new name / new business-y stuff

Oh, change. It's exciting, always. But let's be honest: It also almost always looses it's charm before long. Once I incorporated the studio under a new name, I had to got to tackle the colossal chore of updating all of my business communication documents (that's just a fancy word for things like business cards, letterhead, invoices, envelopes and other business-y stuff). Let me tell you: a dirty chore it is.

Happily, I've waded all the way through and things are looking pretty darn bright from this side of the to-do list.

See those business cards? They're just one of the pieces I'm proud to unveil for Clark & Co. (You probably saw the website placeholder last week.)

Studio Olivine so kindly partnered with me to letterpress the cards; I can now turn my logo loose in the real world. Next time you see me, ask for one. Then, you can turn it into a keychain, necklace pendant, hang tag, gift tag, dog tag or any other kind of tag you'd like. It's ridiculous fun, right? (Read about the luxury and awesomeness of letterpress from some previous client work while you're here.)

Friends and clients, thanks for bearing with me through this transition. Even if we don't work together, I'm (sadly) certain you've been subject to a look and/or word that contained a tinge of my self-inflicted suffering. Being self-employed is hard work! Fortunately, it's also completely worth all the work that's hard. As for the work that's not hard....er....well....that's conversation's for another day.

:)

Bryan Rupp Photography | Sneak Peek!

This morning I have a little sneak peek for you. It's another letterpress business card and it's for Bryan Rupp, of Bryan Rupp Photography. Bryan and I both went to George Fox University. He transferred in and quickly became known as "Awesome Bryan" across campus because he was just that nice...aaaaand he used the word "awesome" very liberally.

After school Bryan took up photography and his hobby quickly grew into a successful business. I've enjoyed watching Bryan's work (he's really good!) from afar and am now thrilled to be his designer, helping him amplify his brand. He came to me with a logo and we'll be developing even more once the business card is complete. Below you'll see the plates and a preview of both the front and back of the card.

We're running the cards at Brown Printing here in Portland. I'm ever-awed by the letterpress process and especially like working with the crew at Brown. They know their stuff.

It will be really fun to show you the end product. There's a special shape in store for this business card. Bryan and I will reveal it in it's finished form in the new year. Until then, enjoy the holidays!

A little letterpress love.

As promised, here's a little peek at the first press check I did for Melissa Tomeoni's business cards. We ran the cards with Brown Printing in North Portland. I've raved about them before. Although I already knew I'd fully trust them with letterpress work, I was never given the opportunity to work with them on a letterpress job until now. And after all is said and done, I trust them even more.

My first review - the emboss/deboss was flip-flopped, but it was gorgeous.

This is the counter die. The other die is above, out of the photo. The paper is pressed between the two to create a double-sided blind deboss/emboss.

The cluttering of tools, tape and paper makes me so happy.

This is Dick. See Dick print.

All kidding aside, Dick's been with Brown since the beginning - over 30 years ago. It's refreshing to see someone who is whole-heartedly in his element, and a master craftsman to boot.

Melissa Tomeoni. Luxury & Letterpress.

Modern and Luxury are two words I would use to describe Melissa's work. She has a way with light, composition and detail that is unmatched. Her work is contemporary, but her training was classical and the combination of the two is intoxicating. Therefore, it was only fitting for Melissa's business cards to have the same quality. In the design process we kept coming back to our two key words: Modern & Luxury. We stretched out of the business card comfort zone in a few ways to make sure the cards resonated with this tenor. All images ©MelissaTomeoni.com

1. Firstly, the odd size. The standard business card is 3.5x2". This one is 3.5x1.25". It's slim, streamlined and modest in size. It makes you look twice.
2. Secondly, we chose to be scant with the information on the card. There's no title, description or even individual name shown. This doesn't work for everyone, obviously; the fact that the company name is Melissa's name helped our case a bit. Additionally, one can really find everything they need online. The mystery of the unstated industry will ideally serve as a lure to get the recipient online where Melissa's work shines. 
3. Thirdly, the logo isn't even printed. It's a blind deboss. This technique dates back to the mid-15th century and is achieved using the letterpress process. It's extremely classic, but when used without ink and marking a geometric logo, sings modernity. I was personally thrilled that Melissa sprang for letterpress. It requires a toothy paper (which I love), really purposefully design to make it work on both sides of the card (which I love) and at least two intense press checks (which I also love). You wouldn't even believe what the pressman finagled to make the cards perfect. I don't care how technologically advanced we become as a culture and how much I love my iPhone, we will never be able to replace human hands, hearts and heads in this and so many other fields of work. (I'll post a few choice photos from the first press check tomorrow.)

The end result is a very tactile, sophisticated business card that communicates all the modern luxury Melissa Tomeoni Portrait Photography encompasses.

Greenleaves, LLC | Business Card Design

If you caught the previous Greenleaves, LLC post, you know that in developing their brand, we wanted to communicate professionalism, efficiency, creativity, usefulness, quality and kindness. While researching this Arizona-based start-up, I was struck with the thought that although their initial branches of business aren’t all directly associated, overall the goal is the same: Do good. Facilitate growth. I shared this thought with them and they liked it so much we decided to feature it on their business card, above. The card also features the chosen logo direction.

Cheers to you, Greenleaves! With some good design to represent you, you're on your way to doing a lot of good in the world.

ReStyle | Grand Opening Gala

On Friday afternoon my mom and I jumped in the car and headed south on I-5. It was a sunny afternoon and the perfect time for a drive. Our destination: Albany, OR. Albany is the cutest little town of 50,000, just 11 miles from Corvallis, OR (home of Oregon State University) in the Willamette Valley. We weren't just there to enjoy the sun and sights; we were there on a mission: Attend ReStyle's Grand Opening Gala. And shop!

The owner of ReStyle, Marianne, has been working with StudioM on all the shop's branding. For a peek into the process, see this past post, or this more recent one. Marianne is just a gem; it has been such a pleasure working with her. The shop has turned out to be quite a gem, too - modern dressing rooms, luxurious textiles, contrasting textures, chandelier lighting, soft goods and home goods juxtaposed, bamboo wallpaper, sparkling metallic touches...

Combine shopping with cocktails and good food and you get a full house.

Me and my mom - trying on clothes 

(Isn't her dress just the perfect black dress? 

She snatched that thing up right away.)

I'm just swooning over all the hits of yellow.

It's currently my favorite accent color.

While I was there, Marianne informed me that we need to place another hang tag order, stat. She went from about 500 items when the shop opened for consignments to a whoppin' 1400+ items! Wow. 

Calling the printer now...

Can you even breathe when you see this ceramic deer head mounted on a wall covered with delicate silver brocade? I can't.

The little birds on the left are swooping through the bathroom on a bright yellow wall. I love the boldness of the black silhouettes...and the guts it took to buy that paint color! Definitely a success.

Here's Marianne with ReStyle's first employee. I told her to look like the boss. She looks good as boss!

It's always so thrilling to see the work in the real world, doing what it's meant to do: give the brand a personality and assist the company in realizing its goals and objectives (AKA Facilitate some stellar shopping!). Let's just say, "Mission accomplished."

And, of course, "Cheers!" - to Marianne and ReStyle's bright future!

Suzanne Peters | Design Work

Remember Suzanne? The classy, energetic up-and-coming realtor? Well, now she has not only a logo, but a business card and website, too! The website is still in the works, but you'll be able to see at at www.suzannepeters.com before long.

Suzanne feels strongly that "owning a home is one of life's most fulfilling achievements". Consequently, she takes a lot of pride in her little house with the orange door. Her orange door has come to represent her stance on home ownership, so we've embraced it as the cornerstone of her branding. She is more than ready to get out there and use some of these branded tools to help others find their orange door...

Cheers to you, Suzanne!
Oh, and to see where she had her portraits done, visit the Soul Mates Photo Blog.

ReStyle | Opening soon!

Marianne and I have been blasting through the branding for ReStyle. It started with the logo and has continued on with exterior signage, business cards, flyers, hang tags, bag labels and the like. One thing I love about Marianne is that she's super decisive. She doesn't dilly-dally. Ever. Evidence of this is that ReStyle will be opening in March! As the flyer says, be prepared to swoon! The shop will be stocked with all sorts of current, quality women's clothing and accessories as well as furniture and home decor.

Not only is Marianne super motivated, she is super sweet. She holds an award for one of my favorite client compliments of all time: Thanks again for all of your awesome work. "You had me at the logo!" So she's funny, too! Just one more reason to get down to Albany, Oregon this spring and see what's must-haves you must have at ReStyle.

Willcuts Partners | Logo + Business Card

Happy Friday! And Happy Tax Season! I know just as well as anyone that tax season can be something to celebrate or something to bemoan each year. Either way, you need a good go-to guy or gal for all those tax questions and concerns. This year I got to work on some branding for my go-to guy, Kyle. We went to George Fox together and because he married my lovely roommate, Katey, we've stayed in touch since. He and his partner, Troy are venturing out as Willcuts Partners - providing businesses and individuals with tax and financial services. Here are the logos I presented to them at the beginning of the logo development process:

And this is what we ended up with:

I sent their business cards to print yesterday. Don't wait until you can get a hard copy of their contact info in hand; if you're scrambling and still need tax help this season, call Kyle (503-610-8291) or Troy (503-715-0223). April 15th is just around the corner...

The Bathtub Guy

Jon Shelton is a friend of my business partner, Jennifer Mele. She introduced us a few weeks ago so we could work together on branding his start-up: a bathtub refinishing company. Jon has an entreprenurial spirit and therefore takes his new vision for the Bathtub Guy business very seriously. He’s passionate about serving people and confident in the service he provides.

If you need your tub refinished, Jon’s the guy. Visit seattlebathtubguy.com and check out the gallery page. Before + Afters are always my favorite. (Site designed by Jason Rafanan of  LeftRight Creative Group.)

What we created for him is professional, clean and contemporary. We worked out the solution with the goal of franchising in mind. In addition to Seattle Bathtub Guy, there's already a Portland Bathtub Guy and eventually there will be a Boise Bathtub Guy, a Spokane Bathtub Guy...and many more Bathtub Guys...all across the region. Therefore, we had to project ahead to what the logo will look like applied to all the company uniforms and vehicles:

Fun, right!? I can't wait to see it all in real life. Meanwhile, the website will be updated before long with new headers like these:

I'm really happy with our brand development for Jon. And I love the parallel we've found between our companies: Jon revamps tubs to make them spic-and-span and I revamp logos to make them pretty and purposeful. Cheers to new clients and making the bathroom (and the marketing landscape) a prettier place!

Green Goose | Your Green Nest Egg

I met Brian at World Cup in December of 2008 to talk about a project he was working on called Green Goose. I was instantly intrigued with the name and interested in the concept behind the company. Brian has developed technology that is capable of capturing and tracking all sorts of energy savings: heating and cooling, biking and driving, water and electricity...and he's done so in a very accessible manner. The cost of tracking your savings is nominal. And above all, it's fun!

We started with a logo...

Then business cards...

Next, the website...

And now, over a year later, test groups have been gathered, trials have been executed, a beta website has been launched, investors are intrigued and the ball is officially rolling. We’ve been through several iterations of the website, promotional pieces, packaging and mock-ups. Here are some illustrations I did early on that have since been replaced*, but I like how they show all of the places the little green eggs can go and all the things they can do.

Below is a window cling we recently produced for the coffee shops in Portland, Oregon supporting the Green Goose technology and idea by housing a egg hub 'gateway' that bikers can utilize to track their miles (with purchase of a Green Goose sensor that clips to your front forks). If you bike in Portland, watch for the Green Goose sign at your favorite cafe! (Currently at World Cup, Dragonfly and Crema.)

Visit greengoose.com to find out more and get involved in the Green Goose community.
*Current website illustrations by Annette Sabo.

It's official. We have business cards!

Hi, Friend is putting together all the pieces.

And we're sending out some secret orders!

You'll be able to get yours soon. The launch is right around the corner...