Today's Top 3 - Artists, Graphic Designers, and Interior Designers

Today's Top 3 is full of all kinds of lovely inspiration! I've rounded up some of my favorite artists, graphic designers, and interior designers, and all of these ladies have a style that is distinctly their own. Prepare to be inspired!

Top 3 artists I follow along with

• Emily Jeffords - Emily is an oil painter whose colorful landscapes are seen all over the place. I love her simple, impressionist style and the mix of color she adds to each canvas. I can't wait to hang one of her prints on my gallery wall for the Home Suite Home project!
• Jessica Jane Handmade - I always enjoy following along with people who have a distinct, unique style and break the mold. Jessica is one of those. She makes whimsical clay objects, from houses and "villages" to Christmas ornaments. Her illustrative style makes her so fun to keep up with. 
• Lauren Bradshaw - Maybe I'm just a kid at heart, but I can't get over how adorableness of everything that is Walnut Animal Society. Lauren makes the most precious stuffed animals (with super cute names like Ruthie, Henry, Eleanor, Chester, and Magnolia) and designs sweet outfits to go along with them. It's like the stuffed animal version of American Girl dolls. I know I sound like I'm 5, but I love Lauren's style and creativity. If you have a little one that you're buying for this Christmas, you need to check these out!

Top 3 graphic designers I follow along with

• Breanna Rose - I've mentioned Breanna on here a couple times already, but I'm a fan of her simple, common sense aesthetic. It's very modern and gender neutral, which isn't quite like my design style, and I think that's what draws me to her work. I love keeping up with her most recent work. 
• Megan Gonzalez - It isn't very often that I would consider giving up this blessing of working for myself to go work for another design company, but Mae Mae Paperie would be my one and only exception. Megan's work is that stunning! I love following along with her work and creativity.
• Jennet Liaw - I don't know exactly how I stumbled upon Jennet's Instagram feed, but I'm so glad I did! Her modern typography is gorgeous. If you're ever in need of some creative inspiration, you should follow along with her.

Top 3 interior designers I follow along with

• Kristin Jackson - The Hunted Interior has been one of my favorite interior design blogs for a few years. Kristin has an eye for pairing and layering different design styles in a space, and I adore her eclectic style.
• Michaela Noelle - Okay, so this is pretty much a given. Michaela has been helping us redesign our Suite for the past few months, but I started following along with her blog long before our friendship. I love Michaela's classic, feminine style and her eye for all things lovely. 
• Claire Brody - I had the priviledge of meeting sweet Claire at the Bloom Workshop a month ago and I'm calling it right now - she's going to do big things! I love her cheerful mix of colors and patterns. 

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It's your turn! Who are your top 3 favorite artists, graphic designers, and interior designers?

Today's Top 3 - Helpful Blog Posts for Blogging, Design, and Business

I'm starting this new week with another roundup of my favorite things in Today's Top 3! Today I'm sharing some of my favorite articles about 3 of my favorite things: blogging, design, and business. 

Top 3 helpful posts for blogging

• 13 Ways to Drive Traffic to Old Blog Posts - Oh, the archives. Mine contain over 200 posts from this past year, which means that all of the posts I spent hours writing are now laying dormant, buried behind new content. Are you in the same boat? This post by Nectar Collective is full of great ideas for driving readers to your older posts. 
• 10 Things I Have Learned Along the Way - The ladies from iHeartOrganizing share what they've learned about blogging and mistakes they've made along the way, including overcommitting, comparison, checking stats, moderating comments, and more. This is definitely worth reading if you're a blogger or you're hoping to become one in the future!
• Five Things to Watch in Your Blog Analytics - Keeping up with the analytics of your blog is useful for finding out which posts your readers enjoy, how many people keep coming back to your site, how long they stick around, and more. This post from Blog Clarity simply explains the 5 things you should be looking for when you check your analytics.

Top 3 helpful posts for design

• Streamlining Your Process - I love this post on creating shortcuts by one of my favorite designers, Breanna Rose. While I've been sharing about how to define your creative process these past couple weeks, this article provides some great tips on where you can scale back and save time. 
• 3 things to tell yourself when you doubt your work - When you work full-time in a creative field, you're expected to have an unlimited amount of creative ideas. But what do you do when you don't feel inspired and ideas are hard to come by? Lisa's post is a helpful reminder for those days when you're feeling frustrated and your creativity is at an all-time low. 
• 4 Tips for Finding and Embracing Your Design Style - Is it terrible to link back to one of my old posts in a roundup? I hope not! This post continues to be one of my favorites; I'm passionate about playing up your strengths as a designer and highlighting your own individual aesthetic. 

Top 3 helpful posts for business

• Organization for Creative Entrepreneurs - If you're a designer and you aren't keeping up with Braid Creative, you need to add them to your Favorites bar today. These tips for organizing email, project management, timetracking, scheduling, and virtual assistants are practical and useful. [Insert hallelujah chorus here]
• Competition is for Sissies - If you only visit one link from today's post, make it this one. This article provides a refreshing change of perspective on competition and turned my business world upside down.
• Freelance Finances - A quick, helpful post from Jay Adores on how to manage your finances when you work for yourself. It seems almost too simple! 

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Now it's your turn! Which blogs and blog posts about blogging, design, and business have been helpful for you?

The First Step in My Creative Process

Like most occupations, it's helpful to have a process in place as I go about my work. I haven't seen many creatives approach this subject, so I thought it might be helpful to spend the next few weeks sharing my own creative process. While my method may not work for everyone, my hope is that these posts will encourage you to streamline your own process and think through the steps you take as you go about your work. (Why is it important to have a process? Find out in last week's post!)

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Visual Communication Design. I always wondered why they changed a simple, common name like "Graphic Design" to an unrecognizable name with so many syllables. I feel the need to explain myself when I tell people that my degree is a Bachelor of Fine Arts in Visual Communication Design, so I end up bypassing it all and sticking to what everyone is already familiar with: "I have a degree in graphic design."

But the longer I'm in this field, the more I see that the name is a perfect fit. Graphic design isn't only about creating pretty things (although that's definitely one my goals as a designer); it's about problem solving to visually communicate an idea.

Clients come to me with problems: they don't have a website for their business, their current logo and website don't accurately capture the mission of their company, they're narrowing their focus and they want their brand to reflect their change in direction, etc. In order to solve their problems, visually communicate their ideas, and meet their needs, I have to clearly understand what their needs are. Which brings me to step 1 of my creative process...

Defining the Problem

It seems so simple, doesn't it? But if I miss this step, I miss the boat. If I don't clearly define the problem and communicate with my client before I put pen to paper, I will end up with 10+ revisions and an unhappy customer down the road. I have to have a good understanding of what the client's goals and expectations are in order to deliver a brand that accurately displays their business.

What does this look like?

Like most designers, I meet with my clients in person or by Skype for an initial consultation to discuss their project. This usually involves many questions, some clarification, and a lot of listening. I start by asking questions about their business before I begin asking about their design needs. What is the purpose and mission of your business? How did you get started? Who is your ideal customer? What are your business goals? Then I move onto more specific questions: What are you looking for in terms of design? What are some keywords that come to mind when you envision your new brand and website? While I listen to the answers, I jot down lots and lots of notes on my Client Detail sheet. I keep those notes nearby and refer back to them when I move into the next step of my process (more on that next week!)

Many designers create a creative brief after they meet with a client to compile their notes and nail down project goals. A creative brief is a usually a single-page document that outlines the purpose and expectations of a project, and it's a great way to make sure that you and your client are on the same page. (Visit this great article for more insight into creative briefs.)

Communication is fundamental in my design process and in my occupation. In order to visually communicate an idea through design, I have to define the problem and know who and what I'm designing for. 

What could this step look like for you?

Whether you're an engineer, teacher, hairstylist, bank teller, photographer, or even a student, chances are your first step deals with some sort of problem solving and communication. So what could this step look like for you? What tips and advice have you found helpful for clearly communicating and documenting expectations with your clients and coworkers?