Be patient toward all that is unsolved in your heart and try to love the questions themselves. Do not now seek the answers, which cannot be given to you because you would not be able to live them. And the point is to live everything. Live the questions now, and perhaps without even knowing it, you will live along some distant day into the answers. - Rainer Maria Rilke

Monday, February 28, 2011

Week 6, Day 2: It's a Bit Sketchy

Sketching
Tonight while flipping channels trying to find something decent to watch (and with no success may I add) I picked up my sketch book just started sketching.  After sketching pieces of the sculpture, I did a sketch of a random pattern of squares and circles.  I like the direction of the detail piece I started but didn't finish....it got all wonky since I didn't do a rough sketch first and because I started it at the edge of the paper. What was I thinking?





This could be from Star Wars!


I look at this and then look at the inspiration photo
and wonder, where did it come from?



Lagniappe....cajun for a little something extra
Here are some additional photos that K took of the sculpture.  Some are out of focus, but I love the lighting so I thought I'd share.  












Until tomorrow...

Week 6: Inspiration

This week my daughter K went out to take pictures for my inspiration photo.  She and her dad went to uptown Charlotte, walked around and captured some images.  K loves taking photos. She was so excited that I would let her do this.  I think she did a great job!


The Inspiration Photo

I love contrast in this photo between shapes,
color and form.



All K's Photos

This was K's favorite






































































What do you think, did I choose the right one?  Or is there another you'd like to see me use....I still have 46 or so weeks!

Week 5: It's A Wrap

A Bit of Reflection

This is the end of the 5th week in my creative journey.  I can't believe it's already been over a month! Before I started this challenge, I was worried about it being too difficult and hard. And although there are days where I do struggle to find the time to devote to it, I look forward to doing it.

One of the hardest parts of this challenge has been putting my work on the web and sharing it.  I don't know who looks at it, or what they think of it. Before I started on this journey, D and I talked about what my expectations were for the blog. Would I be willing to do take this journey if no one ever looked at my blog, or commented on it.  Was I taking this journey for me and my personal growth or was I trying to get support from adoring fans or somehow make money from it?  How am I going to stay focused on the journey and not all the hoopla (so far there is none, so I don't have to worry!)?

This is a journey for myself, a focus in my life and on myself.  I am willing to share my journey, and hope that I can somehow inspire others.  But, it is hard not to get caught up in the numbers, to see growth and more followers and not get overly exited.  It's also easy to get overwhelmed with now having followers  and feeling the pressure to get something great out every day.  My original challenge was to get something posted everyday – good bad or ugly.  I have problems with bad and ugly posts, the ones that I either don't have the time to develop, or they don't go the look like what I imagined in my head. Those are usually the days I don't post, 'cuz, once it's out there, it's out there! After all, who wants to portray themselves out there in bad or ugly way?  It's something I will work on...it's part of my journey and if I am willing to it, I need to share it all!

Week 5 Recap  





Day 1:  Inspiration – Signs, Words & Typography








Day 2:  It's A Little Sketchy







Day 3:  Fun with Fonts





Day 4:  More Fun with Fonts










Day 5: Type Design, Part 1 & Part 2










Day 6: Freebie Friday, Part 1 & Part 2

Sunday, February 27, 2011

Week 5, Day 6: Freebie Friday Card

Freebie Friday, Saturday, OK, FREEBIE SUNDAY.  I've been working on the card this afternoon.  This week's card is a typography design of my favorite quote.  Enjoy!

The Image:

 


The Card:

The Download Link

The original greyscale image was created in Adobe Illustrator, and then I took it into Adobe Photoshop to add the effects and finish it up.  I can't say exactly how long it took me because I tend to work on it for a little while, put it down, and then come back and work on it again.  I was finished with it about 5 times before I was decided to say....Done, Really!

Thanks to arbent.net for the freebie background downloads!

Week 5, Day 5: Type Design, Part 2

I'm not sure why, but this was a real challenge for me to complete. I think that sometimes when I work hard on one project (I have been focused on a "big" logo project this week) I become so focused (like having tunnel vision creativity) that all my random thinking pertains to that one focus.  I've been thinking logo concepts all week. Other times, I can do 20 things at the same time.  It's so weird, or maybe it's just me that's weird!

This is my greyscale graphic of the quote.  I will develop it further and with color for the card later today.


Patience is definitely not one of my virtues.  Maybe that is why I love this quote so much.  Because one day we might just find the answers and not even realize it.

Saturday, February 26, 2011

Week 5, Day 6: Freebie Friday, Part 1

Tonight I went out with some friends for a GNO — Girl's Night Out.  So Freebie Friday will become Freebie Saturday.  I will have the card finished tomorrow.

It was such an enjoyable evening.  We had a great time laughing, eating and talking. I even took a picture of everyone to post here.  Unfortunately, I can't find the cord to upload it onto my computer....bummer....I know the girls are disappointed!

I do, however, have my fortune to share with you.
Well-arranged time is the surest sign of a well-arranged mind. 
I guess that just explains it all!

'Til tomorrow!

Friday, February 25, 2011

Week 5, Day 5: Type Design, Part 1

One thing I love to do is play with type. Below is a Christmas Card I designed a couple of years ago.  It looks easy but the challenge is making every word unique, getting it to fit, and not making it to heavy or light visually, and creating emphasis where you want it.


The photo is K when she was Christened,
my mom made her dress.
Card was created in Adobe Illustrator.

So today I am using my favorite quote to show interesting ways of creating art with typography.

stay tuned for the rest of the story.....

Thursday, February 24, 2011

Week 5, Day 4: More Fun with Fonts

To make D happy (hi D!!) I am posting that none of what I did today had anything to do with my blog, I didn't even have time to contemplate what I was going to do.  It was a busy day: K up and off to school, home to work on yesterday's post, work on logo project, clean kitchen, work on logo project, laundry, lunch (cooked by my hubby), school for S, laundry, dinner, stop at store for a few items, get K to do her homework, back to store to get K medicine, designed tshirt for school play, build balloon car with K for school, try to figure out why my scanner won't work, got scanner to work, sent logo sketches to client, phew, I didn't feel like I did that much today, but I guess I did.

So here are a few bits of the sketching (of fonts) I did today.  I can't show you the whole images because it's a work in progress for a client:




















Then I remembered a tutorial I wanted to do, and I was hooked!  This is what I did:



It's liquid filled words. 

Although I'm not quite sure exactly everything I did -- the tutorial didn't explain what I was doing.  But I do know what I need to go back and learn. 

Wednesday, February 23, 2011

Week 5, Day 3: Fun with Fonts

There is often a problem with waiting to work on my challenge at night, is that sometimes, life gets the better of me.  Some would say that I should work ahead, but I think that kind of defeats the purpose of a daily blog.  Life is unpredictable and we just have to roll with the punches!

Last night was a prime example:  I have been fighting a sinus infection and at times have trouble keeping my eyes open.  While waiting for K to finish her homework on the computer, I fell asleep. Next thing I know the alarm is going off at 6:00 this morning.

So today I am working on 2 challenges.  As you recall, my challenges this week are going to be a little different because I am working with typography.  So today I have played a little bit with the fonts and how the meaning of the word can become distorted by the use of fonts and colors.






























If you think of other words (and it doesn't have to be pairs of antonyms) let me know and I will find a font and color that would convey the feeling/meaning of the word.