Happiest Wedding Cry in the World

Here's how to get your weekend started. Courtesy of internet memes and Kid Cudi.

Royalty

It doesn't take much to achieve a high class look. Muted palettes, punches of rich black, and an attentive eye for sexy natural materials. Ho-ho, I think I know what my next big project is gonna be now...

I'd Live There

Just because they have nice typogrpahy.

Words of Wisdom

Now, this is hot. No, not the girl. Well, maybe the girl too. But this track from Hoodie Allen is what I'm talking about. Not only has it been on my playlist all day long, but it's one of the smoothest tracks I've heard in a long time. Baby bottom smooth. Like Wale. Like Kanye. Like the perfect way to end a glorious summer.

And she spoke words that would melt in your hands,
And she spoke words of wisdom

Hoodie Allen - Words of Wisdom (MP3)

Bike Porn From Australia

Stumbled upon a bike forum last night and couldn't stop browsing through their fixies gallery. Those Aussies sure know how to party when it comes to bikes. As for me, I'm still debating how much I should throw down on my first build...

How To Clean Up Scanned Sketches

Some people have been asking me for a quick and easy way to clean up smudges when scanning stuff off their MoleSkine's and sketch books.

Now, in Photoshop, all you need to do is pull up Levels from Image -> Adjustment. For the white arrow, pull it a bit left until it hits near the beginning bump of the rightmost curve. For the black arrow, go right slightly until the darks appear uniform.

Alternatively, you could always spike up the Brightness and Contrast, but that often results in much of the detail blowing up and getting a crappy look overall. Use this method and you'll be immediately more pro.

We Use iTunes DJ

The class assignment: create an instructional graphic. It started with an idea (though I'll admit Apple obviously came up with it first); to incorporate a simple music requesting system implemented in the home space. Let's be honest, guest or not, there are times when the music at a party just blows and there's no real polite way to change the music aside from ripping out their iPod and plugging in your own.

There's a much simpler solution to that. It's iTunes DJ, a feature in Apple's iTunes software that creates automixes from your iTunes collection and makes taking music requests easy as pie. The thing is, most people just don't know how to use it.

Here's where I come in with the hipster Indian headdresses. I decided it'd be a good idea to create a simple tutorial for those not familiar with iTunes DJ - to encourage those who aren't enjoying the music to participate in background music requests.

The end result was a 3-step guide to using the Apple Remote app for iPhone/iPod Touch followed by an image of individuals enjoying themselves. All sketches were done in my notebook, scanned, and cleaned/edited/composed in Photoshop. The end product will be printed out and will be spot-colored using Prismacolor colored pencils on a small frameable 8" x 8" poster.

Fall/Winter 2011 Lookbook Preview

Seeing as my Summer Lookbook collection is finally complete, I've decided to do a set of 5 limited edition high definition paintings for Fall/Winter 2011. Above, a preview of my latest craziness.

These pieces will be considered my professional entries into the digital art world. I'm estimating each piece will take approximately 30-40 hours each. When completed, they will printed and stretched on a 16" x 20" canvas, courtesy of Canvaspop.com. Prices TBA.

Chillwave on Blast

While some may be complaining about the hackneyed discourse on chillwave - what it is, where it came from, whether it actually exists and what does (or does not) qualify as chillwave - I for one, am just enjoying the hell out of it.


Beat Connection - Sunburn (MP3)

Beat Connection - Theme From Yours Truly (MP3)

I Want to be Swedish Modern, Too

What's wrong with striving to achieve a Swedish modern look in the mid-west with a small/non-existent budget? Nothing a few trips to the thrift store can't solve!

iPad Design: Something New

Here's a few inspiring tips from Derek Powazek's lessons learned after designing the MagCloud app.

• Design intimately, it's much more than print: "It’s utterly unlike print in every other way imaginable. Point is, the direct interface really does mean reevaluating every assumption when it comes to interactive design."
• No more hover states! "You don’t click, you tap. You don’t scroll, you swipe! It's all changed our interaction vocabulary."
• Take your time: "Apps have a lot of hidden corners that can disrupt a user experience. Getting them right takes time."

Personally, I'm pretty psyched about the device and will most likely be picking one up later this year. The plan is to streamline home entertainment, cloud life, and keep up with all of my favorite blogs anywhere in my house. Trust me, this'll be interesting.

Paper Tiger

Riding chillwaves and kickflippin' over spaghetti. My kind of weekend indeedy, courtesy of Paper Tiger. Alf makes a guest appearance as well.