Happy first day of July!

We’re making a few changes to our blogging schedule, so for our last Friday Links we’ve rounded up a mega-list of some of the best resources we’ve shared over the last few months. From now on, we’ll be posting a long-format entry every Wednesday. With topics ranging from design and marketing to tips and tricks, each post will be an in-depth look at a different topic each week.

So, without further adieu, here’s our final Friday Links:

Design Links

One | 10 Commandments of graphic design  

Two | Introductory guide to choosing fonts

Three | How to utilize an inspiration board to design a consistent brand

Four | 15 Type Designers to keep an eye on

Five | An interview with Michael Bierut, Designer at Pentagram

Social Media Links

One | How to be social online (for the naturally unsocial)

Two | 10 Years of Twitter: Tweets that broke the Internet

Three |Essential LinkedIn Stats: When, how, and what to post

Four | 5 Habits of Successful Social Media Experts

Five | 9 Tips to create a cohesive, branded Instagram feed

Branding/ Marketing Links

One | The basics of marketing your blog or website

Two | Working with email marketing automation

Three | 12 Simple strategies the big brands use to leave a lasting impression

Four | Stand out on Pinterest as a small business

Five | More branding basics for small businesses

Miscellaneous Links

One | Website color schemes: The palettes of 50 visually impactful websites to inspire you

Two | The 6 best tools for creative work, according to science

Three | Free hand-lettering practice worksheets

Four | Why you should use Squarespace

Five | The best of Greensboro

We hope you’ve enjoyed this last Friday link post… but now it’s time to get excited for the future! We’ll be back on Wednesday with a list of SEO dos + don’ts that you don’t need a web developer to execute.

Going to miss our Friday Links series? No need to worry, we’ll be sharing more valuable resources than ever on our social media. Follow us here:

If you’re looking to network, you have a great tool right at your fingertips. LinkedIn is a powerful social media tool for anyone looking to give their professional persona a boost. With access to thousands of connections around the world, you can form new relationships, increase your sales leads, and gain invaluable professional insight.

A little skeptical about the power of LinkedIn? These five links will have you sprucing up your profile in no time.  

One | If you don’t have a LinkedIn page for your business, it might be time to rethink. LinkedIn is great for B2B marketing, and might just be the most effective platform for lead generation -- but those are only two of many reasons why having a business profile is important.

Two | If you already have a page for your business, here are a few tips to help you get started promoting it.

Three | Looking for the numbers on who and how people use LinkedIn? This breaks down everything from who LinkedIn’s 347 million users are to some fast facts on how people in other countries use the social platform.

Four | Before you get networking, you need a sleek and informative profile to turn heads. Things like a professional photo, custom URL, and exciting bio are just a few things that will have a big impact.

Five | Most importantly? When and what to post.

A little update never hurt nobody -- take a moment this weekend to make your brand a LinkedIn business page or spruce up your profile. Next week, we’ll be honing in on how to create an effective email marketing campaign -- you won’t want to miss it!

I don’t know about you guys, but we love infographics -- they’re a great way to snag someone’s interest on social media and quickly communicate information. We’ve compiled 5 of our favorite infographics for you to effortlessly glean some new statistics from!  

One  |  At the beginning of the year, there was no end to the predictions being made about where 2016 would take design. See if they’re coming true with this infographic that predicts 8 design trends for 2016.

Two  |  When we say social media is a big deal, we mean like really big... literally. With 320 million users Twitter’s user base is almost as big as the population of the United States. Don’t believe us? Here’s more on social media’s active monthly users for this year.

Three  |  Did you know that the average user spends 20 minutes per visit on Facebook? Leverage these statistics to plan even better social content.

Four  |  The perfect filter can take a picture from good to great! Have you ever found your thumb hovering over two filters, wondering what other people would pick? Well, Canva’s mapped out the most popular filters from around the world. Can you guess what North Carolina’s most popular filter is?

Five  |  If you don’t read any of the other links today, be sure to read this one. If you want to be a successful social media manager all of the tips are a must!

We’ll be back on Tuesday with a coloring page. If you’re looking for some weekend enrichment, we suggest listening to The Ezra Klein Show or checking out one of our favorite places in Greensboro.

That’s all for today, have a great one!

This week we couldn’t decide on just one topic, so we have a little bit of everything -- from taking pictures to social media facts and standing out -- we’ve got something for everyone this week.

One | Taking pictures with your smartphone can be a pain (trust us, we know!), but these 17 tips and tricks will help you take better iPhone pictures. It’s amazing the results you can get with just a few simple tricks!

Two | Did you know that your biggest advocate on Twitter is most likely someone with a low number of followers? This is just one of the 10 most surprising social media facts. 

Three | “Look around you right now, I guarantee you can see at least one brand mark somewhere.” Ever wonder how big brands leave a lasting impression? Creating a brand that is consistent and thoughtfully executed will leave a lifetime mark. Here are 12 simple strategies all memorable brands use.

Four | Over the course of the day, almost 5 million pins are shared on Pinterest! So... now you’re probably wondering “How can I stand out and make sure people are seeing my pins?” Implement these 4 simple tweaks to help stand out.

Five | If you checked out our post earlier this week, you know we talked about GSO inspiration. And, we couldn’t resist adding one more local business to our list! Vivid Interiors (located Downtown) has been sharing some of their favorite Hygge and West wallpapers on their blog. Not only would they look great in your home or office, but these snapshots also make cute iPhone wallpapers!

If you’re in Greensboro this weekend, check out the 100 for 100 art sale or National Trails Day. See you on the blog Tuesday!

Branding is so much more than visual -- it's what people associate with you when they hear your businesses name. You want your brand to give an accurate sense of who you are and what you offer. Today, we've got a few links on how to push your brand to the next level, an inspiring interview on transforming your idea into a brand, and how to boost your reach using Snapchat. 

One | Been building your brand for years, but now sure what to do next? Assess where your brand is at, then check out these 50 ways to give it a boost.

Two | In this digital age, we can’t emphasize the importance of social media enough! Follow these three steps to help embrace social media as an integral part of your business operations.

Three | Have you seen the cool geofilters Snapchat recently released? Did you know that you can make them for your business? With a low cost buy-in and millions of users, it’s a great way to advertise. This step-by-step guide goes in-depth and shows you how to make a filter.

Four | A creative profile + cover photo can make a big impression on a business page. Check out this showcase of big brands cover photos to get ideas for your own page!

Five | “Do one thing extremely well. Refine the process. Do it again.” That's Michael Luscher's advice on forming a big brand. Learn more about how he turned his one big idea into one big brand.

Always keep in mind that your vision + your voice + your visuals = your brand! Enjoy this long weekend :)

We’ve mentioned our love of Pinterest before -- we even rounded up 10 of our favorite inspiration boards. This week, we’re back with a link round-up of a few must follow Pinners. We promise we’ll break this obsession soon… well, sooner or later.

One | The Creative Market: our favorite digital design marketplace, The Creative Market’s 'Infographics' board is a creative hodgepodge of all things information design.

Two | Rebecca Finn: Rebecca’s obvious passion for graphic design and art makes her Pinterest one of our favorites. For a wide variety of creative typography and out of the box lettering ideas, check out her ‘Typography’ board.

Three | Design Quixotic: a finalist at the Shorty Awards for best Best Pinner, how could we not love her boars? 'Logos, Marks, and Icons' is our personal favorite, but with 77 boards to follow there’s bound to be a little something for everyone.

Four | Constant Contact: This well-known email marketing company knows their stuff -- their 'Marketing, Stats, and Facts' board is a potpourri of what appears to be pretty much every infographic ever made on digital marketing.

Five | Joy Cho:  a lifestyle blogger with an eye for design, Joy Cho’s boards span a variety of interests from food and fashion to patterns and type. Her 'Pattern' board embodies our taste perfectly!

There’s so many inspiring pinners out there, we know we can’t cover them all. Who did we miss? Who’s your favorite pinner?

This week we’re focusing on new personal stories, new updates, new designs, and new strategies. It’s always good to start fresh and rethink, redesign and renew our minds especially with the new season coming up in a little over a month.

One  |  If you’re a part of the design world (or even if you’re not) you’ve probably heard of Canva. Have you ever wondered how it all started? Melanie Perkins, (CEO + Co-Founder of Canva) discusses her entrepreneurial journey and the inspiration behind Canva.

Two  |  Feel like your logo designs just aren’t cutting it? Here are 8 ways to push your designs further and take your process to the next level.

Three  | How often do you run data on your social media accounts? Your analytics are key to understanding what is working and what’s not. Here are 10 experiments you can run yourself to find out more about your analytics.

Four | Nadia Hassan, a pattern designer located right here in GSO, says: “Designing is what makes me feel like I’m growing and learning. It’s not something that happens overnight. It does involve a lot of sacrifice.” More on her ‘Made In Greensboro’ story here.

Five | Instagram came out with a new look this week (and caused the Internet to freak out). The new update puts more focus on photos and videos without changing how you navigate the app. Hear from the Insta team themselves as to why + how they updated the app. What are your thoughts?

Change can be good or bad, but you’ll never know until you try! We’re hoping you’ve learned something new and are open to trying something new for your business. Until next week, have a great weekend!

Happy Friday, and welcome to our first Friday Links of May! This week we’re focusing on a little bit of everything -- from Mother’s Day to design tips.

One  |  What does your brand’s color say about your business? Color can affect mood, perception, and buy-in. Review this break down of color psychology before settling on a final signature color for your logo!

Two  |  Did you know this week is National Small Business Week? If you’ve ever wondered what is takes to be a small business owner here’s an infographic that breaks it all down.

Three  |  “Thou shall always stick to thy deadlines” = our favorite of these 10 commandments of graphic design.

Four  |  Looking to take your designs to the next level? Here are 50 visual tips + examples that will help you fine tune your designs to convey exactly the message you want (perfect for social media managers).

Five  |  Crafting a message or graphic for Mother’s Day?  Here are 6 creative Mother’s Day Ads for inspiration!

Stay tuned for next week’s blog all about social media platforms. Have a great weekend!

Staying up to date with your social media can be a full time job! Posting content every day can seem a little overwhelming, but there are plenty of resources available to help streamline the process.

One  |  Getting started is one of the hardest parts about social media. Using these tips starting your pages will be easy.

Two | Social Media is how you connect with your audience. Your posts should be strategically planned out in order to see the kind of interaction that you want. Here are 5 habits successful social media experts use to get the most from their efforts.

Three  |  Making the time for social media can be exhausting, but with the right strategy you can fit it into an hour a day! Use this step-by-step plan to get in the habit of devoting each day to a different task.

Four  |  When planning out your posts for the week, you want to make sure you’re posting at the right times. This isn’t the same for everyone or every account -- but there are a few times when users are most active online. Don’t hesitate to play around and see what works best for you!

Five  |  Using tools is a great way to help you stay organized with your posts. These 10 tools will make your managing all your accounts (and your life) a little easier!

Need full time help? We can do that! Social media is a crucial part of any digital marketing plan -- let us reduce your stress and ensure that a good job is being done.

This Friday we’ve rounded up some useful tips and advice from our favorite #girlbosses.

One  |  Starting off with the queen #girlboss herself! Sophia Amoruso shares her secrets to success.

Two  |  Are you looking to find your passion, find your main motivation, and perfect your personal brand? Here are 10 books must haves on your bookshelves from creative girl bosses.

Three  |  For all your being a boss inspiration, check out Ashley Howard’s Girl Boss Motivation Pinterest board.

Four  |  If you want to be a boss, you have to work like one! We are loving Courtney Whitmore’s home office.

Five  |  Just in case you forgot :)

Tag your favorite #girlboss in the comments!

If you’re like me you haven’t changed your desktop background or iPhone wallpaper in a few months. I realized this week it’s time for change -- so shake it up and try one of these 5 wallpaper designs RIGHT NOW!

One | Summer is right around the corner, brighten up your wallpaper with summer colors!

Two | Patterns are a girls best friend, right?  We are loving these fun patterns for your laptop, cell phone, or even coffee cups! (You can find the coffee cups at Target).

Three | If you’re like me, you need all the motivation you can get. Here’s a reminder whenever you’re in need of a pep talk!

Four | Pretty pink, watercolor, and flowers? We’ll take it! Download this free gorgeous wallpaper.

Five | Geometric shapes anyone? For fun prints, check these out!
 

Which wallpaper did you pick to try out? Let us know in the comments!

This Friday we’re in a creative state of mind! From creating graphics, hand lettering, and choosing fonts we’ve created a list of links to get you trying something new.

One | Using graphics is a great way to add interest to your blog or website. Spicing up your photos (or stock photos) can be simple. Follow these steps and you’ll be creating graphics like a pro in no time!

Two | Have you ever wondered what the difference between Handlettering and Calligraphy is? Maghon Taylor from All She Wrote Notes, explains it all. She even offers calligraphy classes right here in Greensboro.

Three | Practice makes perfect. Here are 10 free hand lettering practice worksheets to help you learn a new skill.

Four | So you’ve mastered hand lettering... now what? Digitize them through Illustrator! Check out this step-by-step guide to taking your paper to digital.

Five | Picking the right fonts can be critical to making your blog or website give off the right vibe. Lucky for you we found this handy guide to choosing the right fonts. 

See you next week for another Friday Link! Have a great weekend and let your creative minds run!

Oh Friday, we’ve missed you...  We’ll admit, we’re attached at the hip to our phone, so this week we’ve got links on social media, how to unplug, and a surprise throwback we’ve all wanted! Here’s a few articles to kickstart your weekend!

One  |  Did you know that Twitter celebrated its 10 year anniversary this week? To think, where would we be without these tweets that broke the Internet in the past 10 years?

Two  |  If you need some organizational help, check out these apps that will organize your life in no time. We love Trello!

Three  |  Promoting your website or blog is vital at any stage! For those new (and experienced), here are 10 tips to market your blog. (Hint: social media is a major key!)

Four  |  If you need a break from apps and social media, let’s get back to the books! If you’re in a reading slump, check out how to get out of your reading slump!

Five |  Nostalgia Alert! For all the 90’s babies, let’s rejoice! There’s an All That reunion!

Happy Weekend :)

Friday links to keep you inspired for the weekend and the week to come!

One  |  Do you ever feel in a creativity slump? Check out these tips to destress, and get back to bursting with ideas for your work!

Two  |  Want to know more about different resources to create a better blog? Here are 15 resources to help your improve your website or the design of your blog.

Three  |  Make a statement on your blog with a statement graphics! Look at these tips to make an eye catching design!

Four  |  Think you're ready to try your hand at creating your own logo? With the help of these guidelines you can push your new logo to the next level. (Not so design savvy? This is also a great resource to help you develop some sketches for a designer.)

Five  |  Easter is right around the corner! If you’re needing a little inspiration for social media posts, check out these social media campaigns to stay festive during the holiday.  

As always, have a great weekend, and see you next Friday for another link roundup!

The weather in Greensboro is heating up which only means one thing - springtime is coming! And, your house isn’t the only thing that could benefit from spring cleaning. It’s the perfect time to take a second look at your brand, website, and social media accounts,  so that you can leap into this new season with a fresh style. Here are five resources to help you get started:

One | Consider refreshing (or creating!) your inspiration board of images, colors, and quotes to keep you motivated for the year. Check out tips for designing an inspiration board for your brand!

Two | Spring brings livelier colors to explore! Consider adding some light pastels to your social media content for a fresh contrast that matches the  new season. Check out the top colors of Spring 2016.

Three | For reviving your website, consider using different fonts or even using different colors. This free and easy gold font will add a fresh color to liven up any website!

Four | Are you maximizing your online presence? Here are 10 tips on what you can do every week to increase your presence and engagement online.

Five | Warmer weather means more outdoor activities! When you step  outside take advantage of your surroundings and grab some nature pics for Instagram! Here are 13 tips on taking better Instagram pictures.

Enjoy the weather! Have a lovely weekend, and keep calm...spring is coming!

To round out this week, we’re rounding up the best of the links we’ve shared over the last few months. These are just all around, generally good resources that we couldn’t help but share a second time!

One  |  Good, free fonts can be hard to find. This list of 60 free minimalist fonts highlights a handful of unique + clean + modern finds -- ones that you won’t see on more basic free font lists. 

Two  |   Typewolf is one of the best sources for everything typography + fonts. With carefully curated lists and resources, you’ll find everything from unique ‘top 10’ lists to font profiles (complete with mixing & match suggestions).

Three  |  No matter what your goals, these eight inspirational TED Talks are a must watch.

Four  |  This is a great roundup on apps to boost your productivity as a freelancer. We'll definitely be trying a few of these.

Five  |  Death to the Stock Photo is one of the first sources people mention for cheap + not-tacky + actually useful stock photos. We see it mentioned constantly, and have even highlighted it a couples of times ourself -- but Death to Stock has come in handy so many times this week that we want to give them another shout out.

Six  |  The Hue & Tone website runs on Squarespace, and I'm a huge fan. Here's a good summary of the reasons why.

Seven  |   It’s easy to fall into a rut and start using the same colors -- so when you need a little inspiration check out these 50 creative color schemes.

Which of the links we’ve shared over the past few months have you found the most helpful?

*See all of our link roundups here, or check out our personal favorite -- our Greensboro link roundup -- here.*

Hi friends, and happy Friday! It's been a fun week full of some new opportunities here at Hue & Tone, and now I'm wrapping things up before heading out to enjoy this weekend's (hopefully) beautiful weather! If, like me, you haven't quite reached the finish line of the work week, here are a few links to push you through.

One | Type design is one of the most demanding (and fascinating) disciplines in the creative world. Here's a roundup of type designers to watch out for in 2016. 

Two | For something light, here's a hilarious infographic from the Creative Market blog: how to live like a creative.

Three | Looking for more regular reading material? Check out a few of the 80 best Tumblr blogs for designers. 

Four | This is great from the first line: "I’d love to have a toolkit that promised me great, creative ideas every time I sat down to work. Obviously that’s not going to happen—creativity doesn’t come from tools."

Five | Don't forget to check out our free adult coloring page! It's perfect for some weekend relaxation. 

Wishing you all a fabulous weekend! We'll be back next week on the blog.

Another Friday, another link roundup! Here's a few things that came in handy at Hue & Tone this week: 

One  |  Looking for a last minute Valentine's Day card? Use these four free printables to design your own! The ombre XOXO print is our personal favorite.

Two  |  Typewolf is one of the best sources for everything typography + fonts. With carefully curated lists and resources, you’ll find everything from unique ‘top 10’ lists to font profiles (complete with mixing & match suggestions).

Three  |  Last week, we went in depth on our love of textures. If you’re looking for some textures to play around with in your designs check out this free sample pack.

Four  |  No matter what your goals, these eight inspirational TED Talks are a must watch.

Five  |  This week's mood board was one of our favorites! We've been reminding ourselves all week that there's no single answer to a design problem. 

We'll be back Tuesday with a fun, interactive freebie! 

For a twist on our usual Friday Links we’ve compiled a list of our favorite Greensboro things! We’ve been in Greensboro a little over a year, and while we still have a mile long list of things to try out, we definitely have some favorites -- here’s a quick list of everything we’ve been loving!
 

Favorite Spot: Our office at Revolution Mill!
Haven’t seen our space yet? Drop in and see us! You’ll get why we love hanging out in our office.

Favorite Restaurant: Boba House
We recommend the springs rolls and Hawaiian stir fry,  but everything we’ve sampled at this healthy and compassionate eatery has been vegan heaven.

Favorite Brewery: Red Oak 
We might be a little bias because they’re a client, but you can’t beat the clean, unfiltered taste of a Red Oak beer!

Favorite Coffee: Green Bean
A GSO staple, the Green Bean regularly makes lists “best coffee shops” and “must go to” lists. We love them for their amazing baked goods, vegan cream cheese, and close proximity to the office!  

Favorite Local Non-profit: CSDHH
There’s so many great local non-profits to pick from, but after working with CSDHH, we were blown away by their commitment to empower and inspire change for the deaf community.
 

What did we miss? Where do we need to try? Leave us a comment and let us know!

( Love Greensboro? Drop us a line and we’ll send you some I <3 GSO stickers! )

No reason to delay, here's our Friday links!

One  |  It’s easy to fall into a rut and start using the same colors -- so when you need a little inspiration check out these 50 creative color schemes.

Two  | Glitter has been trending for months -- if you want to get in on the trend without going through the trouble of photoshopping your own glitter, these free textures are perfect for you.

Three  |  We’re big fans of Evernote and use it to organize all of our meeting notes, screenshots of inspiration pieces, and even emails. If you’re looking to become a paperless operation, or just want to keep your desk tidy, check out how another Evernote power user maximizes the app to stay organized.

Four  |  Automated emails are a great and easy way to communicate consistently with your customers and clients. Get started with MailChimp or see if the email marketing service you already use has an automation option!

Five  |  This one isn't actually a link, but we couldn't wait to show off our new business cards + postcards + stickers! We used Moo for the printing and are obsessed with their Printfinity option!  

Want us to send you some of our new stickers? Shoot us your mailing address and we'd be happy to send you a handful!