Comments
Out design team is made up of some amazing graphic designers. This week we are showing off Erin. She shares a little insight into her experience, her design style, and some of her favorite designs she has created for PurpleTrail.
Background:
I’ve lived in the greater northwest all my life, just north of Seattle in the city of Bothell. I went to the University of Iowa my freshmen year playing collegiate soccer, then transferred to Central Washington University where I received a BFA in Graphic Design and a Business Administration minor in 2010. My interests throughout college design courses were, advertising design, branding, and designing stationary. I have been enjoying this exciting opportunity to work at PurpleTrail, and gaining the experience and knowledge to grow as a designer.
Design Style you love:
The styles I am most drawn to are simplistic and clean. Having space throughout a design, and letting the type not only be the information but the design itself creating a great look and feel. I also enjoy the use of patterns and textures incorporated into designs whether it’s a whimsical or modern style.
What inspires you?
Living in Washington, inspiration is all around, from Seattle’s diverse culture, and having nature at your backdoor, you have no choice but to take it all in. Also, according to the other designers at PurpleTrail, I have a Pottery Barn-esque style, so Pottery Barn must be an inspiration to me.
Interests outside of graphic design:
When I am not designing, you can usually find me walking around Greenlake, going to the gym, or finding new places to explore. Other hobbies I enjoy are: scrapbooking, photography, camping and reading a book once in awhile.
3 Random facts about you:
1. I want to visit Italy and Australia and New Zealand… someday.
2. I’m addicted to reality television.
3. I love to bake, and starting to make cakes with fondant. Watch out Cake Boss!
Some of Erin’s favorite designs:
1. Vintage Rose Photo Girl Baby Announcement
I love this design because the line quality in the flowers give it a vintage look and feel, and then having the adorable picture just puts the finishing touch on the overall design. I added the white bar through the center to add the information and the text is done in clean and simple fonts. Using plain colors to go with the simplistic quality of the overall design.
2. Sophisticated Pink and Brown
Similar in style to the vintage rose, but the softness of the pink and brown bring this announcement to life. I love using varying fonts, and I think using Chopin script for the name, added a unique break in the information. I wanted to use a simple font for all the other copy so it matched the delicate feel of this announcement. The white flourish then gives it a nice addition of color that really makes the invitation pop.
3. Special Delivery Baby Boy
I am known for my ability to make something out of nothing. I wanted this stork to be all white, because I had a vision of what I wanted this invitation to look like. I created the bag the stork is carrying so it matched. I used textures, varying fonts, and color to break up the information and this will always be one of my favorites that I have designed.
4. Soft Pink Bubbles Bridal Shower
This is a popular bridal shower invitation at PurpleTrail. I used the background of bubbles, because it has a fun and girly quality that a lot of women obviously love. I used colors from the background to choose the two boxes that go across the center. I wanted to use white as the font color because I think white has a purity color to it that just looks amazing when its against certain colors. By varying the fonts, the overall look of the invitation is elegant, sophisticated but fun!
5. Top Secret Santa Red
This design was just recently created for our holiday party invitation section, which I am so excited about; it was hard to choose just one favorite. After designing at PurpleTrail for some time, I have started to become even more creative with what you have and the tools at my disposal. I created this “Top Secret” look by using shapes and textures. Once I created my box, and put in the type, I used a crackle texture and a ripped edge texture. The overall look has a postal feel, and a top-secret message inside, great for festive holiday parties.
Thanks Erin!
Comments
Do you ever wonder who is behind our beautifully designed party invitations, greeting cards and announcements? It’s because at PurpleTrail, we have an amazing design team and we want you to meet them! This week we’ll get to know Esther, our lead designer. Here’s a little bit about her design background, what inspires her and some of her favorite designs she’s created for PurpleTrail.
BACKGROUND: I grew up in Southern California but have lived many other places since. I graduated from Minneapolis College of Art and design with a BFA in Illustration. I was really interested in both product design and illustration, and I’ve been lucky enough to work in both fields. I’ve illustrated children’s books, created textiles, designed graphics for apparel and taught. Of course one of my favorite things has been designing stationary!
DESIGN STYLES: I am really drawn to whimsical,cute and quirky styles in design, anything that incorporates pattern or hand lettering and illustration. I also love a good classic and traditional letterpress design or things that look like they are inspired from something retro or antique.
WHAT INSPIRES ME: Walking down the street inspires me…I live in a very diverse neighborhood and I love walking out my door and seeing all the different types of people who live there. Also, all of the posters, street art and graffiti really keep me inspired. I love traveling, magazines, textiles and patterns, looking at other great designers or going to any museum.
INTERESTS: I am completely captivated by the Northwest so if I’m not designing or illustrating, you can probably find me hiking or exploring all that the Seattle area has to offer. I love travel and road trips. And some other hobbies include belly dancing, yoga and photography.
RANDOM FACTS:
1. I have visited every state in the U.S. except for Alaska (I’m planning to go in the next couple years hopefully!)
2. I have two cats, Jesper and Shredder and a dog named Steve.
3. I just got married on top of a mountain!
FAV DESIGNS:
Thanks Esther!
Comments
Background: I’m originally from Alabama and moved here in my teens. I graduated from Cornish College of the Arts in Seattle this past May with a BFA from the Design department. While attending Cornish, I worked for the Theater Department for a year and half creating posters for various productions. During my Senior year I also worked with Choral Arts to create their 2010-2011 season collateral. PurpleTrail is my first job since graduation.
Design Style(s) you love: I really enjoy the work of the husband and wife team behind “Eight Hour Day” because their design aesthetic incorporates a certain sweetness, nostalgic touches and complex details that all come together in their final product. Jessica Hische is also someone I look up to for her design aesthetic and incredible lettering abilities. She seems to have a wonderful business sense as well, which is inspiring to me as a recent graduate.
What inspires you? Handmade things and fine craftsmanship always inspire me because you can really tell someone loves and enjoys what they do. It’s hard for that kind of positive energy not to rub off on you and fuel your creativity.
Interests outside of graphic design: I enjoy learning about all things food related. There are many websites and blogs I follow regularly for both their recipe ideas and beautiful photography like pioneerwoman.com and katheats.com. I like spending time in the outdoors and exercising as this gives me time to relax and gather my thoughts. Because I commute by bus, I also have a lot of time to read a variety of interesting books.
3. Random facts about you: One day I hope to travel to Italy, Greece and France. I’m a reality show junkie and love Jane Austen movies.
1. Spooktacular Halloween Birthday Card




















































