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!
We’re tempted to say it’s been a busy week around the office… but aren’t they all busy? Without further adieu, here's our round-up of Friday links.
One | We love our office and wouldn’t want to have our business anywhere else… but full disclosure, we’re drooling over these shots of Code and Theory’s new office. Maybe it has something to do with our Andy Warhol obsession?
Two | This list of 10 ways to brainstorm new ideas comes in handy -- when you do creative work all day you’re bound to run out of steam every now and then. Our go-to method when we need to brainstorm is to take nothing but a blank legal pad (no phone) to our favorite coffee shop, set a timer for 30 minutes and see what we can come up with!
Three | 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.
Four | While doing research for the latest e-Book cover project, we ran across this custom Book Illustration Competition -- and now we’re stoked to see the submissions/winners.
We hope everyone’s had a productive week back at work after the holidays. Here’s a few links that caught our eye this week:
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 | A lot of my clients are new to the design world -- and while I always take the time to walk them through some of the basics, a handful have asked for reading they can do on their own. This guide will help familiarize you with some basic typography terms. It’s the perfect primer for people having trouble communicating with their designer!
Three | For the past few weeks my social media feeds have been overrun with predictions for what 2016 will bring. Out of everything I’ve read, this collection of design trend predictions is one of my favorites.
Four | We’re working on a few new freebie wallpapers -- in the meantime spruce up your tech with this list of best desktop wallpaper sites.
Five | I’ve recently developed an obsession with adult coloring books -- they’re perfect when you need a quick break from work. Michael’s has a wide selection, and carries a few coloring books that feature less intricate patterns (perfect for beginners)!
It's Friday once again! Here's our weekly roundup of links on a few of my favorite things: design, creativity, and entrepreneurship...plus anything else that strikes my fancy!
One | Love this rundown from Fast Company on six myths about creativity. I love number five (click on over to see what it is).
Two | Good design is really about solving problems. Here's how to solve them like a designer.
Three | Maybe it's a little meta to mention this on the blog, but I love this guide to blog post ideas. It's not a list of pre-formed ideas (those are helpful, but everywhere) -- it's a framework for developing your own.
Four | Another on the service-y/helpful side of things: how to change your domain name without losing SEO.
Five | Can we talk about this gorgeous lettering?! Love.
Roundup of this week's blog posts:
Hope you all had a great Thanksgiving! Here's our weekly roundup of links we're loving.
One | A good thing to work on if you've got holiday downtime: tips on making a media kit that'll impress your clients.
Two | Why everyone needs a passion project, even if you've got a 9 to 5.
Three | Something encouraging and sparking with a little creative magic: Amanda Palmer on working in the arts. "When you're an artist, nobody ever tells you or hits you with the magic wand of legitimacy. You have to hit your own head with your own handmade wand."
Four | What makes a good designer -- the illustrated version.
Five | This could be a fun project (also useful if holiday downtime exists in your world) -- how to digitize hand lettering.
Have a great weekend. I'll see you all soon on the blog.
It's Friday and you know what that means...time for some links on design, creativity, & other things we love here at Hue & Tone! Without further adieu...
One | If I only had thirty seconds to offer you a piece of essential career advice, it'd be this: don't use a Microsoft Word template for your resume. Here are some good tips as you move beyond that.
Two | Travel is not a huge part of my life these days, but I'd like to incorporate more of it eventually. I'm reading through these tips on how to prepare your business for extended travel.
Three | Why you should cultivate creativity in your business: "No matter how good somebody is or how brilliant they are, they're going to be wrong sometimes."
Four | I love these thoughts on the difference between graphic design & other kinds of design: "Graphic design is about communication, and there's something about communication that is fundamentally social or even civic in its nature."
Five | We'll close with something a little more practical: these subtle brushes.
Recap of this week's blog posts:
Current read:
Design is a Job by Mike Monteiro
That's all for this week! Have a great weekend -- see you Tuesday!
Hello Friday, once again! I'm looking forward to wrapping up work for the week and welcoming some friends to town for a visit.
Hope you are looking forward to something fun over the weekend as well -- but until that happens, here are some links to get you through the rest of the work week.
One | We'll start this week's roundup with a resource: this set of minimal social icons. Not too much, just enough.
Two | Looking to create a logo? Here's a good set of tips -- accessible without being too basic.
Three | These adorable black and gold patterns (my alma mater's colors!) are 100% free.
Four | Something a little different: a crash course in presentation design.
Five | Veering away from design into business...and a topic I've thought about a lot: how to blend your personal story into your brand/business story.
That's it for this week! Have a fabulous weekend and I'll see you again on Tuesday.
And just like that, it's Friday again. To help you transition from the weekday hustle to weekend relaxation (you really should relax) -- here are a few links I've been loving this week!
One | I'm all about these (free!) hand-drawn vector stripes & patterns.
Two | Here's a good cheat sheat on the file types you'll likely encounter in design work.
Three | Another super-usable post: how to establish a brand identity for your small business. This is solid advice.
Four | A little less resource-oriented & more on the "interesting to know" side: the state of graphic design in 2015.
Five | We'll close this week with another freebie -- these gorgeous brushstroke vectors.
This week's posts:
This week's music: Spotify Morning Productivity playlist
Have a great weekend! I'll see you here on the blog on Tuesday.
Hello, friends! It's been another full, busy week here at Hue & Tone and, now that it's coming to a close, I'm sharing some links I've been loving once again.
One | The impact of having an active social presence for your business is huge...but not everyone's naturally inclined to be a "sharer." I love this post on ways to train your brain to think social.
Two | Along the same lines as the link above, social media is best when you're genuinely using it as a tool to collaborate and learn from others...not a way to blast your own message without listening. Twitter chats are a great way to get started.
Three | The Hue & Tone website runs on Squarespace, and I'm a huge fan. Here's a good summary of the reasons why.
Four | Running a small business doesn't happen without its fair share of cold calls -- and cold emails. So, how to do it right? Personalize, be brief, and establish purpose.
Five | Here's a great -- and beautifully presented -- primer on the "art and science" of pairing the right fonts.
Recap of this week's blog posts:
Have a great weekend!
Happy Monday! I'm back with another roundup of links we've been loving around the Hue & Tone office...
One | Designers and design-minded people aren't the only ones who notice good design out in the world. This is a beautiful summary of the way type and lettering affect our daily lives.
Two | Quick freebie: I love this brush-style font, which is free to download.
Three | Speaking of fonts, brush up with this simple guide to pairing them effectively in your designs.
Four | Have a long drive coming up or just like to listen while you work? Try one of these 20 podcasts for creative entrepreneurs.
Five | I love creating infographics, but creating an effective layout is tougher than it looks. Here's another simple, smart design resource to help you master visual arrangement.
Hope you've all had a fantastic start to the week!
Hello, Friday! I'm currently in the office wrapping things up for the week...which usually means scheduling social posts, wrapping up larger projects and a few last client phone calls and meetings. I won't say I never work on the weekends (if I said that, it wouldn't be true) but I do try to reserve some weekend time for recharging.
As another weekend begins, here are a few links I've been loving this week...
Hue & Tone: Links to end the week part two
One | I've mentioned this before, but I'm really interested in creativity and how it works when you need to be creative on a regular basis -- not just after sparks of inspiration. I loved this article explaining how Pixar fosters creativity and good ideas among its staff.
Two | There's a lot of great advice out there to help you harness social media for your business...there's also a lot of really bad advice, something this article sums up well. (You REALLY don't need an account on every platform. Or a post with 15 hashtags.)
Three | This is a great roundup on apps to boost your productivity as a freelancer. We'll definitely be trying a few of these.
Four | Finding the best creative solution to a problem definitely requires a lot of brainstorming. If that's not something you're used to, this is a good way to get started.
Five | You need a brand, not just a logo. Here's why.
Wishing you all an excellent weekend! We'll be back here on the blog next week.
Hello and happy Friday! It's been a crazy week here at the Hue & Tone offices...but I'm winding down and getting ready for a (hopefully) relaxing weekend.
Before I say goodbye for the week, here are a few things I've been reading/viewing/loving lately...
One | When I'm designing resumes, the most frequent feedback I give is to make cuts! This post offers some good advice on what to keep and what to cut from your resume.
Two | This gorgeous video makes me proud (as always) to call Greensboro home (and home to my business).
Three | Elizabeth Gilbert (of Eat, Pray Love fame) shares eleven ways to think intelligently about creativity in this great TED talk.
Four | You may have noticed that our posting schedule has changed substantially since we started this blog. And that's okay.
Five | Ever wondered what makes some social posts take off, while some sink? Here's a nice overview from one of our favorite social media scheduling tools, Buffer.
What are your weekend plans? Do you have any great links to share? Let me know in the comments below.