tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-12257650077865771542024-02-07T23:14:07.409-05:00Ilene Price DesignPeek inside my creative life... my thoughts, my projects, my experiments and my discoveries. I strive to live a life full of color, texture and pattern and I find inspiration everywhere. Instagram, Facebook and other social media platforms are my visual diaries. Follow me here as I chronicle my journey in words with honesty, a little humor and a lot of inspiration.Ilene Price Designhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01433755240404434467noreply@blogger.comBlogger61125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1225765007786577154.post-86114941189634727342019-02-27T08:00:00.000-05:002019-02-27T08:00:01.532-05:00True Friendship<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
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<span style="color: #134f5c; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: large;">To the Women that Bring Joy to My Life</span></h2>
<span style="color: #783f04; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: large;">Looking back on my fifty plus years of life, I am lucky enough to say that I have had many friends. They have been from different stages and different places throughout my life. Each new chapter I have entered has brought forth new friendships and sometimes sadly dissolved old ones. </span><br />
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<span style="color: #783f04; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: large;">I am still making new friends throughout my journey and I don't think I will ever stop. Getting to know new people brings with it a mountain of fresh conversations, ideas and new experiences. But if by some chance I was never to make a friend again at this stage of my life, that would be okay because I am so lucky; I have my true-est forever friends, my yaya's, my sisters. </span><br />
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<span style="color: #783f04; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: large;">These women range from older childhood friends all the way up to the present. They are amazing, talented, loving and all around awesome women that I am lucky enough to have found on this planet. Old, new, far or around the corner, all in all, they are my confidants, my BFF's. These are the women I can say anything to without worrying about judgment or secrecy. These are the women who know me better than I know myself. These are the women who accept me with all my craziness and quirks. These are the women I laugh so hard with that I pee in my pants. These are my friendship soulmates. </span><br />
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<span style="color: #783f04; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: large;">I am so grateful to know each and every one of these women, they know who they are. This blog post is dedicated to them and the joy they bring into my life. I love you all with all my heart.</span>Ilene Price Designhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01433755240404434467noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1225765007786577154.post-78927148314380804752019-02-20T08:00:00.000-05:002019-02-20T08:00:03.404-05:00Making Old New Again <div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
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<span style="color: #134f5c; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: large;">And Other Recycle Stories</span></h2>
<span style="color: #783f04; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: large;">One of my goals this year is to take all of the leftover materials I have from various projects and try to create new pieces out of them. I want to deplete my inventory of miscellaneous "stuff" and clear some of my studio clutter. I have found that I really enjoy just creating paintings and drawings rather than making products from the artwork. I've learned to let the art speak for itself and let go of the need to make it become something else.</span><br />
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<span style="color: #783f04; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: large;">I've been very busy, sorting, organizing and mostly thinking. I have enough inventory to make limited editions of some new products which will be fun. So far I have decided to make all of my unfinished glass pendants into magnet sets. I also decided to use the bottle caps from my "</span><span class="" style="color: #783f04; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: large;">kidsy</span><span style="color: #783f04; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: large;">" necklaces and turn them into wine charms.</span></div>
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<span style="color: #783f04; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: large;">I have a big box filled with every print I ever made that was a dud or a second. I never threw any of them away because that's what I used to use to punch shapes for my jewelry. I think I am going to use what's left of them to create one of a kind patterns and collages. It's an exciting feeling to imagine using up so much collected materials from the last ten years. I have gotten rid of some, but I still have a lot more to let go of. </span><br />
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<span style="color: #783f04; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: large;">Unfortunately, I like to save everything in case I ever need it, but I haven't used some of these supplies in years. Maybe someday I will go looking for a specific wooden shape or jewelry finding etc., and it will be gone, but I think getting rid of the clutter is more important than keeping everything these days. It's not an easy task for me, this "letting go" but I am up for the challenge. </span></div>
Ilene Price Designhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01433755240404434467noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1225765007786577154.post-10512035706302708642019-02-13T08:00:00.000-05:002019-02-17T09:19:41.814-05:00Pure Play - No Thinking Involved<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
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<span style="color: #134f5c; font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif; font-size: large;">My Favorite New Art Tool</span></h2>
<span style="color: #783f04; font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif; font-size: large;">I have been watching gelli-print videos for a while now and finally purchased a few of my own. A gelli plate is a flexible gellatin surface used for simple printmaking. I love the pure spontaneousness of the whole process. You cannot predict what the print will look like, it's pure playfulness; and really why would you want to, that takes all the fun and surprise out of it. It's great because it prevents me from overthinking the final prints, I simply can't.</span><br />
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<iframe allowfullscreen='allowfullscreen' webkitallowfullscreen='webkitallowfullscreen' mozallowfullscreen='mozallowfullscreen' width='320' height='266' src='https://www.blogger.com/video.g?token=AD6v5dwSqoR7uYn3VXsrfoyOLO2oQPHuw2V4VYURrfKUc4Y0_UYRhehJDJ1ELbgxH2v5oiw8VR1bJG9yX_HT75PJuA' class='b-hbp-video b-uploaded' frameborder='0'></iframe></div>
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<span style="color: #783f04; font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif; font-size: large;">The way it works is you lay ink down on the plate and spread it around with a brayer (roller). By using stencils and other marking tools you create a pattern or shapes on the plate. After it has some texture, you simply press a piece of paper onto it and you have a print. You may be able to get a few prints out of each layering of ink. They will get lighter and "ghost" as you lift up more of the paint. The results are amazing, and, if you don't like a particular print, just use it again, pressing and adding more layers until you like it, (or not). You don't have to love all of them.</span><br />
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<span style="color: #783f04; font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif; font-size: large;">The other thing I love about this is the cleanup; there is almost none. I lift most of the paint off the plate itself with your prints and I usually let the stencils and tools just dry. If the paint gets really gunked up and I want to clean the plate or tools, I just use baby wipes. Easy peasy, lemon squeezy! You can use any paper, recycled junk mail, book pages or scraps from other projects. A great paper to practice on is deli paper; yes the paper you get your sandwiches wrapped in. You can get a big box and pull out a single sheet at a time. Deli paper is thin like tissue paper, but much more durable so it can handle paint well and you can use these prints in collages etc. I plan on playing with this a lot in the future because I can create so many prints so fast for a variety of projects. I am also thinking of experimenting with materials other than paper such as wood. Can't wait to make more! </span><span style="caret-color: rgb(120, 63, 4); color: #783f04; font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif; font-size: large;">A good days work is always dirty hands, happy printing...</span><br />
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<br />Ilene Price Designhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01433755240404434467noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1225765007786577154.post-42994827683030920752019-02-06T08:00:00.000-05:002019-02-06T08:00:04.540-05:00Reflections, Revelations and Resolutions<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
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<span style="color: #134f5c; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: large;">Finding My Daily Practice</span></h2>
<span style="color: #783f04; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: large;">January was a time of reflection for me. I guess it is with most people, trying to figure out resolutions and ways to make the new year the best that it can be. </span><span style="color: #783f04; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: large;">Looking back at 2018, I am so proud of myself for writing and publishing a book and for tackling the world of social media and marketing. (I still have a lot to learn and a long way to go.) What I didn't do was draw and sketch enough. I didn't create enough new work or get excited about anything except my book. It took over, I</span><span style="caret-color: rgb(120, 63, 4); color: #783f04; font-family: arial, helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: large;">’</span><span style="color: #783f04; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: large;">m a little OCD that way. </span><br />
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<span style="color: #783f04; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: large;">Last week I had a migraine on and off and couldn't bring myself to do the things I needed to do, such as cleaning my email, finishing my taxes and paying the bills, etc. It wasn</span><span style="caret-color: rgb(120, 63, 4); color: #783f04; font-family: arial, helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: large;">’</span><span style="color: #783f04; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: large;">t a terrible one so instead of just doing nothing I changed into comfy clothes, made my favorite tea, put on a yoga sounds playlist and I went to sit at my studio desk. I pulled out all kinds of supplies, and I spent the next three hours drawing, sketching and painting. It was fantastic, the time went so fast and was very relaxing. I almost forgot what that felt like this past year.</span><br />
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<span style="color: #783f04; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: large;">I made my goal for 2019 to remember that feeling and make it a daily practice, like taking my vitamins. I tend to get stuck when I look at a blank piece of paper and can't think of what to make each day. So many ideas flood my brain at once and I end up doing nothing. To try and remedy this, I decided I am going to create five different sketchbooks, one for each day the week and each with a different theme. I got this idea from following other artists who post images from their "various" sketchbooks. For example, one might be quick line and shape drawings, one watercolor backgrounds, collage, old book revival pages, general doodling, etc. I love the idea of having more than one focus sketchbook as well as the idea of a specific day for each; boom, the decision is made for me. I can still change my mind, change the order or create something different that day if the urge hits me.</span><br />
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<span style="color: #783f04; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: large;">My past behavior of focusing on my one </span><span style="caret-color: rgb(120, 63, 4); color: #783f04; font-family: arial, helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: large;">“h</span><span style="color: #783f04; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: large;">oly</span><span style="caret-color: rgb(120, 63, 4); color: #783f04; font-family: arial, helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: large;">”</span><span style="color: #783f04; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: large;"> sketchbook, never worked for me. But if I can make this a daily practice and commit to picking up a different sketchbook each day and spending twenty minutes doing a page or two, I can be creative and not get stuck or bored doing the same thing every day. In a way, it would be like keeping an artistic day planner. </span><br />
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<span style="color: #783f04; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: large;">A revelation I had while reflecting on 2018 is that I found that I have become a creative </span><span style="caret-color: rgb(120, 63, 4); color: #783f04; font-family: arial, helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: large;">“</span><span style="color: #783f04; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: large;">watcher</span><span style="caret-color: rgb(120, 63, 4); color: #783f04; font-family: arial, helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: large;">”</span><span style="color: #783f04; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: large;"> more than a </span><span style="caret-color: rgb(120, 63, 4); color: #783f04; font-family: arial, helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: large;">“</span><span style="color: #783f04; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: large;">maker</span><span style="caret-color: rgb(120, 63, 4); color: #783f04; font-family: arial, helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: large;">”</span><span style="color: #783f04; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: large;">. I spend a lot of time on social media viewing other artist's work and techniques. I get super inspired and collect ideas for future projects. I don't think there's anything wrong with that, on the contrary, the internet allows me to see the visual world from all around the globe. But if not careful, it becomes a time suck and then I find myself not creating at all. Maybe I am saturated with so much that I see, that it is just too distracting. I am hoping that in 2019 I can ground myself in a daily creative practice that nourishes my soul and finds my spark again.</span>Ilene Price Designhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01433755240404434467noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1225765007786577154.post-67102845641500109172019-01-30T08:00:00.000-05:002019-01-30T08:00:00.387-05:00All About You in 2 x 3-1/2 Inches<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgcHH4UWDj9vPLCGjotpxlUNL6ji_7U1UPEMkQ8O1WS0U3Zo-uGhriT-HEbDRyyUia6aCGfUFUYldY_tzgTDwTxMKSAeO-Iq8U4cN1-sFK-7xUyYA32Tw1FqGFsnNEBYkr6MeYW1rczP-vb/s1600/SM+BizCard+Pict-01.png" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1500" data-original-width="1500" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgcHH4UWDj9vPLCGjotpxlUNL6ji_7U1UPEMkQ8O1WS0U3Zo-uGhriT-HEbDRyyUia6aCGfUFUYldY_tzgTDwTxMKSAeO-Iq8U4cN1-sFK-7xUyYA32Tw1FqGFsnNEBYkr6MeYW1rczP-vb/s400/SM+BizCard+Pict-01.png" width="400" /></a></div>
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<span style="color: #0b5394; font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif; font-size: large;">Business Cards So Tiny and Powerful</span></h2>
<span style="color: #783f04; font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif; font-size: large;">There are so many avenues in the field of graphic design, from brand identity, brochures and posters to motion graphics and video. The one piece of printed graphic design that has always fascinated me is, and always will, is the business card. It is your first impression, your calling card as they say. In a small, usually 2 x 3-1/2 inch space, it has to give someone all your pertinent information, but also be stunning and eye-catching in its design. </span><br />
<span style="color: #783f04; font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif; font-size: large;"><br /></span> <span style="color: #783f04; font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif; font-size: large;">Think about it, your name, tag line, company, phone, fax, address, website etc.; it’s a lot of information in such a small space. The design, color and logo have to be clear and clever. </span><span style="caret-color: rgb(120, 63, 4); color: #783f04; font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif; font-size: large;">Back in the day, (and I</span><span style="caret-color: rgb(120, 63, 4); color: #783f04; font-family: arial, helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: large;">’</span><span style="caret-color: rgb(120, 63, 4); color: #783f04; font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif; font-size: large;">m referring to the 80’s) t</span><span style="caret-color: rgb(120, 63, 4); color: #783f04; font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif; font-size: large;">here was on occasion, the opportunity to use both sides and multiple colors when the budget allowed. You could even sometimes use a custom die cut shape, but more times than not, this was too expensive. Most of the time it was just one or two colors on a single side, but with some good design skills, it could be gorgeous. </span><br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjqLfgzWzc-iAOhgLHMap6gWhEq9omktB-swniAt-BUj0Gv93hBy12PzLSfNjsCMQxJqHE_ieS5FGEGmqtzoXwB8Qtbp3izJM-LOCur53xCsBj99HeFo71CJrO5bSpxHlB8HPo4N-ODjlUY/s1600/IMG_2339.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1600" data-original-width="1375" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjqLfgzWzc-iAOhgLHMap6gWhEq9omktB-swniAt-BUj0Gv93hBy12PzLSfNjsCMQxJqHE_ieS5FGEGmqtzoXwB8Qtbp3izJM-LOCur53xCsBj99HeFo71CJrO5bSpxHlB8HPo4N-ODjlUY/s400/IMG_2339.jpg" width="342" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="caret-color: rgb(19, 79, 92); color: #134f5c; font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">Some Favorite Horizontal Designs I Have Saved Over the Years</span></td></tr>
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<span style="color: #783f04; font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif; font-size: large;">With today</span><span style="color: #783f04; font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif; font-size: large;">’s technology and social media, you can have a very simple card with just a website link and email. I've heard some people say they don’t even use business cards anymore. Are they a dying art form? </span><span style="color: #783f04; font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif; font-size: large;">When I started out in design there was no internet, email was just beginning and we didn’t have social media. The business card was everything.</span><br />
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<span style="color: #783f04; font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif; font-size: large;"><br /></span> <span style="color: #783f04; font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif; font-size: large;">In my early days after graduating from college, I loved designing logos and creating simple identities for clients. Usually, it consisted of just a business card, letterhead, envelope and shipping label. Today a business’s branding can range from these important basic items to huge identity programs including brochures, packaging, signage, media webites and more. Having your identity, look consistent and cohesive across all platforms, printed materials and media is what “branding” is. The fact that graphic design has moved more into digital media and less printed material does not change the fact that whatever it is you are using for your branding identity, it has to be good basic design.</span><br />
<span style="color: #783f04; font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif; font-size: large;"><br /></span> <span style="color: #783f04; font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif; font-size: large;">I will always love business card design. I have been collecting them wherever I go since college, whether they’re from restaurants, shops or even a doctors office. I am always amazed when I see a layout or some typography that is fresh and new. You don’t have to reinvent the wheel each time, sometimes you can use an existing design and add a new spin on it. It’s also easier today to print in multiple colors and use both sides at little or no extra cost these days. But you have to be careful not to over design with those options. Sometimes just a simple one sided, 2 color design is all you need.</span><br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg-HtuENluiOrh9psDRMwUn05mpSbdkksE4hrMSJCwjjMD3VRbQmDExClPgfZcJYIjSAgLbyCLHoRNCpfnCV1q3fTGZitcG2etbpcm-EkDTrhnt8ag_3qG4UQ8AOGAtnzjR0ttBUby4yoz5/s1600/IMG_2337.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1416" data-original-width="1600" height="353" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg-HtuENluiOrh9psDRMwUn05mpSbdkksE4hrMSJCwjjMD3VRbQmDExClPgfZcJYIjSAgLbyCLHoRNCpfnCV1q3fTGZitcG2etbpcm-EkDTrhnt8ag_3qG4UQ8AOGAtnzjR0ttBUby4yoz5/s400/IMG_2337.jpg" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="color: #134f5c; font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">Some Favorite Vertical Designs I Have Saved Over the Years</span></td></tr>
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<span style="color: #783f04; font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif; font-size: large;"><br /></span><span style="color: #783f04; font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif; font-size: large;">Good design is about taking the clients needs, being inspired by existing and vintage work as well current and popular trends, and then creating something that is unique from that. I know these days anyone can create their own business cards from templates on websites like Vistprint or Zazzle. It’s a great DIY for the average person who needs a quick calling card with little experience and a low budget. But a really good, distinctive design stands out from the rest when it is created from scratch and the designer took the time to explore and develop an identity. </span><br />
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<span style="color: #783f04; font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif; font-size: large;">As a designer, I feel the business card is a place to showcase your skills in logo design, layout, color and typography all at the same time in the smallest of spaces. I feel if you can master that, you could design anything! Hopefully the art of beautiful business card design is not becomming extinct in the digital age.</span><br />
<br />Ilene Price Designhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01433755240404434467noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1225765007786577154.post-27742038515121077252019-01-23T08:00:00.000-05:002019-01-23T09:50:57.736-05:00Black and White<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhHbkc5cZUyT1mPBVNo7vS7lzCVnrndslBMY9dOa6ZEEiBYNCW1wDZRATtqkijzh8MtNPWUAUKlLS7FuSOgfoLjfFKL5vjRoXuqbPOHqrloj8_45mgdAWs9dQh88Jh5bnGVO4A9IPsHLMB7/s1600/IMG_1939.HEIC" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1600" data-original-width="1600" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhHbkc5cZUyT1mPBVNo7vS7lzCVnrndslBMY9dOa6ZEEiBYNCW1wDZRATtqkijzh8MtNPWUAUKlLS7FuSOgfoLjfFKL5vjRoXuqbPOHqrloj8_45mgdAWs9dQh88Jh5bnGVO4A9IPsHLMB7/s400/IMG_1939.HEIC" width="400" /></a></div>
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<span style="color: #134f5c; font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif; font-size: large;">Does Color Get All the Fun?</span></h2>
<span style="color: #783f04; font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif; font-size: large;">Last week I wrote about color and how people are drawn to different shades of the rainbow. When you ask someone there favorite color, most people don’t say black, although every women’s closet begs to differ. (How many LBDs do you have?) Black and white are fundamental and evoke emotions in their form rather than in their color. If you’ve ever looked at Ansel Adams’ photography or seen Jackson Pollock's "Number 14-Gray", you would see how absolutely stunning black and white can be. </span><br />
<span style="color: #783f04; font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif; font-size: large;"><br /></span> <span style="color: #783f04; font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif; font-size: large;">Back in design school, you had to master most things in black and white before you ever went near color. Learning to see and express forms in drawing always started with a simple graphite pencil. Logo design began in black and white, positive and negative space. If it didn’t work in black and white, chances are it wouldn't work in color. Layout and typography worked the same way. The letterforms had to work in black and white before color could be applied. </span><br />
<span style="color: #783f04; font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif; font-size: large;"><br /></span> <span style="color: #783f04; font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif; font-size: large;">The basics of photography were also taught in black and white. Instead of colors, you had light and shadow creating gradations. I remember having to print my photographs in Ansel Adam’s “Zone System”. Each print had to have the blackest black and the whitest white and nine perfect shades of gray in between. If it didn’t, it was back to the dark room.</span><br />
<span style="color: #783f04; font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif; font-size: large;"><br /></span> <span style="color: #783f04; font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif; font-size: large;">Black and white sometimes gets a bad rap. They are dramatic on their own, but they can anchor and balance color and make hues stand out in a piece of art. In graphic design, I learned a from my high school art teacher, Mr. Brodman, was “white space is your friend”. There are also beautiful images that have no color at all. My favorite examples of these are shadows. Black, gray and charcoal images on the ground or the side of a building created by light. Sometimes dramatic and harsh and sometimes soft and subtle. They have no color themselves, but their dark forms against objects can be magnificent.</span><br />
<span style="color: #783f04; font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif; font-size: large;"><br /></span> <span style="color: #783f04; font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif; font-size: large;">I think there is should always be a good balance between black and white and color in all aspects of life. But as far as designing and creating, ideas always begin for me in a black and white sketch then develop into black and white forms. Color always comes much later. So as much as I always say I live a colorful life, which I do, it always starts at black and white.</span>Ilene Price Designhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01433755240404434467noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1225765007786577154.post-670931824802883042019-01-16T08:00:00.000-05:002019-01-16T08:00:00.745-05:00ROYGBV and the Rainbow of Colors<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgRddalOdM4u4nwVbSC6YgKvApEkNwb2XTjkM0hjjwkJMAdJzDbGod7wZe2GqA3guoGJhQbVpi8dJhuHHEotGw9SMdUaJ2tFkyeH_JAGkaBAbCR4XE3UZ8W0tn-S-paK7Ke_Jdnai2N8rgX/s1600/IMG_1938.HEIC" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1600" data-original-width="1600" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgRddalOdM4u4nwVbSC6YgKvApEkNwb2XTjkM0hjjwkJMAdJzDbGod7wZe2GqA3guoGJhQbVpi8dJhuHHEotGw9SMdUaJ2tFkyeH_JAGkaBAbCR4XE3UZ8W0tn-S-paK7Ke_Jdnai2N8rgX/s400/IMG_1938.HEIC" width="400" /></a></div>
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<span style="color: #134f5c; font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif; font-size: large;">Which Ones Move you?</span></h2>
<span style="color: #783f04; font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif; font-size: large;">ROYGBV, we all know it... red, orange, yellow, green, blue and violet. Are those still the names you use today? Are you a simple color person or do you see them with a deeper expressive passion. My rainbow would be scarlet, tangerine, banana, jade, sapphire and orchid; or crimson, pumpkin, pineapple, emerald, azure and amethyst; or, well you get the point. </span><br />
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<span style="color: #783f04; font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif; font-size: large;">People are drawn to different colors. Some see the millions of shades of a color while others just see the simple pure color. There is a whole psychology to color theory. For example, purples are associated with royalty and creativity while reds are associated with passion and romanticism. Some people love the color orange and others can’t stand it. There’s no rhyme or reason, different personalities are drawn to different shades of the rainbow. </span><br />
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<span style="color: #783f04; font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif; font-size: large;">What are your favorite colors? What do they say about you? How do they make you feel? Mine are purple, teal and coral; but I have to say I really love the whole spectrum at different times for different purposes. You may love certain colors for your home amd others for clothes. I am personally drawn more to soft muted colors over bright and bold when it comes to decor. And, although I love when I see a bright turquoise or dark chocolate brown on someone’s wall, I don’t think I could be that striking in my own space. I’d like to think I could be that brave, but I always fall back on soft, neutral colors. They give me a sense of serenity, peacefulness and quiet that I like to live in. When it comes to fashion, I will definitely pick up a scarlet red sweater or a lime green necklace because they are fun and I don’t have to live in them everyday. </span><br />
<span style="color: #783f04; font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif; font-size: large;"><br /></span><span style="color: #783f04; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: large;">“</span><span style="color: #783f04; font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif; font-size: large;">Color is only color when it's next to color” was another quote I learned from a teacher back in the day. A particular shade of red will look different depending on what color it is next to or surrounded by. </span><span style="caret-color: rgb(120, 63, 4); color: #783f04; font-family: arial, helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: large;">It wil also appear differently in different light. </span><span style="color: #783f04; font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif; font-size: large;">Color changes, c</span><span style="caret-color: rgb(120, 63, 4); color: #783f04; font-family: arial, helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: large;">olor is subjective, color is beautiful, color makes a statement or can evoke a feeling.</span><span style="caret-color: rgb(120, 63, 4); color: #783f04; font-family: arial, helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: large;"> </span><span style="color: #783f04; font-family: arial, helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: large;">Color changes with light as well. It’s not just ROYGBV, it’s millions of colors. Nutritionists say eat your colors everyday, I say live them!</span><br />
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Ilene Price Designhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01433755240404434467noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1225765007786577154.post-51962236496563846762019-01-09T08:00:00.000-05:002019-01-09T08:00:08.441-05:00Happy Accidents<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhycRWvscIbbtzMiA0Ly-TAQtbLiOH72K_TCO8Z7Eqgx5WfmpK0NiyEO5372BOk7SUNb9y8iCls2cN38FYy4TxVyLFA3Kc6FmlWjizY525hSC0B9DQ-thJSvFUHZu-cpaQCgYcTMMiDOzj2/s1600/IMG_1923.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1600" data-original-width="1600" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhycRWvscIbbtzMiA0Ly-TAQtbLiOH72K_TCO8Z7Eqgx5WfmpK0NiyEO5372BOk7SUNb9y8iCls2cN38FYy4TxVyLFA3Kc6FmlWjizY525hSC0B9DQ-thJSvFUHZu-cpaQCgYcTMMiDOzj2/s400/IMG_1923.jpg" width="400" /></a></div>
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<span style="color: #134f5c; font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif; font-size: large;">And Learning to Not Think About It</span></h2>
<span style="color: #783f04; font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif; font-size: large;">As I have mentioned before, I am a planner, I always have been. I plan dinners, errand runs, vacation itineraries, house projects, chores, outfits... you name it, I plan it. I think that’s why graphic design was such a great career choice for me. I was always creative and the structured rules of graphic design suited me perfectly. I had grids to follow, color harmonies to make work, typography do’s and don’ts to abide by, etc. A match made in heaven for a while. </span><br />
<span style="color: #783f04; font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif; font-size: large;"><br /></span> <span style="color: #783f04; font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif; font-size: large;">There was no such thing as a happy accident for me. Some graphic designers can create very freely and intuitively, not me, possibly in the early stages of logo design, but not really anywhere else. Everything had to be perfectly aligned and have a place on the grid. I would overthink everything I worked on, and when I thought I was done with a design, I would start overthinking all over again. My brain just works that way and it has been very hard to switch gears. I am still a work in progress.</span><br />
<span style="color: #783f04; font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif; font-size: large;"><br /></span> <span style="color: #783f04; font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif; font-size: large;">Since I started creating fine art, I have struggled. Fine art for me means process over product, playing and experimenting. A lot of times I start thinking about what I am creating, what it will look like and how it will be used before I even begin. I took a painting class many years ago and that was the first time I totally let the colors and brush strokes move me. It was exhilarating and freeing, but not easy. I was the only one in class who didn’t use a still life set up, I just painted and it opened my mind up to organic creativity.</span><br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi1hspJHSUWtIK0yigqf24xgEXPFoajJCGCmlrbk1NChOzixSc02H0brc-dHIyQrfoHcSrDJi1CAilsRFMIXwvOYOehT2ernFzvL_e8lM3D7JUPcS8nSCdXcsEiSSz_xggC23inu5ppUK6N/s1600/IMG_1933.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1200" data-original-width="1200" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi1hspJHSUWtIK0yigqf24xgEXPFoajJCGCmlrbk1NChOzixSc02H0brc-dHIyQrfoHcSrDJi1CAilsRFMIXwvOYOehT2ernFzvL_e8lM3D7JUPcS8nSCdXcsEiSSz_xggC23inu5ppUK6N/s400/IMG_1933.JPG" width="400" /></a></div>
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<span style="color: #783f04; font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif; font-size: large;">I have slowly let go more and more over the last few years. I sit now with my watercolors or markers and just paint or draw. I don’t think about what it will be as much, I just do it. The whole process is a happy accident in a way and I am usually happy with the end result because there was nothing preconceived. I use it as a meditation, and I still struggle a bit with completely letting go, but that’s OK. </span><br />
<span style="color: #783f04; font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif; font-size: large;"><br /></span> <span style="color: #783f04; font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif; font-size: large;">I am an artist and I am a designer, I am a combination of the two. I am Yin and I am Yang. There are times my creative counterparts will fight each other and times they will compliment each other. Either way, I will always create.</span>Ilene Price Designhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01433755240404434467noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1225765007786577154.post-81766309572303060502019-01-02T08:00:00.000-05:002019-01-02T08:00:04.870-05:00Perfect College Care Packages<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEivwzNtZ-b0fzhQP6_2GGsVZ9g05btBhEQUES-OxYPXL6FfmZTELHOoghDNUOnHbjBHvjgUmgVb2JL5LTbQBjMhkQfOIstBbYFiEof5wxjUjJPcmroziN6XWNmHHDX52ggRWbQMz_y1w6RT/s1600/IMG_6178.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1600" data-original-width="1600" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEivwzNtZ-b0fzhQP6_2GGsVZ9g05btBhEQUES-OxYPXL6FfmZTELHOoghDNUOnHbjBHvjgUmgVb2JL5LTbQBjMhkQfOIstBbYFiEof5wxjUjJPcmroziN6XWNmHHDX52ggRWbQMz_y1w6RT/s400/IMG_6178.JPG" width="400" /></a></div>
<h2>
<span style="color: #134f5c; font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif; font-size: large;">Or As Some Would Would Say... Mom Gone Overboard!</span></h2>
<span style="color: #783f04; font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif; font-size: large;">When my daughter was a freshman last year I couldn’t wait to design and put together monthly care packages for her. I never did them for my son, maybe because my ideas were things I would like, more for a girl than a boy. Some of you may have already seen them on social media. I posted them each month last year with a Youtube video link of me putting them together. </span><br />
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<span style="color: #783f04; font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif; font-size: large;">I began researching exactly what I wanted to do the summer before she left. I decided there would be a monthly theme and some consistent items in every box, like a jar of candy, a “Keep Calm” card and TicTacs. Each box was decorated with scrapbook paper and was color coordinated to its theme. I would pick up little things I thought would be fun in a future box when I was running errands. I created eight in total, September through December, (skipping January since it was winter break), and then February through May. </span><br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgxGDjiBI-r5VvYzAL4ZVMSW9btiyGVucrh1solRnQAxvK2DW4FND4zogTRNkxGLuMuXf734zcyqvMDVK7dSrAHPVH2EAuU-fou5KbYsxOV27naOqDQ9RknCub4p_TL9foq67EJbVpKdBF1/s1600/IMG_0072.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1600" data-original-width="1600" height="200" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgxGDjiBI-r5VvYzAL4ZVMSW9btiyGVucrh1solRnQAxvK2DW4FND4zogTRNkxGLuMuXf734zcyqvMDVK7dSrAHPVH2EAuU-fou5KbYsxOV27naOqDQ9RknCub4p_TL9foq67EJbVpKdBF1/s200/IMG_0072.JPG" width="200" /></a><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEinrmqcXz2uMH7_7oA_Nhv-xomCftLMkaJqdRJzcgDg2HZNGlOdVN4YeYH0GLtvHVS8H117pAgRe_VFkSN1elS497qBXNmPFldHKix5D1QKdjrg7w21jbR4pv35bMLBTcW4x2x6zRgSx35x/s1600/IMG_1757.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1200" data-original-width="1200" height="200" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEinrmqcXz2uMH7_7oA_Nhv-xomCftLMkaJqdRJzcgDg2HZNGlOdVN4YeYH0GLtvHVS8H117pAgRe_VFkSN1elS497qBXNmPFldHKix5D1QKdjrg7w21jbR4pv35bMLBTcW4x2x6zRgSx35x/s200/IMG_1757.JPG" width="200" /></a></div>
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<span style="color: #783f04; font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif; font-size: large;">The first one was crazy overboard! I think it was the best because I had so much stuff in it, including “Open When” letters. I had friends and family write her letters based on prompts such as "Open when your sad.", or "Open when you're happy." She loved them and actually opened all of them when she received the box instead of waiting. It was also all about being happy and true to yourself with inspirational quotes etc. And the color theme I used for the first box was the colors of her dorm room decor. All in all, I loved creating all of the boxes. </span><br />
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<span style="color: #674ea7; font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif; font-size: large;"><i>Here's a list of the month themes:</i></span><br />
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<ul>
<li><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif; font-size: large;"><b><span style="color: #134f5c;">September</span></b><span style="color: #783f04;"> - </span></span><span style="caret-color: rgb(120, 63, 4); color: #783f04; font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif; font-size: large;">“</span><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif; font-size: large;"><span style="color: #783f04;">Be True, Be You, Be Brave, Be Happy</span></span><span style="caret-color: rgb(120, 63, 4); color: #783f04; font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif; font-size: large;">”</span></li>
<li><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif; font-size: large;"><b><span style="color: #134f5c;">October</span></b><span style="color: #783f04;"> - </span></span><span style="caret-color: rgb(120, 63, 4); color: #783f04; font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif; font-size: large;">“</span><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif; font-size: large;"><span style="color: #783f04;">Halloween</span></span><span style="caret-color: rgb(120, 63, 4); color: #783f04; font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif; font-size: large;">”</span><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif; font-size: large;"><span style="color: #783f04;">, orange and purple, but not too kidsy and of course lots of candy</span></span></li>
<li><span style="color: #134f5c; font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif; font-size: large;"><b>November</b></span><span style="color: #783f04; font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif; font-size: large;"> - </span><span style="caret-color: rgb(120, 63, 4); color: #783f04; font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif; font-size: large;">“</span><span style="color: #783f04; font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif; font-size: large;">We Are So Thankful For You!</span><span style="caret-color: rgb(120, 63, 4); color: #783f04; font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif; font-size: large;">”</span><span style="color: #783f04; font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif; font-size: large;">, gratitude theme in browns, reds and oranges</span></li>
<li><span style="color: #134f5c; font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif; font-size: large;"><b>December</b></span><span style="color: #783f04; font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif; font-size: large;"> - </span><span style="caret-color: rgb(120, 63, 4); color: #783f04; font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif; font-size: large;">“</span><span style="color: #783f04; font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif; font-size: large;">Finals Survival Kit</span><span style="caret-color: rgb(120, 63, 4); color: #783f04; font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif; font-size: large;">”</span><span style="color: #783f04; font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif; font-size: large;">, cranberry and winter colors, with cute little puns</span></li>
<li><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif; font-size: large;"><b><span style="color: #134f5c;">February</span></b><span style="color: #783f04;"> - </span></span><span style="caret-color: rgb(120, 63, 4); color: #783f04; font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif; font-size: large;">“</span><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif; font-size: large;"><span style="color: #783f04;">I’m Blue Without You</span></span><span style="caret-color: rgb(120, 63, 4); color: #783f04; font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif; font-size: large;">”</span><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif; font-size: large;"><span style="color: #783f04;">, blue and snow/winter</span></span></li>
<li><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif; font-size: large;"><b><span style="color: #134f5c;">March</span></b><span style="color: #783f04;"> - </span></span><span style="caret-color: rgb(120, 63, 4); color: #783f04; font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif; font-size: large;">“</span><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif; font-size: large;"><span style="color: #783f04;">Lucky to Be Your Mom and Dad</span></span><span style="caret-color: rgb(120, 63, 4); color: #783f04; font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif; font-size: large;">”</span><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif; font-size: large;"><span style="color: #783f04;">, full of colorful rainbows and shades of green</span></span></li>
<li><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif; font-size: large;"><b><span style="color: #134f5c;">April</span></b><span style="color: #783f04;"> - </span></span><span style="caret-color: rgb(120, 63, 4); color: #783f04; font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif; font-size: large;">“</span><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif; font-size: large;"><span style="color: #783f04;">A Little Box of Sunshine</span></span><span style="caret-color: rgb(120, 63, 4); color: #783f04; font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif; font-size: large;">”</span><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif; font-size: large;"><span style="color: #783f04;">, yellows and sunny</span></span></li>
<li><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif; font-size: large;"><b><span style="color: #134f5c;">May</span></b><span style="color: #783f04;"> - </span></span><span style="caret-color: rgb(120, 63, 4); color: #783f04; font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif; font-size: large;">“O</span><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif; font-size: large;"><span style="color: #783f04;">range You Glad It’s Almost Summer</span></span><span style="caret-color: rgb(120, 63, 4); color: #783f04; font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif; font-size: large;">”</span><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif; font-size: large;"><span style="color: #783f04;">, orange and fun summer items</span></span></li>
</ul>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiEZ0CeM_R6A_YCOEXzThp3BfxJQHhWsRYtoMnXrcZXWtfuBHXTwbLM7Lg_3ETYUax-N0iZ4SwQm3yMFwrTinAgNX_5l5W0nf8-wH5kMZEr3crvYevoEdSquM4WAEF9RSCNTksHPbwS-aGd/s1600/F89952F5-E4B2-40BC-8612-C68546146429.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1600" data-original-width="1600" height="200" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiEZ0CeM_R6A_YCOEXzThp3BfxJQHhWsRYtoMnXrcZXWtfuBHXTwbLM7Lg_3ETYUax-N0iZ4SwQm3yMFwrTinAgNX_5l5W0nf8-wH5kMZEr3crvYevoEdSquM4WAEF9RSCNTksHPbwS-aGd/s200/F89952F5-E4B2-40BC-8612-C68546146429.JPG" width="200" /></a><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgYnXw-1nvIInJFiYzQ8Sqp6S7SxOEnUS7xZASidPxCAJFrQwatjYok_PpPb6_ily8jtaDZtNoW_xB7iDJavXthgSJGw1wGbV6DWbVtY0zs6gV39kmpBJpwpLGeJ6HOAfJA1Xia3l9as_Ha/s1600/IMG_6454.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1600" data-original-width="1600" height="200" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgYnXw-1nvIInJFiYzQ8Sqp6S7SxOEnUS7xZASidPxCAJFrQwatjYok_PpPb6_ily8jtaDZtNoW_xB7iDJavXthgSJGw1wGbV6DWbVtY0zs6gV39kmpBJpwpLGeJ6HOAfJA1Xia3l9as_Ha/s200/IMG_6454.JPG" width="200" /></a><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj2Q4q_G4AJCItrJUAnq7GlNBYg3nKx3dnjgzjxd5pLmUgjuMauXrgh_2HVRa6-voDR0AktCmsnC-lrqKOp-Q71iE4aQ7GnahIfR0SF6d_TSx_cUKYr_Yv4t9B-VM8ZloXt6OUoXome6nbv/s1600/IMG_6602.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1600" data-original-width="1600" height="200" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj2Q4q_G4AJCItrJUAnq7GlNBYg3nKx3dnjgzjxd5pLmUgjuMauXrgh_2HVRa6-voDR0AktCmsnC-lrqKOp-Q71iE4aQ7GnahIfR0SF6d_TSx_cUKYr_Yv4t9B-VM8ZloXt6OUoXome6nbv/s200/IMG_6602.JPG" width="200" /></a><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjom30GtBVXeJ7YnezS_jaas1QJRFL5RSybOK-PD8H98hUCS9BOVb4og5QnIIxSdLMs6fUw_tcKR4V6dp13AkdtE1_O8llE-gsAcSjjHl7LUzhB8TF7DYollMONV1lN8QgZh2MVzU9So3sb/s1600/IMG_6711.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1600" data-original-width="1600" height="200" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjom30GtBVXeJ7YnezS_jaas1QJRFL5RSybOK-PD8H98hUCS9BOVb4og5QnIIxSdLMs6fUw_tcKR4V6dp13AkdtE1_O8llE-gsAcSjjHl7LUzhB8TF7DYollMONV1lN8QgZh2MVzU9So3sb/s200/IMG_6711.JPG" width="200" /></a><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgM2GS3oIqn73UhbOUN6gqXo4P6TFryp8ngTxbgAwmdJ_8wD9LBIast0X6U11gtoL84twQHf5v-n7gVHU-z8ERqANYGq_DmoXjZeYpxCHfCHY2Y3uxjBvREtkuePFN4Uqisg3-urR2tO1CU/s1600/IMG_7146.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1600" data-original-width="1600" height="200" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgM2GS3oIqn73UhbOUN6gqXo4P6TFryp8ngTxbgAwmdJ_8wD9LBIast0X6U11gtoL84twQHf5v-n7gVHU-z8ERqANYGq_DmoXjZeYpxCHfCHY2Y3uxjBvREtkuePFN4Uqisg3-urR2tO1CU/s200/IMG_7146.JPG" width="200" /></a><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh3JHgcihnl_VX6jUgu-cKQV4OwC4PpWvbUhEhaeB-UVzzRkzqad2w0w12Wa395B-yFLOWMj7kanFyuXLQmDt7oaorH1IETqmiaFqXHRVIeakOrM8O0-6WY29-TydiaduzuC7iA6l8Yv6K-/s1600/IMG_7611.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1200" data-original-width="1200" height="200" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh3JHgcihnl_VX6jUgu-cKQV4OwC4PpWvbUhEhaeB-UVzzRkzqad2w0w12Wa395B-yFLOWMj7kanFyuXLQmDt7oaorH1IETqmiaFqXHRVIeakOrM8O0-6WY29-TydiaduzuC7iA6l8Yv6K-/s200/IMG_7611.JPG" width="200" /></a><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgq1Pbddhz7D1-nwkTDbkNtskhobf9q4lw6-reaxRlNvuWTx6oAO6Q2QGXKfmvjmSsXFnzEeBDx5dVIyGkvik7P2ZlHp-ptFDZQMfOqRHqiPCxpiTDSwANg7uAhNnKSIT8OLHFPLgA0zfYo/s1600/IMG_7758.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1200" data-original-width="1200" height="200" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgq1Pbddhz7D1-nwkTDbkNtskhobf9q4lw6-reaxRlNvuWTx6oAO6Q2QGXKfmvjmSsXFnzEeBDx5dVIyGkvik7P2ZlHp-ptFDZQMfOqRHqiPCxpiTDSwANg7uAhNnKSIT8OLHFPLgA0zfYo/s200/IMG_7758.JPG" width="200" /></a></div>
<div>
<span style="color: #783f04; font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif; font-size: large;"><span style="caret-color: rgb(120, 63, 4);">Here's the link to my Youtube Channel where you</span></span><span style="caret-color: rgb(120, 63, 4); color: #783f04; font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif; font-size: large;">’</span><span style="color: #783f04; font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif; font-size: large;"><span style="caret-color: rgb(120, 63, 4);">ll find all of my videos creating the boxes each month. </span></span></div>
<div>
<span style="color: #783f04; font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif; font-size: large;"><span style="caret-color: rgb(120, 63, 4);"><i><a href="https://www.youtube.com/user/ilenepricedesign/videos" target="_blank">Putting Together My Daughter's College Care Packages</a></i></span></span></div>
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<span style="color: #783f04; font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif; font-size: large;">By the second semester, I toned the boxes down a bit with bigger but fewer items at my daughter’s request. She said she loved them but simply didn’t have the need or space for more knick knacks, journals, etc. So instead I’d add a cozy sweater or socks and always lots f food treats. I haven’t sent any yet this year but I may send one or two surprise specialty boxes next term. I mean really, who doesn’t love getting a surprise box in the mail? Hint, hint...</span>Ilene Price Designhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01433755240404434467noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1225765007786577154.post-63197709638087864402018-12-26T08:00:00.000-05:002018-12-26T08:00:06.985-05:00Happy Everything<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiEq6uacVgC5WMzDfkqSpzRYFRKoteKgp093uA2bYc1RumZ2_dFEMophijPeLoJ0JS3oMgk6dRTgAkN0jChn4vNLY21hyphenhyphenBCo66fN4Uq2zIjTqZoFMvaMNpnWaItFKEK5pyq6UQzPtATYQ6p/s1600/IMG_1024.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1600" data-original-width="1600" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiEq6uacVgC5WMzDfkqSpzRYFRKoteKgp093uA2bYc1RumZ2_dFEMophijPeLoJ0JS3oMgk6dRTgAkN0jChn4vNLY21hyphenhyphenBCo66fN4Uq2zIjTqZoFMvaMNpnWaItFKEK5pyq6UQzPtATYQ6p/s400/IMG_1024.JPG" width="400" /></a></div>
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<span style="color: #134f5c; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: large;">And Wishes For a Healthy New Year</span></h3>
<span style="color: #783f04; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: large;">Instead of a blog this week, I just want to wish everyone a very happy holiday season and a healthy New Year. No matter what you celebrate, it is a time for reflection and for promises, maybe to others, but most importantly to yourself. Reflecting back on what the year brought, reveling in the joys as well as learning and becoming stronger from the struggles. It's a time of making resolutions for the new year. My resolution is just to be the best person I can be, to myself and to others and more than I was the year before; to love thy neighbor and always be kind; to accept people for their differences because that is what makes them unique and interesting. We are all human, we all have a heart and we can all live together in peace if we try. </span><br />
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<span style="color: #783f04; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: large;"><i>Happy Everything!</i></span>Ilene Price Designhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01433755240404434467noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1225765007786577154.post-65942878226879909872018-12-19T08:00:00.000-05:002018-12-19T08:00:00.677-05:00Craft Show Blues<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiBN1nTkdv8pNP-tGBPqHbTOlz-nTYBwSJ9gxypfOUiCIj5wbtMYRFeIV8-Yoq7B_WQG69pFnZZc7cVwjagwDo4auKy6KY31y9wBTUHkJJECyltGPX4uIkncd1a0CItLPYZXOjXVsIAd-K-/s1600/9D38388B-1CCC-412A-A360-BFF6645499B5.jpeg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1200" data-original-width="1600" height="300" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiBN1nTkdv8pNP-tGBPqHbTOlz-nTYBwSJ9gxypfOUiCIj5wbtMYRFeIV8-Yoq7B_WQG69pFnZZc7cVwjagwDo4auKy6KY31y9wBTUHkJJECyltGPX4uIkncd1a0CItLPYZXOjXVsIAd-K-/s400/9D38388B-1CCC-412A-A360-BFF6645499B5.jpeg" width="400" /></a></div>
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<span style="color: #783f04; font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif; font-size: large;">When I first started my business in 2008 and moved from graphic design to fine art, I was so excited. I couldn’t wait to participate in craft shows and art fairs. I pictured traveling every weekend to different venues and being a display/booth rock star. I was for a while and over the course of a few years, I did a number of them, from outdoor parks to indoor facilities. Every venue had a different size space and set up and I had to adjust my displays and booth design each time. It was sometimes a full 10x10 booth and sometimes it was just a 6-foot table. I loved finding interesting pieces for displaying my work, bowls, cakes plates, boxes, etc. I also changed the vibe of the booth a couple of times, and it always rocked. </span><br />
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<span style="color: #783f04; font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif; font-size: large;"><br /></span> <span style="color: #783f04; font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif; font-size: large;">But over time I began to realize that this wasn’t for me. I would always make back my booth fee and some extra, but if I counted the hours of packing, unpacking, setting up and then being there for hours trying to sell, I really didn’t make any money for all the effort. It did give me some great exposure to new people, but not enough to make it worthwhile. I found it really exhausting, both mentally and physically.</span><br />
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<span style="color: #783f04; font-family: arial, helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: large;">Besides exposure to new potential customers, I learned not to take it personally when people just walked by without really looking. They either loved my work or didn’t get it. My watercolor mandalas are not for everyone and I started to learn my audience from the experience. So that was a plus. Today I am much more aware of how I walk through a craft show and interact with an artist based on my own experiences. </span><br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgSDs1dnurJX8JYzrf02P7XaS4neDUEhIEcIAHKFR0uv43qSkYBIdSrUkhOwPJbm3dXWvwb6rye8f2WMtFcqOW6LC3zttSZEZmOn15BNDOIml__BjfkmGbmV1Nup6JLh4-u66XOxMNHjwFZ/s1600/173626B8-4F43-4FDA-B046-4AEE12BC35AE.jpeg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1600" data-original-width="1600" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgSDs1dnurJX8JYzrf02P7XaS4neDUEhIEcIAHKFR0uv43qSkYBIdSrUkhOwPJbm3dXWvwb6rye8f2WMtFcqOW6LC3zttSZEZmOn15BNDOIml__BjfkmGbmV1Nup6JLh4-u66XOxMNHjwFZ/s400/173626B8-4F43-4FDA-B046-4AEE12BC35AE.jpeg" width="400" /></a></div>
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<span style="color: #783f04; font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif; font-size: large;"><br /></span> <span style="color: #783f04; font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif; font-size: large;">It’s been a few years since I did a show. I have a small following that orders directly from me, a few online shops and great exposure at a retail store called “Just Jersey” in Morristown and Montclair which only carries handmade local work from all over the state. I may only make half the amount selling at wholesale prices on consignment with them, but when you take away the time and money I spent on the shows, not to mention the anxiety I felt before each one, this works much better for me. I don’t know if I will ever do one again, it’s always a possibility... never say never.</span><br />
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<span style="color: #783f04; font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif; font-size: large;"><br /></span>Ilene Price Designhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01433755240404434467noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1225765007786577154.post-54718431896168314292018-12-12T08:00:00.000-05:002018-12-12T08:00:00.147-05:00Random Acts of Pattern<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhRv7l-azaGaM9si5eG8WQqaujrnU3k33tR7p7dKvAMe_99gzWrSeGarVenIJWpRawDKUNDop5GhgcrhPtCCkFzi7dfRCX24naKDnq0Qs25qEZMWW_u8ftKODKPpXqrrSMc5PW1BvfuOOdf/s1600/IMG_4102.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1200" data-original-width="1200" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhRv7l-azaGaM9si5eG8WQqaujrnU3k33tR7p7dKvAMe_99gzWrSeGarVenIJWpRawDKUNDop5GhgcrhPtCCkFzi7dfRCX24naKDnq0Qs25qEZMWW_u8ftKODKPpXqrrSMc5PW1BvfuOOdf/s400/IMG_4102.JPG" width="400" /></a></div>
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<span style="color: #134f5c; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: large;">Kaleidomatic App</span></h2>
<span style="color: #783f04; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: large;">There is an app that I absolutely love called Kaleidomatic. I used to use it all the time to create patterns from my artwork. When IOS11 came out, it stopped working but I refused to delete it in hopes that the developer would update it. Finally a year later and onto IOS12, they have. I was so excited to start playing with it again. </span><br />
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<span style="color: #783f04; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: large;">It allows me to choose an image from my photos and create amazing random patterns using the artwork. I purchased the "in-app" pattern and color packs to have more flexibility. The collage image above started with the flower artwork in the center of the grid. By choosing different options I was able to create the other eight patterns. By twisting two fingers on the screen, you create a moving kaleidoscope image that you can take screen snapshots at various points. The patterns are infinite. And you don't have to use artwork, you can use any photo either from your albums or taken within the app itself.</span><br />
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<span style="color: #783f04; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: large;">One thing I am not sure of the quality and resolution of the saved image if I was to try and use it to produce an actual product. I will have to experiment with it and see and maybe write to the developer. </span><br />
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<span style="color: #783f04; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: large;">Here are a few more examples. It's amazing to see your artwork in a new way that you couldn't have imagined.</span><br />
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<span style="color: #783f04; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: large;"><br /></span>Ilene Price Designhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01433755240404434467noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1225765007786577154.post-70438349464355150802018-11-28T08:00:00.000-05:002018-11-28T08:00:12.212-05:00You Win Some and You Lose Some<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg0w0VHVKW6A5kDsVdShw0EcNxvGZwEP6PYDZtbAcG197Ss-_SBNAQReLarZa8n6_YmfXTfGx0THyqK1RtJKxvOGXntl4iFbdPcPdlvNeBdCOFQIP5kN98PQruwFr-izSLUfryM5-VfC817/s1600/IMG_4044.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1200" data-original-width="1200" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg0w0VHVKW6A5kDsVdShw0EcNxvGZwEP6PYDZtbAcG197Ss-_SBNAQReLarZa8n6_YmfXTfGx0THyqK1RtJKxvOGXntl4iFbdPcPdlvNeBdCOFQIP5kN98PQruwFr-izSLUfryM5-VfC817/s400/IMG_4044.JPG" width="400" /></a></div>
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<span style="color: #134f5c; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: large;">10 Years and It's all Good...</span></h2>
<span style="color: #783f04; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: large;">Last month I entered a cover contest for Uppercase Magazine. It was for their 10th-anniversary issue and the theme was "the tools we use". This was the first time they had a cover contest and there were over 300 submissions. I found out yesterday that I did not win, but it's all good. I was happy just to participate and I love the piece of artwork I created because of the opportunity.</span><br />
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<span style="color: #783f04; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: large;">If you are a creative person and haven't heard of Uppercase, go pick yourself up a copy, you will love it, I promise. It is a wonderful inspirational quarterly designed and printed in Canada. </span><span style="caret-color: rgb(120, 63, 4); color: #783f04; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: large;">It is, as it says on their cover, "for the creative and curious".</span><span style="caret-color: rgb(120, 63, 4); color: #783f04; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: large;"> </span><span style="caret-color: rgb(120, 63, 4); color: #783f04; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: large;">Each quarter has a theme and is filled with artwork and stories from creatives from all over. Uppercase is also an independent magazine so there is no advertising, just lots of amazing print, craft and artwork. </span><span style="color: #783f04; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: large;">When the new issue arrives every three months, I can't wait to open the package. It's not just for the content, but I absolutely love the way the magazine smells. Paper and ink, print shop fresh, reminding of my graphic design days when I used to go on press runs for clients. </span><br />
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<span style="color: #783f04; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: large;">Anyway, back to my submission. I wanted to show you the progression of the idea to the finished artwork. I knew immediately it would be a watercolor mandala in my doodle style. </span><br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhf6JOW2JGcbDoIwfruoIg0dxL4QvzG9tkBZMTE16E6jgFDMSeFNNIsxQtMopohwpUagXlWZdCp5zp030vsiysuIyq-epYNd3fGCKHeF5k_VQ2TSsuHEoAsL0q_HkoCfVwXmwQkgB9QSN-D/s1600/IMG_4038.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1200" data-original-width="1200" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhf6JOW2JGcbDoIwfruoIg0dxL4QvzG9tkBZMTE16E6jgFDMSeFNNIsxQtMopohwpUagXlWZdCp5zp030vsiysuIyq-epYNd3fGCKHeF5k_VQ2TSsuHEoAsL0q_HkoCfVwXmwQkgB9QSN-D/s400/IMG_4038.JPG" width="400" /></a></div>
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<span style="color: #783f04; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: large;">It started with a quick pen sketch. I then arranged "the tools I use" in a circle and created another sketch from that. Once I had a sketch I was happy with, I traced the image with an ink pen onto vellum paper and did a quick color wash. </span><span style="color: #783f04; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: large;">Then I did something I have never done before, instead of redrawing or tracing the image directly onto watercolor paper, I scanned the vellum into my computer and printed it out on watercolor paper made for an inkjet printer. It worked out nicely, but I think I prefer painting onto good quality watercolor paper instead of the inkjet version.</span><br />
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<span style="color: #783f04; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: large;">The finished piece looks like this...</span><br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjr7QfXzrluphkgPN-SYucw8egHeEDOb2NULcL6fF8xN_S4dHVfrOTKB1BhfUN5qFVJOKMSnTsgOSNF2Cq6nezrl1qlI1m2GOKyu9JOqznRtt_UPRnwXXwSMd7j83QhqE2FF85GTGR1HkF6/s1600/IMG_4043.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1200" data-original-width="1200" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjr7QfXzrluphkgPN-SYucw8egHeEDOb2NULcL6fF8xN_S4dHVfrOTKB1BhfUN5qFVJOKMSnTsgOSNF2Cq6nezrl1qlI1m2GOKyu9JOqznRtt_UPRnwXXwSMd7j83QhqE2FF85GTGR1HkF6/s400/IMG_4043.JPG" width="400" /></a></div>
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<span style="color: #783f04; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: large;">And the submission I sent to them to show them how it would look on their cover looked like this...</span><br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjoSxFU-n32xtQpjypIy8YXpOwZ5lpDHDHQsDYLCSTexAp9J1FfYewCzdtWghPreJV5YejDldgbLZizzFmyhTnubcCedo-fSGIWkxRsUGoAynep0EPqCNIX9WgzwcSvjW_Qh4FOF8j7Y1RE/s1600/UPPERCASE%25C2%25A9+MockUp.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1600" data-original-width="1307" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjoSxFU-n32xtQpjypIy8YXpOwZ5lpDHDHQsDYLCSTexAp9J1FfYewCzdtWghPreJV5YejDldgbLZizzFmyhTnubcCedo-fSGIWkxRsUGoAynep0EPqCNIX9WgzwcSvjW_Qh4FOF8j7Y1RE/s640/UPPERCASE%25C2%25A9+MockUp.jpg" width="521" /></a></div>
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<span style="color: #783f04; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: large;">So even though I didn't win the cover contest, I won because I really enjoyed creating this piece. And coincidentally, 2018 is actually my 10th year in business, so it's my anniversary too. I think I will frame it and hang it in my studio.</span>Ilene Price Designhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01433755240404434467noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1225765007786577154.post-53082396652878613842018-11-21T08:00:00.000-05:002018-11-21T08:00:08.306-05:00The ABC's of Non-Consent is Going to Hollywood!<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgMCXWURiG_KFIltQ59PZGws4A9EPNaT0V0Qr37l_Sd27sa1M9LPPYtNz-meSuHwydHqJVCmy5mNGNJTtHZaxm3dOnzKBROPkdFns3YbeDAa_2fPfxdi3P1wxsRDiJWXzNHKGWvL9W5bbF7/s1600/Going+to+Hollywood.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1502" data-original-width="1510" height="397" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgMCXWURiG_KFIltQ59PZGws4A9EPNaT0V0Qr37l_Sd27sa1M9LPPYtNz-meSuHwydHqJVCmy5mNGNJTtHZaxm3dOnzKBROPkdFns3YbeDAa_2fPfxdi3P1wxsRDiJWXzNHKGWvL9W5bbF7/s400/Going+to+Hollywood.jpg" width="400" /></a></div>
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<span style="color: #134f5c; font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif; font-size: large;">2019 Golden Globes Here We Come!</span></h2>
<span style="color: #783f04; font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif; font-size: large;">I am so excited to announce that my new book "The ABC's of Non-Consent" will be included in the Artisan Group's "swag bags" at </span><span style="caret-color: rgb(120, 63, 4); color: #783f04; font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif; font-size: large;">GBK’s Celebrity Gifting Suite Honoring the 2019 Golden Globes this coming January.</span><br />
<span style="color: #783f04; font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif; font-size: large;"><br /></span> <span style="color: #783f04; font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif; font-size: large;">Back in 2011, The Artisan Group, a celebrity gifting organization, discovered me at a fine art and craft show. That same year I participated with them in </span><span style="caret-color: rgb(120, 63, 4); color: #783f04; font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif; font-size: large;">GBK’s Celebrity Gifting Suite Honoring the 2011 Emmy Awards and o</span><span style="color: #783f04; font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif; font-size: large;">ver the past 8 years, I have worked with them many other smaller events.</span><br />
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<span style="color: #783f04; font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif; font-size: large;">I decided to go all out this year with their Golden Globes event because </span><span style="caret-color: rgb(120, 63, 4); color: #783f04; font-family: arial, helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: large;">I think my book is so timely with the #metoo movement. </span><span style="color: #783f04; font-family: arial, helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: large;">My exposure with the Artisan Group will include getting my book into the hands of 90 celebrities, 30 members of the press and having it on display at their table at the event. I'm guaranteed to receive a couple of photos with VIPs or celebrities holding my book which is so awesome! The event takes place on January 4th and 5th, the two days before the Golden Globes which are on January 6, 2019.</span><br />
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<span style="color: #783f04; font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif; font-size: large;">I know January seems so far away, but the deadline to send all of my products in is coming up. I have been working on getting everything together for it the past couple of weeks and I'd love to give you a "behind the scenes" look at what I have done so far.</span><br />
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<span style="color: #783f04; font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif; font-size: large;">Once I was accepted into the event I had to create an eye-catching display for their table. I found this great wooden shadow box and painted it orange to match the envelopes I use in the swag bags. </span><span style="caret-color: rgb(120, 63, 4); color: #783f04; font-family: arial, helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: large;"> </span><span style="caret-color: rgb(120, 63, 4); color: #783f04; font-family: arial, helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: large;">The box fits my book perfectly and the celebrities and press will be able to easily take it out and look at it when they visit the booth. I attached my information on the back of the display as well.</span><br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiNoW-gp5zzBKELLov3iz-zyIwuwQQXYbitroa8CJf9Y7hTVsl-o-9-EthVjcYQ8JleoBhXdbbS8K5u203iFVYZbf8WhcLoAsnBaTLzk9h9J_auVOw1tjdkHkvzmghlnq2UfMO5r20hmI0F/s1600/For+Blog.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1054" data-original-width="1600" height="421" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiNoW-gp5zzBKELLov3iz-zyIwuwQQXYbitroa8CJf9Y7hTVsl-o-9-EthVjcYQ8JleoBhXdbbS8K5u203iFVYZbf8WhcLoAsnBaTLzk9h9J_auVOw1tjdkHkvzmghlnq2UfMO5r20hmI0F/s640/For+Blog.jpg" width="640" /></a><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh37h4m3t-5szsKLxrUrjj7Hdese1bHG1n97Z_1D7_VmMxG_K0QmSYZvJhz3aLcFc9whRznilVKEw2NjN6hhaekWuCxhnoIg9UsmT2amDC9CJx2EbucfMQYiUHFcnO_5x8Ez19AjdfZcxH-/s1600/IMG_4019.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1200" data-original-width="1200" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh37h4m3t-5szsKLxrUrjj7Hdese1bHG1n97Z_1D7_VmMxG_K0QmSYZvJhz3aLcFc9whRznilVKEw2NjN6hhaekWuCxhnoIg9UsmT2amDC9CJx2EbucfMQYiUHFcnO_5x8Ez19AjdfZcxH-/s400/IMG_4019.JPG" width="400" /></a></div>
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<span style="color: #783f04; font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif; font-size: large;">Over the past couple of months, I have been ordering the materials I needed, new business cards, envelopes, stickers and of course the books themselves. I created and printed a postcard that explains what the book is about, how it came about and a little bit about me. Now I had to just put it all together. I did it in steps, attaching the business cards to the postcards, collating the books, stuffing the envelopes, attaching the stickers etc., 120 pieces in all.</span><br />
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<span style="color: #783f04; font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif; font-size: large;">And I signed each book of course...</span><br />
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<span style="color: #783f04; font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif; font-size: large;">After collating all the parts I began stuffing the envelopes. The last thing was attaching my address sticker on the back to secure the package and then it was just wrapping everything carefully with bubble wrap for shipping. I included a photo of what the display should look like put together and wallah, I was done. I'll get it shipped out after Thanksgiving weekend and then I will just have to wait until 2019 to see the response! Super psyched!</span><br />
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Ilene Price Designhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01433755240404434467noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1225765007786577154.post-6702821597487046972018-11-14T08:00:00.000-05:002018-11-14T08:00:01.527-05:00Organizational Bliss<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
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<span style="color: #134f5c; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: large;">"Nesting" or Purging Every Few Months...</span></h2>
<span style="color: #783f04; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: large;">I just finished the bi-monthly cleaning of my workspace. When I first set up my studio years ago, I thought that I, like other artists, would live in a creative "mess", paint, supplies and papers all over the place. (That's the way our studios were at in art school.) I have found that I can't be inspired to create when I feel overwhelmed by the "mess". I love having artwork and inspiration everywhere, but I need everything organized and accessible.</span><br />
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<span style="color: #783f04; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: large;">So I began a regular clean-up of my space. I go through my sketches and supplies and don't keep everything the way I used to. The purge feels great afterward. I usually get the urge to do this when I have a big project coming up and I just can't get started, then I know its clean-up time. This time around I even rearranged furniture and opened up a corner of my space which I love. (I can't figure out why I didn't think to set it up that way from the start!)</span><br />
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<span style="color: #783f04; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: large;">So now I'm ready to go, no more excuses. I have an exciting opportunity for my book, "The ABC's of Non-Consent" that I will be sharing next week and now have space to prep for it. Stay tuned!</span><br />
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<br />Ilene Price Designhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01433755240404434467noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1225765007786577154.post-44919741806452863422018-11-09T08:00:00.000-05:002018-11-09T08:00:00.579-05:00Understanding Consent Begins With Respect<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
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<span style="color: #134f5c; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: large;"><b>My Guest Blog Post from Character.org</b></span></h2>
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<span style="color: #783f04; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: large;">Back in August, I sent the organization Character.org an advanced reading copy of my book. Last month I was contacted by the woman who runs their blog and was asked to write a guest post about respect in relation to my book. Character.org is </span><span style="color: #783f04; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: large;"><span style="background-color: white; caret-color: rgb(29, 33, 41);">a national advocate and leader for character development. They provide the vision, leadership and resources for schools, families and communities to develop ethical citizens committed to building a just and caring world. It's a wonderful organization, so of course, I was thrilled. Here's the post below...</span><span style="background-color: white; caret-color: rgb(29, 33, 41);"> </span></span></div>
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<b><span style="color: #674ea7; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: large;"><i>Understanding Consent Begins With Respect</i></span></b></div>
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<span style="color: #783f04; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: large;"><i>Accepting people's differences and showing empathy are values we try to teach our kids from an early age. It is essential in today's day and age to build upon that emotional intelligence as they enter adolescence, by beginning to speak to them about sexual assault, what constitutes consent and understanding boundaries. We need to draw from the same lessons we taught them at a young age about bullying, like having mutual respect for others, and apply it to this topic for tweens, teens and young adults of all genders.<o:p></o:p></i></span></div>
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<span style="color: #783f04; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: large;"><i>Adolescence is a tough time full of social awkwardness, experimentation and the need for acceptance. It can be confusing and uncomfortable. It starts with learning to create boundaries for themselves and respecting the boundaries of others. Teaching young people that someone's behavior or appearance does not demonstrate intent is so important. Having them be mindful of someone’s body language, the tone of their voice or their facial expression will help them realize that the clothes a person is wearing or how much they are drinking is not considered consent.<o:p></o:p></i></span></div>
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<span style="color: #783f04; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: large;"><i>At the same time, a young person should have an understanding of their own personal boundaries. They need to understand how to identify unhealthy situations and feel empowered to exit if they feel uncomfortable without explanation or apology. Young people should also feel safe in confiding in parents, bosses or school officials if something has happened to them without fear of judgment. Most importantly, they need to let go of guilt and understand it is never their fault, regardless of what they wore, how they spoke, etc.<o:p></o:p></i></span></div>
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<span style="color: #783f04; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: large;"><i>Facilitating these conversations can sometimes be challenging for parents and even educators, but are very necessary. The cornerstone of understanding consent is that it needs to be a direct response and not something that is implying or subject to interpretation. Simply stated, only a spoken "yes" means "yes" and the word "no" doesn't require an explanation. However, where do you begin? Talking about things like what someone was wearing, where someone was going or what they were doing are good places to start. <o:p></o:p></i></span></div>
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<span style="color: #783f04; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: large;"><i>Trying to figure out how to navigate these difficult conversations with my own daughter was the catalyst for my book, "The ABC's of Non-Consent", recently published and available on Amazon. I am an artist which was instrumental in designing this book; but I am also the mother of two and have written it as a parent, my most important job of all. When my daughter was about to start college, I began therapeutically jotting down my thoughts and fears and somehow, unplanned, my scribblings and doodles evolved into an educational book on consent. Through poetry and illustration, I outline examples and scenarios that a young person can find themselves in, such as accepting a ride home, going on a date or dancing at a party. My hope is that this book can help other parents speak to their kids about this important subject.<o:p></o:p></i></span></div>
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<span style="color: #783f04; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: large;"><i>The basic morals and values of character that our kids learned when they were young have to be expanded upon to explain to them what is, and what is not consent. It comes down to respect; respect for other people and respect for yourself. No one should ever make someone else feel fearful, forced or threatened. We should never stop learning how to be more respectful to others. Start the dialogue today and keep it going. Let the young people in your life know that you are there to help guide them without judgment.</i></span><span style="color: #353535; font-family: AppleSystemUIFont;"><o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="color: #783f04; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: large;">Character.org blog</span></div>
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<span style="color: #134f5c; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: large;"><a href="http://info.character.org/blog/understanding-consent-begins-with-respect">http://info.character.org/blog/understanding-consent-begins-with-respect</a></span></div>
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<span style="caret-color: rgb(120, 63, 4); color: #783f04; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: large;">The ABC's of Non-Consent</span></div>
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<span style="color: #134f5c; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: large;"><a href="https://www.amazon.com/ABCs-Non-Consent-Ilene-B-Price/dp/1981671625">https://www.amazon.com/ABCs-Non-Consent-Ilene-B-Price/dp/1981671625</a><span style="caret-color: rgb(120, 63, 4);"> </span></span></div>
Ilene Price Designhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01433755240404434467noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1225765007786577154.post-85525013920634410292018-11-07T08:00:00.000-05:002018-11-07T08:00:09.790-05:00Creative Writing vs. Stating the Facts<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEisIUhCL8EzEr1gAnm7WeOEtjcVJ_uDZ6iXT2XBCkkbl0ZpNprDrZMKmmICSJj003V7OA3Y4LNqoUe5oG9vYIgrtmv_8Kq-NTg-JDUaklc_10wAziTwjNPBHjNnfBSnXiT1AXrMIzPv4KYO/s1600/IMG_3861.PNG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1600" data-original-width="1600" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEisIUhCL8EzEr1gAnm7WeOEtjcVJ_uDZ6iXT2XBCkkbl0ZpNprDrZMKmmICSJj003V7OA3Y4LNqoUe5oG9vYIgrtmv_8Kq-NTg-JDUaklc_10wAziTwjNPBHjNnfBSnXiT1AXrMIzPv4KYO/s400/IMG_3861.PNG" width="400" /></a></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: large;"><span style="color: #134f5c;">Trying to Teach My Son the Difference</span></span></h2>
<span style="color: #783f04; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: large;">I recently found this piece of writing I did over ten years ago. My son was writing an English assignment for school about this amazing sunset we witnessed on a drive. His story went something along the lines of, “It was the coolest sunset I ever saw with lots of bright colors and big clouds.” (It was longer than a sentence, but you get the point.) I told him he should try to be more creative and rework it using adjectives and feelings to describe it so that someone else could imagine seeing it. He responded, “No I’m good, I like it, it’s finished.”, so I wrote this to show him what I was talking about.</span><br />
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<span style="color: #783f04; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: large;">"It may have been a night in January, but it didn’t feel like it one bit. We were driving down to Princeton to attend a drum circle with our son. It was a crystal clear night and the temperature was unseasonably warm. The evening’s sky became the most beautiful canvas of color and texture I had ever seen. The old masters would have been in awe. The colors of the sky were indescribable. As the sun started to go down glowing swirls of bright cream and ivory streamed through the low dark clouds. The colors began changing to soft shades of pink and orange that looked like the colors of a slightly unripe peach and the amazing clouds added large and small fluffy white forms. The linear white streaks criss-crossing the sky from airplanes looked as if the pilots had been playing tic-tac-toe. </span><br />
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<span style="color: #783f04; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: large;">As the soft winds became a little stronger, the clouds started moving more intensely and the large cotton candy like puffs now had underbellies of vibrant pinks, lavenders and blues. What made the sky even more incredible was seeing it through the landscape as the sun went down. As it became darker the trees became silhouettes of thick and thin spider web meshes along the horizon. The sky turned into an electric highway of lava-like rivers streaming into and around the clouds and the colors reflected off large office building windows resembling mirrors of fire. The whole sky was so bright and vivid, even I as an artist and painter myself, could not imagine ever reproducing them on a canvas and no photograph could do them justice. </span><br />
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<span style="color: #783f04; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: large;">As the sunset ended and the colors began to fade into the horizon, they transformed into electric blues and violets ranging from cerulean to ultramarine. And then, just like that, it was gone. If you walked outside at that moment, you would have had no idea what you missed, there were no traces of it left in the sky. </span><br />
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<span style="color: #783f04; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: large;">I’ve seen many sunsets before in my lifetime, the ones where the actual sun going down along the horizon was the focal point. Tonight I never saw the sun at all, but the colors above us created by that molten ball of fire in the universe were the most beautiful I had ever seen in my life."</span><br />
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<span style="color: #783f04; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: large;">When my son finished reading my version, he was like, “Wow Mom that was awesome. It really explained what we saw in the sky.” Then as he walked upstairs he turned and said to me, “Thanks, but I’m going to leave mine alone, it’s fine.”</span><br />
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Ilene Price Designhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01433755240404434467noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1225765007786577154.post-84434352662347560062018-10-31T08:00:00.000-04:002018-10-31T08:00:00.639-04:00The Ugliest Car Ride<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="color: #783f04; font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">This leaf, though it represents the colors of the ride, is actually more beautiful than the whole trip.</span></td></tr>
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<span style="color: #134f5c; font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif; font-size: large;">I'm a Scenic Over Highway Type of Girl</span></h2>
<span style="color: #783f04; font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif; font-size: large;">I ended my last post with a statement saying that I was going to write about something ugly this week. Well, I can say that I drew the inspiration, or rather uninspiration, for this post from the most mundane scenery driving from Virginia to Maryland last week. It was not pretty.</span><br />
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<span style="color: #783f04; font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif; font-size: large;">I guess most highways aren't that pretty, but this one was so bland and boring. The only colors around me were in the trees on either side of the road and they were the color of over boiled green beans. They were caught in limbo between their warm weather brilliance and their "not quite ready to change" hues that would come with the cooling of autumn. A muted, monochromatic tapestry of green, brown and tan with occasional white puffy spots from the webs of tent caterpillars. I needed color if I was going to be stuck in the car for the next few hours!</span><br />
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<span style="color: #783f04; font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif; font-size: large;">The road landscape was a constant barrage of construction vehicles and orange cones mixed with piles of dirt and concrete. The only other color I could find were road signs and the painted metal of the cars driving alongside us. So I found myself desperately looking for graphics on the trucks and vans going by; trying to analyze the logo designs and use of space on the side panels. To my dismay, I saw some of the ugliest graphic design I have ever seen. An occasional truck would come and satisfy me even with it's forced typography and the overuse of bold or italic fonts because it had such an awesome retro vibe. But they were few and far between. </span><br />
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<span style="color: #783f04; font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif; font-size: large;">As most of my friends know I am always the passenger. I don't like to drive and my amazing husband doesn't seem to mind. I know the highways are the quickest point from A-B in most cases, but I guess I am more of the scenic route type of girl. I enjoy looking at the farms and towns along the way. This particular drive was brutal. Only the occasional hawk flying above me reminded me that beneath the tree line and out of my eyesight were critters, moss, fungi and all of nature's other beauties hiding below.</span>Ilene Price Designhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01433755240404434467noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1225765007786577154.post-16703749657842302882018-10-24T08:00:00.000-04:002018-10-24T08:00:00.358-04:00My Brain Never Stops...<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgNIZZgCkgBo59hBNAnybsWj-RrQ7wC8uTSJYERYauySjz0mbLTA4FMjujDaOyKYvB1kvzh50314KmFdEfUsjZDnsSzyQMMFuByRqX4fZrtU0N6ZIXclCOnUMTcbtj-8uq_cBMCj8F_AvS5/s1600/4691197888_1ffe1c1813_o.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1600" data-original-width="1600" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgNIZZgCkgBo59hBNAnybsWj-RrQ7wC8uTSJYERYauySjz0mbLTA4FMjujDaOyKYvB1kvzh50314KmFdEfUsjZDnsSzyQMMFuByRqX4fZrtU0N6ZIXclCOnUMTcbtj-8uq_cBMCj8F_AvS5/s400/4691197888_1ffe1c1813_o.jpg" width="400" /></a></div>
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<span style="color: #134f5c; font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif; font-size: large;">The Mind of an Artist or of a Crazy Person, </span><span style="color: #134f5c; font-family: arial, helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: large;">Same Thing</span></h2>
<span style="color: #783f04; font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif; font-size: large;">As I was sitting thinking about what to write in this week's blog post today, I made a list of all the things that inspire me. I laughed as I realized that my list of inspiration, really my list of obsessions, was crazy long. Most sane people probably have one or two things that inspire them. I have a zillion. </span><br />
<span style="color: #783f04; font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif; font-size: large;"><br /></span> <span style="color: #783f04; font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif; font-size: large;">I have already mentioned in some of my earlier posts how I collect things that "speak to me" or purchase clothing because I fall love with its textile design or buy home decor because I am drooling over its form, color and texture. I’ve also written about how I take photographs for inspiration of everything from nature to rust. My brain doesn’t stop when it comes to being inspired. I’m don’t know if that’s a normal thing or a slightly crazy thing, but it's my thing. </span><br />
<span style="color: #783f04; font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif; font-size: large;"><br /></span> <span style="color: #783f04; font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif; font-size: large;">My list consisted of things like the beauty of shadows and reflections, architecture, aerial views of the world, clouds, rocks and crystals, sacred geometry, symbols, nature and so forth. The list went on and on. In any case, today I didn’t end up writing about any of them, but all of them together create a self-portrait of my crazy mind and how I think. I wonder if I could write about something uninspiring and ugly next week?</span>Ilene Price Designhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01433755240404434467noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1225765007786577154.post-2936436138034494392018-10-17T08:00:00.000-04:002018-10-17T08:00:01.553-04:00For the Love of Print<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhvOpEy4tYonqUHzFIuq0QFgjSbEvR2iYa_G5fkDvGbPwtpm2a3mhphvcdbGR9ynRuBWSSaCY1iWhDgJ7W2POcrA9107hV-U2kijzuvXl43hdpYIeVu19o_rmwpGdd4XrV_qkkXayTHutI5/s1600/IMG_0730.jpeg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1600" data-original-width="1600" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhvOpEy4tYonqUHzFIuq0QFgjSbEvR2iYa_G5fkDvGbPwtpm2a3mhphvcdbGR9ynRuBWSSaCY1iWhDgJ7W2POcrA9107hV-U2kijzuvXl43hdpYIeVu19o_rmwpGdd4XrV_qkkXayTHutI5/s400/IMG_0730.jpeg" width="400" /></a></div>
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<span style="color: #134f5c; font-family: arial, helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: large;">Because They Speak to Me...</span></h2>
<span style="color: #783f04; font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif; font-size: large;">Cleaning through my closet the other day, I realized I had a number of pieces of clothing that weren’t exactly my style of dress or cut of blouse, and I wondered why I bought them? Then it hit me, it was the print. I was blinded by its color and pattern. (I am a sucker for that.) Patterns literally jump out and speak to me when I am shopping. I have to be very careful as I walk into a store not to be wooed by the floral, geometric and organic images that are clearly calling my name.</span><br />
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<span style="color: #783f04; font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif; font-size: large;">And it doesn’t stop at clothes. I have notebooks, bowls, placemats and other home decor covered in beautiful textiles which are all the culprits of my weakness. (I guess I could have worse vices.) Lately I’ve been taking pictures with my iPhone for inspiration while the little voice inside me says, “You don’t need that, yes it's so pretty, walk away.” I am drawn to the intricate repeat of shapes and unusual color combinations I find. I also love how so many vintage patterns have recycled themselves into today’s fashion and decor. </span><br />
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<span style="color: #783f04; font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif; font-size: large;">What speaks to you when you walk past it? For me it will always be pattern and I will forever be a textile junky. Over the last few years I have dappled in designing my own and have taken some amazing online classes with textile rock stars like Rachael Taylor and Jessica Swift. I’ve learned how digitize my artwork and create repeats for designing textiles. Maybe that’s a path I will explore further down the road, we will see. </span>Ilene Price Designhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01433755240404434467noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1225765007786577154.post-12667449789180613912018-10-10T08:00:00.000-04:002018-10-10T08:00:08.109-04:00Life Isn’t Perfect, Always Be Grateful<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
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<span style="color: #134f5c; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: large;">And Always Be Kind...</span></h2>
<span style="color: #783f04; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: large;">When people say they live a happy life, do they really? Do you think every moment in their day is made up of absolute joy? I doubt it. It would be a lovely fairytale, wouldn’t it? </span><span style="color: #783f04; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: large;">No one is happy all the time. If they say they are, they are lying. Life is a roller coaster of ups and downs and we are just here for the ride. </span><span style="color: #783f04; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: large;">But I do believe happiness is a state of mind we can attain if we look at our lives a certain way. </span><br />
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<span style="color: #783f04; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: large;">I’ve been doing a lot of pondering about what I think it means to be happy. I feel it’s an attitude we can all strive for, but I believe it’s really a compilation of all the little moments we have throughout our hardships, our losses and our frustrations in our daily lives. Happiness is the little bits of light that keep us going when it’s dark. It’s not just the feeling we have when we have a good day. It’s the gratitude we have for the moments that made that day great. </span><br />
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<span style="caret-color: rgb(120, 63, 4); color: #783f04; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: large;">I also believe happiness is the feeling we have when we are kind to others. </span><span style="color: #783f04; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: large;">It’s so important to show people kindness; not just because your parents taught you to, but because it’s part of being a human being. You don’t know what’s going on in someones world. The person who just cut you off could have been fired that day. The person who was rude in line at the grocery store could have a very sick parent or child at home. The person who you buy coffee from every morning who never smiles could be struggling to make ends meet. You just don’t know, and you never will. </span><span style="caret-color: rgb(120, 63, 4); color: #783f04; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: large;">No one knows what people around us carry with them daily, what struggles they have, with their family, their friends, their jobs, their money or their health. People can sometimes put on a good front but the old saying that “no one knows what goes on behind closed doors” is so true. </span><br />
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<span style="color: #783f04; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: large;">Being happy is being grateful for all you have and realizing that you can’t have good without bad or light without dark. We can’t control and micro manage everything around us but we can enjoy the moments of happiness when they are here and be strong for ourselves and others when they seem so far away. We can choose to be kind to people all the time, even when we are in a bad mood because life is too short to be nasty. It’s wasted energy. So my conclusion is smile, pay it forward, be human, be grateful, enjoy the little things and it will lead you in the end, to happiness.</span><br />
<br />Ilene Price Designhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01433755240404434467noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1225765007786577154.post-14282711360957711862018-10-03T08:00:00.000-04:002018-10-03T12:47:21.270-04:00Too Much Stuff<h2 style="text-align: center;">
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<span style="color: #134f5c; font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif; font-size: large;">Why Can’t We Let Go?</span></h2>
<span style="color: #783f04; font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif; font-size: large;">I touched upon my obsessiveness of always being prepared with “stuff” in my last post. I feel this post is a similar topic. I have been purging my house little by little for a couple of years now. As the kids grew up I let go of things I didn’t need anymore. (I’ve always been a little bit of a hoarder when it comes to saving things.) I’ve gotten rid of so much but as I look around my house now and It looks like I haven’t made a dent.</span><br />
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<span style="color: #783f04; font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif; font-size: large;">Why do we need so much? Why do we save things? Why do we have a hard time letting go? Because we long to hold onto the past? Are we afraid of the future? I guess for everyone it’s a different reason, for me I think it’s nostalgia. It’s not that I long for the past, but I want to remember it, for my kids to remember it years down the road. I love that my mom saved a box of my artwork and school projects as far back as kindergarten. It makes me smile when I rummage through it. </span><br />
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<span style="color: #783f04; font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif; font-size: large;">But even though it’s wonderful boxes full of memories, it’s a box of stuff I don’t really need. I would love to go up to the attic and digitize most of it and then toss it all out. But then I’m torn with not dealing with it because, really, those are hours of my life I won’t get back. It’s going to take hours and hours I could be spending with my family, my friends. So in the end it all sits in my attic, my closets, my drawers etc. until a rainy or snowy day. </span><br />
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<span style="color: #783f04; font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif; font-size: large;">Someday I’ll tackle it, or my kids will end up doing after I’m gone and I don’t want that to be their burden. Otherwise they will wish me back so they can kill me!</span>Ilene Price Designhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01433755240404434467noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1225765007786577154.post-74407762914695708492018-09-26T08:00:00.000-04:002018-09-26T08:00:03.617-04:00Are You a Planner or a Fly by the Seat of Your Pants Type of Person?<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: large;"><span style="color: #0c343d;">More than I Need and Ready to Go</span></span></h2>
<span style="color: #783f04; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: large;">I bet some of you reading this are too young to know what I’m talking about, but I would be the person on the TV show “Let’s Make a Deal” who had whatever Monty Hall asked for. To put it in more current terms, I was the soccer mom who had whatever anyone needed at a tournament, from little pill bags for earrings that the girls forgot to take out, to a porta-potty emergency pack. </span><br />
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<span style="color: #783f04; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: large;">I have always been obsessed with being ready for anything. It’s probably some deep rooted psychological fear from something I wasn’t prepared for in my youth, (I’m guessing). My car is packed with every “what if” thing you can think of, a well stocked first aid kit, sunscreen, bug spray, rain gear, sweatshirts, hair ties, lint roller, medicine, stain wipes, plastic bags... you get the point. If we go somewhere and we don’t take my car I literally have a panic attack. </span><br />
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<span style="color: #783f04; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: large;">When I go on a day trip, say to a museum, I love the "idea" of packing in a small light bag so my back doesn’t hurt at the end of the day. But then I think I may need this and that, what if it rains, what if I’m cold, what if I’m hungry, what if I want to sketch or take photographs, and before you know it my bag is 25 lbs. I wish I were exaggerating, I’m not, but I am getting better. I’ve learned to scale down as I’ve gotten older. I now keep a “to go” bag with minimal essentials for when we visit my daughter at school or spontaneously go on a quick trip. Its like Lipton’s “Cup of Soup”, just add water, or in this case clothes.</span><br />
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<span style="color: #783f04; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: large;">My friends and family always laugh at how over prepared I am, even when I cook. My sister-in-law calls me the “Queen of Excess” because I would rather have way too much food than not enough. It’s all in fun, but I can tell you that I am the first one they come to when they need something. I don’t always have it, but there’s a good chance I will!</span>Ilene Price Designhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01433755240404434467noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1225765007786577154.post-32184488821094842212018-09-19T08:00:00.000-04:002018-09-19T08:00:07.175-04:00You can take the girl out of the design studio, but you can't take the design out of the girl...<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhumAihkLVm9QC84uKkNKmW92uUJVi9SNn9BfiY4Ldhm2xpt5cwr4yeU0OP4Gb2_34DkiLXcdCTtFAKRSf2X-ImempIZoiBU5arDQby7zRBoVAbHHptzNwFjRhiewfaQbAOZCGJRB9zWaCW/s1600/Design+Girl2-01.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1600" data-original-width="1600" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhumAihkLVm9QC84uKkNKmW92uUJVi9SNn9BfiY4Ldhm2xpt5cwr4yeU0OP4Gb2_34DkiLXcdCTtFAKRSf2X-ImempIZoiBU5arDQby7zRBoVAbHHptzNwFjRhiewfaQbAOZCGJRB9zWaCW/s400/Design+Girl2-01.jpg" width="400" /></a></div>
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<span style="color: #134f5c; font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif; font-size: large;">I Sometimes Miss Graphic Design, My Peers and My Mentors, But I'm Happy With the Choices I've Made</span></h2>
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<span style="color: #783f04; font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif; font-size: large;">I often think about my education in graphic design and my professors that have shaped me into the creative person that I am. I will be forever grateful to them for everything they taught me. The artwork and design I create and the way I look at things around me is a result of the foundation of design principals they instilled in me.</span><br />
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<span style="color: #783f04; font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif; font-size: large;">I also think about and miss the group of designers and friends I graduated with at the University of the Arts. We were the infamous graphic design class of ‘85, the “rat-pack”; a crazy, close knit, extremely competitive and creative bunch who supported and pushed each other to be the best that each of us could be. We celebrated our 30th reunion at the UArts graphic design department’s 50th anniversary, a little over a year ago, and it was amazing to be together again. Today we are a combination of design directors, teachers, business owners, professionals, fine artists, and parents. I am so proud of all of them and their accomplishments. When we all saw each other that first day of the reunion it was like being in a time machine, we didn’t skip a beat. Distance and daily life may separate us, but the love and respect we had for each other has never changed and I don’t think ever will. </span><br />
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<span style="color: #783f04; font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif; font-size: large;">I was very lucky to work for some great small design firms after college, coming away from each one with an abundance of learning and growth as a designer. I sometimes look through my old portfolio of mostly corporate work that I did and think, damn that’s good, where did that girl go? Then I remember she’s here, just reinvented as I mentioned I often do, in my last blog post. </span><br />
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<span style="color: #783f04; font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif; font-size: large;">So why all this nostalgia you ask? I sometimes wonder if I should have stayed active in the field, but then I remember why I didn’t. I loved everything that had to do with the creative part of the job, from steps in creating a logo to laying out a brochure. What I couldn't handle, was the rest of it; the deadlines, the proofing, the midnight press runs and the clients who just couldn’t see your vision. </span><br />
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<span style="color: #783f04; font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif; font-size: large;">I have to also add that I am a little bit of a perfectionist, (ok, maybe I’m OCD with a touch of ADD), and the type of person who stresses over every little thing. It became clear one night after I called my husband at 2am crying on a press run when I was convinced there was a typo I missed, (when there was not), that it was just too much for me.</span><br />
<span style="color: #783f04; font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif; font-size: large;"><br /></span><span style="color: #783f04; font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif; font-size: large;">As I was contemplating quitting my career, I realized I couldn’t remember a time when I didn’t work. I started babysitting at 14 and worked all through high school and college and landed my first job very soon after graduation. In 1992 I was diagnosed with lymphoma and had to take a leave of absence for treatment. I had a great attitude and six months later after tests, surgery, hospitals and chemo, I went right back to work. I had never not worked, it was so foreign to me. So when I had my panic attack on that press run, the night I called my husband, I knew it was time to make a change. It was year after chemo and I had just found out that I was pregnant, which was a miracle in itself. I decided to it was time to quit, take a few months to myself and a become a stay at home mom. </span><br />
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<span style="color: #783f04; font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif; font-size: large;">Though I miss graphic design itself from time to time, I never miss the “job”. I have since found many other ways to stay creative and feed that bohemian artist that dwells in my soul. And I would do it all again in a heartbeat. Being a mom is the best, most important job I’ve ever had and even though my kids are adults, I am realizing that job never ends... and that’s ok with me. </span><br />
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Ilene Price Designhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01433755240404434467noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1225765007786577154.post-8974876833501389882018-09-12T08:00:00.000-04:002018-09-12T08:00:04.123-04:00Getting Back to Art<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif; font-size: large;"><span style="color: #134f5c;">And reinventing myself again...</span></span></h2>
<span style="color: #783f04; font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif; font-size: large;">I’ve spent the better part of the last 6 months working almost solely on my book. I haven’t really been drawing or painting since I started. Between that and being in summer mode since May, I've been missing the process of creating handmade art. Now that the book’s finished and I’ve promoted the hell out of it to the best of my ability, I’m happy to let the universe take over, move away from the computer and get my hands dirty again. Researching, writing cover letters, putting together mailings and being on top of social media for the purpose of the book’s awareness and sales were not much fun for me.</span><br />
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<span style="color: #783f04; font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif; font-size: large;">So what am I going to do now? I have so many projects and ideas saved in Pinterest that I want to try and experiment with using different techniques and mediums. I also have a bunch of bookmarked YouTube video tutorials on everything from acrylic paint pouring to unusual watercolor techniques that I want to watch. (That’s binge watching for the creative.) </span><br />
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<span style="color: #783f04; font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif; font-size: large;">Reinvent, reinvent, reinvent yourself. That statement has been my motto since I left the graphic design field. I am so ADD when it comes to my art. I get bored with what I’m doing after a while and need to start something new and different. I always seem to make my way back to creating mandalas, sometimes in a different form and I never stop taking photographs for inspiration and the pure love of looking through the camera lens. So next week it's back to work in the studio; I wonder where my next idea will take me...</span>Ilene Price Designhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01433755240404434467noreply@blogger.com0