us!

5. We will drive to a cliff near us. Well, there isn’t really a cliff near us but we’ll find one, promise! Then we will try cliff diving, totally unskilled but fearless nevertheless. Maybe we can hear Edward’s voice while falling down. Not very probable but worth a try. Because hey, it’s Edward’s voice we’re talking about here and there’s probably nothing I wouldn’t do for Edward…(*false…uhm, I think…*) At least someone (oh god, please let him be a sexy super-muscular Indian boy… shirtless!) is bound to think we’re trying to commit suicide and come to rescue us.

6. We will lend us a yellow Porsche and drive around like complete maniacs in honor to Alice.

7. We will travel to Italy to visit Volterra. I’ve already been there about 10 years ago with my family so it will be quite cool to go there again. Hope Heidi won’t catch us…

Shirtless Robward in all his glory

8. We will go to a church near us (something I haven’t done for years except for some friend’s wedding), take off our shirts (not our bras though, we’re not that slutty!) and walk out into the sunlight. Yeah, sunlight in november is pretty rare and it will probably be damn cold. But we’ll do it, in honor to New Moon. Yep, we’re so unbelievably dedicated! Then hopefully someone will run towards us and nearly knock us over… and so save us from us further embarrassment.

9. We will get airbrushed-on abs just like Rob has in the Volterra scene.

10. We will hold a vote on our mortality and whether we think Edward should bite us or not. (SPOILER: He should! Cause I feel like I so belong with him.)

Okay, you caught us… To be honest, we won’t do all of that stuff. Maybe five out of ten. We’ll take pictures for you though, promise!

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Off to look up where the nearest cliff is

Saveyoursoul

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What else could we do in honor to New Moon? Did you do anything special for the premiere or before watching the movie? Leave us a comment or e-mail us!

(images: google again)

Papercutting is the art of cutting paper designs.  The art has evolved uniquely all over the world to adapt to different cultural styles.  The oldest surviving paper cut is a symmetrical circle from the 6th century found in Xinjiang China. Learn more about this ancient craft…

History

Chinese paper cutting as an art formhas existed for thousands of years, with a long history featuring both national and regional themes.  The oldest surviving paper cut is a symmetrical circle from the 6th century found in Xinjiang china.  Since paper was first created in China, it was natural that this artform developed here first .

During the Han Dynasty, from 220 BCE – 220 CE, paper was  a precious commodity.  Most of the people with access to this valuable paper for an entertainment were usually nobles in royal palaces^. Some uses included women pasting golden and silver foil cuttings onto their hair at the temples, and men using them in sacred rituals. On a more serious note, as is still partly the case outside of China, various paper objects and figures used to be buried with the dead or were burned at the funeral ceremony. They also often served as decorations for sacrificial offerings to the ancestors and gods.

Skipping ahead several hundred years, from the 7th to 13th century, papercutting became popular especially during Chinese holidays and festivals. A scholar during the Song Dynasty ( 960-1279 CE), scholar Chou Mi mentioned several paper cutters who cut paper with scissors into a great variety of designs and characters in different styles, and a young man who could even cut characters and flowers inside his sleeve^!

As paper became more commonplace and widespread, the art spread to the rest of the world in the 14th century. Throughout the Qing Dynasty (1644 to 1912),  many papercutting skills were developed including drafting and the use of smoked papers.  During these years, papercuts were also used to be used as patterns, especially for embroidery and lacquer work.

Today in China

Chinese arts and culture, often have a significant symbolic component. One example is Chinese calligraphy, where single Chinese characters are often used to describe some meaning or representation. Other symbols, like the Chinese Zodiac are still popular in today’s Chinese papercutting.  In Chinese culture, the forms in the papercuts may reflect important wishes and goals, such as prosperity, health, or harvest.

Craftspeople also focus on themes of daily life. Such designs may include natural forms of plants and animals, young people paying a New Year’s call to family, or homes and other familiar places. The 1980’s saw a resurgence of papercutting in China. Like papercutting the world over, papercuttings are chiefly decorative. In China, you primarily find them ornamenting walls, windows, doors, columns, mirrors, lamps and lanterns in homes.  Entrances are decorated with paper cut outs is supposed to bring good luck.

People still  create papercuts for special occasions, such as major family events.  They are also a traditional ornament for everyday objects. For example, red paper cuttings are a traditional and required decoration on the tea set and on  pieces of furniture. A big red paper character ‘Xi’ (happiness) is a traditional must on the newlywed’s door.  They have special significance at festivals and on holidays. At the New Year’s Festival for example, entrances are decorated with papercuttings, which are supposed to bring good luck.

The attraction of the traditional Chinese folk art of papercutting lies in its apparent simplicity: a typical papercut requires no paints or brushes, only an ordinary pair of scissors or a knife, and a single sheet of paper. Unique among Chinese folk arts, papercutting’s influence on other fields and its number and variety of products reveal the depth of its roots in popular culture as a mens of beautifying the everyday environment.

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Låt: Papercut

Betyg: AAAA+
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Finns på Spotify: JA

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I’m in hibernation at the moment and I’m using the time that I’m not sleeping to try and flex my creative muscles again. I’ve started to begin experimenting with papercutting (loving the work of Rob Ryan). My first is no way near as accomplished beautiful or profound but it’s a start…..

my first papercut

I have a paper cut on my pinky and it hurts pretty bad. I hate paper cuts.

Don’t know what to write about. I’m in class once again. Today has sucked. I just want to nap, but I have a meeting after this class, and then I’m going to nap for like 30 minutes and then heather will want to go to dinner, which is fine because I’m currently starving. ug

NaNoWriMo Update: I’m at 29,300 words. Pretty good. I’m still ahead by like 3 days, so I need to get writing, which is what I’ll be doing tonight. I’ve been getting through a really long creepy part and that’s been a blast. I’m not done with it yet which is very exciting. I love the story I’m writing. I really like where its gone. I wonder… Would you guys like to read an excerpt? haha Cause I’d like to get a little bit of feed back. I’ll put it at the end of this entry.

hmmm. idk what else. Nothing is really going on. This weekend was pretty awesome. My family and i went out to dinner for my mom’s birthday, which was actually yesterday. I only stayed until saturday. Didn’t get anything done while I was home, but I got a lot done sunday. Megan’s birthday is tomorrow and I got her some AWESOME presents. that’s right presentS. plural. She’s going to love it. And we’re going to Shamrock…aka Shammys. So I’m excited about that.

THANKSGIVING BREAK IS NEXT WEEK! SHANE IS COMING! My family didn’t tell me but the last week was kind of up in the air when it comes to Shane coming to thanksgiving because he didn’t know if he could afford it, BUT HE FIGURED IT OUT AND HE’S COMING! I’m glad my family didn’t tell me because they knew it would depress me and I’m in sketchy moods as it is, that would have made me never want to leave my room. But Shane promised, and I’ve known for a long time that he would be coming, thank god. Its tradition and when it doesn’t happen, it ruins it. Thanksgiving is my favorite holiday because i get to spend the ENTIRE time with my awesome family and our extended family; the pattons. hehe or Shane. Cause the other pattons don’t always come. But Shane usually does…except last year and that stunk. I love thanksgiving! WOOT. Thanksgiving rules. I like thanksgiving more than Christmas or any other holiday.

Alright, I’m done. i can’t think of anything else to talk about. leave me something to talk about in the comments people!

Love Emily

EXCERPT:

Kate was running along when she noticed a large dark shape out of the corner of her eye. Startled, she stopped quickly, nearly falling over in the process. She turned and saw that the large shape was a cabin. Old and in need of repair, but a cabin. She walked through the woods towards it, and stood in front of it. It was small, and all the windows were blackened. The front porch was slanted from years of disrepair. The screen door was barely hanging on to the hinges, and the door behind that had a large hole in it. It had two levels, and a back door that was partially open. Kate stood at the back, staring at the door.
To enter or not to enter she thought, hands on her hips. She circled around to the front again, looking around. There was a garage down a path a little ways that looked to be in the same shape. The windows were blackened out again, and there were plants and grass growing around the large door and the regular side door. No sign that anyone had been around for quite a long time. The cabin was the same. Grass and plants had started coming up through the wooden stairs that led up the porch. Kate took that as a sign that the cabin was abandoned and started up the steps. Kate was about to push the door open when two arms wrapped around her from the back and pulled her away. Kate screamed, her headphones falling from her ears.
“Oh, my god.” The person said from behind her, laughing a little. Kate shoved her elbow back and whoever it was groaned. Kate twisted herself away, turning around to see her attacker. Luke was standing behind her, bent over a little, but still laughing.
“Holy shit!” she said, bending down to pick up her MP3 player. “What the hell are you doing?!”
“I called your name several times.”
“I couldn’t hear you!” she said, holding up her MP3 player. “You couldn’t just tap me or something?”
“You still would have freaked out.” He pointed out, standing up straight. He was in running shorts and shoes. Kate suddenly felt like there was too much skin showing on both of them for having just met. She crossed her arms, and he noticed. “Anyway, I had to stop you from going into the cabin.”
“Why? Does someone live in there or something?” she asked.
“No, but no one goes in there.”
She looked at him, watching as he smiled at her. He was cute, and he had really great abs.
“Why not?”
“Cause of the guy who used to live there.” He said, turning and stepping off the porch. “Come on. I will tell you on the way back.”
She stood there, arms crossed. He was amused. Luke could tell she was embarrassed that she’d freaked out as much as she had, but this was too fun.
“The guy who lived in there liked to kill children.” He said simply. If she was shocked, she didn’t show it on her face. Her thumb did do a quick swipe across her middle finger though.
“Really?” she asked.
“You don’t believe me?”
“Not really.” She said, shrugging. Luke was enjoying this.
He walked up the steps and pulled the screen door back. He pointed at the door frame where there were several spots that were less dirty than the others.
“That’s where the police tape was hung up when they found him.”
Kate looked closer, leaning in front of Luke. He got her ponytail in his face, and backed away. Allison would be so pissed if I smelled like another girl he thought.
“That could be anything.” Kate said, looking at him,
“Fine.” He said. “Look through the window. There’s still a ton of police tape up in there.”
Kate stood on her toes and looked inside. There was police tape up. She stepped away, looking at Luke, wondering if he was serious or if this was a new girl prank.
“Still don’t believe me?” he asked.
“I don’t know.”
“Well, look it up.” He said, laughing. “It was all over the news.”
“I will.” She said, nodding.
“I’m heading back.” He said.
“Me too.”
They ran back together, not talking. When they reached the hotel, Luke slowed down and motioned for her to follow him. She pulled her headphones out and followed him down the hallway.
“Where are we going?” she asked.
“The library.” He replied, nodding at two large doors in front of them. It was a small library. A regular hotel room had been converted into a room with bookshelves living the walls. In the middle of the room there was a bank of computers. Luke sat down at one and Kate stood at his side, looking around as he typed things into Google. “Ok. No one in town really likes to talk about what happened, so I wouldn’t go around asking.”
He leaned back, pointing at the screen. Kate leaned over him, reading the article. It was short, just telling people that they’d solved the murders that had been outstanding in the town. Kate read it fast, Luke watching her eyes move from left to right quickly. There was no doubting that she was pretty and Luke knew that was going to lead to trouble. Before Allison, Luke had had several girlfriends, all of them trivial and mostly meaningless. Allison was a serious person, meaning their relationship was just as serious. Luke would have been lying if he had said that this was ok with him. The first girlfriend he’d had where he wanted to put in a serious effort and he ends up with Allison, who was at this moment, probably planning their future wedding so they were “prepared when the time comes”.
Kate stood up straight, putting her hands on her waist. She was reminded again that there was a shocking lack of clothes in the room.
“Ok, I guess I believe you.” She said. Luke smiled a little.
“Good.” He replied.
“What happened to the guy?”
“He’s dead.”

MAKE IT LAST

Framing artwork is as simple as ABC. Mount. Mat. Add glass. Frame.  However, some framing techniques and materials stand the test of time…and others don’t. If you want to protect your treasured artwork for the long haul, it’s important to use the right materials and techniques.

Framing artwork is a simple process: Mounting is the first step in framing a picture. The art is mounted to a sturdy backer, or mounting board, to keep it flat and rigid. Matting is the second step. A window mat is placed over the mounting board and print. The edge of the opening in the window mat overlaps the edges of the picture, sandwiching it between the window mat and mounting board. The purpose of the window mat is to keep the surface of the art from direct contact with the glass. A second window mat may be applied for what is known as “double matting”. In this case, the second mat is cut to allow about 1/4″ of the first mat to show immediately around the image. Now comes the glass. Glass with the same outer dimensions as the backer and window mat is placed over everything. This glass, window mat, picture, and mounting board sandwich is then put inside a frame and secured there. Simple, isn’t it? There are a few variations. for instance, sometimes artwork is triple matted to allow more room between the print and glass. This can also give a different decorative appearance.

What is archival framing? Simply put, archival framing is the use of PH nuetral materials (mats, mounting boards, pastes etc.), UV glass, and methods that create an enclosed environment in the frame that protect your art.  Archival framing materials have conservation quality set by the standards of the Library of Congress, indicating their ability to last a lifetime and beyond.  You might also hear archival framing called conservation framing.

Why bother? When you find a piece of art that you love, you want it to last, not disintegrate.  That is why you want to only use archival quality framing materials that don’t  contain acids that can break down your artwork. This is particularly important for a fragile medium like paper which is very sensitive to environmental factors including extremes in temperature, moisture, and exposure to sunlight.

Don’t skimp: Everything that touches your work should act as a safeguard against damage. When you bring your original artwork to the framer, make sure archival REALLY means archival. This type of framing would include:

• Mounting: Use acid-free foamcore or other backing. Archival mounting method for valuable works uses archival tapes or pastes and rice paper to hinge the art to an acid free board. Hinges are the invisible attachments between your art work and the backing board. It is important that these not have any acidic content and that the hinges be easily removable without damage to the art work.
• Glass: UV blocking acrylic glazing helps fend off harmful indoor and outdoor light rays that deteriorate pigments and dyes.  Without the proper glass, paper can become faded, discolored, and brittle, causing irreversible damage that ruins the artwork.  All light affects pigments in art. Natural sunlight is the most damaging light source with fluorescent light ranking second due to the amount of UV it emits. Iridescent light is damaging as well to pigments, though not as harsh. If there is a precious work that you want to keep safe from the harmful UV rays that are emitted from natural and indoor light, I highly recommend UV glass.
  
• Matting: A mat is the paper border that surrounds the art. Other than adding an aesthetic to the art being framed, the functional purpose is to keep glass away from works of art. This allows air to circulate around the art and prevents condensation that may collect, due to changing atmospheric conditions, to settle on the paper. For works on paper, the condensation may promote mold or mildew.Acid-free rag mat should be made entirely of cotton fibers. If you like the numbers, Cotton fiber is 99% acid-free; it is then buffered to pH 8.2 with an alkaline reserve of 2-3% to counteract environmental acids and air pollution which may come in contact with the art. The high pH levels of acid-free paper products delay discoloration and deterioration over time.  BEWARE:  Some so-called “acid-free” mat boards made from wood pulp. While the acid content of these boards has been reduced from that found in the raw pulp, it has not been eliminated. The buffering agents used on the surfaces are only effective against airborne compounds, and do not protect against heat and light activation of acidic elements remaining in the board.

when patrick and i were out visiting the upper peninsula we took a walk through the woods in marquette.  we lost the path and ended up bushwhacking off the path for the majority of the walk.  but the early part of the walk was through a forest of pines, i am not sure entirely as to what type of pine they were, as my tree i.d. especially with coniferous trees is not so great.   i kept expecting to see baba yaga’s house over the next ridge.  there was something otherworldly and magical about the forest.  as of late i have been reading a lot of folktales, as i have been playing around with creating a larger body of work that revolves around the visual retelling of old folktales.  i tend to be drawn to the eastern european tales most of all, and i contribute this to my lithuanian heritage.  granted if you set me down in lithuania i would be as much of an outsider as anyone else, having grown up purely american.  baba yaga is an interesting character, she is typically the evil witch or hag.  she flies around in a mortar and uses a pestle to steer while sweeping up her tracks with a silver birch broom.  her house rests upon dancing chicken legs and the front door will not reveal itself unless you ask.  if you do ask the keyhole is a mouth filled with sharp teeth.  the entire house is surrounded by a fence of human bones, as fence posts, and each bone is topped with a human skull.  baba yaga also kidnaps small children to eat.  the nice things about folktales is that there are always more than one version, so you are able to pick out the details you would prefer and use those.  some tales portray baba yaga as a wise old woman who helps lost souls find their way, or offers advice to heros.  women almost always seem to fall into several predetermined roles in fairy tales and folk tales.  there is of course the virgin, or the maiden if you prefer, who is beautiful,  innocent, and usually victimized in some way.  she is either clever and does the saving, or she is helpless and needs to be saved by some privileged  dude on a horse.  another role would be the benevolent mother, nurturing, kind and helpful.  but the third is the crone, witch or hag, who is nasty.  she may be an old witch in the woods or a scheming stepmother, but there are no doubts to her nastiness and malevolence.  baba yaga is definitely malevolent.  so when i returned home i started working on a papercut of babyaga’s house in the woods.  this particular one is for sale at the detroit artists market.

Your design brief helps your graphic designer understand your needs

Design Brief

Specific Information

We’ve covered the most important parts of writing your design brief in Part 1 and Part 2, such as Who you are and Who your audience is. This blog will focus on the final stages of getting your design brief right.

These are:

Budget

Providing a budget helps graphic designers know whether or not you are serious. For example, if you are thinking of budgeting $100 for a logo design, then your graphic designer will need to discuss realistic costs with you upfront.

Deadline

Let your graphic designer know if you have a specific deadline, taking into account the stages of consultation, concept development, production and delivery.

Design Examples

The more clues you give about your preferences, the more likely the designer will be able to produce something close to your ideal design. If there is a particular style that you like or dislike, then explain why in the brief.

Specifications

Are there a particular image, or specific copy, to be used? If so, who will be providing the image and copy?

Finally, ensure your graphic designer knows where your design will be used. Will it be used on the web, on the side of a bus, on your stationery, or on your car?

A successful design brief always contains the following:

1. Who you are
2. Who your audience is
3. Specific information

Please contact us should you require any help with your design brief, or with graphic design in general. Papercut is a sustainable graphic design studio in Canberra, Australia.

I wanted to invite you all to the opening of the Art For The Holidays Show at the Detroit Artists Market. “This DAM annual favorite offers original art from more than 100 local artists in a fun and festive market setting. With hundreds of artworks at every price point, Art For The Holidays helps you shop local, shop smart, and shop with style!” I have some work for sale in this show. The opening is this Friday from 6-9pm. The show runs from November 06, 2009 – December 23, 2009 and is open on Noel Night. The Detroit Artists Market is located at 4719 Woodward Avenue Detroit, MI 482014719 Public Opening – Friday, November 6, 2009, 6-9pm Noel Night – Saturday, December 5, 2009, 5-9:30pm

p.s. these pumpkins are attending, and they are selling themselves