I always hated the word “modernity.” Brings back horrible flashbacks to art history. Maybe it was just the way my professor pronounced it, but it rubs me the wrong way. Definitely not the case with these super modern graduation announcements by Anna Salazar of yummyberries, which are bold and graphic. Nicely done, Anna.
I think they’re just perfect for a high school graduation. The senior photo in the inside is a nice touch.
The finished product! I was happy with these invitations and so was my client. I added the design to my shop if you’re interested in purchasing. I’m thinking about making a new series of printable designs too that I’d like to have up soon. Any specific printables you’d like to see? Birthday cards? Invitations?
But really, is there ever a wrong time for tacos? I think not. That’s why this year for my birthday, I’m having a little get together with friends and tacos and maybe a little gambling. This is the invitation I came up with for my friends and family. The design comes in two options: The Senor and The Senorita. I did this because I wanted to send invites to people who in some cases live together (my sister and her roommate, for example) but I didn’t want to send them the exact same invitation.
I put this design for sale in my shop which you can access by clicking the link at the top of the page, or clicking on any of the pictures above. You can also find them in ThePaperGnome etsy store as well. You may be planning your own mexican fiesta birthday party, or maybe a Cinco de Mayo celebration, and these invitations might be just your cup of tea.
Graduation time is just around the corner. Above is a design I put together last year for my graduation from Winthrop University. I’ll be back later this week to show what this design looks like printed and assembled with envelopes, and you can expect to see them in my shop as well as ThePaperGnome Etsy shop. I’ll also have the finished Stock The Bar invitations, as well as some Mexican Fiesta birthday party invitations I put together last week. I’ve been a busy bee lately, so stay tuned.
I love tea towels. I use them to dry my dishes and my hands and to add a pop of color to my kitchen. Plus it’s so easy to find fun graphic tea towels like the ones below.
Kauniste Satoa Tea Towel - $24
Alphabet Dry Tea Towel - £9.95
Copenhagen Tea Towel - EUR 11.00
The main reason I started this blog, and opened my Etsy shop is because I want to expand myself as a graphic designer. After graduating in May, I had a sort of not-so-mid-life-crisis where I wasn’t sure what direction to go. I needed a job to pay my bills and started looking like my life depended on it. I found very few positions in my area, and even less that I was qualified for. Most positions expected you to be not only a print designer, but a web designer who dabbles in flash. I focused primarily on print design (because I love it) and never even took a web design course. After a few months of being unemployed, I had to lower my standards and start looking for a job which had nothing to do with design just to pay my bills. Having a brand new degree and a pile of student loans to start paying back and taking a job that has nothing to do with what you went to school for is not the best feeling to say the least.
I’m still working at the first job I found three months after graduating. It pays well, but the hours are long and I’m only a temp. I’ve been laid off three times since August, the longest period of which lasted from Nov. 18th until January 23rd. I took advantage of that time and tried to get back to what I love: design. It was over this break that I made ThePaperGnome 2012 Calendar (which still hasn’t sold). That was a bummer and I didn’t design anything else for a while until my friend came to me and asked me to do the Bachelorette Party Invitations and the Stock The Bar Party Invitations which sparked the desire to design in me once again. Now I’m super excited to get back to work and start filling my Etsy Shop with more than just an unsold calendar. I’ve got big plans.
What plans, you say? Well I don’t want to spill all the details just yet, but after lots of research, I’ve decided to try my hand and gocco printing. Never heard of it? Neither had I until recently. It’s a Japanese tabletop screenprinting machine that is out of production but still fairly easy to find online and reasonably priced. I’m thinking of buying one soon, and I’m excited about the possibilities. Just look at these wedding invitations that Ellie Snow of Mint made.
Look at that type! Her invitations are just beautiful and I am so excited to see what I can create with a gocco. Any readers heard of the gocco before? Any success/horror stories? I’d love to hear your input.
So this is what I came up with for the Stock the Bar Party Invitation I was working on. I haven’t put together a full mock up, but it’s going to be that label pasted onto cardstock versions of this design:
… with a few alterations. The bottle was designed before I made the label and it’s going to need to be shaped a little differently, more narrow and vertical to work best with the label. I think they’re going to turn out nicely. Any comments or suggestions are welcome.
Thank God for typesetting or I would never be able to make anything I design look fabulous, Unlike Kristen of KFD Designs who made these gorgeous hand drawn wedding invitations. I wish I had that kind of control and quality to my penmanship.
Face Stockholm Cucumber Bubble Bath
… a nice clean label. Not to mention cucumber! bubble bath. Doesn’t that sound luxurious?
