couldn't resist the packaging

I simply could not resist the packaging and had to buy this super cute chocolate toffee bar from Trader Joe’s. I’m glad I did, too, because it’s delicious! 

notes from the AIGA Y16 conference

Last weekend I geeked out with fellow graphic designers at the 16th annual AIGA Y Conference in San Diego. This week I’ll share some notes I jotted down in my trusty notebook. These are from Aaron Draplin of Draplin Design Co.

north county graphic design: design decline & movie night meetup thursday march 31, 2011

I do hope you’ll join us for our next North County Graphic Designer MOVIE NIGHT, which will also be our very first DESIGN DECLINE show. We’ll meet Thursday, March 31, 2011 / 6pm at Clients & Profits in Oceanside.

Here’s the scoop: print and bring a rejected logo (or other project) that was rejected by your client, but you secretly loved, along with the design the client eventually approved. (If the logo was a rebrand, bring the original if you’d like). In addition, write a brief blurb about the brand you were designing for (i.e. industry, audience, etc.) to put the design in context. The designs will be voted on and the winner will get a prize! 

FYI: no need for fancy formatting, mounting or anything crazy. We’ll just tack up copies on the whiteboard.

Oh, and we’ll also watch a short film about graphic designers and have a good chat.

Many thanks to our friends Mark and Chris of Clients & Profits for generously hosting movie nights! We’ll have snacks and cocktails, so RSVP via email, leave a comment here on the blog, or on our LinkedIn Group, so we can be sure to have enough to go around. Looking for our LinkedIn Group? Do a LinkedIn “group” search for “North County Graphic Designers.”

Hope to see you there! All creatives welcome. This is a free event. NCGD co-founded by Delphine and KMG. Artwork by Kerry Layton. Thanks, Kerry!!

north county graphic design meetup: november 24, 2010

Morning Coffee Meetups return!

Join us Wednesday, November 24, 2010
8 am - 9 am at E Street Café in Encinitas, California

Kick off the day on a positive note with other North County graphic designers. No agenda, just say hello and get to know each other and share some great coffee. If you’re really not a morning person or are just plain cranky until the caffeine kicks in [ahem… me], then just “nod” and take time to adjust to the morning sunshine. We look forward to seeing you! All creatives welcome.

R.s.v.p. to erika@delphinepress.com, or leave a comment on this blog. Join our LinkedIn group: do a GROUPS search for “North County Graphic Designers” on LinkedIn to join.

NCGD co-founded by  Delphine and KM Graphiques. Artwork by Kathy McGraw.

renovation: update

Here's a little progress report on A's bedroom renovation. We've finished all the room painting, including the magnetic paint stripe, and re-hung the surfboard.

branded by delphine: bixby and ball

I'm super excited for co-owners Melissa Anderson and Betsy Bracken, co-owners of the fabulous new shop Bixby & Ball, in Solana Beach, California. The shop is all about the Coastal Lifestyle. They're celebrating the grand opening of the store this weekend, so if you're in the neighborhood (the Cedros Design District) stop by for some awesome shopping!

Here's a peek at some of the goodies I designed for them. We chose a really "East Coast" dark navy and green color combo, perfect for the tone of the store, along with a classic vintage font and a modern ampersand (that sort of reminds me of an anchor ... and has little balls on the ends, like the "Ball" in the name of the shop). I hope you like it, too.

My favorite part of their branded look is the big sign above the door (I was so excited to see it that I totally forgot to take a photo).  I'll remember to bring my camera when I visit later today, so I'll post photos of the shop next week : )

logo crush (ed): gap

I am so not loving the new Gap logo. I'm not the only one (read this Advertising Age article).  I'm not saying the old logo was perfect, but the new one is lame.

 

UPDATE 10/11/10: Gap Inc. announced it will return to the old logo, and also admitted that the crowdsourcing idea (to replace the new logo) was a bad idea. Read the Gap press release.

shop we love: sweet paper

It sort of goes with out saying, but I absolutely LOVE stationery shops. Even more so when they are beautifully curated, like Sweet Paper is. Here are a few photos from their very fist day that they were open.

 Sweet Paper founders (and sisters) Theresa Anderson (left) and Julie O'Brien (right).

A very happy customer.

All photos ©Delphine.

branded by delphine: sweet paper

I'm thrilled for sisters Julie O'Brien and Theresa Anderson, as they celebrate the opening of their fabulous new stationery store, Sweet Paper, in La Jolla, California.

Coming up with the logo turned out to be the easy part. One part sweet (but not saccharine), one part strong (but not tough), one part frame (but not heavy) ... established in 2010. Done.

The difficult part was agreeing on a color palette fit for a darling stationery shop a few blocks from the beach. After long discussions and lots of ideas (lilac! aqua! turquoise! navy! yellow!) we landed on beautiful melon and warm sandy grey for the color palette. I absolutely love how it turned out. I'd love to hear what you think. And I'd also love it if you would visit their store in La Jolla when you're in the neighborhood. You won't be sorry!

We letterpressed all of the business cards and stationery (of course) in beautiful melon and grey inks, and added a signature pattern to the back of the business cards. To finish off the look, all the corners were rounded. Sweet, don't you agree?

all design and photos ©Delphine

zine love: lonny magazine

Lonny magazine keeps getting better and better. I'm happy that online magazines are filling the gap in the shelter magazine space, and Lonny is my favorite of the bunch. One of the nicest things is that an online magazine isn't really limited by space in the magazine, so they can run longer stories with more pages of photos. Here are a few of my favorite stories from the August issue:

I was thrilled to see a profile on Virginia Tupker, a stylist and home market editor at Vogue. I've bumped into Virginia many times at many many trade shows. The first time I met her I was floored by her incredible sense of style. I remember telling my mom something like "she belongs in Vogue, she is so chic" and my mom (a French woman who knows a thing or two about being chic) told me something like "darling, she works there" and then told me to turn over the business card Virginia had handed me. Every time I see Virginia at The Javits Center (not the easiest place to keep your cool) she looks amazing. But what really stands out is that she is one of the most gracious editors I've ever dealt with. Thanks, Lonny, for offering me a peek inside Virginia's world.

The cheeky style of Ben Brougham's little NYC apartment makes me want to drop in for a cocktail. Something tells me he has frozen vodka at the ready. How cool is that rope pattern wallpaper? The color combo in these shots is one of my all time favorites. One of these days I'll get a client I can convince to go for this quirky color pairing.

My favorite photograph from the issue. Ben Brougham's apartment again.

Rachel Ashwell is back! While I think I'd get bored living with Shabby Chic style all the time (I love color too much to give it up), I still think her style is iconic and inspiring. I especially love how unpretentious her look is.

Have I ever told you what my dream job would be if I weren't a graphic designer? I'd be a magazine editor. When I was a journalism student my plan was to launch my own wedding magazine, so I guess I've always had a thing for the bridal market.

All images from Lonny Magazine August 2010 issue.

in the press: a casual italian inspired reception

Many thanks to Weddings Unveiled for posting all about the Italian-inspired "Vino e Formaggio" shoot that Adrianne Smith and I designed (and captured stunningly by Jennifer Dery). Please head over to Completely Unveiled by Weddings Unveiled blog to read all about it. Meanwhile, here are a few of my favorite photos from the day.

That's my kitty, Ajax, checking to see if the cheese is ripe.

Stunning floral arrangement by Adrianne Smith Floral Design. Featuring the star of the show: gorgeous café au lait dahlias, garden roses, and oranges fresh from our backyard.

Grazie to everyone who helped with the photo shoot. You know who you are ... big big hugs to each and every one of you. xoxoxo.

The Scoop: EVENT DESIGN and STYLING: Adrianne Smith (www.asmithfloral.com) and Erika Firm (www.delphinepress.com)

PHOTOGRAPHY: Jennifer Dery, www.jenniferdery.com

CHEESE and CATERING: Dolce Pane & Vino, www.dolcepaneevino.com  

FLOWERS: Adrianne Smith Floral Design, www.asmithfloral.com

MENUS and PARTY FAVORS: Delphine, www.delphinepress.com 

VINTAGE PROPS: Sainte Béatrice, www.etsy.com/shop/saintebeatrice

in the press: classic tea party bridal shower

Many thanks to sweet Cyd for posting all about the classic tea party bridal shower that Adrianne Smith and I designed (beautifully shot by Jennifer Dery Photography). Please pop over to The Sweetest Occasion to read about our little adventure.

I used our new Charleston Stitch design for the invitations in our mai tai and dull silver inks.

Our sweet stir sticks add a pop of color to the table. And mmmm, those Cupcake Love cupcakes were so pretty and delicious.

I love the sweet tendrils in the centerpiece Adrianne Smith designed. So romantic, the dahlias and roses mixed together!

You can see loads more photos and read all about the inspiration on The Sweetest Occasion.

Special thanks to everyone who helped make this shoot possible. Especially Jennifer Dery, who was able to capture the romantic spirit so perfectly with her amazing eye.

CREDITS

EVENT DESIGN and STYLING: Adrianne Smith (www.asmithfloral.com) and Erika Firm (www.delphinepress.com)

PHOTOGRAPHY: Jennifer Dery, www.jenniferdery.com

CUPCAKES: Cupcake Love, www.cupcake-love.com

FLOWERS: Adrianne Smith Floral Design, www.asmithfloral.com

GIFTS: Dreamy, www.shopdreamy.com

INVITATIONS and PAPER GOODS: Delphine, www.delphinepress.com 

PARTY FAVORS: Delphine, www.delphinepress.com

VINTAGE PROPS: Sainte Béatrice, www.etsy.com/shop/saintebeatrice

sneak peek: christmas tea cups

It's turning out to be a sneak peek week! Here's a little peek at a project I'm doing for one of my very favorite clients, Isabella Smith. It's a set of tea cups ... this fir tree-inspired Christmas design will be produced for the holiday season. I'm also working on a few other projects for her (including a fun wrapping paper and a package design for one of her famous scented products). I'll share photos of final goods once they come back from production.

inspired by pbr: a logo design

I am in the final stages of an identity design for a new gift boutique (sorry, no more details just yet ... you'll just have to wait for their big announcement). Along the way, the circle seal logo shown above was a concept in the running, though they ended up choosing something entirely different. (That is not the real name of the company, by the way).

The identity idea is a modern take on a bakeshop (no, the boutique will not sell baked goods). We tossed around some fun bright colors, like red, tangerine, and kelley green. But when I did the navy blue mockup it was immediately my favorite. And it reminded me of something, but couldn't quite put my finger on it.

Later it occurred to me that it looks a bit like the Pabst Blue Ribbon logo. Funny how that happens sometimes, isn't it? We're constantly being bombarded by advertisements so it's no surprise that some of the strongest looks end up in our collective consciousness (and in our work).

logo crush: blue marble ice cream

I have yet another logo crush. Don't you just love the simplicity of the Blue Marble Ice Cream logo? I think the bright blue color is awesome -- crisp and refreshing and totally different from all the pink and reds that are usually associated with ice cream brands. I spotted one of their ice cream carts at the Brooklyn Flea Market and had to sneak a shot of the scene.