Vale Design : Freelance Package Design & Branding

Learned & Loved No 01

 

LEARNED

Bréne Brown TED video

"Why You Truly Never Leave High School" via New York Magazine found via Design Mom

Photoshop Tutorial White Balance from Bower Power

Alt Summit Keynote Stephen Sagmeister summary via Design Mom

Alternatives to Gotham Font via imjustcreative

 

LOVED

Healthy Homemade Ice Pop recipes from Jessica Alba on Katie

Rebirth of Slow Blogging via Design For Mankind

Lunch ideas for a 2 year old via Design Mom

Before & After Gallery Wall

Mucca Design

Note To Self blog (graphic design eye candy)

Try by Pink (She is such a bad a@$)

Bangarang by Skrillex (A must to your workout music lineup. I dare you not to get pumped!)

Happy weekend everyone! See you back here on Monday!

{image credit Vale Design at Indianapolis Childrens Museum. Chihuly installation}

Pinhole Press Personalized Memory Game

Little G has aunts and uncles scattered all over the Midwest and down south. I have been trying to come up with a creative way for her to learn about her family when she can not see them everyday. This personalized memory game would be perfect! The memory cards are from Pinhole Press found via A Cup of Jo and pinned onto my DIY Projects & Crafts board. Love these!

Do you follow me on Pinterest? I am at evaledesign

{image credit Pinhole Press}

Day in My Life

This past year has gone by in a blur. Time really does fly when you are raising a child. I thought I would let you in on just what goes on at Chez Vale while I am hanging out on the other side of the computer screen. Here we go, a day in the life...of me!

7:40 - 8:40 Wake Up Sleepyheads

My 14 month old "baby alarm clock" starts whining over the monitor. I listen to her coo and cry for a bit. Then I roll/fall out of bed and check my phone for any important {yeah, I'm checking my Instagram} emails that came in over night. I put my hair up in a messy pony and I wander down the hall and greet Little G. She likes to hang out in her crib for a while, pointing at the animals on her walls, knocking on her wall, pointing at her books and petting her lovey, Kitty. She really is not attached to any lovey, but we are trying to help her "friend" this pink Kitty. I sing Sheldon's "Soft Kitty" from the Big Bang Theory to her. She loves it!

 

Year + 1 Month In Review

From 2000 - 2011 I was a Designer. I knew that title. That title was me. Erin. Designer. Got it. Check. Then at the very end of 2011, December 24th, a nurse handed me my baby girl...and my title shifted to Mama. We came home as a family of 3 and my life got flipped upside down. I was unprepared for the hormones, lack of sleep, recovery and fear that comes along with that title. (That baby scared the hell out of me for about 3 months).

I made a conscience decision to step back out of design for a bit. My business card read Mama. No email address. No phone number. I was not online that much. I did not take any new freelance jobs for a whole year. I aimed every ounce of attention on the new peanut.

I woke up, played with baby toys, read books, fed her, naps, baths, diaper changes and back to bed. I watched her grow, smile and giggle, sit up, roll over, try her first solid foods, commando crawl to real baby crawling and pull up to standing.

At times, I have been accused of being a "black or white" person. I don't handle the gray area well. I could not figure out how to balance my new title and my old title. I did not feel creative. Nothing was firing up there. It felt like that part of my brain would be shut down for an infinite amount of time. Then she took her first step...right into that gray area. She wobbled over to me and in those small independent steps, she gave me permission. She gave me permission to take a beautiful picture with Instagram while she played with her toys. She gave me permission to design a logo after she went to bed. She gave me permission to use Pinterest while she took a nap. She gave me permission not to have to choose between my titles. She gave me permission to be both Mama and Designer.

So I am putting Designer back on my business card, in italics, under the bold Mama. My creative floodgates are opening back up and the ideas are starting to flow. I have slowly been accepting new projects. My timelines are now respectful to my clients' schedules as well as my toddler's. During the day, it is Baby G and Mama. After 8 pm bedtime, it is Erin. Designer. I am still working on the balance, but it feels great to be coming back.

Design is like breathing to me. I missed it and I missed all of you. I hope you have all been well and that 2012 was terrific. Here is to an amazing 2013! I am excited to see what journeys we will all be on!

Cheers!
~ Erin

ps Wish me luck! Little G and I are off to our first Mommy and Me class today. Fingers crossed we both make it through.

DIY FREE Printable Baby First Food List

Our daughter is almost 11 months old and she is a very good eater. When we started her on solid foods at 6 months, being a first time mom, I had NO idea what I was doing. I referenced two books and did some quick online research and found the "basic" list of first foods. So, being the designer I am, I had to create a nice looking form that hung on our fridge where I could keep track of what she had tried, liked, did not like or had a reaction to. It was very convenient to fold up and take to her pediatrician appointments as well. 

For all of you first time parents just trying to figure out what the heck you are doing, print this PDF and enjoy!

DIY FREE PRINTABLE Baby First Food List

Two books we use:

Start Fresh - by Tyler Florence of the Food Network. She has loved 100% of the recipes from this book. Plus, the book has recipes for each phase and whole family meals for when baby is older. Makes dinners so easy and the food is fabulous! My husband and I have loved trying a variety of new vegtables and taste combos thanks to this book. We also have been mixing in his organic Sprout Baby Food pouches with homemade food. {extra love: you can upcycle the Sprout packaging through Terracycle}

First Meals - by Annabelle Karmel. Given to me by my sister-in-law the nutritionist. Offers great meal ideas and a lot of information on each phase of your new little eater.

Homemade baby food product we use:

Baby Bullet - Given to me by my nutritionist sister-in-law as well. Quick and "easy peasy mac-n-cheesy" as my niece would say. Piece of mind knowing that my daughter is eating the healthiest foods we can provide. 

DISCLAIMER

** ALWAYS check with your pediatrician first regarding when, how and what to feed your baby.

** No kickbacks for book or product recommendations. These are just what worked for us and I wanted to share that info with other new parents. We have to stick together!

10 Ideas for Instagram & Digital Photos

If you are like me, you have a MILLION Instagram and digital pictures on your tech devices. Instagram especially. The filters make every picture you take look so cool.

I was so excited to stumble onto Mom.me and see their post 10 Easy Ideas for Your Digital Photos. Finally! Some unique project ideas to release those digital photos to print. Posters, postcards, tiny books, stickers, keepsake boxes and many more!

**Are you following me on Instagram? evaledesign

Wall Art DIY Project

Hello everyone. Yes, I am still alive. I am just buried between feedings, diapers, crib drama, smiles, giggles, a goos, coos and exhaustion of having an almost 3 month old {March 24th!}. While baby G was napping today, I stumbled across this awesome and simple wall art DIY project over on A Beautiful Mess. If you did not want to use the paint by number as the background, grab a blank canvas and paint a random design. Instead of lyrics, you could use a favorite quote or a person's name. I might do a monochromatic yellow background to go into the petite's nursery. This project would make such a great housewarming or wedding gift!

{image credit A Beautiful Mess}

Gianna Moonbug Photography Photoshoot

We recently had the privilege and honor of having our little Gianna photographed by the talented Sonja Clark of Moonbug Photography. {you may remember the branding project I did for her.} Funny, this was a couple of weeks ago and G has already grown so much! {2 month shots yesterday. Big girl}

We are close friends with the Clarks and Sonja was there for me all through my pregnancy. She has posted some snapshots of our petite over on her blog and I will be sharing some of my favorites in the coming month. If you are in the Indianapolis area and need any pregnancy, newborn, childrens, senior or family pictures, you should give her a call. She has an amazing gift to capture a person's soul and spirit. It is all in the eyes! Thanks again Sonja!

{image credits Moonbug Photography}

Favorite iPhone App: White Noise

I first purchased this app after we returned from our first North Carolina vacation. I was missing falling asleep to the ocean waves. It has some great realistic wave noises. But, this app has been a LIFESAVER for our now 2 month old. Sounds include: waves, nature noises, standard white noise and a variety of machine noises. Gianna does not like your standard "white noise" {which this app has an abundance of if you need it}. She loves machine noises. The dishwasher, dryer and her current favorite, the hair dryer. Puts her on insta-pause even in the middle of a melt down. This app has come in so handy while out and about as well. In the car, store and pediatrician's office. I just turn it on on my phone and tuck it into the car seat. PAUSE BABY. Click here to read more and purchase this app.

ps the post it note does not appear on the screen in the actual app.

**No kick backs were received from the writing of this post.

{image credits Apple and TMSoft}

Christmas Eve surprise

Have you noticed that I have been missing in action? Let me introduce you to the reason why!

My due date was December 30th and this baby was showing no signs of making an early appearance. At my doctor's appointment on December 23rd, she told me that I was still 3 cm. Discouraged, my husband and I left a bit frustrated and tried to accept that I might be pregnant forever. Imagine my surprise at 1:00 am on December 24th when I started to have some strange pains. I thought "this can not be what I think it is." I pulled out my iPhone and started timing them. Sure enough, 6 minutes apart for 1 minute at a time. I walked down the hall and laid in another bed and started timing them for real. 6 minutes apart for 1 minute for 40 minutes. I decided it was time to wake up my husband. By the time I walked down the hallway, the contractions were 4 minutes apart! By the time I could form a sentence to tell him what was going on they were 2 minutes apart! We called the doctor and they said to get a move on.

I changed clothes, grabbed the bags and we got in the car to make the 5 minute {thankfully!} drive to the hospital. Don't tell the police, but we ran a red light because the contractions we about 1 minute apart. We got to the hospital. They rushed me into a triage room and started an IV and booted my husband out of the room and gave me my requested epidural. Thankfully, being a planner, I had gone in a couple of weeks ahead of time and reviewed my birth plan with them and let them know that my mom had a VERY quick labor as well. {She went into the hospital at 10 cm and had me, her first, in 3 hours! Not typical} So when I got there, they moved quickly.

My contractions were fierce. I did not even feel the epidural. They checked me and I was 7 cm. They moved me to a labor room and checked again in 20 minutes. I was 10 cm. The baby was still a bit high so we took a couple hour and a half naps. The epidural started to wear off and they gave me another dose. The doctor came in to check me and they realized the baby was facing the wrong way. A couple of contractions and they had turned her and told me to push. 10 pushes later, on Christmas Eve, baby Gianna Vale made her appearance. There were 8 other women giving birth at the same time. I almost did not get a room! We were the last ones into the hospital and the first to have our baby. Yikes! Fast.

We are still learning the ropes with this little precious newborn. She keeps us crying, snapping at each other because we are exhausted, laughing and staring at her in awe. She has my husband's lips and my nose. All of my nieces have the same Vale mouth. I am glad our little lady has the same. She fits right in. Thank you all for your thoughts, prayers and warm wishes! Love to you all from our now family of three!

39 weeks

Yep, I said it. 39 weeks and this baby is tucked up inside all cozy and showing no signs of wanting to come out! I do not see a baby 1st Christmas for us. *sigh*...

I can not believe that 2011 is almost over. We have had blinders on a bit having a baby due around the holidays, but we wanted to say thank you. Thank you for supporting Vale Design and this site. Personally and professionally this year has been amazing and we are holding our breath waiting for the excitement that 2012 will bring us! We will be taking some time off and will see you back here the first week of January...hopefully with some cute new year's news! Happy Holidays!

How far along? 39 weeks
Total weight gain? 30+ lbs
Maternity clothes? Gap maternity leggings and shirts.
Stretch marks? No
Sleep: Not too bad. I have been keeping myself busy and I am pretty exhausted at night. Still sleeping all over the house, finding the bed that feels the most comfortable.
Best moment this week: Having my husband home for the holiday break and at this last doctor's appointment. Love spending time together.
Miss anything: MY GAP JEANS and my lotions and potions. They are all waiting patiently to have me back!
Movement: Yes. Like clockwork.
Food cravings: Triscuits and port wine cheese spread {weird one I know!}
Anything make you queasy or sick: Not any more. Last week was bad.
Gender: Girl, but lately we have been thinking of boy's names just in case!
Labor signs: Still 3cm and 80%. A little back pain.
Symptoms: Hip pains while sleeping.
Belly button in or out? Has been out for a while
Wedding rings on or off? Have been off for a while
Happy or moody most of the time? Impatient. I am sick of waiting.
Looking forward to: Seeing my baby. I want to see those fingers, toes, nose, lips and eyes. What color are they? Does she have a lot of hair? I am ready to meet her! The holidays and being distracted by great food and family. Missing my MI family this year. Love to all of you!

36 weeks | 37 weeks | 38 weeks

{pregnancy survey question credit Little Baby Garvin}

38 weeks

Happy Monday everyone! Hope you had a nice weekend and finished up all of your holiday shopping. Sorry no baby update post on Friday. Things are getting a bit crazy around here. Posts may start to be a bit sporadic. Here is my 38 week update for you.

How far along? 38 weeks
Total weight gain? 30+ lbs
Maternity clothes? Gap maternity leggings and shirts & some of husbands fleeces.
Stretch marks? No
Sleep: Barely sleeping at all. I find whatever bed is comfortable in the middle of the night and pass out. I have been sleeping mainly in one of the guest rooms. I feel like I am sleeping on a basketball that has an opinion about what side I sleep on. She prefers I sleep on my left :)
Best moment this week: Finding out I was not at 0cm.
Miss anything: Laying flat on my back and stomach.
Movement: Yes. Like clockwork. {Puts my mind at ease. I am sure I will miss it.}
Food cravings: NOTHING! 
Anything make you queasy or sick: EVERYTHING!
Gender: Girl
Labor signs: Less Braxton Hicks. I was pleasantly surprised at my last dr. apt to find out I am a "bonus" 3cm and 80%. I have not felt any pain yet. Not that I am complaining! The past two days I have also been so nauseous. Hard to eat to have strength for labor when everything makes you feel sick. Back to bland foods.
Symptoms: Hip pains and swollen fingers and ankles at the end of the day.
Belly button in or out? Has been out for a while
Wedding rings on or off? Have been off for a while
Happy or moody most of the time? Tired and flat out "first time mom" frightened. Anxious I will miss a sign that she may be in distress. I got her this far, I need to get her here safely. That is a lot of pressure. Also, tired of people asking me if she is here yet. Umm, we will tell you. Please stop asking me. Makes me more tense.
Looking forward to: Seeing my baby. I NEED to know she is healthy and perfect. That huge sigh of relief when labor is over and I can start to just really enjoy being her mother.

36 weeks  | 37 weeks

{elephant toy by Zooklz}

{pregnancy survey question credit Little Baby Garvin}

37 weeks

Well, we made it. 37 weeks. Technically Baby Vale is full term and can make her appearance whenever she feels like it...which does not feel like it is going to be anytime soon. Curious what birthday she will choose. Hopefully we do not have to choose one for her!

See that purple paper on the dresser? That is a letter one of my nieces wrote to her new cousin. We have not read it yet. We are waiting to read it to the baby. How cute is that?!

How far along? 37 weeks
Total weight gain? 30+ lbs
Maternity clothes? Gap maternity leggings and shirts & some of husbands fleeces.
Stretch marks? No
Sleep: Still horrible. Hips really hurt. Flipping side to side a lot.
Best moment this week: Doctor's apt to learn she has dropped a bit and is in position.
Miss anything: Touching my toes, bending forward, a flat stomach, clear skin, my lotions and potions and my own body back!
Movement: Yes. Very active. {Scared us this week with one very slow day. Trip to the hospital for fetal stress test. She was perfectly fine. Heard her heartbeat and officially felt like her mother. She perked up and started squirming when her daddy got there and started talking to her.}
Food cravings: Cheese and crackers, but starting to loose my appetite. Heard this is normal.
Anything make you queasy or sick: Nope
Gender: Girl
Labor signs: Nesting like a crazy woman. Braxton Hicks almost all day. {wish there was more...}
Symptoms: Hip pains and swollen fingers and ankles at the end of the day.
Belly button in or out? Has been out for a while
Wedding rings on or off? Have been off for a while
Happy or moody most of the time? Courageous. Feeling ready to take on this momentous task.
Looking forward to: Starting labor pains. Someone handing me my perfectly healthy daughter and telling me all is well. I want to look into her eyes and touch her fingers. I want to watch my husband hold his baby girl. They are so connected already. She absolutely loves his voice.

Have a great weekend and see you back here on Monday!

36 weeks

{pregnancy survey question credit Little Baby Garvin}

36 weeks

I do not usually get too personal on this site, but people have been asking me for some baby details so I figured I would give you a sneak peek into the Vale household these days. Above is the petite's nursery. We went with a soft gray with banana yellow and teal accents. I am NOT a pink purple girl! I am going to try to post detail info {and better pictures} about the nursery sometime this month. It is such a peaceful room. The husband and I find ourselves in there a lot just hanging out.

I also found this super cute pregnancy update survey on Little Baby Garvin that seems like an easy way to answer everyone's questions. Here goes!

How far along? 36 weeks
Total weight gain? 30 lbs   {started at 125 lbs...you do the math}
Maternity clothes? Gap maternity leggings and shirts {All of my maternity clothes are from Gap. Awesome & will be able to wear after pregnancy. Great fit!} and many of my pre-pregnancy shirts from Anthropologie
Stretch marks? Nope {thanks Mom!} Even my stomach tatoo still looks pretty good.
Sleep: horrible. Hips hurt and I keep flipping from side to side. Feel like I am sleeping on a basketball.
Best moment this week: Doctor's apt this morning to hear the petite's heartbeat and learn her position.
Miss anything: Bending forward, touching my toes, yoga, putting on my own socks, clear skin and wine. Being able to do all of my errands without asking for help. Crossing more than 2 things off my to do list a day. Riding in the car without getting attitude from the petite. My Gap jeans with buttons and zippers.
Movement: Hell yeah! Strong pokes in the ribs by little feet. She gets hiccups all the time poor thing. Rolls when she hears her daddy's voice :)
Food cravings: Originally french fries {thanks again Mom!}, now Starbucks small pink birthday cake donuts. Anything Asian, Chinese, Sushi etc. {rolls only though!}
Anything make you queasy or sick: Nope
Gender: Girl
Labor signs: Braxton Hicks like crazy. Have had them since 28 weeks. Mild crampiness this past week.
Symptoms: Heartburn, hip pains and this past week swollen fingers and ankles at the end of the day.
Belly button in or out? Has been out for a while
Wedding rings on or off? Have been off for a while
Happy or moody most of the time? Content, but anxious about a first baby and labor.
Looking forward to: Labor being over. Someone handing me my perfectly healthy daughter and telling me all is well. Spending time with my family over the holidays. Being swallowed by all the holiday cheer. Looking at my Mom with a new found respect and awe and watching her help her baby learn how to mother her granddaughter.

Have a great weekend everyone! Soak up some holiday spirit!

{pregnancy survey question credit Little Baby Garvin}

The Holiday Guide by Emily Henderson

It is that time of year again when all the amazing gift guides are starting to come out. The Holiday Guide by HGTV Design Star winner Emily Henderson is my favorite of the moment. There are so many cool gift ideas, live links for immediate purchase and features many categories. Time to pull out the wallet! Have a great weekend everyone!

{image credits Emily Henderson}

Zooklz Square Animals

I freakin' LOVE these animals! My talented designer uncles are at it again. They have just soft launched their new company, ZOOKLZ, "square animals with attitude." Now, of course I am biased, but these just super creative plush animals appeal to the designer in me and the new part of me that is about to be a mom for the first time. I am cramming our nursery full of designy objects for our petite to enjoy!

Each animal body is a 9.5 inch square and is only $20 USD. These would be great birthday or holiday gifts for the kids on your list and a portion of the profits will be donated to animal welfare organizations. My uncles are HUGE animal advocates. These will definitely be pinned on my SMALL board full of cool kids items on Pinterest! {are you following me?}

Click here to get shopping! Good luck boys! The signature five look amazing!

{image credits Zooklz}

Lessons of a Turtle

My sister-in-law and I saw this book, Lessons of a Turtle {the little book of life}, while we were on our second annual Topsail, NC beach vacation this year. It is a small book written and illustrated by Sandy Gingras. We fell in love with it. So I was super excited and surprised when it showed up at my door this weekend! It has the sweetest little sayings and cute corresponding illustrations. This book would make a cute baby shower gift or book for a little reader. Thanks A & L!

{image credits Sandy Gingras}

Our Bump...

I am actually 25 weeks today, but I thought I would share a shot of our little lady at 24 weeks.

{image credits Vale Design using iPhone app Plastic Bullet}

And the ultrasound says...

...it's a GIRL! We are super excited to announce that we are having a little girl. Our families are super excited and are already buying our petite cutie little clothes. My husband just finished painting her nursery and we will share pictures when we are further along. Thank you all for your well wishes, love and support. I am truly humbled and blessed. ~ erin