creative retreat: tuesday

| heather parlato

i’m on retreat this week and the studio is closed. however, i have lined up a selection of getaway-themed posts to enjoy while i’m gone. one is set to go up each day, so stay tuned…

what’s a retreat without refreshing drinks? whether they’re smoothies that incorporate good nutrition with amazing flavors, or alcoholic elixirs to sip by the pool, liquid tonics delight your senses and are a required addition to any retreat. all recipes are from epicurious.com

non-alcoholic delights

pineapple, arugula, macadamia nut smoothie
[photo: jenifer altman]
pineapple, arugula, macadamia nut smoothies
morning sun
liquid iron
cantaloupe aqua fresca with beet swirl
pom-ade
spiced milk tea [masala chai]
jasmine honey lassi
basil lemonade
terragon-spiked lady grey iced tea

cocktails with a twist

cucumber saketinis
[photo: jenifer altman]
cucumber sake-tinis
sangria blanca
blackberry poblano margarita
curry-spiced bloody marys
the produce stand
punch a la noix de coco
pimm’s cup
vodka rosemary lemonade fizz
michelada

creative retreat: monday

| heather parlato

i’m on retreat this week and the studio is closed. however, i have lined up a selection of getaway-themed posts to enjoy while i’m gone. one is set to go up each day, so stay tuned…

since i’m out, there will be no event calendar, but i do suggest you designers in LA check out the aiga los angeles event calendar for some great things happening this week.

retreat prep 1: get in shape

i only just found the get beach ready with tracy anderson series last week on daily candy or i’d have been doing them all winter [though i’m pretty well covered by gilad’s total body sculpt on fit tv]. i tried out these exercises and they’re really great, targeting muscles i need to tone that don’t always get individual attention. plus i love that she’s demonstrating these out at the park, using things you can find anywhere, rather than specific equipment you have to buy.

get beach ready with tracy anderson [click to watch each video]:
exercise 1: love handles
exercise 2: butt
exercise 3: abs
exercise 4: bat wings
aaahh! soreness! but great ways to isolate less-used muscle groups.

article of the week

| heather parlato

thirteen ways of looking at a typeface by michael bierut

this is an oldie but a goodie from a few years ago. for both clients and designers alike, bierut goes through 13 reasons you might have an affection for a typeface and use it in your next project. these reasons can come up in various combinations depending on the project, but if you want a little insight on how we choose them, or why, take a look at this article, and then take an extra look at the typefaces you encounter whenever you notice something you like. you’ll be able to see why it’s working with the content and in the layout to entice you.

beyond design

| heather parlato

food

orange ricotta breakfast dumplings
[photo: monika kotus]
what a concept—a light, sweet, floral kind of gnocchi for breakfast: orange ricotta breakfast dumplings from designsponge.com. these aren’t exactly on my diet, but i might have to make an exception, because they look amazing!

browned fennel
[photo: la cucina italiana]
if you’re looking for something seasonal, browned fennel is a tasty springtime dish. la cucina italiana shows you how to do it italian style: spicchi brasati al burro.

drinks

strawberry liquor infusion
this weekend i bought a flat of strawberries and made the strawberry liquor infusion i linked to previously. it will be interesting to see how it tastes when i strain it out tonight.

diy

foraging in los angeles
[photo: willy blackmore]
i have been foraging brazillian pink pepper on my morning walks, but i’m always looking for more edible plants i can pick and try out. <a href="LA weekly’s blog has this great list: top 10 ways to forage in LA for identifying and using some of the wild edibles you can find around town.

more on cleaning without chemicals, i’ve been using baking soda and vinegar for all kinds of things lately. if you need some suggestions on how to use baking soda, this list from re-nest is great: baking soda: is there anything it can’t do?

business

i have been liking this design sponge biz ladies feature, which has all kinds of advice for small business owners. this week they put out a great list of required reading for any small business owner: biz ladies top 10 biz books. i’ve read a good amount of seth godin, but it’s really great to have a new list of good biz reads!

say goodbye to the cash register from inc magazine takes a look at the new transaction apps available on mobile phones, making it possible for small businesses to eliminate some of the overhead charges on taking mobile credit card transactions.

some of the changes we got with the health care bill means a lot for businesses, according to cnn money it looks like we’ll be issuing 1099s for every transaction over $600 in a calendar year [as opposed to just contract labor]. read up on the new laws: health care law’s massive hidden tax change.

creative inspiration

| heather parlato

HOW and creative freelancer conference round-up

how cd experience
[photo: underconsideration.com]
if i haven’t mentioned it before, this year will be my first at the HOW conference, so i’m following as much preliminary info as i can. i wasn’t aware that there’s a tradition of a CD exchange, but thanks to underconsideration.com, i not only know about it, there’s a showcase of what kat feuerstein / gilah press + design did for last year: 2009 HOW design conference CD exchange sleeve. i’ve always liked silver ink on a dark stock, this one is chocolate brown!

the HOW conference closing party theme: white space. i have plenty of white to bring, now it’s just a matter of which white will it be?

if you’ve got questions about copyright or trademarks, jean s. perwin will be at this year’s CFC. thanks to the creative freelancer blog for this list of copyright resources: got copyright?

another great feature of CFC are the breakfast roundtables. here’s a list of some of the attendee-run tables you can join in on: what do you want to learn at breakfast?

event design

identity for brad radke
[image: charles ross]
thanks to designworklife.com for finding this great event suite by charles ross for the retirement party of minnesota twins player brad radke. he did a great job of capturing the best of baseball memorabilia.

logo design

frut logo sketches
[image: adam gf]
this logo development for smoothie company, frut, is an interesting look at how designers brainstorm on different shapes and ideas: logo design love: unsung heroes. i have a few pages like this myself, most of which never see the light of day. follow the link to see the final identity system, which is a super-fun burst of color.

35 smart logos with second thought to make you look twice is a nice collection of logos that work really well for the messages they convey.

typography

anatomy of type
[image: sigurdur armannsson ]
need help with your type anatomy? refer to each part of every letterform with accuracy, using this anatomy of type desktop graphic, free from font.is

silent dance
[image: camila drozd]
the work of this lovely hand-drawn type designer, camila drozd, has come up a few places in my weekly reading, and i think her work is really stunning.

plant cloning at machine project

| heather parlato

plant clones at machine project
this weekend, i went down to machine project with a few friends for the clone home with critter salon plant cloning workshop. i took some cuttings and separated some offshoots from some of my succulents and headed down, prepared to share & trade with friends. they had a great selection of herbs, succulents and house plants to choose from, along with mixed soils for each type of plant. i took a selection of succulents i don’t currently have in my garden, and explained what my tiny specimens would grow into to others. some people made some really cool mini gardens combined in one pot.

green wall at machine project
one project they’re working on at machine is the conversion of the vent window above the display window into a small green wall. as the summer season approaches, the air conditioner [just behind this guy] runs at most events, dripping a good amount of water off the condenser. they’ve created a gutter to collect this water to feed the succulents that grow in the afternoon sun. i was happy to see cuttings from my own plants that i grew from cuttings myself going into this wall. hopefully it will become a sprawling succulent jungle.

making a contact blueprint
since i have most of the plants people were trading, i decided to try out this contact printing project, using blueprint paper, some plant cuttings, and the sun as an exposure lamp. you chose your arrangement, then set it up quickly on the light-sensitive paper, let it expose for about 3 minutes, and then wash in water to stop the exposure.

contact blueprint of plant cuttings
at first, the print is this lovely aqua color, but it deepens to bright indigo as it dries.

contact prints drying at machine project
over the course of the day, several people had made interesting prints using leaves, plant cuttings and other found objects. it made a nice display in the gallery.

happy hour at el prado
after all the plant cloning festivities, we decided it was time to take our plants to el prado for their first happy hour. we also needed to talk about web design and the upcoming 5th of st. robot event at betalevel. and to do this, it was important to have olives, tapenade, cheese, crackers, and drinks. with all these things in place, we got everything sorted out.

spring bouquet at el prado
el prado is a nice space to talk and drink, especially when it’s early before the crowds. they had a really lovely bouquet set up at our table, so i tried to take a picture. cheers!

event calendar: may 10 – 16, 2010

| heather parlato

it’s a mad dash of deadlines this week as i prepare for my creative retreat next week, during which the studio will be closed. i’ve still got some fun networking goings-on, if you’re on the west side of LA, come by my biznik mixer, co-hosted with colleen wainwright.

here’s what i’ll be doing

tuesday, may 11, 7:30-9am the LA area chamber referral network. my bimonthly breakfast to connect with my fellow chamber members is FREE to chamber members, but you can drop in as my guest if you’d like to check it out.

wednesday, may 12, 5:30-8pm LA’s longest running biznik mixer at jerry’s famous deli in the marina! FREE to biznik members, join biznik to promote your business and then rsvp to our super-fun mixer and come say hello!

article of the week: packaging design

| heather parlato

biz ladies: how to design the perfect packaging by yael miller, from designspongeonline.com

packaging design is an entire area of design that has its own set of challenges and criteria. it’s not simply some extrapolation of graphic design to a 3-d object. it’s the buyer’s first interaction with your product, and its specific purpose is to introduce and entice. miller’s article is a great primer on how packaging should function, what you should consider when creating packaging for different products, and a breakdown of your cost options. an excellent read for designers and clients alike!

beyond design

| heather parlato

i’ll be honest, i got slim pickins for this week in non-design items. besides food, that is. today’s post will be short, savory & sweet.

food

orange-scented olive oil cake
[photo: faith durand]
i grew up in 2 different houses that each had orange trees, so i’ve always looked for new ways to use them. there are orange cakes of all kinds, but this one with olive oil appeals to my more savory senses these days: orange-scented olive oil cake from thekitchn.com [originally from saveur]. i imagine with a little tweaking, you could use this recipe as a base for a more herbed version with parmesan for a confusingly delightful tea cake.

roasted fruit
[photo: lacucinaitalianamagazine.com]
another thing i like doing is roasting and grilling fruit for a mix of sweet and salty flavors. when i came across this recipe i wanted to share it, since all the fruit pictured seem to be in season: <a href="frutta arrosto from <a href="la cucina italiana magazine. being an italian magazine, they suggest using grappa, but i find white wine works really well too.

more for moms

celebrating mom
[photo: rockscissorpaper.com]
while there are all kinds of suggestions online for how to ply your moms with brunch and mimosas and spring bouquets, there are also these cute crafty ideas you can do too: celebrating mom from rockscissorpaper.com. i love me some mom-mosas as much as the next gal, but if you remember how much your mom loved putting every single craft project you ever did up on the fridge, you might consider picking up the scissors and craft paper again. unless your mom has voiced her objections, i’m sure she’d love a mom banner. if i made this for my mom, she’d totally hang it in her office, right over all her cat photos.

home remedies

soap nuts
[photo: lisa brewster]
i’ve been trying out various biodegradable laundry soaps recently and have been curious about soap nuts, but didn’t know much about them. this article from re-nest.com has given me a little extra encouragement on trying them out: soap nuts: a green laundry detergent alternative.