On Blogging

As this semester draws to a close, I'm thinking about the future of this blog. Will I continue posting bits and pieces of things that inspire my design spirit? Will I morph it into something fresh and new? Or will I let it die, like so many blogs before it?

I don't know what will become of CMYKunz, but I do know that I've gained a great respect for professional bloggers. It's not easy posting content regularly, much less amazing content. Ideally, a blog is so beautifully curated that readers will flock, but that's not always the case. Making a living from blogging is a tall order, but there are many who are successful.

If you're thinking, now or ever, of blogging as a profession, here is a terrific list of what makes a blog good, via 42 Folders.

1. Good blogs have a voice. Who wrote this? What is their name? What can I figure out about who they are that they have never overtly told me? 
2. Good blogs reflect focused obsessions. People start real blogs because they think about something a lot. Maybe even five things. But, their brain so overflows with curiosity about a family of topics that they can't stop reading and writing about it.
3. Good blogs are the product of "Attention times Interest." A blog shows me where someone's attention tends to go. Then, on some level, they encourage me to follow the evolution of their interest through a day or a year. There's a story here. Ethical "via" links make it easy for me to follow their specific trail of attention, then join them for a walk made out of words.
4. Good blog posts are made of paragraphs. Blog posts are written, not defecated. They show some level of craft, thinking, and continuity beyond the word count mandated by the Owner of Your Plantation.
5. Good "non-post" blogs have style and curation. Some of the best blogs use unusual formats, employ only photos and video, or utilize the list format to artistic effect.
6. Good blogs are weird. Blogs make fart noises and occasionally vex readers with the degree to which the blogger's obsession will inevitably diverge from the reader's. If this isn't happening every few weeks, the blogger is either bored, half-assing, or taking new medication.
7. Good blogs make you want to start your own blog. At some point, everyone wants to kill the Buddha and make their own obsessions the focus. This is good. It means you care.
8. Good blogs try. A good blog is written by a blogger who thinks longer, works harder, and obsesses more. Ultimately, a good blogger tries. That's why "good" is getting rare.
9. Good blogs know when to break their own rules.

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3D Design

Looking ahead, our package design will soon be due! For my design, I decided to create my own box. I designed a template by finding an existing package that met my needs (in this case, a Kleenex box), unfolding the box, measuring, and then creating a flat template in Illustrator. It was much easier than I imaged it to be, especially because I worked of an existing package and because I made a mini. Be no afraid of 3D designs!

I have since found several resources that I thought I'd share here, in case you ever have a need and can't find an existing form to use as your guide.

1. Free Packaging Templates

2. Even more Free Packaging Templates from Vecteezy

(Sidebar: if you don't know about Vecteezy and his sister, Brusheezy, run right over there and say hello)

3. ArcaMagica, where you can get templates for a small fee

4. Paper Crafts Magazine has a bunch that you might find useful

 Now go forth and design fearless 3D packages.

More LoTR research

My husband has taken a keen interest in my nerd hobbies article (which, by the way, has changed fairly significantly since I posted it last week). I've never seen him so excited about anything I've undertaken before. We, of course, had to watch the movies, he put me in touch with friends of his who shared his same nerdy interests, and then today, he sent me the following website.

Yes, my friends, that's an entire website dedicated to statistics from The Lord of the Rings. And it turns out, Tolkien sorta hated women. Only 19% of the population of Middle Earth was women. Look at how femininity is nearly non-existent among the Dwarf population.

The website is called LOTRProject.com. Putting aside my amazement that someone has the time to compile this information, design a website for it, and maintain it, the site is actually very well-done, the statistics section being the most well designed, in my opinion. On the site, a visitor can check out the timeline, view the family trees, and, of course, learn the statistics that make LoTR what it is.

Want even more Middle Earth? Check out the app!

Nicole's Classes

One of my favorite modern-day photographers is Nicole Gerulat. She shoots for the likes of Real Simple Magazine, Southern Living, Kiwi Magazine, Martha Stewart Living, drop-in-a-ton-of-other-really-major-magazine-names-here. See more of her work here.

She has a killer creative team and together, they offer incredibly affordable online classes in everything from Photography to Design. They also maintain a blog where they post great (and free!) tutorials!

(Excuse all the links. This is my last one, I promise!)

Go here to check out their amazing Illustrator tutorials that are sure to get the creative juices flow. Whether you're just testing the waters or have been drinking the Kool-aid for years, this site is not only a great freebie, it's also a perfect use of social media as an effective marketing tool.

4 Bookmark-able Websites

1) AdGoodness
I'm a sucker for good advertising. The creator of this website is too, apparently. Here, Frederik Samuel posts all the good, the bad, and sometimes, the ugly that the advertising world has to offer. Some folks are just so darn creative. A great place to get inspired.

2) GoMediaZine
Not only is this site an example of darn good web design, it's a super valuable resource. It was actually started and is maintained by a creative agency effectively using social media, but don't let that deter you. You'll find poignant insights, helpful tutorials, and great downloads.

3) Smashing Magazine
I had to include Smashing Magazine...in case you've been living under a rock for the last, oh, six years. Smashing is THE hub for all things going on in and around the design world. They throw designers a bone time and time again, and that's what keeps me going back. Apply liberally. Use often.

4) Graphic Design Blender
A classmate of mine from undergrad writes and maintains the ever-amazing Graphic Design Blender. The content is really the key to his success, but the clean and orderly design doesn't hurt. The information on his site is geared toward freelance designers and I've found much to appreciate about the well-written articles. Bookmark this one, for sure!

Forget Pantone

Pantone makes a FORTUNE each year by mixing up brilliant colors and pairing them in even better combinations. And that's terrific! We look to Pantone for a perfect match when it matters. Plus, they shape our seasonal palettes.

Have you ever noticed the price tag associated with the Pantone name? Ouch. Sometimes, you just want to stick it to the man, you know? And that's where one of my favorite websites, COLOURlovers.com, comes into the mix...pun intended.

COLOURlovers is a creative community where people from around the world create and share, colors, palettes, and patterns, discuss the latest trends and explore colorful articles... All in the spirit of love. Yep. Pulled that straight from their website.

You can search through beautiful palettes,

check out amazing patterns,

 and just plain get inspired.

Try it out and see what you think...in all that copious amounts of free time you have ;) 

I wonder what font that is?

Wonder no more. WhatTheFont! is an easy, comprehensive, and free(!) tool to help you answer that looming "What font is that?" question. Upload an image (screen shot, picture, etc.) of the font in question, supply a little clarifying information, cross your fingers, and see if you get lucky. It's not 100% accurate and the quality of your image certainly makes a difference, but with the challenge of, say, creating a department page for an already established publication, it might just make your life a little easier.

And for your innergeek, WhatTheFont! also comes in a nifty iPhone app!

On the Grid

During class last week, I got asked about the mysterious "grid" our professor keeps referring to. Not that I'm anyone to be answering questions about anything (unless you want to know about eyebrows, in which case, I consider myself an expert), but I thought I'd pass along a little information.

It's my understanding that there's no wrong or right way to make a grid. There are many, many, many grid options. So when graphic designers talk about "the grid," they aren't referring to one, specific layout...at least I don't think. They are referring to "a two-dimensional structure made up of a series of intersecting vertical and horizontal axes used to structure content. The grid serves as an armature on which a designer can organize text and images in a rational, easy to absorb manner," according to Wikipedia.

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This zine is an excellent introduction to the grid. This article is also a great overview. And this book is the the grid bible, as far as I'm concerned...which isn't very far.

In a nutshell, you first decide what grid you want to use for your design. The most common are columns and baseline, but modern design uses the golden ratio and the rule of thirds. Use scratch paper and a ruler to map out your page before going into InDesign, if you need to.

In InDesign, click inside the ruler and drag out guides to set up your own grid and section off your page in orderly "chunks." Don't forget to include gutters, or "breathing room." You can also turn on a "grid" in InDesign and use it as a guide, if you wish.

There are a great many people who understand the usage of the grid far better than I, but hopefully this gives you a start place. Feel free to chime in, and remember, 

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