Blog – Page 46 – Holly Whittlef

January 30, 2014

WORK / ALLI + KEVIN

AlliInvites1

Like I mentioned, last fall was bonkers crazy. But in a totally good way! My little sister got hitched last September, which meant wedding festivities were in full force throughout the summer leading up to the big day. It also meant I got the chance to design my very first WEDDING INVITES.

If you know me, then you know I am stationary obsessed. Cards, notebooks, journals, paper...I love it and hoard it all in mass quantities. I had always wanted to design a wedding invitation suite, so when my sister offered me the chance to design hers, I was simultaneously stoked and filled with dread at the same time. My sister has a very...shall we say...keen eye for what she likes, so I didn't want her wedding day to be marred by a sister vs. sister duel over font choices and color palettes. We both take our fonts and colors very seriously, you might say.

Our vision was to design invitations that were classic, simple and modern using a neutral color palette that mirrored the neutral colors of her flowers + bridesmaid dresses. I crafted hand-drawn type for the bride + groom's names, which we incorporated into the invite, RSVP, map and several chalkboards placed all around the venue at the wedding. To finish, the whole suite was wrapped in thin twine ( my sister's idea) and sent off to all the guests. Throw in some table numbers + namecards and - voila! - we had ourselves a branded wedding!

As it turns out, she loved everything. For me, it was really special to be able to contribute to her big day in a unique way (not to mention a great learning experience for everything that goes into making a custom wedding invitation suite).

Best of all, no duels were had in the designing of her wedding invites, and I like her husband.

Win-win.

[ last four photos courtesy of DNK Photography ]

Published by Holly Whittlef in Design

January 20, 2014

ESSENTIALS: MINIMALIST WARDROBE

For some reason, 29 feels grown up.

I entered into this holy-shit-I'm-almost-30 year just last month surrounded by brunch, bloody marys and friends. It's the only way to enter into any new year, if you ask me. It's not that I am scared of being 30. That's not it, not at all. I hear from so many women that their 30s were the best years. Years that uncovered new-found levels of acceptance, intolerance for bullshit, peace of mind and a genuine love for oneself.

It IS that I fear my wardrobe is stuck in my early 20s. A time when I bought by the trends, on the cheap and with no thought whatsoever into building a functional wardrobe. There is a reason I banned Forever21 from my closet, as the memory of that awful hi-low skirt is too much to bear. For a long time, my closet didn't really feel like me. It felt like me trying to be me when in reality...none of it was me. Rather, it was that annoying girl who actually looks cute in hi-low skirts.

One of my 2014 goals is to build a minimalist wardrobe. Over the past six months, I've donated more than half my wardrobe and cleaned out my clothes / accessories / shoes to the things that I absolutely love. The things that feel like me. That means I have a good foundation of jeans, v-neck tees ( Everlane tees are a fave ), ballet flats, chambray shirts, stripes, polka dots and a few LBDs.

There are a lot of holes to fill.

Luckily, I've been consulting a few minimalist wardrobe style guides as well as a bunch of Pinterest pins for help with the process. Because it is exactly that, a process.

An interesting one, at that. Since I have mentioned this 2014 goal to my woman friends, I've had a lot interest from them on this topic. I think we all get a little lost in the fashion hype cycle, which constantly changes trends and what's hot to sell, sell, sell. So, I hope to give a few updates through the year on my process to share my transformation into a fashionable grown-up.

Or rather, the transformation to at least looking like one.

P.S. So far, I've purchased the trousers, boots and tote ( all above ) along with a plaid button-up, two sweaters and a spring military parka.

Published by Holly Whittlef in essentials, fashion, Minimalism

January 17, 2014

VOTE MADISON

Because being late to the party is apparently my thing, I am finally getting around to posting more of my design work from last semester. As I mentioned, that semester was crazy tough. I had four classes, which is only one more than the previous semester, but that extra class ( mixed in with a tough work schedule ) drove me to a far-off brink of insanity that I had no idea even existed.

Thank the sweet heavens for beer + coffee, let me tell you.

One of my favorite classes of the semester was Graphic Design. Our first big project involved developing symbols / icons to serve a community need. I immediately knew I wanted to develop a set of icons for voting. Not only is Election Day the worst-organized event in history but having worked in politics for a few years, this particular subject is near to my heart.

In developing these icons, I wanted the overall style to be clean, modern and simple. Since people of all ages, races + genders vote, the icons needed to be easily readable and function to guide voters through the voting process. I am generally happy with the way the icons turned out. If I use them in my portfolio, there will be some major tweaking to refine them to perfection.

Hopefully, these icons will help Election Day run more smoothly and as a result, voters will easily be able to navigate through City Hall and find voting to be a more enjoyable experience.

Vote or die, y'all.

Published by Holly Whittlef in Design, school

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