making meaning from wandering for a good cause

August 12, 2011 | heather parlato

desktop wallpaper for colleen wainwright's awesome 50-for-50 project!

i have been away. i’ve been more than away, i’ve been busy, and it’s taken time away from writing here. it’s been quite a summer of helping to get exciting projects wrapped and launched, and once that was all done, i went to help out with the stanford jazz camp’s music marketing panel, and finally off to big sur to decompress. funny about decompression, it sometimes helps you focus on what to do next, even when you think you’re not thinking about it.

i had one assignment, which was to get my contribution for colleen wainwright’s outstanding birthday countdown: the 50-for-50 project [raising $50k in 50 days for her 50th birthday gift donation to writegirl.org]. i made a desktop wallpaper illustrating a quote, one of the many fine things you can get in one of colleen’s cleverly tailored donation packages. lucky for me, i happened to be taking a lot of walks on a trip specifically designed for stopping to smell the flowers, and found this lovely scene in andrew molera state park on the creamery meadow trail. colleen is halfway to her goal and has about 30 days to go. check her list of fantastic perks, pick one and donate to a great cause!

as for me, i am ready to dig in and recommit to more writing and posting and less feeling overwhelmed or too busy. summer vacation is over and i’m refreshed and ready to tackle the daily grind with renewed energy. thanks for sticking around!

exploring the LA river greenway

July 20, 2011 | heather parlato

my final post for LAist’s park-a-day project is a showcase of the LA river greenway project, beautifying green spaces along the LA river one pocket park at a time. here are my favorites from walking along the LA river. read more on LAist!

LA river, north — looking at the LA river northwest from fletcher bridge

riverside bench 1 — a lovely rest spot: a raised bench surrounded by native plants and flowers (the fence behind it was covered with grape vines)

riverside bench 2 — cyclists take a break in the shade at one of the riverside benches

the conservation corps was on site today, conservatin'

river cascades — greenery in the glendale narrows of the LA river

river greenery — still waters and greenery of the glendale narrows

stone steps and benches in the steelhead park ampitheater

a blue heron's wingspan caught my eye as he came in for a landing. he must be 4 feet tall!

fancy roosters — a trio of roosters show me their fancy feathers

a group of spotted hens among the flock of backyard chickens that ran to the fence to see if i had treats for them

see the LA river in a new light

July 14, 2011 | heather parlato

Los Angeles River from John Hwang on Vimeo.

favorite photos of elysian park

July 13, 2011 | heather parlato

As part of the ongoing park a day project for LAist, here are some of my favorite photos from elysian park. many were taken this morning, though some at the bottom are from last spring. read more on LAist!

looking toward chavez ravine arboretum in elysian park

the park at angel's point in elysian park

a vast lawn & picnic area at solano canyon drive in elysian park

the garden at buena vista park in elysian park

buena vista at elysian park — interpretive exhibit at buena vista in elysian park

hiking the portola trail, springtime 2010

the portola trail in springtime, elysian park — mustard blossoms and boulders along the portola trail

[for more on the portola trail, see my post exploring the portola trail from last spring, below the part on springtime snow at mountain high.]

gillian welch’s letterpress & coffee-stained album cover

July 7, 2011 | heather parlato

it seems like letterpress projects are abounding these days, or maybe we’re just hearing about them more. Recently, target decided to do a run of vintage graphics with the hamilton type museum, and just today i caught this video of gillian welch’s process of creating her album cover in letterpress with aardvark press. they even went as far as to hand-stain the cotton covers in a diluted coffee bath for a slightly-aged look and a deepening of contrast. read more and see the coffee staining demo at LAist. see & hear more on all songs considered.

eaton sunnyslope and gwinn parks in pasadena

July 6, 2011 | heather parlato

it’s another week in july, which means another park for a park a day on LAist. here are some photos from my favorite lunchtime getaway parks when i worked in pasadena. read more on LAist!

eaton sunnyslope park

eaton sunnyslope green space — open green space at eaton sunnyslope park, surrounded by pine trees

eaton sunnyslope picnic table in the shade — my favorite lunch spot at eaton sunnyslope park

eaton sunnyslope western bluebird house — bird house built for resident western bluebirds in eaton sunnyslope park

eaton sunnyslope arroyo & mountains — eaton sunnyslope park's adjacent arroyo with a view of henninger flats

gwinn park

gwinn park oak tree — shade under the big oak tree in gwinn park

gwinn park floral tree — pretty flowering tree in gwinn park

favorite photos of echo park lake

July 1, 2011 | heather parlato

it’s july, which is national parks & recreation month, and i’m writing 4 different pieces for LAist about parks around LA. the first one is about echo park, so i thought i’d collect some of my favorite photos of the park. enjoy!

echopark_downtown — a southeast looking view of echo park lake with the downtown skyline in the distance

ducks on buoys — ducks balance and bathe on buoys in echo park lake

echopark_geese — a family of geese and goslings at echo park lake

boathouse_east — the echo park boathouse with the lake pump plumes in the breeze

boathouse_west — a view of the plumes from the shore by the echo park boathouse

echopark_birdtree — birds settle in for bed time in the eucalyptus tree on the east bank of echo park lake

the lady of the lake—please stop breaking my hands!

ducklings at sunset — three ducklings swimming at sunset in echo park

echopark_downtown_sunset — a view of echo park lake and the downtown skyline at sunset

stunning infographic / typographic video

June 17, 2011 | heather parlato

Stuxnet: Anatomy of a Computer Virus from Patrick Clair on Vimeo.

the content, design and execution of this motion graphic video is absolutely jaw-dropping. thanks iso50.com! happy friday!

creative inspiration

June 15, 2011 | heather parlato

Pendulum sound machine from kyoueidesign on Vimeo.

design industry

hey designers, there’s a lovely new book, i heart design, out by steven heller! see the whole profile on the designer’s review of books.

hey clients, if you’re thinking about developing a new web site, there’s this great planning guide that can help you understand what you’re in for and how to prepare!

and hey, both designers and clients, if you’ve ever been confused about how copyright law works, or what are the specifics of licensing, smashing magazine is ready to break it down for you!

and while you’re still here, there’s this great piece on fastcodesign.com about putting entrepreneurial designers in a position to bring their great design energy to the leadership and inception of the company, and connecting them with the money to make it happen:

“What we’re hoping to do is shift the paradigm of what design is. Design encompasses systems now, not just ‘making things look pretty,'” Allen continues. “Designers have traditionally been paid a lot of money to make what people want; meanwhile, most startups fail because they make things that people don’t actually want! But designers are trained in methods of getting to these ‘aha’ moments about customers, products, and use cases. And that’s a great opportunity for designers to make a foundational contribution in a startup venture.”

food

color shifted caprese salad — green tomatoes and purple basil make a unique caprese salad!

in the world of seasonal eating, we’re moving from spring to summer this week, so enjoy some of the best of both seasons. last week’s seasonal eats was about spring peas while this week, we’re talking heirloom tomatoes!