Merry Christmas from Jordan's Nose

Merry Christmas & Happy New Year! Stop motion animation starring Jordan Johnson, created by Leanna Johnson.

Adhere to Me Sketch #4

In all of my sketches I have been trying to incorporate a dictionary page that includes a word that relates to the particular sketch. The dictionary I picked up for $1 only has 194 pages with big type, so my vocabulary is pretty limited... we'll see how long I can keep it up.

Adhere to me sketch #3

There is always that bit of anxiety in the back of my mind every time my tongue touches the popsicle for the first time...

Sketchbook Project: Sketch #2

Sketch numero dos of the 'Adhere to Me' series.

First Sketch Done!

Just completed my first sketch for the 2011 Sketchbook Project. It is always hard to start a new sketchbook... kinda intimidating, all those blank pages just waiting to be filled up...

My theme is 'Adhere to Me' so what popped into my mind...a bee covered in pollen. I used pen, colored pencil and cut out shapes from a dictionary page for the stem, wings and eye. I would save a lot of plastic bags if I could adhere my lunch to my legs to go to work everyday! Check back to see what page #2 will be.

Wine Label Design

My husband Jordan and I worked with Tyrel Lawson, the wine maker for Two Rivers Winery and Kahil Winery, to design the label for his 2009 Malbec wine. Tyrel loves the outdoors and fishing so he wanted to incorporate a Cahill fly into the design. I took Jordan's illustration of the fly and brought it all together, working with an earthy color palette, a cracked texture to give it a weathered look, and a little trout emblem. The label was printed on a textured linen with the fly, trout, and name embossed. Tyrel's Malbec won two gold medals in the Colorado Mountain Wine Festival in Palisade, CO. and was featured on KKCO 11 News on NBC. Kelly Asmuth reported on September 17th, 2010:

GRAND JUNCTION, Colo. (KKCO) - A new local wine is emitting a bouquet of success, after winning a double–gold medal at the Colorado Mountain Winefest in Palisade.

Two Rivers Winery in Grand Junction has mastered the art of cultivating vino. Chief Winemaker Tyrel Lawson worked his way up from the vineyards, and now, he's pressing out his own label, Kahil.

"I'm making it different because I'm doing different varietals. I'm doing a Malbec, which Two Rivers is not. There are only a couple other wineries in the Valley actually doing that," says Lawson.

But Lawson didn't have to venture far to create his label. A law passed two years ago in Colorado allows wineries to share their facility with other labels, under a contract.

"I can use the same tanks that I use at Two Rivers to make their wines to make mine," says Lawson.

"This is the way a lot of people do get their starts in wineries in California, and our motivation is to create an employee benefit," says Two Rivers Winery Owner Bob Witham.

It’s a benefit that's also shared by Two Rivers, which is pleased to keep their double–gold awarded mixologist for as long as possible. It's the only winery in the state, so far, to take up on the collaboration, which vastly supports budding vintners.

"The only profit that they're making is the overhead, which probably, in the end, is a profit that's going towards helping with the electricity and the water that I'm using," says Lawson.

While Lawson uses nights and weekends to mix his own masterpiece varietals, he hopes that one day the barrels will belong to him.

"That is the plan. With this start, having been able to put away money and slowly overtime build it up, I hope to eventually own my own (wine vineyard)," says Lawson.

"It's all part of the emerging industry in Colorado," says Witham. An industry aiming to captivate connoisseurs across the country, one bottle at a time.

The Sketchbook Project

Get a sketchbook mailed to you, submit it when you're done, and track is as it goes on tour all over the country! Check it out: The Sketchbook Project

Smile! You're on Google Maps

As I was strolling down the virtual streets of Denver Google Maps on a blustery Saturday afternoon, I stumbled upon two odd fellows...The first appeared to be demonstrating Neo-Nazism across 18th st. The second, well, he looked as if he had just been dropped off the hillbilly-mobile into the heart of the city. I especially like the fact that everyone's faces are blurred out, except for our little furry friend... they blurred out his hand instead.

Hi Ho Denver!

The 2010 HOW Design Conference is fast approaching... and I can hardly wait! AIGA contacted it's Denver members and asked for design submissions for a post card collection that will be given out to people at the conference. The post card is supposed to demonstrate Denver's pioneering spirit... so this is what my brain spit out.

Living in Old Advertising

Now that so much of advertising is digital these days, what are we to do with those old billboards? Front Architects thinks we should live in them! Why not?! Waste not, want not.

I Say Ferver

For anyone who hasn't seen this music video for Ramona Falls, 'I Say Ferver,' you need to... Great! This is just one piece in Stefan Nadelmans awesome collection of work. Here are some of my other faves:

New Employee

Meet Diesel, my new secretary. He does an awesome job at staying on top of my emails. I think he actually prefers the inbox over the litter box.