justlucky

Justlucky is made up of a group of talented individuals who come together around a project. This has been an excellent way to service each client appropriately. Our strength is not in our size but in our scalability. We have been able to collaborate with individuals and corporations from LA to Europe because of our robust network of professionals. This is exactly what gives us the ability to confidently respond to a variety of project requests. Our design community is for those with ideas, for people who have something to say and want to say it better. www.yourjustlucky.com

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What are you excited about today?

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How do I get blogged?

I got an email from a friend today who's a budding illustrator out of Chicago. The exchange turned out to be interesting. I think it may be helpful for a lot of creatives trying to make it in the world of design. Specifically, how do you get your work blogged?

From my friend: This may seem like a bazaar question, but I'm curious how you have gone about getting featured on design blogs. Is it simply due to the blogs doing searches in the netscape and finding you or do you or someone else submit to them?  \

My reply: Honestly... I have not giant game plan or secret formula for this.

here's the corny stuff:

just be brave. Do lots of work. Do lots of projects. Don't be afraid to pull the trigger and put work out into the world. Don't beat a dead horse. Only show off things you love and I'm sure other people will love them. Work when you don't feel like it.

Finally, be nice to everyone and consistently put out good work. It pays off. It just takes some time. 

--

What do you guys think? 

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Pro Tip: Never give up on an idea... Ever.

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Pro Tip: Make something people will seek out.

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Pro Tip: Focus on great work. Not a great website to show your shitty work.

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Pro Tip: Make things! Make lots of things. Nothing can be improved until something is created.

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Joy and Revolution

This month I had the privilege of doing a design workshop at an Ambrose workshop in Holland, MI. Ambrose is an after school program for High School students. Its' goal is to raise the bar for the Arts in West Michigan. The topic of the day was Process. This very idea of process is vast and overwhelming so Adam and I decided we would focus on just one element of process; brainstorming. We made it our task to simplify the idea of brainstorming & sketching down to the most basic element... Shapes. Shapes are the visual realization for every idea. Without them our ideas would remain an unknowable mass in our minds.

This exercise was paired with a new project for the students -- Designing a logo for the Holland Area Arts Council. The logo project came with a small brief to help the students understand the needs and concept behind the project. We then asked the students to interperet the needs of the project in only shapes.

Teaching a class was a great excercise for me. Just sitting down to think about my own process was a lot more challenging than I thought it would be. When you are communicating something to a group it really makes you refine your own thinking quickly. I saw a lot of holes in my own process. I realized how often I was just going through familiar routines without really thinking through specific project needs. All of the steps in a successful project normally get overlooked by the big picture in my head.

Thanks to Adam at Ambrose for having me and the volunteers who helped keep the class engaging for the students when I ran out of things to say. I was honored to have the opportunity to pass along some of my experiences.

Download the full presentation PDF here.

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Pro-Tip: Creativity does not mean originality.

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Pro-Tip: Don't wait for something you love. Make something you love.

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Pro-Tip: You have to sacrifice. There's no other way...

Paul Rand

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Pro-Tip: No one creates in a vacuum.

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How do you create?

I have been noticing myself becoming more and more interested in creative spaces... Not the cool office spaces often featured on design blogs. I'm talking about physical and mental spaces where people do work, write briefs, make discoveries, tune out noises. Places that people feed off of. Instead of working in one location with one person, object, technique I have observed more people moving locations or switching techniques as they embark on projects.

It's about working hard but its also about creating spaces to do the work. What works best for you? 

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Make it yourself

I've had an aversion to built-in fonts lately. If you can't tell by looking at justlucky's portfolio you'll see a lot of newer custom typography work. I have been finding ways to insert custom typography wherever possible. You could say I am obsessed. It started with me just copying work that I liked in my personal time. I would sketch in my Moleskins for hours just to get a feel for the type. I still do.

I have noticed a heightened level of satisfaction that comes from this approach. I almost feel like a cheat when I type in a sentence in Gotham. There is nothing wrong with using these fonts, they are excellent tools for designers. But every time I use a built-in font I don't really learn the font -- And usually I don't think to tweak it much.

1,000 people can use the same font just by typing it out and selecting a predetermined weight option. There is nothing unique about that. Every time I work on a project and make my own typography I become more skilled at using type. The great thing is it doesn't have to be perfect to be compelling. Every project is an opportunity to actualy learn your craft by getting your fingers dirty.

It may not be perfect but it will be you and I promise there are people out there that love you.

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Thank You

We hope everyone had a great Thanksgiving. We definitely ate too much and spent a lot of time driving. But the down time was welcome and needed.

In the spirit of Thanksgiving and the upcoming holidays I wanted to personally say thank you on behalf of justlucky to everyone we have had the priviledge of working with. Justlucky is a small independent studio so all of our cashflow happens via projects. Young studios like ours require a lot of trust from the client since we don't have a long track-record or an extensive client list. This means that everyone we worked with played an integral role in the companies continued success. Not only in keeping justlucky going but in allowing us to build an exceptional body of work that gets the attention of new clients!

Again, thank you -- We are looking forward to an exciting 2011 with you all and hopefully a few new faces.

Thanks, Drew Melton

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You don't need permission

We all grow up with structures that provide us security. The illusion of control and predictability. Mass production and communication facilitate these ideals. Large organizations are experts at projecting this feeling of security. All of the titles, meetings and handshakes are perceived as value.

The funny thing is that these procedures don’t actually assure anything. Some of the most creative work has come from the collective minds of small groups and individuals such as Charles and Ray Eames, Massimo Vignelli or Herb Lubalin. They could have waited for permission. Made excuses for not having the resources or blamed the economy for not providing ideal conditions.

We are all capable of great work right now. Nothing is perfect. Don’t let all of the structures, titles and offices diminish your value. Don’t let that stop you from trying. Don’t discount your creative ability to add value to any project.

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U&lc - Classic design magazine curated by Herb Lubalin. Get to know it. 

Oh and read the text on the page. It's extremely interesting.

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Designing Experiences

I hear so many complaints from businesses when they work with designers that they don't return phone calls or emails promptly. Many times the client feels as if the designer is haphazard and disorganized. This lack of communication causes unnecessary frustration and distrust during a project.

Creatives believe in designing great products. But what about designing great experiences? Once we have established a product an excellent client experience needs to be an integral part of the design process. Qualities such as Professional/Clear/Concise communication, detailed project planning, consistency, etc. These qualities are not just smart business ideals. They are smart design decisions. Make every customer (within reason) your trophy client. If every part of your process is geared towards the client they will be more likely to take you and your work seriously. In addition this will help generate referrals quickly. A thrilled client will be quick to talk about the incredible experience they've had with you.

Some things to try: Call clients to confirm appointments. Send gifts such as thank you cards or discounts on future work. Call and let them know how much you appreciate their business and love working with them. Ask them how you can improve your process for future projects. Ask if you can show of a project you've done together, this might be assumed but this is an opportunity compliment them and make them feel good about the work you've done together. As them about something other than work sometimes! Get to know them.

Tell us about some great client experiences you've designed.