NCBC Newsletter

It is truly an honor to work at the church where I grew up.
I love using the skills that I developed in college to design content for my church family!

I decided it's time to catch up on posting some of these projects that I produce on a weekly and monthly basis.

First up: the monthly newsletter. 

We call it the Lifeline and it gives our congregation an overview of the month ahead. This newsletter is e-mailed as a PDF to ~400 subscribers. I also print, fold, seal, and address ~100 copies to take to the Post Office for subscribers who prefer a hard copy.

Specs

The Lifeline is 8.5"x14" with a 2-sided design. The barrel-folded mailout is 8.5"x 4.75". The template follows a basic 2-column design.

Finished Landscape

I realized that I posted a "before" picture of my landscape but not an "after."

This was a Christmas gift to my dad because he's doing extensive research on Sabal palms for his PhD program. He liked it so much that it's hanging in his office!

Outdoor Oddity Magazine

Throughout the semester, I had the learning opportunity of creating a magazine from concept to print & presentation with a group of fellow designers and Advertising/Public Relations students.

We decided to create a magazine centered around the casual outdoors(wo)man with articles to motivate people to go outside and enjoy nature. We dubbed it "Outdoor Oddity."

We divided the writing and designing among ourselves, so pictured below are the spreads for which I was responsible.

These two columns discuss places to hike in the Central Virginia area (left) and tips and tricks for camping (right). "Take A Hike!" was written by Brian Salamanca. "Camping for Dummies" was written by Laurel Atwood.

This spread was written and designed by me. It discusses First Aid supplies that you should keep handy while braving the outdoors.

This column is an interview of funny stories and mishaps with an experienced camper

How to pack a backpack for an overnight hiking trip. Photography by Maddie Essex.

An ad I created for Virginia's Deparment of Conservation and Recreation. Logo recreated by me, photography  by  Maddie Essex

ADDY Awards Gala

If you had asked me two months ago, "Amy, do you think you'll ever win an award for design?" The answer would have been a resounding "No." It's not that I don't think I can design well, it's that my style of design is nothing unique - nothing special. I am surrounded by students who have a more vivid imagination than I, and I'm okay with that! The world needs designers who are solid and can effectively communicate a message.

That's why I was so shocked when I was invited to the 2013 ADDY Awards Gala.

Attending this event was a fantastic opportunity for me, and not just because I scored an award. I carpooled to the event with the department chair for graphic design, my Photoshop professor, and two of my fellow students. This was the most rewarding part of the evening because we discussed searching for jobs, thinking creatively, and influencing our culture in a positive way through visual communication. I was very encouraged by their advice and our conversation.

The Gala itself was exciting because we got to walk around and see all of the entries that were posted around the large hall. It was inspiring to see the trends that are going on in the world of graphic design. After that, there was a slideshow presentation of the entries and the awards that were won, and then we picked up our certificates, took a group picture, and headed home.

It was exhilarating to be completely surrounded by graphic designers and advertising executives. It's like they were making me a better designer simply through osmosis! I'm so glad that I got to participate!

Amy

Internship!

After much nail-biting and suspense, the paperwork for my internship was completed last Thursday and I began working with Liberty's Marketing Department yesterday (Tuesday).

My first day went much better than expected, keeping in mind that I was scared to death! Thankfully this office is full of kind, helpful, patient people that are all willing to fill me in and help me along until this job becomes second nature.

One of my supervisors connected me to the server and showed me where to find my daily tasks that are assigned to me. She got me started on a couple of simple projects to help me get comfortable with the process of designing, proofing, correcting, and submission. She was very patient with my dozens of questions, and for that I am eternally grateful. I know that this internship will be extremely beneficial to me and I'm excited for all of the things I'll learn and the friends and connections that I'll make!

I also had my first Publication Design class which went much better than I expected. The professor is really cool but doesn't accept any slacking and allows little room for error. I'm grateful that she is so exacting because I feel that some of my design professors are too easy on us and don't require a high enough level of excellence.
Since I registered late for the course I didn't have the first assignment but am working on it. She gave a quiz yesterday and I took it even though I don't have the book. Most of it was easy to guess and I got two out of the three multiple choice questions correct. The rest were write-in responses that she hasn't graded yet so we'll see how that goes.
She lectured on how to create a book template, and I knew almost everything that she went over. It felt so good to be ahead of most of the class!

The bottom line(s) of this post is/are this: I am way too anxious. It's definitely hardwired into my being. I chatted with my mom yesterday evening about my experiences and she reminded me of Philippians 4:6:

"Do not be anxious about anything, but in everything, by prayer and petition, with thanksgiving, present your requests to God."

and Hebrews 13:6:

"So we say with confidence, "The Lord is my helper; I will not be afraid. What can man do to me?"

I learned today that these situations that seem so life-changing are all in the palm of God's hand. However, no matter how much he has to remind me, I always forget it the next day. So he reminds me again...and again...and again. I am SO GLAD that he doesn't get tired of reminding me of his goodness and his plan for my life.




I began my day in a terrified and flustered mindset and went to bed feeling so relieved and relaxed. God is good. 

Storage Solutions

Four girls in one kitchen would have most girls ripping their hair out. Thankfully, I have three wonderfully considerate roommates! Still, things can get a little cramped and we have limited counter space.

To reduce the buildup of fruits, vegetables, and breads on our countertop, we brainstormed ways to utilize the 18in x 18in space by our back door. We visited a local used furniture store where everything was in our budget but didn't fit the space limitations. We went to Bed, Bath, and Beyond where we found items that fit our space but not our budget.

Our final stop of the day was Michael's. We were looking for things unrelated to storage and then all of a sudden we look up and see a dozen wooden crates and everything just clicked.

So now, each of us has a wooden crate to decorate, stack, and then keep when we all move out. I started right away. I was so excited to begin! The pictures posted are not the finished product. I still want to paint the inside and paint some embellishments. I'll update the post with the final product.

Unrelated: I got this adorable ceramic blue bird at Michael's. I love it!

Family Christmas Letter!

Merry Christmas (soon)!

I just had the pleasure of doing the layout for the family Christmas letter (blurred for internet safety purposes) which will be e-mailed out in .pdf format to those of our readership who are internet savvy. A print version will be sent to those who prefer something to hold and put on the fridge to enjoy again and again!