I recently sat down at a coffee chat with a networking buddy, and he hits me with this bombshell: his friend quoted what could only be described as a small fortune to do his logo design. His disbelief was evident, which led me to drop my own bombshell: I wouldn't do a logo design for less than three times that amount. Cue the disbelief and raised eyebrows. Let me be clear, you don't need a crazy expensive logo to get the job done if it's not worth the price tag to you. But it is important to recognize that a logo isn't just a doodle. It's the face of your business, and that's worth a bit more than pocket change. Here’s why I charge what I do for a well-crafted logo design.

Color is one of those tricky things that can look different depending on so many factors. Something blue on my screen, might look more purple on your due to the quality of your device, resolution, and individual settings. It gets even more complex when you're comparing the colors on a digital screen, which uses a 3-color process (RGB), to printed colors, which uses a 4-color process (CMYK). Not to mention the differences you may see depending on your printer brand, the quality, ink levels, etc. So, if you've ever wondered why the engaging colors on your screen lose their luster on paper, you're not alone. Let's demystify the reasons behind the color discrepancy between digital screens and print.

You've got a business that you work hard on day in and day out, and you're ready to take it to the next level by developing your brand + website design. Now, you're faced with a crucial decision: do you hire a local freelance designer here in Denver, or do you go the agency route? Before you start summoning the corporate cavalry, let me share a few of my thinking-est thoughts on why hiring a freelance designer might be your best choice — or not!

I know that your business is your baby. You've birthed it, raised it, and watched it develop. So, when it's time to level up your branding or website it's important to decide whether or not working with a freelance designer in Denver is the right choice for you. If you're on the fence, I'm dropping 5 compelling reasons why partnering with a freelancer can be the secret sauce to your business's success.

I’ve been freelancing for 6 years now. And I think that I’ve finally come to accept that there are ebbs and flows when it comes to the amount of work I have. I used to panic every time I had a little lull (ask any of my business besties about the frantic phone calls they’d get). But nowadays I try to embrace the slower times and have faith that it’ll come back around. So when you find yourself coming down from a peak into one of these valleys, here are 3 things you can do when business is slow that continue to build your business and help you get more work coming down your funnel.

You know how some people cringe at the word moist? It's just got a gross sound to it and sends a nasty image through your mind. Well, if you're not watching the language you use for your brand and website you may as well be shouting MOIST MOIST MOIST MOIST MOIST from your proverbial rooftop. The words you choose to use give off a certain impression of you and when you're representing your brand, you gotta make sure that impression is the right one. Here are three ways you can watch your language and more effectively communication with your audience.

Face to face in the real world, it’s fairly easy for people to get a feel for what it’d be like to work with you. But online, it’s harder to get the full picture of who you really are and what you’re like. And if you don’t have any presence online at all, it can be a red flag for someone who might not think you’re not a legitimate business because they Googled you, and the only thing that came up was your Xanga page from 7th grade (yiiiiiiikes!). So start here if you’re looking for a way to look more professional online, level up your online presence or maybe even just get started with the basics.

“Your prices gave me a bit of sticker shock, to be honest.“

“I can’t justify spending thousands and not walking away with physical items.“

“Well I can find someone else to do the exact same thing cheaper.“

These are all things I’ve heard from people during consult calls for my branding services. I think tact sometimes goes out the window when it comes to talking about money, but I get it. My services are expensive. Not as expensive as some, but more expense than others. And I’m not planning to lower them anytime soon because I know exactly what goes into those services. Creating a strategic, intentional brand from scratch is one of the hardest parts of building your marketing toolkit. It’s so much harder than throwing together 264 different looking graphics just because the templates are available on Canva. So let me break down some of the maybe unseen value that you’re getting when you book a brand package with an experienced designer (like me!).

I’ve been having conversations with clients and doing research into accessibility + ADA compliance for small business websites. Sounds super exciting, right? Well whether it’s exciting or not, it's important. So I wanted to share some of the things I’m learning and 5 easy accessibility upgrades you can make to your web design so that together we can all pitch in to help the online world become a more accessible place.

It’s that time of year. No, not the most wonderful time of the year. The time of year when my schedule starts slowing down and I start reflecting because we’re going into the new year.

I really like the concept of choosing a word for the new year to focus on what’s important. So for 2020 I’ve chosen the word realign. My goals these days are more about creating the life + feelings that I want to experience rather than trying to attain something. Over the last year I’ve had to redefine what makes me successful, motivated and essentially who I am as a person. And I’m so excited to keep working on it this year. So the free wallpaper for January is a bit of a celebration and I hope it brings some fun into your life!

Someone explain to me how 2000 can be 20 years ago? But also, the 80’s were 20 years ago? Actually, that does make sense because I literally do not feel like the same person I did 10 years ago. I thought about doing some sort of reflection post about the last decade, but it ended up being more of a letter to my younger self and I’m okay with that. Read below for the 10 things I’d tell my 10-years younger self + some fun throwback pics.

Hello hello! Here I am on the last day of November scrambling to put together the free December wallpaper. To be perfectly honest with you, I think I’ve put it off so long because I’m just not really in the Christmas spirit this year. It’s been a busy + stressful year and I’m just ready for a break at this point. But I’m taking off 2 weeks over the holidays to reset and recharge. And in the meantime, I’m still here making the monthly wallpaper because I’d never leave you hanging like that.

Anyone else feel like January has been dragging on for just about forever? I think there's something about coming down from the hustle + bustle of the holiday season and getting back to real life that makes everything feel just a little flat. I've been super busy wrapping up projects that had been put on hold for the holidays and starting some fun new ones, too, though. So I'm hoping for a fantastic February. Plus I took some time to reflect back on what worked + didn't work in 2017 and you can read that here if you're interested. But moving on...

I'm totally digging the new FREE digital wallpaper design for February! After the ditsy pattern and pastels in January, I wanted to take this month back to something classy and neutral. Gray is pretty much my favorite color (how boring is that?!) and I'm continuing to practice my hand lettering skills each month. Let's start the new month off right and freshen up all those screens with this beauty. Please share and enjoy!