Do you aspire to own your own design firm? To lead an in-house creative team? To become the most fabulously valuable asset to your current employer?

Learn how to chart the course of your design career with popular HOW speaker and career expert Jeni Herberger, in a one-hour live webinar on Thursday, June 19. Find out more about the event here. And when you register for the HOW Professional Development Webinar you can score $20 off (discount price = $49) by entering this code: desjn19.

Scion Speak, a design engine that allows users to generate custom crests, is a perfect example of design 2.0, where instead of designing a specific thing, the designer creates a tool that lets consumers take control of the creative wheel.

Posted by Megan

Chris Sickels of Red Nose Studio (who recently spoke at the HOW Conference to much acclaim) just completed an illustration assignment for DNA Finland, a telecommunications company.

The series of illustrations feature a pink super-hero type DNA character that physically morphs into helpful tools for cell phone users. In various ads the character’s arms turn into scissors, a ladder and clippers, liberating the cell phone user from classic cell phone troubles.

Posted by Megan

Allison Arieff posts in her By Design blog for the New York Times about the SB08 conference on sustainable design. I find her observations to be spot-on, including this comment:

Making more stuff — no matter how green that stuff is — will not really help combat global warming or reduce our collective carbon footprint. Companies need to produce things and need to make money by selling them — understood — but to me, the idea of simply creating more (albeit greener) product is pretty much on par with lowering gas prices as a solution to skyrocketing oil costs. When will we consider behavior? When we will commit to innovation?

Personally, I applaud when companies produce green products—but I cringe when they produce these green products in addition to, not in lieu of, their other offerings. Take Clorox's new GreenWorks line of natural cleaning products. Not only are they manufacturing, bottling, boxing, shipping and selling these new nontoxic items, but they're still manufacturing, bottling, boxing, shipping and selling all the old ones. So instead of a real sea change, it reads as a bad attempt to take on method.

And here's the rub for designers: Sure, we can spec FSC-certified paper (which is itself a less green option than 100% recycled) and soy inks. But when will we have the guts to urge our clients not to print the job at all?

Paloma's Nest offers handmade, hand-stamped bowls featuring custom text. The small vessels are perfect for jewelry or keys.



via Poppytalk

Posted by Megan

Digital Kitchen recently teamed with Seattle-based ad agency WONGDOODY to create a theatrical trailer and several whimsical bumpers for the Seattle International Film Festival. The trailer is made up of clips from previous SIFF films being overtaken by colorful starburts exclaiming "new" in different languages.

“This project brought out the mad scientist in all of us,” says Morgan Henry, Producer at Digital Kitchen. “Both clients have a great sense of humor, and we came up interesting concepts together while having a lot of fun. All of the pieces show a flare for the dramatic. Even the funny parts have a strong theatrical sense.”

Posted by Megan

Most designers haven't had the benefit of business training; they learn about self-promotion and management through real-world experience--and through making mistakes.

We've focused a lot of magazine coverage over the years on business issues for designers. In fact, that's one of HOW's missions: to help creative professionals run more successful businesses, whether that's an in-house group, a freelance practice or a design firm.



So now we've compiled the best business advice from the past 3 years' worth of issues into one place: the new Designer's Good Business Guide. It's full of marketing advice, business strategy, profiles of business-savvy design firms, plus links to additional online content, all in an easy-to-download PDF format. And it's a great deal: Through the end of July, we're making it available for $12.95 (regular price is $15).

Summer's a good time to brush up on your business expertise and gear up for success. Learn more about the Designer's Good Business Guide.

Relax for a few minutes with this captivating interactive illustration by Japanese web designer Masayuki Kido.

Posted by Megan

So HOW is officially a part of the Facebook bandwagon.

Because we know that you have a Facebook page, too, be sure to add us as a friend and join the HOW group. Then, if you've been to any of our events, post your photos or hook up with other designers who are our friends, too.