Archive for the ‘Randomness’ Category

I have never enjoyed the phrase “when life hands you lemons, make lemonade”. Partly because I really only like lemonade if it’s mixed with iced tea, or if I am buying from a cute little kid with a stand, therefore I’m not exactly the target audience for that expression. Mostly I dislike the phrase because I am not particularly a fan of any cliche attempts to cheer me up. Unless used ironically, of course, while paired with a photo of a reeeeally cute animal. Nonetheless, I recently was unable to escape talks of lemonade, silver linings, and upside down frowns.

As many of you know, my gorgeous New England fall was rudely interrupted by the recurrence of a bone tumor in my ankle. I was taken out of work for surgery, and my few months of recovery severely limited me, both financially and creatively. This was a discouraging time that no clever phrase could help. However, I couldn’t help but realize that the answer to my troubles was to take action; to assess an unfortunate situation and figure out how to turn it into something I could enjoy (or at least learn from).  So I sucked it up, seized what I had to work with, and made an Arnold Palmer.

I have always loved simple design work. Cards, art, home decor, all aspects of design make me giddy. I have grown to appreciate this and had chances to dabble in that work, given my artistic milieu, but never had a reason to expand that hobby into my business. Upon learning I would be temporarily disabled, I realized what better time to open that door. Through the fall and the holiday season, I made the best of my cooped up time by advertising to former clients, friends and family, and ended up designing postcards for a variety of needs. Here are a few examples of what I was up to:

(contact info blurred out for client privacy)

The fabulous headshots for Laura Manchester was taken by the talented Josh Lyon, based in Ca.

I love my clients! Seriously, they inspire me and bring me so much joy. I am currently in the brainstorming/inspiration board stage for a theme and all subsequent printing design for a wedding. Just thinking about it forces me to keep my drool in check. Sigh.

We all need to mix things up a little bit, to stretch ourselves. What have you all been delving into lately? I would love to hear about it.

Cheers, Briana