This one’s for Haiti.

I feel slightly vulnerable putting this out on the interwebs, because I know that this completely pales in comparison to any fashion designer’s sketches.

Even though I feel exceptionally vulnerable, I’m still very excited to show this work for two reasons. First, it’s my first attempt at fashion design (if you’re wondering, I love it), and second, it is my first attempt at “painting” in Photoshop…ever. While some (most) of the proportions are completely out of control (figure drawing was never my thing), I’m pretty proud of what I have to show.

The goal for this project was to design a logo for a new clothing company,  a line of 6 complete outfits, a sample hang-tag, a magazine ad, and a website mockup. Inspired by Shephard Fairey’s graphics for the Saks Fifth Avenue Spring marketing campaign, I created a Cold War era, military-style couture company called Die Wacht.

I would love to hear some constructive criticism on any of the pieces showcased here. (Not shown is the dogtag style hang-tag and the other 3 fashion sketches.)

If you’re not directly connected to the art or design world on the past few months, you may have not noticed all of the beautiful work that is being created in support of Obama.

For example: I signed up a little less than a month ago to recieve an email called 30 Reasons, which basically means 30 posters by 30 New York artists (many of them famous) arrive to my inbox every day for 30 days before the election. Clever.

John Klotnia

Milton Glaser

Frank Chimero

Seymour Chwast

Then today, I found this shirt posted on The Font Feed, a hilarious, satirical take on the Obama logo. You can buy it on Zazzle for $24.10. It’s “Taste You Can Believe In”

I don’t think I need to explain anything.

I know it’s been all over the news lately, but this really bothers me.

Taken from Reuters:

ANCHORAGE, Alaska (Reuters) – It garnered big applause in her first speech as Republican John McCain‘s vice presidential pick, but Alaska Gov. Sarah Palin‘s assertion that she rejected Congressional funds for the so-called “bridge to nowhere” has upset many Alaskans.

During her first speech after being named as McCain’s surprise pick as a running mate, Palin said she had told Congress “‘thanks but no thanks’ on that bridge to nowhere.”

…

National fury over the bridge caused Congress to remove the earmark designation, but Alaska was still granted an equivalent amount of transportation money to be used at its own discretion.

…

Last year, Palin announced she was stopping state work on the controversial project, earning her admirers from earmark critics and budget hawks from around the nation. The move also thrust her into the spotlight as a reform-minded newcomer.

The state, however, never gave back any of the money that was originally earmarked for the Gravina Island bridge, said Weinstein and Elerding.

In fact, the Palin administration has spent “tens of millions of dollars” in federal funds to start building a road on Gravina Island that is supposed to link up to the yet-to-be-built bridge, Weinstein said.

“She said ‘thanks but no thanks,’ but they kept the money,” said Elerding about her applause line.

Hm…  Thanks but no thanks Sarah.

Lately I’ve been interested in compiled, mixed media art. I love the idea of creating art from what has already been created; taking it apart and combining it with other designs to make something personal. I found this poem and quite a few others while doing a Google image search. The artist of this set is Austin Kleon. Beautiful.

We get closer and closer all the time. We’ve finally abandoned all “non-green” cleaning supplies. It feels good. This time, it even smells good. It’s called Simple Green and it’s a multi-purpose household cleaner.

Thanks to the Home Depot on Lake that is going out of business, we bought three clay pots, a couple of large bags of organic compost and planted some herbs and flowers for our balcony. I can’t wait to see the tiny sprouts start peeking out in a few weeks.

One of my absolute favorite green companies is ::method::. Kuddos to them for making cleaning your house green and fun. Method has gained popularity not just through their green status; they’ve also won tons of recognition because of their packaging. Yum!