red barn studios

catalog pages and cleaning closets

2010-10-20T04:19:00.000-07:00

I've finally reached the point where I've put enough distance between myself and this project to look at it objectively- nothing against the project or the client. When a project stretches over many, many months I often can't even appreciate the printed samples when they arrive until I've had a little time away from the project.
It was a major overhaul for this annual product catalog for Goal Sporting Goods. Information tended to pile up on these catalog pages over the years. The message was starting to blur. I liken this overhaul to a closet cleaning. Get rid of the duplicates, pull out the important stuff and put it back in all nice and organized.

I used tinted backgrounds, charts and sidebars to organize important product details and selling points much like I would use shelving and sweater boxes to organize my closet. Organized information with a predictable layout from page to page makes for easy reading.
Now that Goal's customers can easily find dimensions and details for their goals at a glance, I can go do this to my closet so I can find my grey sweater...

massive updates

2010-10-16T03:18:00.000-07:00

I took a year-long trip around cyberspace living on different sites, and visiting all the popular tourist attractions including facebook and twitter.
I've come full circle to where it all started for me, the place I find most comfortable.
A few things I learned along the way:
1) a blog cannot take the place of a business website so the real Red Barn Studio website is still a work in progress
2) I prefer facetime to facebook. If you have any interest in what's going on in my life feel free to visit House of Stash by following the link on the sidebar.

wall art

2009-12-02T16:20:00.000-08:00

Remember back in the day when we took pictures and had to bring our film to be "processed"? Only to find out a few days later that there were really only a few good pictures in that whole roll of film we shot of the kids.
Yeah, well here they are.
Seriously, I have boxes and albums filled with pictures of life. Kids at all stages, family vacations, holidays, the house, the garden, you name it. Sitting high on the top shelf in my closet, safe and sound, is a life chronicled for future generations to study.
I recently hauled out those boxes with the intent of pulling some pictures out to enlarge, frame, and decorate a suddenly empty wall in my family room (I'd just had a furniture re-arranging "episode"... another story altogether).
Here’s my humble advice if you too, have an archive of family snapshots boxed up in your closet and an empty wall...
First, when sorting through your collection, look for people pictures where the head takes up most of the picture area. If you try to enlarge a tiny head it will get fuzzy, and the drama in these images comes from cropping tight to the subject so the focus is on the expressions rather than the backgrounds.
Second, either scan the images in grayscale (black and white) or convert them to black and white after they are scanned. Most scanning software includes some basic editing tools that include this option. Explore any other options you have within your scanning software, until you are satisfied with the results. I edited these in Photoshop- adusting the brightness and contrast, and sharpness. You can achieve these effects with any basic scanning software.
Third, frame and hang. Matted grames are a must for an artistic look. I used basic black frames bought at Kohl's on sale.

2009-10-26T15:11:00.000-07:00

This is a design I did recently for a T-shirt. Simple in concept, simple in execution, and a direct hit with the client. So straightforward, I really don't think I need to explain the thought process. Sometimes it goes like that and you are upgraded from "illustrious" to "goddess". Thanks, Principal Fidler, for the opportunity to design without constraints.

recent work

2009-08-26T04:20:00.000-07:00

Poster recently completed for the Harriet Beecher Stowe Center in Hartford.

she calls me her personal graphic designer

2009-07-24T13:01:00.001-07:00

...and she typically calls be the day before her design project is due. It’s usually a program ad for a production that one of her kids is in. In the beginning she would come over with her pictures in hand, text mapped out on a piece of scrap paper, and a bottle of wine. She would sit beside me while I put my spin on her ideas. There would be some back and forth about type styles and sizes, and on occasion it would take more than one glass of wine before we were both satisfied.

Somewhere along the way she began to trust me to weed through a selection of pictures and a pile of words by myself, without wine. She understands that more than likely the perfect quotes or song snippets that she sought long and hard for would be ignored and replaced by a word or two that marry perfectly with the visual. One look, that’s all it should take to communicate the essence of a message.

Our history together as designer and client is not unlike most of the relationships I have with my design clients. Clients typically start out hovering, convinced that they need to over-provide direction and details. It often takes at least one project before they understand that they need not provide the solutions– that’s my job.

The company I've been keeping...

2009-04-01T16:43:00.000-07:00

After literally being consumed with t-shirt design and printing for nearly two months, I've taken a break and gone back to my print design roots to work on this exciting project for Sells USA. Sells Goalkeeper Products has developed an undeniable brand across the pond- their gloves are worn by high profile keepers like Ben Foster of Manchester United (pictured above). My friends at Goal Sporting Goods have become the exclusive distributor for Sells here in the US and I have been fortunate enough to be able to design the US marketing materials.
Pictured below are some of the spreads from the catalog we're working on. Nothing quite validates the product like having the big guys wearing the gloves on the same page you're selling them!
Oh, and about the title to this post... I wish

Below is a full-page ad for Eurosport. The future of goalkeeping is in good hands. Good to know.

Duke's Closet: First Printing

2009-03-01T16:48:00.001-08:00

It was a big day in the print shop today.
The t-shirt designs I have been working on for months on end finally went from my computer screen to ink on cotton, so to speak. While years of experience in the graphic design industry have prepared me for what to expect when my designs go from computer to traditional print, I was somewhat apprehensive about what the results in the screenprinting shop would be.
The ink colors, chosen from my trusty PMS swatch book had to be mixed from our screenprinting inks by eye without the advantage of any formulas.
Flip did an awesome job, I compared his Tupperware containers of inks to the swatches and decided we were ready for the next big step- putting them on cotton.

At this point I'm still unsure though as to how these colors will "sit" on the t-shirts. Will they need an underbase of white to show their true colors? I didn't plan for that. We had enough screens to burn already without making extras for a base coat of white for each design.
Time to stop second guessing and ink up!

We started with the Ladies' collection since most were one color. We had a couple of t-shirt color options for each design and tested colors on additional t-shirts just for future referece. Overall, the results were just as I had envisioned them.
Yay!

Now for the challenge of the mens' collection. Most of these designs are three color, and the images themselves are more "complicated". This is one of three screens for the "Woodies" design.

We ran into a little glitch on this one. While I like the colors, the design. particularly the Woodies in the background became a little difficult to read. This one is going back to the art department for some revisions. This is R&D!

more found art

2009-02-19T16:21:00.000-08:00

Apparently Justin is making good use of his vacation week time. I love this artwork-a combination of two photo images turned graphic. I could learn a thing or two from this kid. The best creative discoveries are made when we have the time to play and experiment. Those times are just too infrequent.

wip

2009-02-11T09:22:00.001-08:00

a couple for the guys

2009-02-06T12:27:00.000-08:00

Stock image converted to grayscale, bumped up contrast and bitmapped, combined with surfer silhouette- traced in Illustrator from another stock image. Waves scanned from a surfing magazine, contrasted and otherwise manipulated in Photoshop. I don't suppose I could retrace my steps if I had to, but that's the gist of how this evolved. Now, how to translate to a t-shirt?

Same basic technique here. (RI highlighted for the Rhode Island surf crowd)

Ladies’ Collection

2009-02-06T06:27:00.000-08:00

That's it for now. We can expand from here to offer different color t-shirts and hoodies, but it's time to pull the design plug and start printing samples. "BEACHTOWN USA" is the "placeholder for the name drop. Five weeks to showtime! (click on any image to enlarge)

weekend work

2009-02-01T16:44:00.001-08:00

Some early proofs of the new men's line for Duke’s Closet. We have a booth at the Cape Cod New England Gift Show in March. I'm really scrambling to get some samples designed and printed. And I have all sorts of ideas about how I want the booth to look. Did I mention that it was March 2009, not 2010?

Found Art

2009-01-23T08:40:00.001-08:00

If you leave stuff on my computer it might show up on my blog.
I'm just sayin’.
This is a project Justin made for his latest facebook profile picture. Kinda cool. He is graduating from high school in June and plans on going to college to study graphic design.
The only real advice I gave both of my sons regarding college and careers was “Do what you love- you’ll spend a good part of your life working.”
They both listened.
Amazing.

In the name of research

2009-01-22T03:42:00.000-08:00

We added a screenprinting studio to our design business five years ago. We design and print t-shirts for a growing number of local businesses, schools and organizations. I spend a lot of time on the web researching the screenprinting industry- particularly ways to make our operation more eco-friendly.
Well, I’m easily distracted sometimes... and, you know how it goes when you are surfing the web... one thing leads to another and ultimately your “research” leads you to something like this:

What's your pledge?

2009-01-19T16:18:00.000-08:00

As we approach the inauguration of Barack Obama there is much talk of all Americans pitching in to help fix what’s wrong with our country. Very reminiscent of JFK's inaugural address that prompted us to “Ask not what our country can do for us, but we can do for our country”, Obama’s call to service speaks to each and every one of us.
I have taken the call to heart and have been giving a lot of thought to what my pledge will be.
I’ve been volunteering at some level ever since the kids were little- helping 3rd graders with math problem solving, participating on the board of the daycare where Justin and Curt went, and serving as Middle School ski club chaperone for 4 years. Later, and currently I volunteer as secretary of the East Hampton Soccer Club, founder of EHSC Friends of Soccer and president of the East Hampton High School Sports Boosters.
Where do I go from here? While acknowledging that my plate is pretty full right, now, I somehow still feel the need to make a new commitment. I have an idea what it will be, but I'll think it through before I share.
How about you? Have you thought about a pledge?
MySpace Celebrity and Katalyst present The Presidential Pledge

recycled

2008-12-20T18:46:00.001-08:00

New holiday wishes from old holiday cards. Cut, paste, scribble, smile.

Recent work

2008-11-06T04:46:00.001-08:00

david byrne

2008-10-05T16:47:00.000-07:00

I watched a feature story on David Byrne on CBS Sunday Morning. I was drawn to watch it because this is the David Byrne I knew and still love.

I saw the Stop Making Sense tour live and still have a VHS of the concert movie. The big suit is timeless, still cracks me up like it did 20+ years ago.
DB is older and greyer and he's traded the big suit for a big building.

So, who remembers the Tom Tom Club?

summer fades to fall

2008-10-05T06:17:00.001-07:00

about wearing a belt

2008-10-02T17:37:00.000-07:00

I could watch this a hundred times and still be L'in OL. There's new wisdom from Brigitte every Friday. Tune in to Brigitte's Archives.

my second most favorite entrepreneur

2008-10-02T05:21:00.001-07:00

Over a year ago, a guy I used to work for mailed me some web pages he had printed about this guy Johnny Cupcakes. He knew I was in the t-shirt business and thought I would be interested in Johnny's story. I checked out the site and have been an avid follower of Johnny's antics since.
Here's Johnny's story in a nutshell:
He has an entrepreneurial spirit that dates back to his high school days when he sold whoopie cushions and candy bars out of his locker. He tried college and it wasn't for him. He started his company Johnny Cupcakes as a joke. And now he's a multi millionaire.
Obviously there's a lot left out. You can read the full story here.
WAIT, not yet-hear me out first.
I have days when I want to cash it all in and go work at the local coffee shop. A regular paycheck with a clearly defined job where somebody else worries about the bottom line seems like a dream at times. I've been self-employed for over 17 years and believe me, the novelty of being able to work in my pajamas if I want to wore off long ago. In fact, it disappeared the first time a client was way late in paying me and I was left to sweat it out hoping that the check came in time to pay the mortgage.
But, back to my point: When I have these lapses in agenda I go straight to Johnny Cupcake’s website for inspiration. In my book he’s a genius. He's focused, creative, very respectful of his Mom, never, ever compromises or dilutes his brand, and he seems like the kind of guy you’d want as a neighbor.
His attention to detail is inspirational, his creativity- brilliant. He seems to look at the world with a child-like wonder and see only what is good. Maybe that positive outlook is the secret to his success.
With all the t-shirt websites out there and all the creative t-shirt designs, Johnny’s the guy who has customers camped out overnight to be first to score his new releases. You think it's the T-shirts? Well, sure, they’re nice. But camp out on the sidewalk overnight nice? I don’t think it’s about the shirts. It’s about being part of something that is just so cool it cannot be resisted.
Congrats to you Johnny for being named 2008 Best Young Entrepreneur by Business Week.
You got my vote!
OK NOW- go check out Johnny

Our work for the Peace Corps

2008-08-07T06:47:00.000-07:00

We get asked to donate t-shirts to a lot of worthy causes and do what we can for a few local non-profits. When we read that our friends’ daughter, Lilly, and her group of Brownies and Girl Guides were organizing car washes to raise money for t-shirts, we offered to donate them. Lilly is volunteering for the Peace Corps in Anse la Raye. While we usually restrict our charitable donations to local organizations, our hearts went out to Lilly and her gang of girls. Anse la Raye is a very poor fishing village on the island nation of St. Lucia in the eastern Carribbean. The money they didn't have to spend on t-shirts can go towards important programs like HIV and healthy lifestyles training. Keep up the great work Lilly! We’re proud to be a small part of your effort.

Photo/Art

2008-07-26T03:31:00.001-07:00

where life and work merge

2008-07-10T05:57:00.000-07:00

I am my favorite client. I don't put limits on the time I spend on design. What I say goes, no first proof, revisions, second proof, revisions,third proof... and on and on.
Work it until it feels done, fly it up the flagpole and who cares if anybody salutes it.
Creative freedom- it's how we grow.
After all, if you can’t take liberties when you aren't getting paid for your work, when can you?
This is an invitation to a party that you are probably invited to if you are reading this.
If not, just show up.

a logo and a design

2008-06-30T18:17:00.000-07:00

We were contracted recently to print 1500 t-shirts to be given away at Old Home Days in celebration of the 30th anniversary of this event that rocks East Hampton CT for three days in July. Old Home Days is a three day carnival, a road race and a giant 2 hour long parade. My family hasn’t missed this event for almost 20 years.
When we won the bid to do the giveaway t-shirts I was looking forward to working on a design with so much first-hand inspiration. In my mind the design for the t-shirt would be an illustration of everything I associated with Old Home Days combined with a crisp type treatment. The above design was the result and it was a direct hit with the committee– with one exception. In the initial design I had neglected to include the runners. Oops. I had run the Glorious Gallop a few times, but apparently the race didn't make it into my bank of fond Old Home Days memories. Can't imagine why.
The committee loved the final t-shirt design and talked about using it as a logo for Old Home Days. While this graphic may have many applications beyond the t-shirt it was designed for, I knew there was way too much detail in this design for it to work as a logo.
We have been printing for various schools and organizations in town for a few years now and have often used the bell graphic that is associated with East Hampton, otherwise known as "Belltown". It’s a straightforward bell, very simple in design and dignified in stature. It’s a symbol that has come to represent our town that in the 1800s was home to 30 bell manufacturers. There was no question that it would be included in any logo designed for Old Home Days.
At the same time, a logo for Old Home Days needed to show the same energy that the event brings to our town every July. Somebody had to make that bell ring. And so, I did. As Sue from the library said, “It's great to see a bell that you don’t feel you have to salute.”
And the last piece to the Old Home Days branding mission- the t-shirt design for the road race. No need to explain where that came from.

green piece

2008-06-06T05:11:00.000-07:00

I did this “green” piece a number of years ago- before “green” was the buzz word that it is today. When I met the owners of The Recovery Zone, their business was relatively new. It was a great idea and they had a great name. They needed a logo and a simple brochure to promote their business. It's a wonderful opportunity for a designer to start fresh like this. I designed the logo, developed the tag line and designed the brochure.
Click here to see other logos that I have designed.

self portrait- Justin

2008-05-29T07:54:00.000-07:00

My younger son's self portrait. I'm sure he has no idea when he leaves this on my computer that I will share it with the world. Well... potentially. Not that he will ever know. Note the sneaky eyes behind these unusual shades. And is that a snarl or a smile. He's more the smiley type.

notebook page

2008-05-23T10:11:00.000-07:00

I've visited a lot of blogs lately where people have posted pages from their notebooks, sketchbooks, etc. Interesting idea, a unique peek into someone's head I suppose. It inspired me to share one of my notebook pages. I don't keep a sketch journal per say. My book is more like a dumping ground for my often over-crowded brain. At least it was in this instance.
After a particularly frustrating day at the computer and just a few more things that didn't go my way I brought my newly-acquired cheap acrylics and sketch book to bed and unwound by loading the brush and swirling it around. Very therapeutic. I added the flower from a magazine that was on my nightstand, turned out the light and slept like a baby. This is the first thing I looked at in the morning. It made me smile. It's pretty amateurish- only the second painting I've done since college oh so many years ago. But, it served it's purpose and I've seen worse.

morning garden

2008-05-16T02:55:00.000-07:00

It's hard to concentrate on work in the studio when there is so much happening outside in the garden. Yet, with all the beautiful plants that are coming alive in my garden I choose to step into the woods and shoot this weed! I think this would make a great subject for a giant painting to hang in the dining room.
But I won't have time for that.
Because...
t-shirt weather is upon us and my t-shirt line is still not ready for the website.
More on that later...

mixing it up

2008-05-12T05:21:00.000-07:00

I have decided to combine my blog "a different view" with Red Barn buzz. Not sure why I felt a need to keep them separate in the first place. I have a habit of over compartmentalizing (not sure that's a real word??) A place for everything and everything in it's place. Admittedly, this works quite nicely for all the hats, gloves and mittens in the coat closet, but I no longer feel the need to keep my photos and graphic design separate. I've been inspired by some of my favorite blogs- art contemplations and desideratum to name a few, to mix it up.
So I will begin today to move some of my favorite photo posts over here. If you see something familiar, my apologies for being redundant.
I will leave the coat closet be for now.
This is a photograph that I altered in Photoshop...wish I knew how. I just played with it until it looked finished to me. If I had put words to my photo posts like Bill always said I should maybe I would be able to retrace my steps.

I painted something!

2008-05-04T15:38:00.000-07:00

I have been talking about getting back to painting for some time. I was particularly inspired by my friend Roger on vacation. This weekend provided an opportunity. My oldest son Curt graduated from Champlain College in Burlington, VT. We had planned on going to a beach-front barbecue after the ceremonies, but the weather didn't cooperate so we ended up going out to lunch, then back to Curt's girlfriend Kim's place. Kim's apartment is wonderful, it's decorated with artwork, most of which Kim, Curt and their friends have created. I mentioned my desire to get back to painting and before I knew it Kim had the mini canvases and paints out. We all dug in and this is what I came up with. It' based on one of my favorite photos. My first painting since graduating college in 1978....
I think I'm hooked!

inching forward

2008-04-25T08:06:00.000-07:00

I finally sent psd files to my website developer this morning to build new templates for Duke's Closet This has been a long process, and I have been overcomplicating things by jumping between designing web pages, t-shirts, and marketing materials all at the same time. Meanwhile, Imageworks has been standing by patiently while I chase my tail. I have been inspired by the positive comments I have gotten, particularly on the last t-shirt design I posted. This has served to encourage me to make getting the site up my priority. Once it is up and functional, I will be trained in maintenance so I can add product at will. Really, I can't wait to get back to designing t-shirts but what's the point if I don't have a place to sell them...?

t-shirt assignment of the day

2008-04-01T11:56:00.000-07:00

out like a lamb?

2008-04-01T09:19:00.000-07:00

I needed a break from designing T-shirts.
Once in awhile I will get so jammed up in a creative effort I need to break away and do something totally different. I have spent the last few days working on a slide presentation for a client. Some pretty technical stuff. Absolutely no room for creative interpretation. Hard to interpret something that you just don't get. The perfect project to want to make me go screaming back to t-shirt design. See how that works?
That slide project is much too dry to post here so I dug into the archives and pulled the first thing I laid my hands on. Kind of. This is an illustration that I did for a 2006 calendar done by Young's Printing. I had March, can you tell? And I'm sitting here in my heavy sweater listening to the wind howl outside and the dog wimper beside me. And it's the first day of April. March is over.
So where is that lamb?
Hmmmmm... change out those animals for some sea creature and this could count for another t-shirt for Duke's...

building a brand one t-shirt at a time

2008-03-28T09:03:00.000-07:00

This is the t-shirt design of the day. Part of the design process for me is to put the designs in a post so I can see how they will look online. At the same time I am trying out different marketing vehicles– postcard series to surf shops, a poster series at a trade show. And of course, the actual web pages. (I will post one of those soon). Additionally, the first postcard inspired a tagline, and another inspired the shirt tag. Perhaps the most important part of this exercise though, is to make sure as I am designing the line that my brand stays intact. To make sure that the t-shirts all look like they come from the same family and that the marketing tools support and reinforce that brand. So far so good, with one exception: I need to put some people in those shirts! That will come. We are less than two weeks away from our photoshoot/vacation in Florida.

2008-03-27T08:41:00.001-07:00

Another day, another design. That's my goal. No more, no less. It's easy to get sidetracked and stray from the mission making endless revisions to the same design. In the end I just have to go with my gut. So I'm committed to this one. Two down, four to go. I'm trying to be reasonable because if I keep redesigning I'll never launch the site. So, once I hit six it's time to run 'em up the flagpole and see if anyone salutes.

birthing a t-shirt

2008-03-26T13:56:00.001-07:00

This whole process of designing a t-shirt is a lot more complicated that I thought. I have been living with these designs for some time now and just recently started experimenting with real t-shirt colors and real ink colors. Yesterday I spent the afternoon heat pressing screenprinted transfers of the designs onto sample t-shirts- experimenting with different ink colors on different t-shirts. Some were an instant match to my vision- others a disappointment. But as I said earlier, I am still in the R&D phase. One of the ones that I felt was a success is pictured above. I would take each printed shirt and photograph it outside (luckily the sun was shining for a change). I actually wore this one to aerobics class this morning and got compliments. OK, so I'm thinking I have my first product nailed.
However, I was less than impressed when I incorporated the image into a web page so I pushed the design until it evolved into the top image.
Now I think I have my first product nailed.
On a separate note:
I had a nice surprise yesterday when Paul Zelanski contacted me! He stumbled across my blog by way of the post that mentioned his name and tracked me down. I was shocked, thrilled and honored. We have been trading emails and catching up. The internet surely has changed the world!

Duke's Closet update

2008-03-25T07:30:00.001-07:00

We are in the "R&D" phase of our product line for the Duke's Closet site. And at the same time trying to produce Photoshop pages for the web developer to work from. Not the recommended way of doing things I'm guessing. I think at this point we are holding them up. While I have a good idea on how I want the site pages to look, I am still struggling with actual product design. In the past two weeks I worked with color combinations- ink colors and t-shirt colors. I start on the computer trying to match shirt colors and ink colors as closely as possible. I actually scanned the swatch books for both the t-shirts and ink colors and used the eye dropper tool in Photoshop to pick and build the colors. I ordered a bunch of sample t-shirts and a stack of screenprinted transfers so I can experiment with color combinations. The process is slow, and painful. I am so anxious to get the site up and get on to designing packaging, hang tags, more product...! Should have done some of this groundwork months ago I suppose. I'll be pressing some samples later today and will post the results.

happy mistakes

2008-03-23T17:23:00.001-07:00

Justin had to come up with two birthday presents for a joint surprise birthday party for two close friends this Saturday night. He decided (wisely) that it would be cheaper to make presents than give the typical cash gift of $20 each. This is what he came up with (the third was for a friend that just happened to be there when he was pressing these.)
The ideas are based on a shirt he made for himself from a bunch of numbers that I ran on the digital cutter neglecting to mirror them before I cut them. This oversight on my part rendered the cut files useless for my purposes, but Justin used them to make a one of a kind t-shirt for himself. I think he might be onto something here...
A perfect example of what Paul Zelanski (one of my professors at UCONN), would have called a happy mistake.

re-purposed 2

2008-03-13T03:26:00.000-07:00

Another re-purposed building from the Village Center. This one was once a bank that now houses an antique shop. In the spirit of my good friend Bill, I think I've got my own series going here. These pieces are not done for clients, just for the enjoyment of doing them and for flexing those art muscles. So I suppose in that light, some client, someday will benefit from these exercises.
I did this awhile ago so I'm not sure I can retrace my steps. I know it includes high contrast and color fills. I also used the watercolor filter and the sky actually combines another image- a tight shot of frosted junipers, and color fill. I know there were more effects used on the juniper before I added that layer behind the building, but at the time I did this, I was going with the flow and didn't stop until I saw what I liked. Maybe next time I won't be so casual so I can actually take something away from the exercise that I will be able to use elsewhere.

Dr. Volcano

2008-03-12T05:21:00.001-07:00

Some of the work I do is not what you would consider glamorous. And sometimes I don't charge nearly what it is worth, time and talent considered. And sometimes I should really charge author's alterations, particularly when the author insists on sitting beside me during the 8th and FINAL revisions (before he realizes that the earth has moved once again and the figure must be revised).
But some of the work I do out of love. Love for the client.
The work I do for Jelle de Boer falls into that category.
At Wesleyan University Jelle is :
Professor Emeritus,
Geotectonics, paleomagnetism
in the Appalachians, SE Asia,
and South and Central America.

To me he is Dr. Volcano. And he is, quite simply, a delightful man to work with. He is an expert in his field (I once saw him on The Discovery Channel!) and passionate about his work. It's easy to get caught up in his enthusiasm and forget that these are billable hours.
I take his hand-drawn charts and maps, scan them, then place them in a template layer in Illustrator. The process of redrawing these figures is very relaxing and hardly seems like work at times. (At least not during the first few drafts.) But when we are in the final stretch Dr. V will often sit beside me and make sure I translate his edits correctly. And the best part- he thinks what I do is magic!
Sometimes the best clients are not the ones with the deepest pockets.

Re-purposed

2008-03-11T05:28:00.000-07:00

This image is from a photograph I shot of one of several old factory buildings in the center of my small town. I pushed the contrast slider way over to the right in Photoshop, then proceeded to isolate areas and fill with color. I do these creative exercises to push myself to look at things differently and put a creative spin on the ordinary.
Also to blow off some creative steam when I've spent hours on end preparing quotes or processing screenprinting orders.
East Hampton was at one time famous for its bell factories. Many of these buildings are all but abandoned. Some house small businesses that come and go. But these extraordinary old buildings remain standing... for now. My hope is that they will find a useful purpose and remain landmarks for years to come.
I would love to see a gallery in one of them. A showplace for Connecticut artisans, a place to be inspired, learn, shop. The Frog Hollow of Connecticut.
Bill, Karen...are you listening?

show clients what they don't want

2008-03-10T07:09:00.001-07:00

While I was working on my recent posts this weekend it occurred to me that at the same time I should be re-vamping my portfolio. I have not abandoned my graphic design business, but it has definitely taken a back seat to the t-shirt business lately. My hope though, is to one day in the not too distant future return to this work. I miss print... ink on paper that is.
I ran across this piece that was done a number of years ago and was pleased to discover that I had saved all of the original design comps that were presented to the client.
Reading from top to bottom, the first two images were alternatives to the one that the client selected for the cover of their product brochure.
When approaching a design assignment I will always respect my client's’ ideas and directions and reflect them in at least one design solution that I present. And, I will always give them something that they didn't think they wanted. In this case what they didn't think they wanted was a cover that did not show any of their product.
But that's the cover they chose.
I was able to convince them that the cover that suggested their product by showing the active sports that made use of their high-end stopwatches and timers just might say more about their product and their company than the product shots themselves.

istock- designer's dream

2008-03-09T12:09:00.001-07:00

This design was done for a single t-shirt printed using an ink jet transfer on the heat press. It was to be given out to the one graduating player on the EHHS boys’ basketball team.
Whether it's one t-shirt or one hundred we want the design to be unique. Clip art from istock.com helped create a unique design for this single t-shirt. Istock has a huge inventory of images- photos, illustrations and video clips, all fairly priced. A designer's dream!

from the first run...

2008-03-09T12:01:00.001-07:00

Here's a "draft" of one of the designs we will be printing in the first run. We have chosen to print on pigment dyed t-shirts made in Vermont, which ironically has no surf...
But it's a state near and dear to our hearts just the same.

learning to listen

2008-03-05T10:34:00.001-08:00

I have been so busy with the t-shirt end of the business that I have been very neglectful in keeping this blog fresh as promised. I often struggle to strike a successful balance between the number of caps I have to wear and the number of hours in a day. Here's what's been going on at Red Barn Studios:
About six years ago when we got into the screenprinting business I essentially took on a second job. In addition to my existing graphic design business, I would now be devoting a part of each day to the necessary maintenance work critical to growing a new business. Much of this work is non-creative in the traditional sense... marketing, preparing quotes, processing orders, customer support. I'm pleased to say that my efforts are paying off as the business grows each year.
Over a year ago we decided to add an e-commerce element to our screenprinting business. Unlike our current custom order business, this would be a preprinted line of t-shirts that we would design, print, and sell online. I went back and forth with concepts ranging from soccer t-shirts, to humorous t-shirts and I even considered soliciting designs that would be voted on by the online community, the winners going to print. Threadless.com was doing this, quite successfully and a number of other sites as well. The fact that it was already being done didn't intimidate me in the least, there's always room for competition. Need I mention Home Depot & Lowes, McDonald's & Burger King, etc., etc?
But all along, something just didn't feel right. None of the ideas really clicked, even when I took a number of them well into product development. I felt that my partner, while supportive, was not 100% onboard. And I wasn't comfortable going forward without 100% enthusiasm.
So oddly, the question became not "what did the t-shirt buying public want?" but "what would Flip get jazzed about?
For months he had been telling me that he wanted to design a few surfing t-shirts and a few caps and put them on ebay. I wasn't listening when he went on and on about designing for the older, real surfers. Quicksilver and Billabong had it covered for the younger crowd as well as all the surfer wannabes. The ones who had never surfed but bought into the culture nonetheless. He was talking about cool stuff for his generation of surfers. But again, I wasn't listening. You see, as soon as he mentioned ebay I stopped listening. That's not what I had in mind.
But had I not been so close-minded I would have paid attention to the important part. What would Flip get jazzed about? He'd been telling me all along.
So if you visit dukescloset.com you'll see our recently published under construction page. And you'll see Flip off to pursue his passion.
As for me, my passion is in designing. More on that to come.

t-shirt designs

2008-01-29T07:16:00.001-08:00

stowe center

2008-01-28T07:28:00.001-08:00

goal catalogs

2008-01-28T06:48:00.001-08:00

logo design

2008-01-28T06:05:00.001-08:00

old school comps

2008-01-25T07:23:00.001-08:00

Earlier this month I started a cleaning campaign around the house. It's an annual New Year's thing with me. Out with the old, blah, blah, blah. Up in the attic I found a forgotten portfolio from when I worked at Jonathan Wisconsin, a design studio in Marlborough CT. Just a little aside: the owners were big fans of the artist Robert Indiana and they were from Wisconsin so they thought a hip trendy name for their business would be “Jonathan Wisconsin”, or JW as we called it back then.
Anyhow, in this stack of forgotten portfolio pieces were some “comps”, including this one. This is how we presented our design concepts to clients. We built these comps from sheets of Pantone colored paper. Working from marker comps, we would carefully cut our design shapes with Xacto knives and glue them to background sheets using rubber cement. Text elements of the design would be added using “press type”- letters that were painstakingly rubbed off of a plastic carrier sheet one at a time onto the Pantone paper. (In this example, the text and logo were actually hand lettered) The comp was then mounted on matte board, tissued, and flapped. It was a very formal, labor intensive presentation, and we never went to a meeting with just one of these!

New Year, New Promise

2008-01-25T04:38:00.000-08:00

Looking back over this neglected blog I realize I have already broken a promise that I made when I started this "dialog". I promised to keep it fresh and interesting. I haven't changed a thing since November 19.
Pick an excuse:
too busy, nothing of note to report, lost my internet connection, lost interest, too busy with my other blog.
Any one of the above is viable (except the internet connection one).
This was my first blog and my intention was to use it as a vehicle to keep in touch with my design clients and to possibly open a dialog with potential new clients. I did a bunch of posts all at once, published them, then sent a link to my contacts and sat back and waited for the comments to roll in.
Nothing.
It wasn't until a month or so later that I realized that I had only allowed comments from viewers with google accounts. A few people worked around that and sent me emails complimenting me on my blog and it was good to hear from them.
But I didn't respond- not even by publishing new posts.
I've since figured out a lot about blogs. I don't think they are about perfection. They're much more honest than that.

Christmas at the Stowe Center

2007-11-19T06:09:00.000-08:00

Stowe Center Holiday Greeting

2007-11-19T06:05:00.000-08:00

2007-11-19T05:36:00.000-08:00

The beautiful thing about the business we are in is sometimes you do what you do just for the fun of it. This is a t-shirt we designed last year for our family Thanksgiving celebration. We printed up a couple dozen and passed them out to the kids– they were a big hit. Top right "Give Peas a Chance" is what we're thinking of doing for this year's turkey fest.

goal sporting goods

2007-11-16T09:03:00.001-08:00

the hair affair

2007-11-16T08:55:00.000-08:00

nie summer workshops

2007-11-16T08:47:00.001-08:00

Science Center of Connecticut

2007-11-16T08:14:00.000-08:00

Goal Catalog 2007

2007-11-13T13:31:00.001-08:00

WISE

2007-11-12T04:33:00.000-08:00