The things I do for money love

When I'm not busy with the duties of my "day job" as Lead Production Editor at a university press (duties that often bleed into my nights and weekends), I do freelance graphic design work. I took the only graphic design class offered at my college while pursuing my degree, and I am mostly self-taught.

I got my start in graphic design my last two years in high school, in yearbook class, working on antiquated machines with PageMaker. I graduated to InDesign, and even got into Quark for an internship at a newspaper during college. I now work in Adobe Creative Suite 5, having learned all the ins-and-outs of InDesign, and most of the abilities of Photoshop and Illustrator.

I have designed newspapers, advertisements, entire books, book covers, bookmarks, brochures, flyers, business cards, invitations, billboards...the list goes on and on.

I would love to begin using this blog a bit more dynamically, so I am going to begin showcasing a few (personal) projects that I have completed in the past. I have several clients for whom I am paid for my freelance graphic design skills, but all of what follows were on a pro bono basis, either for friends, family, acquaintances, or for my own events. Note all names and identifying information have been changed.

The things I do for love!

Bridal Shower Invitation

I created this double-sided invitation for a kitchen-themed bridal shower. I was a bridesmaid in the wedding and helped throw the shower, so I wanted to come up with a clever "recipe" card to invite female guests to the event. I thought I was being pretty cute with the "without nuts" line...it works on so many levels! The "coffee cup stains" are, of course, intentional.

Front:

Back:

Baby Shower Invitation

I created this baby shower invitation for a friend who was pregnant with her second child. I had never thrown a baby shower before, and it was great fun to come up with a simple but sweet and impactful invitation.

Business Card

I created this business card for my mother. She paints ordinary rocks to look like animals, butterflies, flower motifs, among many other designs. She sells these works of art in local venues and then donates all proceeds to Habitat for Humanity. She hasn't kept track of her many years of sales and subsequent donations, but it is certainly thousands of dollars by now. What can I say, creativity must run in the family!

I should probably say something biblically clever here about "building your house upon stone..."

If you have any questions about my work or would like an estimate for a project, please do not hesitate to contact me at kittymarieblogs AT gmail DOT com. My rates are reasonable and my work is fast. Freelance graphic design is not only a way for me to supplement my meager publisher's income, but also as a creative outlet personally. I would love to design something for you!

More designs to come soon!