HollyAmlin

Welcome to the fam little kitty!

My husband and I adopted a kitten from the Willamette Humane Society last week, and named him Tucker. He’s a little over 2 months old, and full of energy. This is the first cat for either of us, so we’ve been learning quickly how to take care of him. There’s some pictures below, I had to show him off.

I just can’t get enough of his cute little white patches. He has socks, which help me see him when he’s hiding (playing) under the bed.

He’s already a computer junkie! He likes to follow my cursor around the screen. I caught him falling asleep in this position though… haha.

Branding for Oregon Oral Health Coalition

I had the opportunity to work with the Oregon Oral Health Coalition recently, who are in the middle of a major branding overhaul. I developed their logo for them with guidance from the Board of Directors, and gave creative direction on their new website. The new site isn’t up yet, but the logo is all done, so I’m showcasing it on my blog today!

For the branding, the Oregon Oral Health Coalition chose an abstract/swirly take on a tooth for their service mark. Being an organization that provides leadership throughout the dental community, they didn’t want to strictly focus on one element or another. An abstraction is a perfect way to do that. (The mark even reminds me a little bit of toothpaste… Score!)

The colors that we settled on are very professional and soothing, both important elements for their type of organization. The typeface that I introduced, Museo Slab, has a modern look that nicely compliments the custom illustration.

I’m happy to say that I was able to do my part in this rebrand, and wish the Oregon Oral Health Coalition the best throughout the rest of the transition.

Interested in updating or changing your own brand? I’d love to talk with you. Call me for a free consultation at 503.580.0296 or email me at holly@hollyamlin.com.

Programs for a Rustic Barn Wedding

This weekend, Greg and I had the opportunity to attend the wedding of one of his work friends, Joel & Allise. They got married at a beautiful, semi-wooded property, that had a spacious barn (not pictured) for the reception. Their colors were gray, peach and white, with accents of wood, twine and lace.

As a gift to them, I offered to design their programs. I worked with Allise on getting all the elements together first, then took her style direction and ran with it. She told me that she wanted something traditional and elegant, yet rustic at the same time. At first, I studied her save-the-dates and invitations to look for ways to make the programs feel cohesive. Adobe Garamond was the carry through font, and I chose Lady Rene to add the rustic touches. Allise chose the tall, skinny format of the programs, which I loved as well. They turned out great, and she LOVED them.

Below are some pictures of the elements at the wedding, to showcase how the program fits into the style of the event. I’m happy that I could be a part of their big day, even in a small way. Congratulations Joel & Allise!

Branding for J.I. Construction

This is a project that is near to my heart. My sister, Sarah, and brother-in-law, Jon, are starting a business, J.I. Construction. The contacted me to do their branding! The primary focus of their business will be roofing, and that’s the direction we went with the design. Jon wanted the logo to reflect dependability and efficiency, so it’s laid out in such a way that it looks very stable. The color blue was chosen to also reflect dependability.

The branding will potentially be used on their work trucks, website, paperwork and business cards. I designed it so that it would easily transition to each medium. I’m very happy with how it came out, and they’re excited to use it!

A sample business card, with the logo and Jon’s information.

A Foggy Day in Lincoln City

My Dad and I took a trip over to Lincoln City on Friday, and we were expecting some sunny weather. What we got was a warm, foggy, wind-less day. We took the dogs, Rosie and Mia, with us. Mia, my parent’s new yellow lab, is 6 months old now, and still growing! Both the dogs love the beach, especially being able to run after the tennis ball. It was fun watching them play together.

Even though it was foggy, I got a some good pictures. Enjoy!

Friday Pinterest Inspiration Board: Graphic Designer Gifts

Well, it’s Friday! It’s shaping up to be a beautiful sunny weekend here in the Northwest.

I wanted to share a couple gifts that I’ve found around the internet that would be good for Graphic Designers. I’m planning to do a sequel to this post about gadgets, so don’t get too upset that there isn’t an iPad or Wacom tablet on this list. Think of the items below as birthday gifts or stocking stuffers. Cute little things to make a designer smile.

Sources: (from L to R)

Monad iPhone Hardcase from Gelaskins. $34.95

Type Nerd Temporary Tattoo from TATTLY. $5.00 (set of 2)

Browser Sketch Pad from UI Stencils. $13.95 for 1, $33.48 for 3

Pantone Mugs (Mixed Blues) from Pantone. $90.00 for the set

Sans-Serif t-shirt from turnnocturnal. $20.00

Clé USB from byamt. Price upon request.

A Catch-Up on Recent Website Work

Well, I’ve been a bad blogger the last few months! Time flies when you’re busy, that’s my only excuse. Over the last two months, I have been working my tail off on a few website projects. I’ve included a couple screen shots for you to look at below. If you’d like a more technical run down of what I did, check out the portfolio page for each item.

First off, I completed a shell of a site for my previous client, LocalConta. I created the design and basic HTML framework for the site, while the client implemented their own javascript (and other complicated coding).

Next, I setup and customized a WordPress theme for Belle Fleur Floral Design. They recently updated their branding, and wanted a site that would reflect the new style. They also needed a site that they could easily edit. WordPress ended up being the best option, using the theme Hatch.

I setup and customized another WordPress theme for another returning client, Dine In Oregon. They’re just starting up, and wanted something that they could use easily by themselves, as well as a simple design that matched their branding. The theme Colorway (free version) was used, and it works wonderfully! I had the assistance of Lem Canady with javascript and other extras.

Limont Family Shoot

A couple weeks ago, I had the opportunity to take pictures of the Limont family. They recently welcomed baby Nolan into their family, and wanted some pictures of them as a group. The setting I used, Schreiner’s Iris Gardens, was in bloom with spring flowers. There was a lot for the little ones to look at and play on, which made for some cute photo opportunities. I think the pictures turned out great, and I hope that the Limonts are as happy about them as I am.

Below is a sampling of the pictures from their shoot. You can see the whole set here: Limont Family Shoot.

Branding for LocalConta

I was contacted a couple weeks ago to make a logo for LocalConta, a professional networking site where Tax, Accounting  & Finance Specialists connect online and share their expertise. I had a great time working on this, and the client is very happy with it. Not only did I develop the logo, but I expanded the brand with a square format initial version of the logo and a favicon. The color version of the logo with the tagline.The black and white version of the logo without the tagline.The initial format of the logo.

Friday Pinterest Inspiration Board: Free Fonts

For this Friday’s Pinterest post, I wanted to share some of my favorite free fonts. Each should be used in its own way, so don’t go using Homestead when you write papers or anything.

Good free fonts can sometimes be hard to find, but if you look in the right places, you can find a gold mine. I tend to look at places like Lost Type Co-op, MyFonts, and Font Squirrel. Below you’ll see six of the free fonts that I have really enjoyed. Hope you like them too!

Sources:

Villa Didot by Sascha Timplan

Homestead by LUKE LISI

Lavanderia by JAMES T. EDMONDSON

Museo Slab by Jos Buivenga

Jolly by Sebastian Losch

Wisdom Script by JAMES T. EDMONDSON