Math + Art + Simplicy = Cool

Hey, check out these unique pieces by Craig Damrauer. I love the simplicity of them! They are really creative, and they make sense mathematically! Who woulda thought? :)

Hit the nail right on the head with this one! Snacks make any meeting better.

See more at http://www.morenewmath.com/

Photo Shoot 3/20/09

Yesterday Michele took pictures of me for my website's About Me page...and they came out great! I can't even tell you how happy I am with the results! They are creative, but I also look friendly and approachable, which is what I was trying to convey...Michele you are a genius! It is going to be difficult for me to choose which one(s) I want to feature on my website. Here are some of my favorite shots:

Nice composition, the pole and the railing frame me well.

Cool lighting effect. I look like I am at a pier, but I am really over a parking garage... that's the magic of photography!


My husband really likes this photo because 1. I am laughing and 2. You can see a nice shot of the city in the background. I especially like the way the red railing leads you into the photo.


Up up and away, I might fly right out of that alley


Michele put a dream-like effect on this photo, I love it!


Just hanging out at a cafe in Middletown


...and on some stairs, the angles are my favorite part of this photo


Last but not least, a close-up shot

I am so lucky that I have such a talented friend! She has a keen creative eye, and can find beauty and art in everyday settings. She is also a natural at making you feel comfortable in front of the camera. If you are interested in seeing more of Michele's work visit--> www.imagesbymichele.com.

Back to Basics

I was eating breakfast this morning, and I couldn't help but notice the bold new graphics on the Tropicana orange juice package. What happened to the good ol' straw sticking out of the orange? They have stripped the packaged down to the essentials: white background, glass of o.j., and 100% pure statement. Plain and to the point.

Orange juice is not the only beverage that has switched to minimalist packaging. Just look at the new Pepsi can: blue background, stripped down logo, the name, nothing else. Or the Vitamin Water bottle, with is two-toned label and simple text. Kraft has also come out with cleaner packaging. These companies know that simpler is better. Each of these designs practically jump out at you from the shelf.


I have to say, even though it is are so simple, I am visually pleased with this new trend. Maybe we will finally be able to say good bye to the over use of swirls and grunge accents. I hope so. :Z

My First Entry

After months and months of hard work I have finally published my website! New England is being hit by a huge snow storm right now, what better time to start my blog, right?

I thought I would start with a few pointers about publishing websites that I learned the hard way. I have worked extensively with Adobe Dreamweaver, but until now, have never actually published my work to the web. I thought it would be as easy as choosing a domain name/hosting site and uploading (voilà!), but unfortunately for me it was not that easy.

1. The most important lesson I learned was when you first define your site in Dreamweaver (Site-->Manage Site) you must choose "Links Relative to" : "Site Root" not "Document". This will save you a lot of time (You wont have to replace all of the strings that Dreamweaver wrote for you when you browsed to your images).


2. When using someone else's JavaScript, make sure to check their files to see if their urls match your images folder. For example, I used an upper case "I" to name my images folder, and the author of one of my JavaScripts used a lower case "i". For some reason everything worked when I tested it on my computer, but when I uploaded it, images were missing. It is still a mystery why it worked on my computer...but at least I learned a lesson.


3. Last but not least, make sure to choose a reputable site as your web host. A friend recommended Yahoo! Small Business, and it worked out great.
   

I know you're thinking ok, ok, enough with the tech-talk, but I just had to get that out there so someone else could benefit. Thanks for visiting my blog, check back soon!