Hey friends! We are continuing with the Artist Showcase series after five years of hiatus. I’m thrilled to restart this series to interview and showcase amazing creatives that I’ve found influential for me and are willing to share information about themselves. It’s 2020 and I enjoy having a space to showcase creatives without having to do so many things or even pay to be featured. It’s a bit of the old-school blog vibes that I miss.

Today’s guest is my friend! I met Melissa via Twitter after attempting to work with two other bloggers to get all of the Florida Bloggers together on one site. (RIP to that idea.) Melissa lived in the same town as I did and we spent many an hour in our local Starbucks bonding over coffee, business, and all of the nerd things! Melissa has an amazing company Jelly Design Studio and has been working on a fun new venture JDS Creative Studio. She is a delight and the nicest human. She bakes all of the amazing things. I am so thankful for everything Melissa does and I’m thrilled to share her work and story here on the blog.

Melissa is the owner and designer of Jelly Design Studio — specializing in WordPress website design and development for creatives and other small businesses. She recently started a new venture, JDS Creative Studio, where she offers Squarespace Templates for creatives. When she’s not working, you can find her reading the latest YA book next to her sweet puppy Luna.

What are your favorite ways to create? 

I always start the design process for any website project on paper. I love to just jot down my ideas and do some rough sketches. My sketches are definitely messy and don’t think anyone will make much sense of them — but this helps the ideas flow for me. I then tidy up the sketches a bit and move on to converting my ideas into a digital design.

How did you start Jelly Design Studio?

I started Jelly Design Studio back in 2012 after wanting to learn a bit more about design and development. I had a lifestyle blog that I always wanted to customize and as it was just a hobby I figured I could learn how to make those changes myself.

Blog friends would eventually reach out asking for assistance on their blog — and slowly it turned into referral clients. From bloggers to boutiques, my client base started to grow.

What started out as just wanting to learn a few more skills here and there — eventually turned into a full-time career that I created for myself where I would work with so many creative and inspiring small business owners. 

Where do you often find inspiration? 

This may sound cheesy but I do believe that inspiration is everywhere that you look. One of my creative outlets, when I’m in need of inspiration, is the kitchen. I love to bake and make all the pretty sweet treats. The process of combining raw ingredients and then using different flavors, textures, and colors to create something fun for others to enjoy is a process that I love when I need a change from sitting in front of a computer.

How have you navigated challenges as we navigate COVID-19 and all of the other things affecting our country?

This year has been a curveball for us all. The year started with a lot of plans and honestly, most of my goals have completely shifted. This year has taught me that sometimes our business needs us to pivot towards a new path and we shouldn’t fight against it.

For my business, I realized that I needed to offer different solutions that can help small businesses in all stages. I expanded my offerings so it can work with a business that is just getting their foot in the door or for a business that has been around for over 10 years.

How do you find your voice among all of the design trends?

As most of my design work is custom I always focus on what my client needs, not trends. My main goal for any project is to create a website that my clients will love and their target market will be able to easily navigate.

What has been your biggest challenge as a creative?

Investing time to learn a new skill or improve on a current skill is something that is a bit of a challenge for me. As a creative that runs a business, it’s sometimes easy to just fall into this cycle where I don’t take the extra time to try something new because there is always something else that is waiting for me on my to-do list. Whether it’s trying out a new process for designing a website mockup or learning a new skill that can be converted into a new offering for my clients.

I do my best not to fall into that cycle and I am constantly adding to my “things to learn” list and creating the time to work on it. A recent example of this was learning how to make Instagram filters for Stories. I  made time to learn this new skill and I am now in the works of designing a new filter for a client.

What advice would you give other creatives who are thinking about opening their own business?

Don’t wait to get started. If you have an idea for a business that you are passionate about — go for it. We sometimes get stuck in this cycle of waiting for the right time or having to make something perfect before it launches. This is just a way that we postpone moving forward.

I look back at some of my work from when I first started and it makes me cringe a little, but that is part of the process. We grow our skillset, improve our craft, and continue to discover our voice throughout the years. So don’t hold back.

Connect with Melissa: Jelly Design Studio | JDS Design Studio | Instagram

The post Artist Showcase: Melissa Bandera of Jelly Design Studio appeared first on Studio 404 Paper.

Hey friends! We are continuing with the Artist Showcase series after five years of hiatus. I’m thrilled to restart this series to interview and showcase amazing creatives that I’ve found influential for me and are willing to share information about themselves. It’s 2020 and I enjoy having a space to showcase creatives without having to do so many things or even pay to be featured. It’s a bit of the old-school blog vibes that I miss.

Today’s guest is someone who I’ve been following in the blog world from way back when. She has been so inspiring to me, personally, and I’m grateful to have been following her journey via Instagram. She’s grown so much creatively since I stumbled upon her blog and she is so supportive of other creatives.

Nikkita Cohoon is an artist who designs holistic brand identities for business owners with big vision to help them convey their value with clarity and build trust with their people. She also designs patterns, art, products, and planners to help you find the ritual in the everyday and make the everyday a ritual.

What are your favorite ways to create? 

For branding, I work mostly digitally, but I always start in my sketchbook because I love working by hand. I love trying a variety of techniques including printmaking, playing in Procreate, painting on ceramics, and working with ink.

How did you start Ritual Morning Studio?

After getting my MFA in poetry, I started work as a communications director for a non-profit management company. My writer friends often needed posters for readings, banners for their blogs or websites, and different promotional materials, and I also started designing books for a few poetry presses. I realized I loved helping creative professionals and businesses translate their vision into holistic design, so branding was the natural combination of those things. I started creating patterns for some of my clients and fell in love with surface design as well.

Where do you often find inspiration? 

I take a lot of walks and am always snapping pictures of different elements of nature that I encounter, or even collecting specimens. I’m inspired by architecture and the geometry found everywhere you look. I love the bold graphic appeal of vintage paperbacks, and I used to collect lots of collage material and inspiration from a book repository in grad school. I’ve always loved patterns found on textiles, wallpapers, and inside book covers. Really I’m just always filing away visual information!

How do you find a balance between your service-based offerings and your retail business?

My clients are always a high priority for me, and I truly gain inspiration from the collaborative process of creating a brand identity. But I also find it necessary to follow my own creative curiosity, and I love seeing things I create on tangible objects that can enter people’s homes and give them a moment of joy, pause, or reflection. I find with each season the different things I do ebb and flow, so I can focus on what is most needed at the time.

How do you find your voice among all of the design trends?

While I’m aware of some trends because I’m part of the design community and love seeing what my friends are doing, my design work is always informed first and foremost by my clients themselves. We spend a lot of time in the discovery phase developing a strategy that considers who will actually be seeing the designs, how they will interact with it, what they’ll be attracted to, the impression the design might make. Those are the driving factors for choices like color, type, and the design itself. For branding especially, we’re trying to create designs that will hold up as time passes, and grow with the business. So I’m using my voice to express that, rather than speak to a trend.

What has been your biggest challenge as a creative?

I’m a very creatively curious person, and for the most part this serves me well. But I don’t have time to do all my ideas justice (at least at one time), so my biggest challenge is focus and what to give time to when.

What advice would you give other creatives who are thinking about opening their own business?

First, is it something you truly want for yourself, and do you have something to offer that people need or want? Sometimes people see a person creating, doing, or making something unique and tell that person they should start a business. So I want to say first it’s great to do something just for the JOY of it and it doesn’t have to be a business because someone told you it could be.

But there are also people who just have that entrepreneurial bug and they will feel that calling regardless of what those around them say. For those people I would say make sure you’re ready to wear all the hats, because early days of running your business especially you’ll be spending just as much time on accounting, administration, client/customer management, and logistics of running a business as you will with the creative component (and sometimes more). Make sure you take a lot of notes on what’s working and what isn’t, track your time so you have a realistic picture of how you’re spending it, and set up systems to help automate what you can.

Connect with Nikita: Portfolio | Instagram 

The post Artist Showcase: Nikkita Cohoon of Ritual Morning Studio appeared first on Studio 404 Paper.

If you are new here, Links I Love is my Friday wrap-up series. I am online and reading so much content so I wanted to use this to share with my friends without having to blow up their inboxes (Yes, this blog is that old.) Every Friday, that I can, I’ll try to share some things I’ve seen on the internet that are interesting (in my humble opinion).

♥ My talented friend Melissa released an amazing new to-do list Instagram filter. You can get it on your stories by visiting her profile (in the app!), and selecting the filter icon. (It’s the icon we normies don’t have.)

♥ Speaking of friends, my friend and podcast co-producer Charisma has just released her fall collection of candles at Kismet + Charisma. I cannot wait to get the pumpkin king candle in my house ASAP.

♥ It’s been my very first Grace Hopper Celebration and I cannot rave enough about how amazing this conference has been. There are so many sessions and tons to enjoy.

♥ Sherell Dorsey has released the Clark Street Project podcast which is a narrative look at the evolution of black business and entrepreneurship.

♥ I have been making these mini cinnamon sugar pretzels from Mike Bakes NYC for the past two weeks and they’re so great. It’s an easy recipe to follow for someone who has never made pretzels ever in her entire life.

♥ Little Occasion is the cutest small shop of clothes for the littles. I love button-downs on tiny kids. They’re so ridiculous and it’s fantastic.

Around the Studio

♥ I talked to Andrea Flores of Drea Flow on this week’s Artist Showcase and I was not disappointed.

♥ We shared ALL of the things we’re doing for content for our businesses and our clients in 2020.

♥ I’m currently getting the 2020 Holiday Gift Guide ready to go. If you have small businesses you’re wanting to recommend, please comment below!

♥ The holiday catalog is going out NEXT WEEK to newsletter subscribers only so you need to subscribe below so you don’t miss out.

The post Links I Love – 10.02.2020 appeared first on Studio 404 Paper.

Hey friends! We are continuing with the Artist Showcase series after five years of hiatus. I’m thrilled to restart this series to interview and showcase amazing creatives that I’ve found influential for me and are willing to share information about themselves. It’s 2020 and I enjoy having a space to showcase creatives without having to do so many things or even pay to be featured. It’s a bit of the old-school blog vibes that I miss.

Today’s guest is a wonderful multi-faceted creative who I found also on Instagram. She knows the struggle of a creative who is constantly working between various mediums within their business and I appreciate having someone around who can relate to what I deal with. Andrea is extremely talented and is building her empire. I’m so grateful that she spent time chatting with me about her life as a creative.

Andrea Flores is a Miami, Florida based photographer, marketing strategist, and the founder of Drea Flow, LLC. Mostly known as “Drea” by friends, she is a first-generation Guatemala-American Latinx who wears a healing crystal every day and loves exploring new skincare. Drea holds a Bachelors Degree in Fashion Merchandising from Miami International University of Art & Design and worked at 16 different jobs before launching her business.

What are your favorite ways to create? 

One of my favorite ways to create is through my mind – I could look and study an object and begin to dissect the creativity from there, later transfer the idea into tangibility, and executing it through photography. Photography is my ultimate creative escape!

What made you start Drea Flow?

After working in corporate office environments for more than 10 years, I continued to feel a lack of creative fulfillment and the inability to grow. “Climbing the corporate ladder” was never a real aspiration of mine; however, launching my own business always has. It became clear to me while working fulltime and freelancing on the side, that I could really make this happen! It didn’t bother me taking client meetings during my lunch breaks (and not actually eating until later at my desk), or waking up at 5:00 AM to meet deadlines before starting with work. I would meditate A LOT because it was heavy on me to juggle and at times felt overwhelming, but truly I knew that a paycheck wasn’t all that I sought. This brought me more joy than stepping into an office with no ability to grow.

Client referrals were coming in, repeat clients were staying, and it was then that I accepted what my soul was being called to do.

Where do you often find inspiration? 

Inspiration is everywhere! From simply looking up from this computer and outside at my window – the colors of nature, the sound leaves make as the wind moves them, rain tapping on my window, and butterflies swirling above the cars driving by. Nature is a big part of my inspiration, as is architecture. I easily get lost with the intricacies of structure, design, decór, and open space.

How have you been able to balance creating and running a business?

I’m giggling as I answer this question because, to be honest, the “balance” is a daily work in progress. Sometimes I spend days being more analytical — handling administrative tasks, planning out my next marketing strategy, meeting deadlines, having client meetings, and so on. My body instantly reminds me when I haven’t been creative – as in, styling or photographing something, so I am very conscious of listening to my body.

My goal is to be creative every day – nothing too extravagant or out of my reach, even if it means styling earrings on my dresser and grabbing my iPhone to photograph it during golden hour (that’s the best natural light in my opinion). I do reserve Fridays as my “production day” – I allow myself to run wild with ideas because all of my business-related work has been completed. It’s still a balancing act, but we’re getting there!

How do you find your voice among all of the design trends?

Trends are great to study, to see and understand what’s relevant to the public eye but I don’t necessarily always follow them. I closely observe the trends that will serve my creativity—whether for personal or client projects. After intuitively deciding which trends could be the most beneficial, I take my own spin on them. So in reality, the trends serve as inspiration but you, as a creative, make them your own.

What has been your biggest challenge as a creative?

Ha! Moving past the imposter child syndrome phase has been the utmost challenge for me! I am a self-taught photographer and it took my mind some time to accept (let alone call myself) a photographer. Although I also focus my creative energies in marketing, because I had experience on paper – titling myself a Digital Marketing Specialist was never a problem. But it’s all mental – we, as artists, often think we need some sort of degree or paper to validate our talents.

What advice would you give other creatives who are thinking about opening their own business?

Even though you are a creative, always treat your work as a business! Taking a couple of online webinars and joining entrepreneurial groups on Facebook, could really help. I would also suggest registering your business as an LLC sooner than later, opening a business checking account, create a website (even if you just have a home and contact page), and if it’s in your reach – hire an accountant. Having a plan is important because you could always refer back to it for guidance and clarity.

Be mentally prepared for the level of commitment business requires. It takes time to build it, but a business must be nurtured daily! Be ready to show up, even when you feel like this has been the worst idea you’ve embraced — it isn’t. Believe in your craft, believe in yourself, and give it your all.

Connect with Andrea: Portfolio |Facebook | Instagram | Pinterest

The post Artist Showcase: Andrea Flores of Drea Flow appeared first on Studio 404 Paper.

If you are new here, Links I Love is my Friday wrap-up series. I am online and reading so much content so I wanted to use this to share with my friends without having to blow up their inboxes (Yes, this blog is that old.) Every Friday, that I can, I’ll try to share some things I’ve seen on the internet that are interesting (in my humble opinion).

♥ I’m finishing up my Botanical Collection giveaway on Instagram. You can enter to win a print up until midnight on 7/25/2020, so, good luck if you’re entering!

♥ Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez had an opportunity to respond back to the targeted harassment and verbal abuse she received on camera from a colleague. The ten-minute video is powerful and she shares so many anecdotes about how harmful the behavior is and how widespread verbal abuse is towards women everywhere.

♥ The new Seattle Kraken branding was released this week and as any design item, has received mixed reviews. I like the colors. I’m not sure about the main icon still but the wordmark is actually pretty good. I like seeing other design systems in the wild so I’m not angry about it.

♥ If you love book cover design, this thread of people sharing their favorite beautiful covers on Twitter is worth checking out.

♥ I made these cinnamon rolls this week and I couldn’t recommend them enough.

♥ I also finished the Neil Patel E-commerce Unlocked course this week. As someone who is stepping their toes back into e-commerce personally, I am in the sponge stage. I’ve been testing what works. I’m writing notes on what to improve. It’s so important to stick to what you’re doing and do the best you can. I’m excited to see how the products continue to develop over the seasons and what else I can do with this space.

Around the Studio

♥ Tomorrow at 2 pm EST, I’ll be presenting my podcasting workshop at The Freelancers Conference. I’m excited to tap back into the speaking waters and especially with other speakers from Orlando.

♥ We shared some tips on going back into the office during a pandemic as an employee and as an employer.

♥ New Botanical Collection prints have been added this week so be sure to check those out!

The post Links I Love – 7.24.2020 appeared first on Studio 404 Paper.

If you are new here, Links I Love is my Friday wrap-up series. I am online and reading so much content so I wanted to use this to share with my friends without having to blow up their inboxes (Yes, this blog is that old.) Every Friday, that I can, I’ll try to share some things I’ve seen on the internet that are interesting (in my humble opinion).

Oops! The pandemic summer has been zooming by and I haven’t had the time to catch up with you peeps! I’ve been trying to post as much as I can over on Instagram so you’re more likely to get some timely updates from me there.

♥ I’m patiently awaiting The Michelle Obama Podcast on Spotify. I didn’t know that I needed it but now that it’s an option, please and thank you.

♥ The new A11Y Project redesign is a reminder to use this resource often if you’re creating content online. Accessibility is something we can be better with.

♥ The magical Michelle Chantelle Hopewell wrote an amazing list of things contributing to anti-blackness online. This amazing human being is doing so much great work with her platform and I couldn’t recommend following her enough.

♥ Speaking of uplifting Black creatives, Ade Hogue’s work for the 2020 Issue of Texas Heritage for Living Magazine is 10/10.

♥ I’m sharing here because this Design System Checklist will be a lifesaver in the future.

♥ Currently binging Indian Matchmaking and Down to Earth with Zac Efron. While I’m not in love with everything in the later docuseries, I will say it was easy to watch and informative on some subjects. Would recommend!

Around the Studio

♥ Launched the new Botanical Collection and I couldn’t be thrilled about it. A collection within a collection is probably obnoxious. I’ve also added a new print and printable.

♥ We talked to Maria Nuñez, a local Orlando real estate agent, about how she does her business her way on the podcast.

♥ ICYMI, I’ll be presenting at The Freelancers Conference next weekend on podcasting! Tickets are 100% free so sign up ASAP.

The post Links I Love – 07.17.2020 appeared first on Studio 404 Paper.

What a week! I haven’t blogged twice in a week in years. I’m also posting on Instagram several times. What is this? What has quarantine done to me? Folx, I’m exhausted. I haven’t been able to write the “What Not to Do When Launching an E-commerce Business” post but I am working on it.

If you are new here, Links I Love is my Friday wrap-up series. I am online and reading so much content so I wanted to use this to share with my friends without having to blow up their inboxes (Yes, this blog is that old.) Every Friday, that I can, I’ll try to share some things I’ve seen on the internet that are interesting (in my humble opinion).

♥ My big one this week is the Lesbians Who Tech Pride Summit (Not IRL). This whole summit has been phenomenal. I’ve always wanted to attend this amazing event and it has not disappointed. If we’re in the AC (after COVID-19) next year, I’ll do my best to attend. A lot of the keynote sessions with amazing humans like Angelica Ross, Elizabeth Warren, Stacey Abrams, Megan Rapinoe, and others are up on their Facebook page. I will say my favorite sessions have been the “smaller” break-out sessions via Zoom. Ariel Belgrave, the founder of Gym Hooky, led a fantastic workshop called, “The Importance of Self Care in the Age of Black Lives Matter: Taking Care of Your Mental, Physical, and Emotional Self.” Also, this amazing playlist has been the soundtrack to the event, and what better way to better yourself than with amazing tunes to accompany you?

♥ This article by Leigh Stein dismantling the myth of the Girlboss has been making the rounds online and for good reason. There needs to be a larger conversation happening about abuse at the hands of people perpetuating commercialized feminism for their personal gain and not for the betterment of their sisters.

♥ Ron Tinlsey wrote this powerful open letter to the white graphic design community. As someone who is “in” the design and tech community, I’ve been let down by the stances so many people who have positions of power have taken over the years. Currently, so many of those leaders are now adopting the voice of change and empowerment of Black people. I’m questioning a lot of voices and continuing to do my power to uplift Black creatives on the platforms I have.

♥ Speaking of uplifting Black creatives, how amazing is Sharee Miller’s Instagram account? She’s amazing. I’m in love with this piece.

♥ I will yell on the hill of Dana Tanamachi as much as I can for as long as I live. The MiiR x Tanamachi Drinkware & Coffee collection is all I want. Give me all of the things.

♥ I’m catching up on Second Life Podcast episodes and this episode with Justina Blakeney left me with plenty of notes.

♥ I’ve been watching Taste the Nation with Padma Laksmi and it’s so great. If you’re looking for something light, I highly recommend it.

Around the Studio

♥ New products have been added into the shop, including these amazing note cards!

♥ We talked to Ben O’Keefe about activism on the podcast.

♥ ICYMI, I shared some insight into the Summer Solstice Collection and how this revamp came to be.

The post Links I Love – 06.26.2020 appeared first on Studio 404 Paper.

Welcome back is an understatement. I think I had to blow off cobwebs before logging into the Admin panel but here it is. I was never ready to release this into the wild but here it is. On Saturday, June 20th, I launched my very first Studio 404 Paper collection of 2020 and the first collection in over two years. I know there is a lot to explain about returning to this space after a two-year hiatus but I wanted to share some background about the collection, how it was born, and what to expect in the paper shop going forward. I’m an old-school, wordy blogger so I’ll try to stick to the highlights.

Choosing a theme

The summer solstice and winter solstice have been highlights for me after starting my yoga journey so many years ago. I decided a year ago that I wanted to go back to making products. As we’ve grown our agency, we’ve adopted several systems to help automate the process which made the thought of returning to product production alluring. I quickly dove into inspiration mode and began to seek inspiration in my daily work both online and offline.

With a global pandemic just around the horizon and moving into a bigger space at the beginning of the year, I decided to push for a summer launch. The summer solstice is the official beginning of summer, the day where we experience the longest amount of daylight, an opportunity to embrace on growth, and to allow yourself to embody the spirit of illumination. With all of these themes and words in mind, it couldn’t be a clearer sign of rebirth to embrace the theme.

Embracing colors

As someone who regularly embraces an all-black-everything lifestyle, choosing to push myself outside of my comfort zone is a recurring theme in this collection. I knew I would have to use color in my personal designs in a way I wasn’t accustomed to. My original plan was to spend as much time outside to soak in the surroundings around me but of course, in typical 2020 fashion, we were hit with a global pandemic.

I’ve spent a lot of with my own plants at home, watching nature, cooking, and travel documentaries, and being endlessly inspired by the works of those who are more color-conscious like Justina Blakeney. I found two distinct palettes that I could work from and pull inspiration from. I was able to come up with a “safe” palette of retro seventies-inspired colors and an “adaptive” palette of brighter colors that would be a little harder for me to embrace. In all honesty, I’ve struggled with the brighter palette but I’m looking forward to releasing newer products that are ready for these colors.

Product Development

I’m going to share a what-not-to-do post but as a creative challenge to myself, I wanted to spend less time thinking and more time doing. I decided on ten core messages for the prints and illustrations for the note cards that will be released soon! I went back and forth on which designs felt “ready” and reserved the “needs work” category for later. I’ll share some tips and mantras I’ve learned to adapt in this process after learning on-the-go all those years ago.

Key Takeaways

There is no perfect. There’s only finished.

This is so true. I am a perfectionist but over the years, I’ve learned to do my best and hopefully someone else enjoys the work I’ve decided to share out into the world.

Phases are essential for the busy.

I do so many things. I don’t have all of the time I’d love to dedicate to this space so I’m releasing products in stages. There will be new products every other Friday and re-releases of some of my favorite heritage designs.

Get passed the thought of no one asked for this.

No one did. I think about this all of the time. I know no one specifically requested for artwork from an unsuccessful stationery business. However, in the past two years, I’ve been surprised by the number of people who still have those prints and cards around or in their homes. No one requested this but it’s ok to share your art anyway. Someone who didn’t ask for it may discover it and love it.

Failure is what you make of it.

Hillary Kerr’s Second Life podcast inspires me so much as it shares the seasons of change that have elevated so many women’s lives in a different direction. If this failed (With past releases, it’s already done so much better.), I would be ok with it and make the best of it to pivot with the next release.

Never stop creating.

As a creative and a maker, this process has been so therapeutic. It’s been hard to exist as a black woman, especially in 2020. I don’t want to take the time that has been given to me for granted so I’ll spend some of it creating products I love. I’m looking forward to sharing them with you.

The post Introducing the Summer Solstice 2020 Collection appeared first on Studio 404 Paper.