Amazing Studios

This is quite an unusual post for me but it's quite fun so I decided to just go with it. The topic is really interior design for designers; taking a look at some cool spaces and studios to inspire you to be more creative with your own work space.

In general I prefer the cleaner desks but there are some good ideas on how make your work space a source of inspiration whatever your tastes are. I think my favourite is the top middle picture on the edge of the river and the one with the slide. Both would be really fun but I don't think I would ever get any work done.

I have collated some of my favourite images into quite an extensive Pinterest board of amazing studios, for image sources or more examples see here.

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New Years Resolutions

The festivities of Christmas are gone and now people are beginning to look towards New Years Eve and with that comes new years resolutions. Resolutions are the promises we make to ourselves at the start of the new year to ensure success, happiness, health and wealth in the following twelve months. With new years nearly here I have been thinking about my own resolutions, specifically career related ones. So here they are...

From Here

1. Get a job.

I talk about getting a job a lot, but more specifically I want to get an awesome job. Gaining experience on placements shows I am willing to learn, better myself and allows me to be more aware of career choices. 2013 will be the year I land a fantastic job because I will work hard, research, learn and get there.

2. Use LinkedIn effectively.

Today I have been busily updating my profile on LinkedIn, connecting with relevant individuals and joining groups. I believe it is important to be up to date with LinkedIn because it allows you to broadcast yourself to the "right people" and meet like minded designers you admire and see how they achieved what they have. In 2013 I will be regularly updating my LinkedIn profile, to be witness to this you can connect with me here.

3. Use my SLR more

I've had my SLR for about two and a half years and in that time it has been primarily used to photograph work for my portfolio. My new years resolution is to learn more about photography, and produce great quality shots. I love the fantastic vibrancy of the photos from the camera so in 2013 I will be more snap happy.

4. Visit more exhibitions, museums and galleries

I have the V&A and The Tate on twitter and regularly hear about the fantastic exhibitions they have on yet rarely go. In 2013 I will make more effort to visit exhibitions, design related or not, in order to inspire myself and experience new things. In January I am hoping to go down to London and definitely want to visit The Natural History Museum and the V&A Ballgowns exhibition.

5. Be successful and have fun

If you have these two factors in your career you can't be doing too badly, so in 2013 I will be aiming for both.

Pinterest Picks

I love Pinterest; It's a great way to collate a digital mood board of inspirations and interests that can be simply updated, edited and shared. Many times I have been lacking ideas and turned to Pinterest for much needed inspiration, plus it can link you back to the original source, which is generally very useful. 

I am a big fan of typography, hand rendered type and anything remotely retro, which is shown in my Pinterest picks below. If you want to see any of these pins and other similar images follow my "Inspiration" board here.

Possibly one of my favourite pins to date, this simple design showcases type and photography together in a lovely nostalgic way. Although cheesy, I think the message within is also useful to remember.

Similar to the design above, this image touches on the "Hipster Branding" fashion with beautifully constructed type and simple vector shapes.

This image has a Nike feel about it to me, I like the offset effect used to suggest this has been screen printed or similar.

I so wish I was talented at hand rendered type like this image above. I like seeing the pens and paper scattered around the side of the page which shows that great design is not always reliant on digital methods.

I just like the simplicity of this hand painted sign and the angle of the shot.