News & Notable Topics
The folks at LogoLounge have selected our work for inclusion in their prestigious Master Library Collection, and we're both honored and stoked to say the least. The award and recognition is for our logo & brand identity for Half Badger Records. The email said:
"Your work has been selected for inclusion in a remarkable new LogoLounge project, 'Animals and Mythology', in the new Master Library series…"
the messsage continued... "What is the Master Library series? Like our existing (and continuing) LogoLounge book series, the new Master Library books will bring you exemplary logo design work from creatives around the world. Our first book in the series, Initials and Crests, is at the publisher as we write and promises to be a new best selling series from Rockport in the model of LogoLounge.
Unlike our original series, though, each book in the Master Library series will focus on a very specific logo design category, to wit:
Initials and Crests
Animals and Mythology
Typography
People
Shapes and Symbols
Nature and Food
Arts and Culture
We hope to include your work in the the Master Library series, Animals and Mythology."
The Master Collection will be published by Rockport and should be released in July 2010. Amazon already has it available for pre-order.
POSTED ON Thursday, October 15, 2009
FILE UNDER: Design, News & Notable, Projects, Recognition, Studiofluid
I'd like to welcome Clara and Katarina, the Design in Transit duo, to Los Angeles, California and the US of A.
These two adventurous ladies are here from Germany, taking a tour of the west coast and hoping to gain graphic design experience in the process. About a month ago, they emailed from Germany to set up a time to come by and get a tour of Studiofluid on their arrival in L.A.
So far we've collaborated on an advertising campaign, shared a few meals together, and I've pointed some cool design highlights to check out in Los Angeles. Next week I think we're going together to check out the Echo Park Time Travel Mart for some packaging and general design awesomeness inspiration.
I've also introduced the DIT ladies to a few other design firms in the area that might be interesting for them to visit. If you're in Los Angeles, San Francisco or maybe even Portland and you want to collaborate with Design in Transit, they'd love to hear from you. To invite them out for some good American beer or just say hello, you can get in touch at: designintransit @ hotmail dot de — and tell them Studiofluid sent ya.
POSTED ON Monday, October 12, 2009
FILE UNDER: Community, Design, Friends, Ideas, News & Notable
The design work we've been doing for the Pasadena Symphony is starting to pop up throughout Los Angeles. Right now, the Metro Rail Gold Line that connects Union Station to Sierra Madre is running the "Take Your Ears Out for the Evening" ad campaign, announcing the 2009-2010 Symphony Classics.
Photo courtesy of Tim Harwick.
POSTED ON Monday, October 5, 2009
FILE UNDER: Community, Design, News & Notable, Projects
The Pasadena Wine Festival is less than 2 weeks away, and since Studiofluid handled the event branding and web design, we've got a special treat for you…
We're giving away:
Two Free Weekend Passes!
Good for Saturday and/or Sunday October 3 & 4, 2009. The event will be at the beautiful L.A. County Arboretum, from 4:30-10p both days. These passes are going for $170, so here's your chance for the hookup!
How to Enter:
Post to twitter starting with "I want #pasadenawinefest tix"… followed with your best reason. The winner will be selected (based on creativity) and announced on the morning of Monday 9/28. We'll be in touch to for mailing address, comp passes will go out via priority mail the same day.
Good luck!
POSTED ON Monday, September 21, 2009
FILE UNDER: Community, Friends, News & Notable, Projects
We're happy to announce that Studiofluid is working closely with the Pasadena Symphony and POPS on a massive re-branding effort. We're helping them with a new identity system for their various orchestras, stationery and print collateral, the 2010 season brochure, and a completely redesigned web site.
Here's a sneak peak of the progress we've been making on the branding and web site. Stay tuned for the results, which will make a splash in September!
UPDATE: Check out more of the project in the work section, and visit the new pasadenasymphony-pops.org.
POSTED ON Friday, August 28, 2009
FILE UNDER: Business, Design, News & Notable, Projects, Studiofluid
I was recently contacted by Sabrina Vega to be a part of her online / book project. The image above is my postcard submission to her project, which is this:
“A couple of years ago in 2006 , right after I graduated from Texas State University, I had the idea to collect my name, Sabrina in every shape and form I could think of…”
Working on my submission was a rewarding experience—in particular getting my hands dirty with a soft pencil to fill in the background.
I was honored to be included among some high profile contributors such as Milton Glaser, Stafan Sagmeister, and Gary Baseman. I think my favorite is done by Kim Robertson, who created an anagram our of Sabrina's first and last names, turning it into "A Bar in Vegas."
Thanks Sabrina, and good luck with your book!
POSTED ON Thursday, June 18, 2009
FILE UNDER: Community, Design, Friends, Ideas, News & Notable, Projects
Over at the Toilet Paper Entrepreneur, a group of entrepreneurs contributed their best strategies for staying focused and getting things done.
Ben's idea is featured at #10.
Here's a link the the Freedom App, which is highly recommended for those of you on the Mac.
POSTED ON Wednesday, May 27, 2009
FILE UNDER: Business, Community, Ideas, News & Notable, Productivity, Studiofluid
Yes, it's no surprise that your web site needs to reflect your brand. And yes, it should look great. And while we're at it, your site might as well be intuitive and elegant for your visitors to get around.
But is that enough?
Not exactly. Your site also needs to be visible to search engines if your customer is going to find you in the first place. (Making your site visible to search engines is called "Search Engine Optimization" or "SEO.")
At some point, when you've got all the fundamentals in place, partnering with a dedicated SEO company may be the right decision. But if you're a small to mid-sized business, building your site properly and adding quality content will likely be money much better spent.
So how is your site currently scoring? If you have a existing site, now you can get an objective analysis by Website Grader for free!
Website Grader is a free seo tool that measures the marketing effectiveness of a website. It provides a score that incorporates things like website traffic, SEO, social popularity and other technical factors. It also provides some basic advice on how the website can be improved from a marketing perspective.
On May 5, 2009, Studiofluid recieved a WebsiteGrader score 91 with an Alexa rank of 755,131 which is in the top 2.7 % of all websites.
How did your site score?
If you're looking to revamp your low-scoring web site, or build a new site right from the ground up, Studiofluid can help. We build efficient and intuitive web sites that are easy for your visitors to use, and that allow you the best possible visibility to search engines like Yahoo! and Google.
And yeah, your site will look great too.
POSTED ON Wednesday, May 6, 2009
FILE UNDER: Business, Ideas, News & Notable, Studiofluid, Technology
It's been a flurry of activity around here. I just finished renovating my live/work space and my new office looks great and functions even better. I'm looking at a photo shoot soon so I can post some here.
Our clients are great folks. I'm continually amazed and blessed by high caliber people that I get to partner with on a daily basis. Currently we're working on:
Identity and Retail Packaging for a healthy snack food company. Can't say a whole lot about that one now, but we're stoked about everything is coming together.
Branding and Website for the Pasadena Wine Festival which will be held at the Los Angeles County Arboretum & Botanical Garden this fall. Our site will handle ticket sales and event sponsorship. All ticket sales from the event benefit the Pasadena Symphony.
Branding and Website for a remodeling company. We're helping the owner connect with his clearly defined target audience in Southern California. His website includes a content management system (CMS) and will clearly communicate their commitment to quality, community focus, and will encourage visitors to get in touch for a free estimate.
And a few more are in the pipeline, but it's a bit too early to say...
POSTED ON Thursday, April 16, 2009
FILE UNDER: Business, Community, Design, News & Notable, Projects, Studiofluid
Trendwatching has an interesting article about how more people are taking entrepreneurial steps to supplement their income. Keep scrolling, there are a lot of solid ideas and unique business models made possible through our increasingly connected world.
POSTED ON Monday, April 6, 2009
FILE UNDER: Business, Community, Ideas, News & Notable, Technology
I get so energized talking with other entrepreneurs. Yeah, there is a lot of doom-and-gloom news out there, but there are also incredible opportunities for those courageous enough to take action. Just this week I met with three people who are taking control of their own careers, who are now partnering with Studiofluid to help launch their ideas with impact.
If you find yourself on the fence about your next business move, you might want to give this a read. Business Coach and Venture Capitalist Paul Graham shares his insights on why to start a startup in a bad economy. Some of these really jumped out at me:
- If you're the right sort of person, you'll win even in a bad economy. And if you're not, a good economy won't save you.
- If you're worried about threats to the survival of your company, don't look for them in the news. Look in the mirror.
- Startups often make things cheaper, so in that respect they're better positioned to prosper in a recession than big companies.
- Another advantage of bad times is that there's less competition... If everyone else is cowering in a corner, you may have a whole car to yourself.
Also worth checking out is Paul's latest company, Y Combinator, which specializes in funding early stage startups.
POSTED ON Tuesday, March 31, 2009
FILE UNDER: Business, Ideas, News & Notable, Technology
Jessica Helfand and William Drenttel put together a short film posted on the AIGA site (American Institute Graphic Arts) based on her thought provoking text on the presence and pervasiveness of Graphic Design in our world.
“…Graphic design is the boldly directional arrows on street signs and the blurred, frenetic typography on the title sequence to E.R. It is the bright green logo for the New York Jets and the monochromatic front page of the Wall Street Journal. It is hang-tags in clothing stores, postage stamps and food packaging, fascist propaganda posters and brainless junk mail…”
Graphic Design is deeply rooted in the past and the meaning we've assigned to images and symbols over many centuries. Understanding and reinterpreting those meanings is one aspect of graphic design that I find so fascinating.
POSTED ON Tuesday, March 31, 2009
FILE UNDER: Community, Ideas, News & Notable, Technology
If you've got a great idea for a business, but and you're not quite sure what the next step would be, make sure you check out the resources available to you at SCORE.org (Service Corps of Retired Executives). In partnership with with the SBA (Small Business Administration), SCORE is a nationwide network of volunteers who have made their mark in the business world and desire to give back to the community by helping emerging entrepreneurs.
“Surround yourself with gray hair and listen.”
Those are some of my favorite words* to live by, and for business guidance, the wisdom is accessible to you. If you're located in Southern California, you'll want to check out SCORE Los Angeles with headquarters in Glendale and other branches across the city. There you can sign up for free individual counseling sessions with a retired entrepreneur, who can help with writing a business plan, walk you through funding options, or answer questions specific to your business.
SCORE also offers helpful workshops on a variety of topics, at a bargain price of $25-35 per session. I continue to attend the workshops because I usually walk away with something useful, and it is a great way for me to stay tuned to the pulse of the entrepreneurs that Studiofluid regularly helps.
And a bonus for the ladies out there, make sure to check out Ladies who Launch. I've got a few friends who enthusiastically recommend that one as well.
* First heard by twin filmmakers Noah and Logan Miller.
POSTED ON Friday, March 20, 2009
FILE UNDER: Business, Community, Ideas, News & Notable
What do you get when you combine a room full of entrepreneurs with the challenge to launch web-based service or product in 48 hours?
The answer is Startup Weekend, of course. And a whole lot of fun.
On the weekend of February 27th-March 1st, I gathered with over 50 other entrepreneurs with backgrounds including user interface, graphic design, programming, pr, and business development for the second Startup Weekend Los Angeles. Of the initial 20+ pitches presented on Friday night, we broke off into teams of 5-9 people based on what seemed interesting. Over the course of the weekend, seven teams designed and built working sites, each with varying degrees of completion.
The creativity and results were impressive, to say the least.
- Blocksnap: Upload and experience views on the neighborhood level.
- CheapChews: Receive coupons and notifications for local restaurants.
- Fill in the Geek: Connecting comic buyers with comic sellers.
- Sponsor Hub: A place for sponsors and non-profits find each other.
- Yummyware: Simple bakery management software.
- Share my Spot: You park here while I am not.
- Craigee: A decision making tool for Craigslist.
SWLA was rewarding a rewarding experience unto itself, even if the projects never saw the light of day. But, in fact, they're out there live on the web and it will be interesting to see if any gain long-term traction. You can read more about my team's project: Yummyware, the simple bakery management software.
A huge thanks to host Jerome from Blankspaces, and the event sponsors who provided an amazing spread of food and tech support.
POSTED ON Monday, March 2, 2009
FILE UNDER: Business, Design, Ideas, News & Notable
Thomas Brodahl featured a little press about Studiofluid over at Surfstation, regarding the Coop Italia Packaging project we recently completed.
His commentary is insightful into our process and final result:
“Nice little story. How often does your client let you make their logo gray and small?…Quite the change.”
How true. We were very fortunate to work with Coop, who gave us a lot of freedom with our proposals. They understand that making the logo bigger and brighter does not equate with stronger branding. It is not often that clients have this type of self-confidence, but those are the clients that we seek out, and find the most rewarding to work with. And the results speak for themselves.
POSTED ON Tuesday, February 17, 2009
FILE UNDER: Ideas, News & Notable, Projects
When launching a new product or service, there is a strong temptation to just jump in and arrive at branding decisions based on your assumptions.
And while that may be a quick and cheap way to get up and running, it might also be one of the most costly decisions you'll ever make—when you discover your assumptions were wrong and you need to retool your brand from the ground up (assuming your company is still around).
Right now Studiofluid is working with a Food and Beverage company looking to break into the saturated Snack Food category. We've been spending time in supermarkets performing design research and have put together a market analysis to help our client with the following:
- Understand the Context and how Snacks are displayed
- Study Market Leaders and Competing Brands
- Discover Packaging Trends
- Find Clichés and Points of Market Over-saturation
- Identify Opportunities for Differentiation
(more...)
POSTED ON Friday, February 13, 2009
FILE UNDER: Business, Design, Ideas, News & Notable, Research, Studiofluid
Yesterday, in conjunction with the Detriot Auto Show, NPR aired an interview with Daniel Sperling and regarding his book Two Billion Cars. He discusses the global impacts of our cars, and what is on the horizon for sustainable transportation.
In 2008 Studiofluid created an infographic to help communicate the concepts Dr. Sperling presents in his book, as well as to U.S. congress and audiences throughout the world. It feels good to see our work serving it's purpose and helping people understand some important global topics.
You can listen to the interview over on NPR's site.
POSTED ON Friday, January 16, 2009
FILE UNDER: News & Notable, Projects, Sustainability, Technology
We just finished up a job for Coop Italia and couldn't be more thrilled with the results. It was an honor to be selected to work on the project, since the original packaging design had been done in the mid 1990s by a multi-national heavywight agency.
Studiofluid worked within Coop's budget to differentiate the Fior Fiore line while retaining the existing package structure. The final result is a modern design that clearly communicates the high-end value while standing out from competitors while easily accommodating new products to the line.
POSTED ON Friday, December 19, 2008
FILE UNDER: News & Notable, Projects
If you're still stressing out, trying to find the right gift idea, look no further: Hippo Roller just made your life easier!
…Actually, its gonna make someone else's life a lot easier. This little contraption can help transport 24 gallons of water more quickly and comfortably then the traditional bucket or jug method. We're big fans. In fact Studiofluid is donating branding expertise to Hippo in 2009 to help get the word out, and allow more people to get involved.
You can even donate online and they'll send you one of the thank you cards that Studiofluid designed.
Just like they say: “Proof that a good idea and a simple design can change the world.”
POSTED ON Monday, December 15, 2008
FILE UNDER: Ideas, News & Notable, Projects
Studiofluid partnered with the award winning Industrial Design firm to help redefine their web presence, creating a fresh look, improving navigation and showcasing older projects in a new light.
POSTED ON Saturday, November 15, 2008
FILE UNDER: Consumer Products, News & Notable, Web Site Design
Logo, business cards and stationery for a Professional Coaching company. The logo and stationery elements are designed to visually represent the process of emerging and becoming strengthened through professional coaching.
POSTED ON Wednesday, April 18, 2007
FILE UNDER: Branding, Business Services, News & Notable, Print Design
Kairos Los Angeles requested a visually distinct and adaptable web presence that reflects its progressive personality. Studiofluid designed and directed all aspects of the project, to deliver a content-rich and highly adaptable web site that works well on all screen sizes and internet speeds.
POSTED ON Saturday, December 18, 2004
FILE UNDER: News & Notable, Nonprofit & Education, Web Site Design
