Articles by: Heather Sakai
50 Totally Free Fonts for Designers 2014
Well hi there everyone!
We all know that I love free fonts!
They’re super fun to download, play around with and use when appropriate.
10 Mistakes Freelancers Make and Should Avoid Making Today
New freelancers can run into a myriad of problems. Without the support of a firm, freelancers hold a world of responsibility in their hands. It’s easy to feel overwhelmed right out of the gate. Some of our favorite freelancers are here to remind us that it’s only natural to make mistakes. Take note and try to learn from theirs today.
An Interview with Rock Star Designer Tad Carpenter
He’ll be the last to tell you, but for us here at Go Media, WMC Fest 3 alum Tad Carpenter is a rock star. Designer, illustrator, author and teacher, Tad balances good stuff like brand identity, packaging and book design, illustration and interactive along with his role as Professor at University of Kansas. Surrounded by design (his parents were artists and his wife Jessica a designer, too), Tad creates whimsical, smart and all-around fun for clients like Macy’s, Chronicle Books, MTV, Adobe and Hallmark Cards.
How to Get Your Apparel Line into Retail Stores
Designed your own original and unique t-shirt, printed and branded your work, ready to launch? Now you’re ready for the big time.
For a lot of brands, the holy grail of going big-time is getting into well-known retail shops. There’s certainly an appeal to being able to go into your local mall and see your brand on the racks. “How do I get my clothing line into stores,” you ask? Here are some general tips for breaking into retail, straight from Go Media Partner Jeff Finley’s book, Thread’s Not Dead: The Designer’s Guide to the Apparel Industry.
100 Top Resources for Typography and Hand-Lettering
Some of the questions we hear asked often around the design community are:
What is the best way to learn about typography?
Where do I find the best hand-lettering/type inspiration?
Who are your favorite letterers?
What are the best typography and and lettering tutorials?
We decided to pull together some of our very favorite resources for you today. Here’s what you’ll find below:
Some of our favorite hand-letterers and typographers (some modern day experts on type, you might say!
Online educational resources
Awesome type and hand-lettering tutorials
Best sources of type and hand-lettering inspiration we’ve found
Super inspirational found-type collection posts
Books about type and hand-lettering
Off we go!
Vector Freebie: Go Media Design Tools
Hey Go Media Faithful!
As many of you know, we’ve done a good bit of work to the ‘ole Go Media Storefront in the last year.
Signs You’re Doing What You Love
You hear a lot of this lately: Do What You Love.
Sounds easy enough, right? I’d disagree.
For me, the road to “doing what I love” has been a long and winding one.
Along the yellow brick road, I’ve racked up thousands upon thousands of dollars in college loans, gone to school far too many times (Masters x 2), spent years in job misery and have seen things in the workplace I am in contractually unable to speak of. (No, I’m not talking about you if you think I’m talking about you.)
Work, and the road to career happiness, has felt a little like hell.
65+ Free Textures for Designers: Vibrant, Gritty and Otherwise Great
Well hello again.
You all know how obsessed I am with freebies by now.
Learn to Code: Tips for Designers (Part 2 of 2)
Ok, so you’re convinced. A solid grasp of some HTML/CSS and Javascript will serve you, the designer, well.
Where, then, do you begin? We asked our very own front-end developer designer guru, Bryan Garvin, as well as friend of Go Media, web designer, developer, and founder of Girl Develop It, Jen Myers, for some tricks of the trade.
An Open Letter to Design Students: Learn to Code (Part 1 of 2)
Students,
Please listen when we say this:
Learn to code.
How to Charge For Your Graphic Design Work (& Get What You Deserve)
Earn Your Worth! To meet the author and learn more about pricing, contracts, collections and more, attend our design retreat: WMC: Off-The-Grid this October 5 -7th. For more information, head to wmcfest.com. Over the years, we’ve had so many designers…
The Adventure of Art with Jon Burgerman
Jon Burgerman is not just an everyday artist. Armed with Amsterdam paints, Posca pens and Sharpies, Jon can be found at the spot where art and improvisation collide. On any given day, you can find Burgerman on the streets of New York City, doodling, drawing and delighting in art and life. Recent works including Hot Girls and Hot Dogs, Tumblr Girls, My Great Movie and Hungry Games, illustrate a sense of humor and talent as sprawling as his imagination.
I chatted with Burgerman, of whom I am a huge fan, about life, craft and the adventure of art.
Handmade Love: Update
I received many kind words in regards to my recent post, Homemade Love, about my mother’s annual Christmas cards.
These cards were completed each and every Christmas beginning in 1972, the year she and my father were married, up until last year. This year, my father, brother, sister-in-law, nieces and nephew finished the Sakai family Christmas card on her behalf, as she, the glue to our family, passed unexpectedly on October 22nd.
Handmade Love
It was 10:33 on October 22, 2013 when my world ended.
Ushered into a special waiting room at the Cleveland Clinic ICU by a nurse with her head held low, my father, brother and sister-in-law knew before the team of doctors even entered the room that our worst nightmare had just come true.
The days following were a blur. Phone calls, arrangements, trips to the airport to pick up family flying in. Standing at the calling hours we stood in a row, stunned.
50 Vintage Freebies for Designers
Hello!
You all know, I’m a sucker for freebies. Add “vintage” to the mix and well, I’m totally geeked out. I hope you enjoy these vintage finds – not only fonts, but also badges, frames, PSD retro layer styles and icons!
Poster Design: 50 Excellent Inspirations
* Chance to win a Go Media poster pack inside
Need some poster design inspiration? You’ve come to the right place. We’ve gathered some good ones to get your creative juices flowing.
40 Fresh, Free Fonts for Graphic Designers
40 Fresh, Free Fonts for Graphic Designers There’s something I have to tell you. There is nothing I love more than a free font. Tall ones, short ones, skinny ones too. Serif, sans, straight up silly ones. I can’t get…
Troy DeShano: No Great Story Comes without Difficulty
If you attended this year’s Weapons of Mass Creation Fest, you’ll remember Troy DeShano. Artist, illustrator, speaker, Troy stepped up to the Artists in Residence stage podium and told a story part trying, part terrifying, totally triumphant: his own. Troy…
Japanese Vintage Design Inspiration
When I was growing up, I’d play the Japanese card game Hanafuda with my grandparents. Mesmerized by the stunning yet simple designs on each card, I memorized each combination: ribbon, maple and deer, geese, moon and sky, boar and butterfly. At the kitchen table we’d play and snack on senbei, and at these moments I felt so happy and loved. I still remember my grandmother’s Japanese plates upon which she’d serve me tiny treats and tea. Surrounded deep in my family’s culture, I gained an appreciation for everything Japanese.
When I see vintage Japanese design, I feel warmly reminded of my grandparents and the love we shared. The gentle simplicity still embraces and inspires me. Via Pinterest, here are 25:
Vintage Design and Illustrations inspired by Japan
Grab your Mustache Wax: Go Media Launches Ditka Dash!
Ditka Dash, now live! Go Media was honored to work on the site design for the upcoming Ditka Dash, a 5K with character. For Go Media Project Manager Sarah Traxler and design team Aaron Roberts and Chris Comella, mustaches, hot dogs…
The Top 5 Lessons I Learned About Design from my Five-Year Old Nephew
My nephew loves to draw As soon as a pencil fell into his tiny hands, he began crafting the most intricate masterpieces I have ever seen. A proud aunt, I have watched from the wings. Watched him skip the scribbling…
Attack of the Super Cute! Kawaii Creations with Jerrod Maruyama
Super Kawaii! I was born to know Hello Kitty. The first toy to hit my crib was a Hello Kitty plush, her bright red bow hypnotizing me into a lifetime of adoration. I slept on Hello Kitty sheets, wrote with…
Why This Will Change Your Life: An Insider’s Guide to Weapons of Mass Creation Fest
The Countdown is On With this year’s Weapons of Mass Creation Fest only 14 days away, we here at Go Media are gearing up to bring you the premier art, design and music festival in the Midwest. An event growing in…
What’s Go Media Been Up To?
All’s well here at Go Media!
Storefront renovations are moving along swimmingly, with progress apparent every single day!
We’re counting down the moments until Weapons of Mass Creation Fest 2013! We’re busy assuring that our awesome Kickstarter backers get their handsome rewards, responding to speaker, designer, band and sponsor questions as well as collecting goodies for promotional tote bags. Last but not least we’re tying up the seemingly thousands of other loose ends that come with planning the best-fest-in-the-Midwest!