Wednesday, July 25, 2012

Refreshing My Website!

The last time I redesign my website was 2008, and I had been meaning to update the design since about 2010, but client projects and a very full schedule have kept it on my to-do list until this year. While not a complete redesign of the site structure, I have changed a lot.

My new title is Instigator of Awesome! to demonstrate that not only do I do graphic design, but design consulting and art direction. It also conveys a sense of my personality better. I switched from the formal Futura to a casual script typeface, JB Bruno, for a more approachable feel. I ditched the heavy dark blue background for white to brighten up the whole site.

I moved my social media and website icons up to the top of the page so that folks could choose to view my portfolio or view my other website info first. I enlisted the help of my friend Annie, owner of the awesome stationery store, The Envelope, to clean up my bio and make it friendlier.

I also tweaked my self portrait illustration: softened a few lines here and there and made my smile a bit happier. I removed the geometric art deco background and replaced it with a watercolored textured background for a more hand-crafted feeling.

While I had intended to make additional pages and a place to sell my prints on this version of my site, I decided to leave it as is for now. This refresh was very refreshing and maybe on version 2012.2 I will incorporate some of my more grand ideas...


Wednesday, July 18, 2012

American Air Care

American Air Care Website


HVAC professional and my friend over at American Air Care didn't have a website. He'd tried working with designers in the past, but things just never seemed to work out. So late last year, he approached me to design his website. He didn't have much in the way of requirements: something that would feature his services and products along with contact information.

After researching the local competition and talking more with the owner, we decided that a one-page website would be the best bang for his buck. It would make it very easy for his customers to view their options and contact him without any of the unnecessary bells and whistles that added complexity and distraction like the local competitor websites.

The project moved slowly, but steadily until we had some issues with domain registration, which involved a name change for his business, but we were able to finally launch the site in June.

The client loves the finished site!