Work Process

I thought I'd show a little bit of what goes into logo designing. This"logo" is a little different, because it's not an official logo, though. I volunteer at the Little Sugar Creek Community Garden and wanted to do a snazzy little something for it. It's on park and rec owned land, networked through Friendship Gardens, and is a teaching space for Char-Meck's Wipe Out Waste. We have 4 co-managers for the garden (I'm one), and we're all pretty laid back about how things go. That said, there wasn't as much back and forth discussion about the direction of this design as there is with other logo work.

The garden is perched inside a large fenced area beside Little Sugar Creek and the LSC Greenway. The greenway itself is part of the Carolina Thread Trail. I drew inspiration from the gate, pathway and creek to form the shape and lettering.

Currently the garden is swimming in marigolds, a natural garden pest repellent. I thought marigolds capture the essence of how we garden (organically).

I wasn't crazy about the marigolds solo, so I decided to try something else. One of the crops that sets us apart from other area gardens is the hops trellis. The hops, thanks to garden co-manager Daan, are going bonkers, so this image was in celebration of them. Then Kathy, another co-manager, suggested marigolds and hops together.

The result is a colorful abundance of marigolds and hops, a logo/banner I'm quite proud of.

Looking for a logo? See some other designs I've made here. If you're interested, I'm available!

Using the Harvest

This past Saturday, these greens (a combination of sorrel, sweet potato leaves, and Malabar spinach), with the addition of some frozen chopped spinach, became a spinach and cheese pie.

Did you know you can eat sweet potato leaves? They're a great spinach substitute. I collect the young leaves that still have a bit of shininess to them. When I'm using them in a recipe like this pie I quickly blanch them prior to making the pie filling. 

The crust is a basic Pâte Brisée but I skipped the sugar because I don't like the slightest hint of sweetness with a savory filling.  The filling is very similar to this one, but I added some mozzarella since I had it on hand. 

Playin' around

Don't tell anyone, but I secretly want to design playgrounds. Not your typical park playgrounds, but natural ones that are equal parts gardening and exploration; ones that use nature as the play structure. Best I can tell, you need a degree in landscape design to do it professionally and I don't really have the want to head back to school for another degree. Somewhere in the back of my mind I can hear my dad saying, "I told you you should've studied landscape architecture." Not that he'd ever actually say that to me.

Of course, this could be the talk of the massive amount of caffeine running through my system.

Some outdoor-based blogs:
Let the Children Play
Natural Learning Initiative (from NCSU)
Natural Montessori Playgrounds
Our Days are Just Filled
Playscapes (and her spot on Dwell about building natural playscapes)

Other inspiration
Nature's Playground
Open source based PlaygroundIDEAS

 

Crack Snap Crickety ...

This is what I imagine my brain looked like this past weekend.

* * *Crack Snap Crickety Crrrrraaaaasssshhhh* * *

Sometime on Saturday I made a rash decision deleted my old Wolfie and the Sneak web address. A few hours later I realized just how much that decision would alter my internet brand "presence".

I'd been thinking about redefining my "brand" into less of a brand and producing more personal work, but I hadn't figured out how to do that.

I guess now I have to.

Anyway, if you've found the new address I'm proud of you! 

Did you see my garden tour on Sprout? Warning: the gardens are looking a little sparse these days. The mosquitoes are rampant this year, 2 kids makes getting things done a juggling act, and...well, those are excuses enough. Anyway, go check it out. And a huge thank you to Misti and Sprout for asking me to be a part of their tour!!