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graphic design

Web Design for McRae Homes

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I know I say this a lot, but I really do have the most amazing clients. From the the word “go” this sweet family was working around a baby who wanted to come early, building a new home, two little girls needing step one of education and a world pandemic.

Mike and the Kidlets

Mike and the Kidlets

Mike treats all his clients as if they are family. After all, it’s their money, their time, and their livelihood that he’s dealing with. He’s available around the clock and does whatever it takes to get the job done. Mike is the type of broker that will put on his work boots and head lamp to go in the crawl space for you, even if it’s littered with mice. He’s a unique breed of real estate agent and he’s a talented general contractor to boot.

This created an especially unique stack of challenges; creating an online vision that showcases Mike’s working style, highlights his extensive skill set and connecting it all with his talent in real estate as well. His wife Nicole is his marketing manager, house and business manager and an incredibly talented writer.

We started with a logo design that was clean and fresh with a strong and elegant bent. Working in strictly black and white, focusing on a design that was elegant enough to sell million dollar homes, but strong enough that no one would be surprised when Mike hops up on the roof to check out the gutters.

Nicole partnered closely with me to create a website that was a useful space for their clients, offering a myriad of data in a clean, friendly way. From general contracting to painting to finding a home buyer for their new listing to connecting home sellers to buyers that fall in love with their home or property, the McRae Homes website is curated to showcase their mad skill set.

Introducing: RE/MAX Dynamic Properties

The new website for RE/MAX Dynamic Properties

The new website for RE/MAX Dynamic Properties

I am incredibly excited to introduce RE/MAX Dynamic Properties website! I partnered with the amazing marketing department to craft a website that the team and their licensees can be proud of. We carefully curated each image, the details, the writing and the layouts to create a fresh, clean look that invites potential buyers and sellers to stay on the site browsing beautiful homes.

This was such a cool project. And it is a feather in my cap for several reasons: not only did I get to work with the largest brokerage in Alaska, but I got to work with some of the neatest humans and there was a learning curve for the process of working with another state’s MLS. I can’t stress just how cool it is to learn about different states and I might have to add that to my business dreams, to get my hands in every state’s MLS. SO much fun!

Are you ready to take your online presence to the next level?

Web Design & Branding for Emily Martin Homes

Emily Martin has a passion for her clients, a love of the Pacific Northwest, and a talent for connecting new construction homes to their new owners. Working with Emily was an absolute treat! We started with a logo design that was clean and fresh with a modern bent and a classic style. Working with deep grays and a custom gold, Emily Martin’s logo design creates an elegance that highlights her experience with luxury homes while feeling cozy and inviting in its simplicity.

She partnered closely with me to create a website that was a useful space for her clients, offering a myriad of data in a clean, fresh way. From home staging to finding a home buyer for her new listing to connecting home sellers to buyers that fall in love with the home or property, Emily’s website is curated to clients’ needs. Looking forward to many more projects with Emily!

NEWLY RELEASED: Drakaina Apothecary

Drakaina, Fire & Ice Collection | December 2019

Drakaina, Fire & Ice Collection | December 2019

“Just as winter is finally taking hold in the Pacific Northwest, Drakaina Apothecary breathes new life directly into my skin and I’m reborn.”

Even though we typically work with real estate agents (it’s kind of our “thing”), winter brings slower homebuyers and frees me up to putter on projects with my friends! Sarah Alston stepped in to help with the logo and branding, and we created a look and feel that matched the product: luxurious, calming and invigorating. Drakaina is also woman-centric, and empowered.

As a practicing, licensed Massage Therapist with over 200 hours of clinical aroma therapy training Amanda was inspired to create products that would support and prolong the benefits of massage and that other licensed Massage Therapists could confidently utilize and recommend to their clients.

To think and act with a clarity of purpose draws on the shamanistic totem of the dragon. Drakaina is the typical name for a female dragon, which as a female (she/her) owned business combined both her passion for helping others and her spiritual totem to create a brand that showcases a clear purpose towards physical healing and internal peace.

We started with the idea of the dragon totem, and drew on ideas of the high-end clientele that was currently using the products, dipped it in gold and let the design do the rest. Our team created the branding, the website, labels and sales brochures as well.

This & fuzzy socks are all I want in my stocking this year!

Autumn Blues | A Chat with Chad Zinda of Metropolist

Autumn Blues got you down? Here’s what to do:

Layout for Sales Success Postcard, Autumn 2019

Layout for Sales Success Postcard, Autumn 2019

Chad Zinda is one of the owners of Metroplist Group in the Seattle area, and he was kind enough to chat with me about what his real estate brokers lean towards during what the rest of real estate considers “downtime.” “The last 90 days of the year we take as a personal challenge - and it works.” With nearly $6.5 million in sales since October 1st, he’s not wrong! His team is rocking this last quarter.

I asked Chad if I could share our conversation and what he would suggest for design work during this downtime. “Remind your potential clients that buyers are looking during the holiday season. So many people would love to be in their new home before the holidays. Take advantage of it!” says Chad.

Ready to show off your sales this year?

UNIQUE PROPERTIES | Farmhouse Gardens, Mount Vernon

Finished Brochure for Farmhouse Gardens in Mount Vernon, Washington | Sold at $1,550,000

Finished Brochure for Farmhouse Gardens in Mount Vernon, Washington | Sold at $1,550,000

This property is easily one of my favorites, mostly because I have a gardeners’ heart and you can find me in my garden more often than not and this property totally tugs on my heartstrings.

As with so many things, it all starts with a picture.

To begin, my client sent me a myriad of pictures to review and choose from. I settled in with pen-and-ink (just kidding, I type - what year is it?) to write about this stunning property, leading clients down the garden path and into their new home. I took the stunning photography and created beautiful writing, styled a logomark and created a unique look and feel for the property.

Inside, the brochure tells the story of the home in words and photos and then invites the potential buyer to imagine themselves in the home. Farmhouse Gardens was an absolute treat to be involved with.

“As a graphic designer, it’s my job to make your property look good; to find the story, the heartbeat of the property and then to showcase that heart to potential buyers.”
— Jesse Gibbs
Custom Email Campaign

Custom Email Campaign

 

The Ampersand Logomark | Why "&" Matters

Why the Ampersand?

Photo courtesy of Max Anderson

Photo courtesy of Max Anderson

According to Wikipedia (and why would the internet lie to a person?)

"The ampersand can be traced back to the 1st century A.D. and the Old Roman cursive, in which the letters E and T occasionally were written together to form a ligature. During the following development of the Latin script that led up to the Carolingian minuscule (9th century) the use of ligatures in general diminished. The et-ligature, however, continued to be used and gradually became more stylized and less revealing of its origin..."

...yeah, this is kind of where I stopped reading. Sorry, but I was tired. Essentially what it says is that the ampersand was created because of the inability to take the time to write out the E and the T as their own letters, so they were smooshed together and no one ever thought to change it back. So, laziness, in its own way, created an exceptionally beautiful graphic that I am madly in love with.

I also chose it as my logo mark because in the real estate industry there's always one more thing we can do to rock someone's entire world...so we start with branding. AND then we build a website featuring the home, with interior and exterior highlights...AND then we create a marketing campaign through emails, blogs and event....& it goes on. So many wonderfully creative ways to get heard in a media heavy world. AND we've only just begun.

Special Release | For Homes on the Market 40+ Days

Property Branding | Tied with a Bow

Life happens. Listings lag. Clients fall out and change their minds. Finances can get in the way of a clients' big dreams. Luckily, your listing can always get a fresh start.

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Believe it or not we might - might - be easing into a buyers market during the busy season in real estate. According to Redfin, Seattle's overall housing inventory has doubled since May 2018. Meanwhile, home values have dropped by 4.5% since last year, according to Zillow, and they're projecting the fall to continue into the next year. This is creating a slow moving perfect storm for home buyers who’ve been considering a move.

All this means that real estate brokers are seeing more days on the market, and a slower home selling season. A quick review of the NWMLS shows more than a hundred homes in the area that have been on the market for more than a month.

Enter the Designer.

Special Release | 7.9.19

For Homes on the Market 40+ Days

So, here’s our special Sunshine Plan for homes that have been on the market for more than the 40+ days since spring began, homes that are ready for a little bit of love and a fresh perspective, all wrapped up…

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…& tied with a bow.

Brand New // New Brand

Tracy Vaughn and I have worked together for so long that we’re actually rebranding on my own design! This is a great place to be - watching my clients grow both themselves and their businesses! Tracy is an exceptionally hardworking broker; she’s passionate, fiercely feminine, artistic and funny and we wanted to create something that felt more like who she is. The new branding had to feel like a “step up” in terms of style, while not losing the aspects of her previous logo that she loved for so long.

Don’t Dull My Sparkle

After a fun-filled trip to visit my extended family in North Carolina and Virginia, I came down with the plague and lost all energy for almost ten days, and the bulk of my creativity as well. Being creative on demand is a skill that takes time to develop, but when you’re out, you’re out.

I reached into my wonderful toolbag for my favorite logo designer, Sarah Alston, who just happened to be available for a two day Design Jam with me. The homes that Tracy is hoping to focus on listing are in Sarah’s old backyard; it was a match made in heaven. “Just design something that makes you want to list a house with this amazing agent. Go.”

The Drawing Board

Okay, I can almost hear my favorite prof telling me that “you have to do the process” and all the other brilliant things she would say anytime I tried to take a shortcut. You have to do a thousand sketches, throw them away and start fresh. Since Sarah’s been helping me with logo design, she’s been reminding me of a lot of my basics and we’ve been revamping the way I offer deliverables to my clients.

For Tracy, it was important for me to create a mood board with her because 1) I wanted her to see herself in this new light, and 2) it helped me hone in on her goals and needs for her the direction of her business.

On a side note: I may have sparkled all over myself with monogram this design. *swoon

Making a Match

I know that I say this often, but this really is one of my favorite things about my job; The Refresh. Watching the look and feel begin with an idea, a touch of color and few magic sprinkles and spreading into new high-end brochures, an updated website style, email designs - each piece adding to the value of her brand. Special thanks to Sarah Alston for the awesome logo design and to Tracy for being the kind of creative person that is a joy to play with.

There’s always an “&”

And. we’re already sold and on to showcase this incredible sale in only three days to the rest of the neighborhood! Congratulations to my client and her clients, too!

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NEW LISTING: Escala #2005

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Remodeled. Redesigned. Reimagined.

Recently remodeled with wide plank rift oak floors, a wall on the southside removed to reveal more extended views of the Puget Sound. An exposed concrete ceiling adds height and custom style to the space, automatic Lutron shades make for easy privacy and walls of windows invite the sunshine in to fill the space. The elegant gourmet kitchen offers a custom-built dining bar with refrigerator drawers, granite countertops, custom backsplash and stunning Italian Pedini cabinetry. Stainless steel appliances and plenty of counterspace are ready for the budding chef. Modern custom lighting and a built-in, mirrored bar in the dining area creates a luxurious space ready for entertaining.

 

2 Bedrooms + Den
2 Bathrooms
1,988 Square Feet
2 Balconies
Semi-Private Vestibule
2 Parking Spaces
1 Storage Space

Offered at $2,395,000

Collateral included a custom property website [ Escala2005.com ], a brochure, an email campaign & a Just Listed postcard

Collateral included a custom property website [ Escala2005.com ], a brochure, an email campaign & a Just Listed postcard

RE/MAX Northwest

RE/MAX Northwest

Work Hard. Be Nice.

RE/MAX Northwest is the largest RE/MAX in Washington State and they are still growing. They needed a website that was dynamic and engaging, but also useful. So, it needed to be pretty, but they also needed to be able to showcase properties, build out a Market Report and blogs, and showcase their current and new brokers.

Custom Design_Map of Seattle and Eastside for REMAX Northwest NEW OFFICES.jpg

It started with their tagline: Work Hard. Be Nice. We wanted to capture the kindness and values of the people that work there, embrace the largeness of the company and welcoming to potential brokers. Wordsmithing is always important; the owners had done an incredible job of putting these values into words, which made my job much easier, and helped me understand what they needed to showcase. We made recommendations on the direction for the site, but they gave our team a lot of freedom to be creative.

Each of the ten locations is highlighted individually, with custom coded IDX feeds for each location, highlighted properties and beautiful images. Custom map design, market report design and tons of research went into this project, and the clients were thrilled with how it turned out!

Pantone's Color of the Year | Living Coral

PANTONE 16-1546 Living Coral

PANTONE 16-1546 Living Coral

According to Pantone: “Vibrant, yet mellow PANTONE 16-1546 Living Coral embraces us with warmth and nourishment to provide comfort and buoyancy in our continually shifting environment.”

All I can think when I see this is color is my best friends dumb little antique chair that she painted this wonderful, shocking color that matches nothing in her home so it sits on the porch.

My best friend’s husband Sam pictured on the chair, his true love, Luna on his lap and guard dog, Xollin.

My best friend’s husband Sam pictured on the chair, his true love, Luna on his lap and guard dog, Xollin.

It’s wonderful, bright, cheery and ridiculous. Pair it with blues and it feels like a beach house. Pair it with grays and it becomes elegant.

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Pantone’s goal was to create an authentic color that is both sociable and spirited that symbolizes our innate need for optimism and playful expression. Mission accomplished.

 

And speaking of coral…

Dr. David Vaughan is a marine biologist who works specifically with coral reefs. Due to an actual “oops” in science, he found out that while the coral reefs are still in danger, he could speed up the growth of the reefs by - get this - breaking them. Just a “happy little accident,” as Bob Ross likes to say. But this happy accident is going to change, and possibly save, our oceans.

Introducing: The Seattle Condo Group

The new website for The Seattle Condo Group

The new website for The Seattle Condo Group

I’m so freaking excited to introduce this incredible website! Featuring a carefully curated collection of condos that possess the exacting standards that we expect for our clients. When we talk about the luxurious lifestyle of downtown Seattle, this is what we're talking about.

Full page ad design in Luxe Magazine, announcing the release of TheSeattleCondoGroup.com

Full page ad design in Luxe Magazine, announcing the release of TheSeattleCondoGroup.com

Dreaming of Kitchens

I love kitchens; I’m not completely useless in a kitchen, but outside of the best toast and coffee that you’ve ever had it’s not really my forte. Meanwhile, the man that I love is constantly in the kitchen trying new things. Smells of slow roasting garlic, fresh spices and simmering something on the stove that makes me drool.

Needless to say, I’m much happier on the other side of the dining bar with a drink and a good story while he cooks. But I still love a good kitchen. Here are a few of my favorites from this year.

“I had a client who did a big half day clam bake with nearly 30 brokers. They laughed and ate and talked and took photos and posted it on their social media. The house sold within 2 weeks. It’s a great way to showcase a home and property, especially as the season slows down.”
— Deep Thots with Jesse Gibbs

Listed by Olga Dyckman, Windermere | 737 Olive Way #2705, Seattle

Condo kitchen are always a challenge, but Olive 8 certainly does them well. Pedini cabinetry, neutral colors, inset lighting and soft finishes play with the open spaces and the floor-to-ceiling windows. This kitchen makes me dream of dabbling in fine cuisine, puttering over buttery sauces and warm breads while soft holiday music plays in the background.

Pending by Marilisa Vergottini, Marketplace Sotheby’s | 24280 NE 26th Court, Sammamish

I love the modern lines, the subway tiles and the use of both light and space in this kitchen; I just envision lots of laughter, tiny conversations going on throughout the room, Holiday music blaring and someone yelling not to let the dog out.

SOLD by Scott Whittlesey, Marketplace Sotheby’s | 4020 94th Avenue NE Yarrow Point WA

There’s something magical about including the outdoors as part of your kitchen; not only does it add an entirely new space to the inclusion, but it also brings nature into your home. My husband enjoys cigars and we both enjoy the outdoors, so to be able to finish dinner and head to the patio to curl up next to the fire for a hot toddy and a cigar? Smashing.

Listed by Jamie Michaud, Realogics Sotheby’s | 28 Forest Glen Lane, Lakewood

The granite countertops are the most delicious shade of sunshine and the glass subway tiles mirror the color and bring warmth to the entire kitchen. I love the french window cupboards with glassware and lighting; the shape of the kitchen could easily become cramped, but the skylights, curated lighting and use of different textures creates an open and welcoming space.

Significant Sales | Olga Dyckman

Selling the Skyline of Seattle | The Seattle Condo Group

Selling the Skyline of Seattle | The Seattle Condo Group

As the holidays approach there’s a rush to showcase sold properties and to highlight the work that the year has wrought; it’s my favorite time of year because it’s not about selling - it’s the celebration of a job well done, a highlight of happy clients!

Making at Impact

Who doesn’t love getting mail? I mean, really? Not the bills. Not the random coupon papers that inevitably fill the box. But real, actual mail. There’s always something magical about it. Someone thought of you. Someone cared enough to stick a stamp on something, walk out to the mailbox and connect with you in what has become a unique way.

* * *

At this point in time, only my Aunties send cards in the mail, usually with a sweet note and a photo or two that they found in their rummagings. But it always makes me pause. There’s the moment of surprise - what? A handwritten note with my name on it? Me? Wow.

Then there’s the walk into the house where I ignore everything else and turn the letter over to see if there’s any indication of the why I received such a gift. I am always in a wonder, excited to get inside and open it up. Junk mail goes in the garbage and then I get to focus on anything fun that came that day. (Anything from Amazon is a happy surprise too! A box for ME?)

* * *

Standing Out

Anyone can send a postcard; what makes yours different? Is it the high-end paper? Is it the custom design? The size? The shape? The textures? The headline? There are a myriad of options and customizing your connections with your clients adds a magical touch to something that might just as well have ended up in the trash bin. My clients work with high end stunning homes and the designs that they require need to be just as beautiful.

Postcards for Jason G. showcasing an awesome sale in only a week.

Postcards for Jason G. showcasing an awesome sale in only a week.

Event Postcard for Scott W. highlighting his stunning Clyde Hill listing.

Event Postcard for Scott W. highlighting his stunning Clyde Hill listing.

* * *

My Favorites

This season, I’m in love with simplicity, elegance and whimsy. It’s the time of year where a cup of coffee and a good book are high on the priority list, so if something shows up in the mailbox, it had better be worth curling up with.

Signature Sales XL Postcards for Mary N. and Kathy M. celebrating their amazing 3rd quarter this year.

Signature Sales XL Postcards for Mary N. and Kathy M. celebrating their amazing 3rd quarter this year.

Are you ready to help your clients make their move?