Happy Thanks Day!

Pssst! Serious Sneak Peek Alert!

Eeeeee! I can't even begin to explain my excitement for this project...and this long-time-coming post about it. Many of you have heard whispers of a pet project I've been working with my dear friend and work partner, Jennifer Mele. It's all very true. We have certainly been scheming and dreaming. Oh gosh....for the last ten months, at least. And before that, it was a little idea rolling around in my all-too-crazy head. One day I finally called Jen and said, "I have an idea; I need you to help me." You see, Jennifer is the best when it comes to organization, motivation, inspiration and the wrangling of moving pieces and people. That's only one of the reasons I love her, but it's the one reason I knew that it was only with her I could pull this thing off.

As it turns out, I was right.
We've (almost) pulled it off.
It's just around the corner.

'It' is this:

It's an online retail space.
It's where you'll get customized stationary.
It's where you'll find semi-custom wedding print pieces.
It's where you'll browse lovely gift items.
All-in-all, you'll see many twee things that we hope will make your little hearts twitter.

We're not launched yet, but are planning to debut the site this holiday season. Visit the hi, friend. website and be sure to bookmark it so you can come back to shop soon. If you'd like to be added to our mailing list, email us at info@hifrienddesign.com and we'll be sure to add you. If you're anything like me, I know you hate a secret (if it's not yours) so I'm going to post a few peeks.

Looking forward to the launch!

Sincerely,
Megan

look | http://www.hifrienddesign.com

read | http://www.hifriend.blogspot.com
write | megan@hifrienddesign.com
tweet | http://twitter.com/hifrienddesign
ring | 360-903-5954
send | 3932 NE 73rd Ave. Portland, OR 97213

Superfood for the brain

A wise man once said, "The more that you read, the more things you will know. The more you learn, the more places you'll go."* I think he's right. Good books are like superfood for the brain. I've got a fresh new library card and have been putting it to use.

Most recently I devoured Seth Godin's The Dip and Malcolm Gladwell's Outliers. There were so many things that made me say, "No way!". Here are just a few:

From "Outliers":

• The values of the world we inhabit and the people we surround ourselves with have a profound effect on who we are.
• The closer psychologists look at the careers of the gifted, the smaller the role innate talent seems to play and the bigger the role preparation seems to play
• The 10,000 hour rule: “In study after study, of composers, basketball players, fiction writers, ice-skaters, concert pianists, chess players, master criminals, this number comes up again and again. Ten thousand hours is equivalent to roughly three hours a day, or 20 hours a week, of practice over 10 years… No one has yet found a case in which true world-class expertise was accomplished in less time. It seems that it takes the brain this long to assimilate all that it needs to know to achieve true mastery.“ (Quoting neurologist Daniel Levitin)
  

From "The Dip":

• In a competitive world, adversity is your ally. The harder it gets, the better chance you have of insulating yourself from the competition.
• The next time you catch yourself being average when you feel like quitting, realize that you have only two good choices: Quit or be exceptional.
• ... the real success goes to those who obsess. The focus that leads you through the Dip to the other side is rewarded by a marketplace in search of the best in the world. A woodpecker can tap twenty times on a thousand trees and get nowhere, but stay busy. Or he can tap twenty-thousand times on one tree and get dinner.
• And this one, from a previous post: "Quit the wrong stuff. Stick with the right stuff. Have the guts to do one or the other."

An unexpected similarity and underlying theme in both books is that being good at something takes work. Lots of work. There is just no way around it. That said, I better do a little less blogging and a little more working...Eek! Off to add to my 10,000 hour work log and continued design obsession!

*Quote from Dr. Seuss, I Can Read With My Eyes Shut!

Egg Press Sample Sale! Success!

Success is relative, I guess. Some might say I got into more trouble than anything (ahem - my husband).

This is the second Egg Press Sample Sale I've been to, so I knew what to prepare for, but was still totally shocked at all the fantastic letterpress and offset options at such fabulous prices. I stood there wishing I had three sets of eyes and 6 arms instead of a measly two of each. Nevertheless, I now have more holiday cards than any one person should probably ever possess. Maybe I got carried away, but in this case I'd have to classify it a triumph.

Egg Press is awesome. As always!

My Indian Shirt.

This is my indian shirt. I bought it at Shanty. It's my new favorite. In elementary school I was an 'Auburn Indian' (at Auburn Elementary in Auburn, MI) so wearing it makes me feel like I'm 8 again. And I like that. It was made by Bandit Brand.

It really has nothing to do with my work, but I had to share just because I love it. And graphically, it's very nice.

I heart stamps.

When I think of stamps I visualize several crafty stay-at-home moms who make their own birthday, holiday, anniversary and thank you cards around a card table in one of their living rooms. Hot glue, rhinestones, puffy paint....and stamps. I don't say this with disdain. I fully intend on and look forward to being a part of a club like this later in life. Heck, I'll probably be the one to start it. Just call me the stamping queen. And ladies - you know who you are - I know you can't wait to join me.

I'm not ashamed to say I love stamps. Especially when they turn out to be a good business move. Really. Not only are they easy and fun, but they're cost effective. They allow a company to keep up with consistent branding on pieces that they otherwise couldn't afford to have custom designed and printed. I recommend a logo and/or return address stamp to many of my clients so they can use it on shipping boxes, envelopes, gift tags, billing, etc.

Shanty just got one with their classic buds + return address, Green Goose (who I have yet to tell you about!) had one made to use on their packaging, Shake Up Your World needed theirs for mailing purposes, and you might recall way back when we had some made for Mark Terry who needed to brand his art show and himself as a 21st Century Alchemist. Recently my good friend asked me to help with some stamps for his start-up online retail business, Man Cards (soon to be launched). I jumped on the bandwagon and finally ordered one for StudioM, too. I can't even explain how happy I am when I slam that inked rubber onto a sheet of paper and instantly see my logo imprinted. So satisfying!

Stamps also make fabulous gifts. Soon I'll be able to explain exactly how to go about that, don't worry. Until then...

"...You can dance, you can jive, having the time of your life,

See that girl, watch that scene...stamping queen...."

Song lyrics derived from Dancing Queen by Abba.

Quote | Seth Godin