At the start of the month I mentioned how I’ve been taking on more projects outside of Design Crush. Turns out that when you’ve been one thing for so long – nearly 12 years – a change of perspective helps with the next chapter going forward. In my case, a change of identity as I went back to being Kelly Beall. Getting some fresh business cards seemed like the best place to start.
Basic Invite has a nice collection of specialty business cards with plenty of modern designs to choose from, along with every other style you might be after. They offer over 180 color options, coordinate with your business or just choose your favorite. You can apply a different color and font to every element of your personalized business cards if you’d like! Speaking of fonts, there’s a library to choose from – but if that sounds too overwhelming you can just go with what they’ve suggested on the template. If you want to get extra customized choose the foil option that’s available in silver, gold, and rose gold, or the clear card.
I chose the Modern Hello design, perfect for handing out to potential clients. I love the clean lines, bold type, and straightforwardness of the layout partnered with that bright punch of green. And speaking as a graphic designer, it was a nice change of pace to find several designs that I didn’t need to change a thing on to suit my own taste.
Basic Invite offers a lot beyond business cards online, they’re also one of few sites that give customers the ability to order a printed sample of their actual invitation before they ever place their final order. Test the paper, see the quality, make sure everything meets your expectations – then choose from 40 colors of envelopes to make the perfect invite for your event. To make the process even easier, they offer an address capturing service allowing customers to share a link on any social media platform to request their friends and family’s addresses. The addresses will then be stored in your account and can be selected during the design process.
If all of that doesn’t make you want to check out Basic Invite, well, they’re currently offering 15% off with code 15FF51.
This post is sponsored by Basic Invite. Thank you for supporting that brands that help keep Design Crush kicking!
I think we can all agree that beautiful, everyday objects have a way of elevating life. Alissa Bell‘s impeccably designed minimalist modern line of notebooks and stationery embody this mindset completely in the Essentialist Collection. Elegant, clean, and simple, you’ll be sending snail mail and reaching for a notebook rather than your phone to take notes in no time. (She also does custom orders!)
1/ Birthday Box: Twenty Birthday Cards
This box of twenty birthday cards created by five different artists has saved my butt not once, but twice this month alone. Every single one is gorgeous and printed on thick paper stock, so it won’t look like you forgot to pick up a card.
3/ Petit Collage 5pc Mealtime Set (Dinosaurs)
Petit Collage offers the best modern designed children’s toys and decor, and it’s al sustainably made. I picked up a few things for two of my cousins’ birthdays this month, including this mealtime set. Get 15% off your purchase with code DESIGNCRUSH.
4/ Kristen Ess The One Signature Shampoo and Conditioner
I took some travel sizes of these along when I had to travel last month and really fell in love with the way they made my hair feel. The scent is more powerful than most hair products I’ve tried, but I don’t dislike it and feel like it helps cover any second day hair smell.
5/ MyChelle Lip Hints
These conditioning lip balms have been valuable players in keeping my dry winter lips moisturized. The light tints are a nice added bonus.
6/ Sqwishful Pop Up Sponges
These guys are 100% renewable plant-based, 100% biodegradable, and compressed to reduce their carbon footprint. And they come in a fun shape.
7/ Striped Knit Crop Jumpsuit
Wish you could wear your pajamas all day? Get this jumpsuit. Not only does it make you look super pulled together, but I guarantee lots of compliments will follow. (Note: I’m 5’2″ and it fits to my ankles, not cropped.)
These die-cut photo cards from Belle & Union are reminiscent of vintage matted photos, with no tape or adhesive necessary to secure them. The hidden message on each of the six cards is the sweetest little surprise. Choose from Honest to Goodness, Just My Type, No Place Like Home, Pretty As a Picture, Sweeter Than Honey, and Work of Art or opt for the box set.
1/ Burt’s Bees Natural Throat Drops Honey and Lemon
Seems like everyone has already suffered their first cold of the season, and I’m no exception. Mine lasted about a week and a half and I swear these throat drops saved me from losing my mind from coughing. They’re all natural, which made them more palatable too.
2/ Fifty Type Specimens: From the Collection of Tobias Frere-Jones
These postcards from Frere-Jones’ personal collection will be loved by any type nerd. I’m looking forward to sending some out in the mail soon to brighten the day of some graphic designer friends!
3/ Gretchen Christine Vegan Leather Embroidered Convertible Tote
A sizable bag that’s perfect for toting along a ton of stuff – including my laptop some days – this bag is on point with the embroidery trend this autumn. It’s really well made and will make a great piece all winter.
4/ Honeycrisp Apples
These have been my favorite apple variety for a few years now. If you’ve never ha done before they’re super crisp and fragrant with a sweet-tart taste that varies depending on how ripe the fruit is.
5/ It’s the Great Pumpkin, Charlie Brown
I will never tire of watching holiday specials from my childhood. I’ve watched this one twice in October and will probably squeeze in one more viewing tonight after trick or treating wraps up. (Please, remember never to jump in a pile of leaves with a wet sucker!)
6/ Maybelline Dream Velvet Foundation
After running out of my go-to MAC foundation a few months ago I picked up a tube of this on a Target run and was pleasantly surprised! The whipped gel formula gives my skin a soft matte finish while also hydrating – basically unheard of.
7/ Orange Clove Signature Soy Jar Candle
While this candle smells more like a bonfire to me, I still really like it. The fragrance permeates most of the first floor and even manages to make its way upstairs.
8/ Record Storage Cube
I have one of these birch cubes with a plexiglas garage front in my living room, it acts as a sweet little stand for my portable Crosby turntable and favorite vinyl. The plexiglas is available in 13 colors as well as a wood option.
9/ Google Home
Yeah, I’m a little late to the party but I’m here. So far I love telling it to play music at any given moment as well as the phone functionality.
Lucy Holcomb started painting fun objects on cards and envelopes years ago – monstera leaves! Pop Tarts! hot dogs! – and recently turned it all into a legit business. She started off sharing her creations on Instagram and her following grew organically from there. Now you can pick up her work for yourself at Lucy Mail!
Our #resistance postcards post last month BLEW UP, so we’re doing a second round! You all downloaded and printed and shared and made my heart so full. Even more creators reached out afterwards asking to be part of any future projects and that’s where we are now, with 17 more postcards for you to mail out. I’ll continue to share new designs as long as artists and designers want to keep creating them, so if that’s you let me know!
Each download has two postcard fronts per letter-sized page, you can download the universal postcard back here. It goes without saying that these are for personal use only, each artist and designer retains the copyright to their work.
I believe in resistance through a reclamation of the feminine. There is power in women’s work, a woman’s intuition, childbearing, mothering, moon cycles. We are far from the weaker sex and the world needs our voices.
I wanted to explore the concept of resisting not just in thoughts and words but also in our physical actions – so many of us have marched lately and used our bodies and movements as a form of resistance. I love the power and community created in that way! For this artwork, I wanted to incorporate not just a visual language, but a physical one, so I chose to spell out “resist” using American Sign Language – a form of communication based on physical action.
I often need a reminder to think bigger, plan long term goals. ‘Go bigger’ is about being brave, taking risks, and taking up space. This piece was inspired by the incredible artist and human Katie Armstrong.
I spent the majority of my young life watching my parents fight for what was fair. From leading strikes out of factories in the south with unfair working conditions, to standing up the KKK when they came after their friends. Resistance and justice run deep in my veins. Forever the squeaky wheel for those who feel they have no power, I am proud to be a pain in the ass for a system that is stacked against the poor, the abused and neglected. I will remain that way until the day I die.
This quote is a line from Lin-Manuel Miranda’s Hamilton. I fell in love with Hamilton over a year ago, but I’ve discovered a new love for it in light of what’s happened in our country politically. This lyric is a good reminder to me that resistance is something that has to be cultivated and fanned like a fire.
We are deeply grateful to the Women’s March for inspiring our nation to get writing. On January 23rd, they released their first action of writing “a postcard to your Senators about what matters most to you.” The first 10 days are over, but let’s keep stuffing mailboxes.
We designed this postcard (1 of 8 in the series) as both a rebuttal to President Trump’s campaign slogan and as a way to preserve the Women’s March chant of “Love, not hate, makes America great.” The design was inspired by our love of old book covers and is our offering and encouragement to keep writing. Write to your senators, your mayor, your governor, your town police, community organizers, local lawyers, friends in need of a little encouragement, etc.
Having spent over 500 hours in a natural history museum making artwork about the science of our interdependence with nature, few things about politics frighten me more than the prospective damage that can be done to our already strained environment by policies passed by our elected officials. We won’t get a second chance at this, so let’s speak up like it matters.
As always, women – particularly women of color – are getting together to fix some bullshit, call out inequality, and hold those in power accountable for their actions. Thank you to everyone who’s shouting out for human rights for all, regardless of race, gender, ethnicity, or anything else. WOMEN! WOMEN! WOMEN!
Empathy. That’s what is missing. The fact that anyone would argue against this most basic of statements shows how unwilling we are to walk in someone else’s shoes. The fact that anyone would perceive this statement as a threat (as though it said “ONLY black lives matter”) shows how privileged we are. That everyone wouldn’t just understand that it’s actually saying “black lives matter, TOO” shows how unwilling we are to listen. There are so many things to be angry and frustrated about with our new President, but to me, “Black Lives Matter” is the archetypal rally cry. Until we embrace this fundamental truth about our fellow Americans, we will be, at best, a nation divided, at worst, a nation that espouses hate and discrimination as guiding principles.
In the aftermath of this election, I, along with so many others, have been suffering from “all the feels” as the kids say these days. I’ve found glimmers of post-election hope from the massive marches, the protests, and by taking whatever small steps I can to help make some sort of difference. I think this quote from Hillary is a perfect aspiration for us right now: “Let persistence plus resistance equal progress…” Our officials were elected to represent us – let’s remind them of that fact!
In science truth, in art honor.” This is a reminder that art and science are indispensable, for what they bring to our lives, and for what they bring to our society. To defend them is patriotic.
I tried going full theme, painting in red, white and blue, including words reflecting my love of our American history and texts. But ultimately I felt hemmed-in and too on-the-nose, which seemed in contrast to the idea of speaking freely and being creative. I ended up instead going full ME: all color, some pink, a touch of neon, but not too much. And I stuck to one term which kept repeating in my head like a chant as I painted: “out loud” instead of cluttering what is ultimately your postcard with a bunch of my words. If each of us take the time to amplify our best and most authentic voices to the world and to our government, then we have a real chance to affect change, whatever our politics.
My inspiration for this design is two-fold: First, I have been extremely troubled by how so many people (both politicians and everyday citizens) are normalizing or turning a blind eye to Trump’s actions (and in the case of politicians, favoring party line over human decency). Ever since the election – at each horrid turn – I keep thinking: How can these people look themselves in the mirror? How will they explain to the next generation that they played a role in this period of history? This song title by Lin-Manuel Miranda encapsulates how I feel about everyone who is not resisting. Second, the United States feels painfully fragmented, yet I refuse to lose hope that we will find ways to connect and find common ground. It was actually pretty therapeutic to create this design – to intersect and lock together the fragments as I moved from one side of the country to the other.
Resistance is the strongest when it comes from a place of love, compassion, and support. Volunteer in your community, donate to organizations that protect human rights, and make your voice heard by your representatives. As Mahatma Gandhi once said, “Action expresses priorities.” Every positive action you take is a step forward, and that’s all that matters.
