Tools All Designers Should Consider Using

I’ve picked up a lot of design habits since working at my new job. One of my biggest triumphs has been finding new resources I never knew existed before, and so far I think my designs have improved dramatically since I’ve been using them. So, in the spirit of sharing, I want to post some of them here.

Background Resources

For the most part I’ve been using SubtlePatterns.com – an amazing treasure trove of seamlessly tiling backgrounds, excellent for both commercial and personal projects! However, if nothing on that site fits my fancy (which is rare), I usually google “textures for web” (or something similar) and get hit in the face with a million resources. For web designers, Google is King.

Grids & Wireframes

I usually conform to the 960 grid system, over at 960.gs (yes, that’s a real URL!). Their downloadable kit provides you with a perfectly spaced 960 grid in every file format imaginable (well, that’s practical, anyway). For wireframes, I don’t use Balsamiq for work or freelance projects, but if I want to organize something for myself or a friend really quickly, Balsamiq is definitely the way to go. Plus, it’s cute!

UI Kits

UI Kits are (somehow) a fairly new phenomenon to me, and I’m not sure why – they’re fast, they’re sleek, and they’re usually free! Google is often your best bet. However, there are some great examples over at Queness and SpeckyBoy. I don’t often use them straight up so much as I like using them as a basis of inspiration, but if you need a quick button style or something of that sort, UI kits are definitely the way to go!

Web Fonts

Most people have picked up the new web fonts craze, but if you haven’t, start now. Free services like Google Web Fonts provide you with an AMAZING amount of free fonts you can use, and even better, you can use them like they’re web-safe! Long gone are the days of Arial, Georgia, Tahoma, and Lucida Sans — now with Google Web Fonts (and other similar services), the possibilities are nearly endlesss!

There are lots of other resources I like to use from time to time, but these are my main four that I use in almost all the projects I do now. If you like this post, stay tuned – in the near future, we’ll be putting up a master list of resources that the three of us pull from. Got some favorite resources you’d like to share? Post below!

Office Politics.

I love my job, and I’m lucky that I love the people I work with. Everyone gets together over lunch and we get along really well in the office. As any company does, we’ve grown significantly since my starting four months ago. New people added to the mix makes for different dynamics.

Most people who have worked or are working in an office environment can tell you different stories about how Person A talks about Person B and Person C doesn’t agree with Person A and Person D hates Person C and so on. It’s almost inevitable that after eight hours a day, 40+ hours a week of seeing the same people, there might be a little tension. Here are a few ways to deal with such situations, whether they be in an office environment or any other job.

If you find yourself involved

Be the bigger person.
Nobody likes overhearing coworkers straight-up arguing in the office. If your disagreements become very public and occurring increasingly more often, pull them aside to a quiet room where you can discuss what’s wrong. Take the high road, don’t antagonize the situation. This is a workplace, and matters should be handled appropriately, objectively and professionally.

Keep up appearances.
In other words, be professional about it! This is your work place, keep your personal problems out of it. Have a problem with someone? Fine, but don’t air your dirty laundry. It’s not your place to overshare your problems or issues with your coworkers. More often than not, nobody else is interested in hearing about it. They’re there to work. If you really need to talk about it, see my next point.

Take it to a higher authority.
If it becomes big enough of a problem, it should be brought to someone’s attention that something isn’t working out. Instead of trying to solve the problem yourself and possibly making it worse, bring it to someone who oversees you or your level. The person you’re having disagreements with might not listen to what you have to say, but they need to keep things civil with people above them.

If you are witness but not involved

Keep it that way and do not take sides.
The last thing you need is to become involved in a problem that is not your own. Don’t even gossip about it. Before you know it you’ll be pulled in and it’ll become your problem. Stay on the sidelines and reach out to someone above you before becoming involved.

Take it to a higher authority.
Again, take it to a higher authority. You might not directly be involved and it might not be your problem. but if it’s affecting your work, then it becomes your problem. Neither of the offending parties may not realize that their actions or words are affecting those around them, so to get it resolved quickly, it may need to be brought to someone’s attention.

Nobody enjoys working in an environment that has become hostile. Even if it’s not a straight forward argument; gossip and tension becomes very obvious in the work place and if not taken care of properly, becomes everyone’s problem. Don’t let office politics affect how you work.

*None of which I write is reflective of my own job or personal experience in my current position, merely observation.

Why You Should Keep a Twitter.

I’m a tweet-a-holic.

I didn’t used to be. In fact, I thought the whole concept of Twitter was pretty stupid when it first came out. You only had 140 characters to work with, and it was usually only to inform people with stupid crap like, “I’m in the bathroom!” or “Drinking on the porch!” What was the point? We already had Facebook, MySpace was dying, G+ was on the rise .. I didn’t see the need for another social app. Nothing clicked.

It wasn’t until my last quarter of college that I really got into it. I had a professor that pushed for us to join Twitter for a couple years, and still, I didn’t see the point. He swore up and down that it was great for networking, though, and after some time, I caved. It took a few days for me to get the hang of it, but man .. I can tell you right now, with full confidence, that joining Twitter was probably one of the best things I ever did for myself, and I’ll tell you why.

1. Twitter is one of the best apps for networking. I have made so many great contacts in the industries I work for, and even better, I’ve made some great friends, too!

2. Twitter can help you find a job. Looking for a job? Follow some companies you’d like to work for. Look for people in your industry, and follow them, too. Twitter (and Craigslist) is how I got the job I have now, and to this day I still see job listings being posted on Twitter all the time. Never underestimate the power of simple social apps.

3. It keeps you on top of things in your industry. I foliow a lot of blogs, and the easiest way for me to keep up with them is to follow them on Twitter. These blogs, like Smashing Magazine (@smashingmag) and .net Magazine (@netmag), often post updates about web trends and other things going on in the web industry. If you want an easy way to stay on top, find top resources for your line of work and follow them on Twitter.

4. It’s entertaining. I never expected Twitter to have such a great entertainment factor, but seriously, there are some funny/interesting accounts worth following. For designers, freelancers, and other aspiring creatives, I personally recommend Clients From Hell (@clientsfh).

5. It’s a good way to connect with clients without them delving into your personal life. I keep my Facebook personal, and my Twitter public. Not that I have anything particularly horrifying on my Facebook, but it’s nice to have an online friendspace away from the eyes of clients. On Twitter, you can have a personal life but still be professional.

6. It keeps you in-the-know. Many cities have Twitter accounts to report local weather conditions, traffic updates, construction areas, etc. I follow a couple of these accounts personally, and seeing these updates in my Twitter feed is a lot more convenient than trying to seek them out elsewhere.

As you can see, Twitter is a great utility for professional creatives. Other than updates from various friends, my feed is a rich collective of resources, job listings, and industry news. Don’t underestimate Twitter like I did once — if you don’t have an account already, I highly recommend getting one!

The Starbucks Stereotype – Making It Work

When people hear the word freelancer they often immediately bring to mind one of two things – either a homeless guy bumbling his way down the side of the street slurring his words through a whiskey stained beard yelling “NNNYYYII’M A WRITER!” to passing cars, or the assumed tech-geek hunched over a MacBook at the local Starbucks.

Fortunately and unfortunately, the Starbucks Stereotype – like most stereotypes – is rooted in some sort of fact. As a freelancer, it’s nice to have the luxury of working wherever you’d like (or wherever you can.) Many of us are fortunate enough to have home offices set up to our exact preferences and specifications (something you’ll hear more about from me in a future post) but others have to make due however they can, wherever they can, whenever they can.

Of course, it would be just my luck that this week they are doing construction on our apartment, so not only did I have to dismantle my entire office, but it’s a bit of a pain to work in the house at all with all the banging and vacuuming and other loud, distracting noises. Some things you can’t muffle with loud music, you know?

So today I am here, living the stereotype (sans MacBook) and attempting to get some work done amid the throngs of retired football coaches and veterans of some foreign war of another who take over the Starbucks on Monday mornings – and it’s kind of rough.

Fortunately, I’ve sort of come by a set of guidelines to help me stay focused in times where solitude is more or less impossible to find, so I thought I would share them with you all today. Maybe it’ll help you get some work done, too!

• Bring Headphones. I seriously cannot stress this enough. I prefer the tiny earbuds that slip in my ears unnoticed, but if you’d rather have a big honkin’ set of noise-cancelling couch cushions, go for it. To each his own, dude. Headphones, though, are amazing. You can pick your own music – or a podcast, movie, or book on tape if that’s your thing – and it helps tune out the world around you. Sure, that muffled chatter from two tables over might not seem distracting, but just wait til you see how much more focused you are once you’re able to tune it out.

• Load a Gift Card. This may not seem important, but hear me out – I keep a Starbucks card loaded with just enough funds to get me one or two drinks throughout the course of working a few days out of the week. This keeps me from spending more money than I’m theoretically making, and also from being too hopped up on caffeine to actually focus.  Besides, even if you load up more than you think you’ll use, you’ll use it eventually, even if you’re not working.

• Plan for 15 minutes to settle in. I don’t know about you, but it takes me a little bit of time to get focused and figure out what’s on my plate for the day. If I have limited time to work, I’m less likely to actually get work done. Instead, if I’m trying to squeeze in work between other activities, I don’t stop anywhere if I don’t have at least, like, 45 minutes to an hour to spare. I need that time to get ready, relax, and not feel like I’m in a rush. It also allows for some padding in case there are no tables available or the line is insanely long.

• Pack Light, But Pack Wise.  Don’t bring a ton of crap to wherever it is you’re going – just don’t. On the flip side, though, you want to prepare yourself for things to not go your way. I always bring my tablet, even if I’m going to be working on the laptop that day. Why? I might not have internet, my phone (which I use as an mp3 player) might not pick up a good signal for listening to music, etc.

• Be Flexible. I used to have a bad habit of saying “Well, guess I won’t work today! No tables free!” Stop that! No! If there are no tables free, look closer. Chances are there might be one available that you can sit at until your table of choice is free (you know, the one next to the wall socket?) or you can ask nicely to share with someone who’s sitting at a larger table. People don’t mind. Honest. Just leave them alone and don’t be creepy.

Anyway, these are just a few things that I’ve done to help ease the inconvenience of having to work out of my home office – what about you? Any tips or tricks for turning the world in to your office?

Steal Like An Artist

Sometimes we all need that kick in the pants to get our act together.

Steal Like An Artist by Austin Kleon was that kick in the pants for me. I’ve been under a bit of a dry spell as far as creativity goes – the urge to create anything after thinking for eight hours of the day is little to none. I needed something to get me out of this slump, and after reading reviews about this book, I instantly ordered it. After receiving the book in the mail and devouring it in under an hour, the urge to create something with my hands was instantly reignited. It was the exact inspiration I needed to start changing my habits, and I want to highlight a few of my favorite pieces from this book to share.

The Secret: do good work and share it with people.

I just hit on this last week about how I wanted to build my own stockpile of content to share with people instead of recycling the same information. A lot of people believe that hoarding their styles and shorthand will ‘give away’ their secrets to being a great designer, but the secret is to share it with everyone. Austin Kleon gives two examples of people who gave away their secrets: Bob Ross and Martha Stewart. People love reading about how other people solve the same problems they’re going through and hope to pick up a few pieces of information that they did not already know. Isn’t that why you’re here right now?

Geography is no longer our master.

I grew up on a farm in southwestern Minnesota where my closest neighbor was a quarter mile away. Today, I follow exactly 886 people on Twitter (currently). I can guarantee you that I do not know half of these people in person. These are people I find inspirational, people whose respect I value. I don’t think I’d be where I am today if it weren’t for some of the advice I’ve received and people I’ve met online. But I also crave change and solitude: I seek out new and different places to get out of my everyday rituals. Here’s one of my favorite quotes out of his book:

“To say that geography is no longer our master isn’t to say that place isn’t important. Where we choose to live still has a huge impact on the work we do. At some point, when you can do it, you have to leave home. You can always come back, but you have to leave at least once.

 

Your brain gets too comfortable in your everyday surroundings. You need to make it uncomfortable. You need to spend time in another land, among people that do things differently than you. Travel makes the world look new, and when the world looks new, our brains work harder.”

Use your hands.

This was probably one of my favorite sections. I’m not sure why, but I’ve always felt that I need to be told repeatedly to go make something with my hands. I’ve always been drawn to my shiny computer monitor with its endless supply of visual stimulation and adobe programs, but I need to make more of an effort to push away from my computer desk and work with my hands. Which is silly, because I get the most satisfaction when I’m thumbing through the pages of a book, rubbing the eraser dust off a sheet of paper and spreading paint across a canvas. I wish I could say that it’s because I have less time to do these things, but I know it’s not. I need to make more of an effort to push myself out of my computer chair and let myself play for a while.

To wrap this up, I would highly recommend this book to anyone who is looking for a new source of inspiration. Whenever I feel like I need to be reminded, I can just pull this off my book shelf, flip through it and feel much more confident in finding different ways of thinking creatively.

I purchased this book from Amazon for $8.50 and would consider it an investment. Austin has another book called Newspaper Blackout on his website and can be followed on twitter @austinkleon.

Taking on an Internship.

Should you get an internship?

It’s a loaded question. On one hand, internships give you great experience. On the other hand, internships don’t pay well, and they don’t necessarily guarantee you a job, either. So, are they worth it?

My answer, personally, would be yes.

Yeah, yeah, I know — I had a pretty amazing experience with my internship, and I got hired straight out, so my answer might seem kind of biased. However, if this were three months ago, at the beginning of my internship, my answer would still be the same. I learned way more within my first weeks at that internship than I probably did in my last six months of school. And honestly, before I even considered the fact that I might be getting hired, I was already thankful for everything I’d learned.

I wasn’t sure if I wanted to do an internship. In fact, I almost just skipped it. It was my last quarter of college, and I wasn’t required to get one, so why stress myself out? I could take an easy elective, breeze on through, and then hope for the best after graduation. Really, at the time, it was super tempting to take the easy way out. I was really stressed out with a thousand things to do, and the last thing I wanted to do was make it worse. However, when browsing for freelance work, I came across a priceless Craigslist ad (quoted in my previous post, The Internship) and knew I just had to have that position. It sounded like a great place to work, and the quality of their portfolio was seriously top notch. (If you don’t know who I’m talking about — check ‘em out!) All of a sudden, I felt really inspired to apply. And man, am I glad I did. I improved very, very quickly in a variety of areas — development, design skills, time management, and even communication. (That, and I became Twitter addicted, but that’s another affair.)  Even if I hadn’t been hired full-time, I’d be super thankful for the short time I had with them, if only for the experience, because I learned and improved in many ways that I never expected.

Reasons Why You Should Take On an Internship

1. It’s a fantastic learning opportunity. Not only for the things you want to learn, but the things you never expected to learn, too. Although I was a development intern, my design skills improved too, and I was actually offered both a design and a development position. (I went with the design one.)

2. It’s a good way to see how offices work. Not all offices are the same, especially not ours. However, you’ll learn a lot about the dynamics of an office environment pretty quickly if you’ve never been in one. I still learned a ton, too, even though I had already worked at an office for a couple years.

3. You’ll learn the ins and the outs of the business. Knowing the business model is important for all employees; it lets you know where you stand, why you get paid as much as you do, and if there’s room for bonuses, raises, or promotions .. or in your case, as the intern, getting hired!

4. It’s good work experience. You know those jobs that require experience? Well congratulations, you have experience now.

5. It looks great on a resume. The work experience, plus the willingness to work for little pay (or free) is often a strong indicator of a good employee.

6. It’s good for networking. The key to many jobs is knowing somebody. Two of my job offers after school were because of networking, and knowing people in your field that can help you network is even better. Internships often lead to professional and personal relationships with the coworkers at your office.

7. You’ll find out if the career is really for you. If you’ve never been in the hot seat, there’s no way to tell if your career choice is really for you. Getting thrown into a real work environment will really put you to the test.

8. You can gain confidence about your work. My work place likes to give a lot of praise, and many other offices do, too. I have gained so much confidence in myself and my work since I started that internship. Not only that, but my more experienced colleagues are always willing to give out really helpful criticism, which will help you to improve quite a lot.

There are lots of other reasons why I think all career chasers should take on an internship, but these are just my main points. The pros far outweigh the cons on this one, the cons being that you might not get paid well, or the experience might just not work out for you. However, the chances of something really positive happening is really high, even if you don’t get hired.

So, say you want an internship. Great! So .. how do you find one?

How To Find an Internship

1. Online job listings. My favorite, personally, is Craigslist. It’s where I found my last couple jobs (internship included), and both were within my career field! There’s also LinkedIn, Monster.com, CareerBuilder, and other related sites.

2. Contact companies you’re interested in working for. Even if they don’t have a job listing posted, it doesn’t hurt to contact people. Tell, don’t ask. “I’m a ______ major looking to learn about ______ at your company” is way better than “Is your company hiring interns for ______?”

3. Network. Go to networking events within your industry, and ask around about jobs and intern placement. Maybe something will crop up!

4. If you’re at college, talk to career or student services. The career services branch at my old school is actually pretty fantastic, and they’re always open to helping students with job or internship placement. Actually, it’s their job!

And last but not least …

Update Your Portfolio!

If you’re applying to a job that requires a portfolio, make sure it’s updated with your best work.

Looking for an internship? Got an internship experience to share? Leave us a comment, and let us know!

Brianna Reed is a 23 year old web designer living in Nashville, Tennessee. She loves gaming of the tabletop variety (think board games or D&D), going to conventions, and blogging on +CB. Follow her on twitter @nerdettedesigns or check out her portfolio at NerdetteDesigns.com.

Day Jobs and Do-Overs

Today marks my second to last day at the restaraunt that is my day job.

Tomorrow will be my last.

I made the decision almost half a year ago to go full-time freelancer; I’ve been freelancing and working on my own projects for years but always had to juggle with something else. When I moved to the midwest from my tiny island off the coast of North Carolina it was always my full intention to have freelancing be my job, but it just didn’t work out. Especially with a few people breathing down my back that sitting on the computer all day could not possibly be real work, I set out and got a job in the foodservice industry where I’d been working on and off for years. I’ve also been over it for years, but with my experience it was an easy in.

I’d been ready for awhile, but things just wouldn’t line up. Medical issues or broken vehicles or some other reason to have an excuse to keep that steady paycheck. Then, a few months ago, I broke down. I couldn’t handle doing both jobs anymore – computer work and fast food, that is – and many aspects of the day job were getting unbearable. After some tough decisions, looking at finances, making sure I had projects lined up, and noticing that everything was finally clicking in to place, I gave my notice.

It’s hard to give up something that you’ve been doing for any extended period of time – in this case,  just over a year. It’s hard giving up that safety net, because no matter how ugly or full of holes the net is, it’s still there. It’s the same net that keeps people from doing things that are too daring or too out of the norm. We fear things going wrong.

The fact is though, unless you take the net away you’ll never know what might have been. I threw the net out once before when I packed my belongings in my car to drive up north to start a new life and it turned out to be one of the best decisions I’d ever made. Who says this one has to be any different?

I have a battle plan. I have clients and work lined up. I have projects on the back burner that will hopefully turn in to profit later down the line. Most importantly, I have the drive to do what it takes to succeed. Without that, you’re nothing.

So here’s to starting over (again). Here’s to a new career and turning moonlighting into full time. Here’s to endless nights in front of the computer screen, warm summer afternoons spent pouring over code, early mornings with Photoshop.

Bring it. I’m ready.

Creating vs. Curating

I’ve been thinking a lot about microblogging, lately. Microblogging, in comparison to blogging, is typically much smaller and more compact, whereas blogging is typically a longer stream of consciousness that holds a reader for a longer length of time. Sites like Tumblr and Twitter allow users to push short bursts of content into the blogosphere without much effort and more instant gratification.

Why am I telling you this?

Well, I have a bit of a confession to make.

You see.. I’m a curator. There, I said it.

I’m a creative who curates design on microblogging sites rather than pushing new content out into the world. Every so often I’ll catch myself thinking, “.. I should be creating new content, presenting my work out to interested parties so that I can get more exposure as a designer.” But given how little time I have had to myself recently, it has become easier and easier to reblog and retweet content that has already been produced instead of creating it on my own. Twitter and Tumblr have only made it easier to access great design and sharing it with my friends instead of showing off what I’ve been working on myself.

Now, you’re probably wondering, “what’s wrong with having a blog with images that I happen to like and have found and shared with others?” There’s absolutely nothing wrong with it whatsoever. It can be very therapeutic to have a place to go and flip through when inspiration has failed, much like a digital mood board. I’ve already admitted to having one of my own.

I feel as though, however, that more and more microblogs are becoming the same.

They all reblog and share the same content and very little differentiates them. I can jump from one design blog to another and find that they’ve both reblogged the same content to different followers. It’s so easy to become wrapped up in the content that is already on the web and forget that we all have the ability to build our own mound of content for other people to see. I often forget that, myself.

So what am I going to do about it?

As a resolution to myself (especially in realizing that I wasn’t producing as much content as I thought I was), I’m going to be keeping myself accountable on pushing new content to my design blog. I’ll still be finding, aggregating, collecting and curating pieces of work that have floated about the internet for years – but I’m going to continually push myself to build a pile of content that I can call my own, and to hopefully make a name for myself as a designer. As someone who is constantly pushing herself to create new content, the least I can do is put some of it out there in the world for people to see. And I encourage you to do the same.

So how would you define yourself? Are you a curator or a creator? Do you keep a blog? What sort of content do you create?

Ways To Stay Creative.

I started my full-time job last week, and I gotta say, I really love it so far. I never thought I would like design more than development in a professional environment, but there’s something about juggling design projects that I like a lot more than development. I think it’s because I get the opportunity to be more creative at work — although don’t get me wrong, code gets pretty crafty itself. Designing 40 hours a week is good way to exercise the mind, but eventually, your brain is gonna shut down, and you’re going to be stuck staring at a brick wall for a while.

So, what to do? It’s tough, definitely. You can run up to Starbucks, or reach for that 5-hour energy, and just hope to god that some brilliant design solution comes to you. (And sometimes, with a little caffeine, it does.) However, in the real world, that’s not always gonna work. Nda mentioned last week that reading helps her stay creative. I, too, have got some personal quirks to share. I also did some Googling, though, and found some other great tips on…

Ways To Stay Creative

1. Get away from the screen. Get up and walk around. Eat lunch. Go bug a coworker for a few minutes. Seriously, just drop the project for a few and stretch your leg muscles. I (like many) have learned that staring at a screen for too long will tire you out, so it’s good for you (and the project) to just separate yourself once in a while.

2. Switch gears. Work on another project for a while. If you don’t have anything else to work on, make something up. I like to doodle or play in Illustrator, personally. Just don’t spend too much time on wasting time, if you know what I mean.

3. Look to resources for inspiration. Just today I was having a hard time conceptualizing a good menu design, so what did I do? Googled “web navigation design” and browsed the archives. Good stuff, and I was soon inspired on what to do.

4. Take breaks. During the work day I like to browse the Internet once in a while. Sometimes I even just chill on Facebook or Twitter to get my brain out of the design world for a minute. It’s a good refresher, but can quickly turn from “taking breaks” to “wasting time,” so be careful.

5. Change the medium. Okay, so if you’re a web designer, this may seem kind of dumb, but getting away from the digital medium can actually inspire new designs. What if that logo was done with pen and paper instead? What would that web site look like if it was screen printed? I’m not suggesting you paint everything now, but thinking along these lines can bring forth new concepts in your design work.

6. Look at other’s work. Imitation is art. Use other pieces as references, and learn to take inspiration from others without out-right stealing.

 7. Listen to music, podcasts, or books. Not only listen, but change it up once in a while, too. I like to listen to audiobooks in the middle of the way when I’m most awake, because audiobooks make me sleepy. Otherwise, I like to listen to music, and I try to change up my playlist about once a week.

8. Make time for personal projects. Working a 40 hour week can be draining, and most of the time when I get home, all I want to do is curl up in bed and watch a movie. However, making time for personal projects not only keeps you enthusiastic about what you do, but it keeps your creative cylinders firing, even after work.

9. Change environments. If you’re working from a laptop or a sketchbook, get out of the office for a day (if you can afford to, that is). Go outside. Work at a cafe, a coffee shop, a bookstore. Just get out of your normal grind.

10. Eat meals, stay caffeinated, and snack. You’re not going to get far if you’re hungry or tired. Just saying.

11. Ask for critique. Ask coworkers/colleagues for feedback. Listen accordingly, and defend yourself if you must.

12. Experiment. Lots of folks (myself included) are often too afraid to just get their hands in something and try things. You never know when something unexpected but brilliant will come up, or even a happy accident.

There are lots of other ways to keep creative on top of these reasons. Once upon a time, I was introduced to an awesome video that highlights some of these, and more. Check it out: 29 Ways To Stay Creative

Got an awesome tip on staying creative? Share below!

Brianna Reed is a 23 year old web designer living in Nashville, Tennessee. She loves gaming of the tabletop variety (think board games or D&D), going to conventions, and blogging on +CB. Follow her on twitter @nerdettedesigns or check out her portfolio at NerdetteDesigns.com.

Bookworm.

Sometimes, being paid to be creative 40-50 hours a week is hard. Ideas don’t always just come to you out of thin air – even the good ones need to be pondered upon and polished. So what’s keeping designers going? How do creatives keep their mojo flowing without losing their minds during a rough work week?

As for me, I read.

I read a lot.

I’ve moved four times in the last four years and each time I do, it’s like packing and unpacking an entire library of books. Every time I move, my collection is just a little bit bigger and a little bit heavier. A lot of these books, granted, are part of my worn Stephen King collection, but a growing number are books written about art and design. I try to make it a habit to visit my local Barnes & Noble to comb through their design books, looking for something new and interesting to add to my bookshelves. If I’m lucky, I’ll find something that piques my interest enough to drop some money on it.

So tonight, I bring with me a few of my favorite design books that I personally recommend to those looking to expand their intellectual horizons (or just want a nice piece of eye candy to flip through on down time). I’ll be adding to my ‘To-Read’ list occasionally and when I finish one, I’ll be sure to post here with a nice little review on it. Hopefully this encourages you to seek out these books and add them to your collection, too.

Nda Recommends:

Flaunt: Designing Effective, Compelling And Memorable Portfolios of Creative Work,
Bryony Gomez-Palacio and Armin Vit

This book was recommended to me by a professor while I was in my last stretch of college. It was nice to flip through because at the time I didn’t have a clue what I wanted to do for my portfolio, but it was also useful because it provided case studies and interviews with professionals in the design field as to what they like and dislike about student portfolios. It helped me assess my portfolio during a time when I was quite hard on myself and my decision making. I’d recommend it to anyone who wants a fresh outlook on rebuilding their portfolio.

Graphic Design Thinking, Ellen Lupton

This is a nice little book I like to pick up when I’m having trouble ideating, or generating ideas. It was a fairly easy read, but chock full of ideas and tips on different ways of looking at the problem you’re trying to solve. So if you’re like me and occasionally have to remind yourself to just grab a sheet of paper and draw it out, pick up this book and try a few of their techniques.

HTML & CSS: Design And Build Websites, Jon Duckett

Okay, I have to admit: I picked this one up because I am a sucker for brilliant page layout. Not only is this book useful, it’s beautiful. I can’t think of a single graphic designer who would be scared to pick this up to learn HTML and CSS. I loved this book because it explained things a lot better than most other books did. This is a great book to have around and reference to if you need to look for something specific. It’s also perfect to use as a starting point for anyone looking to get their feet wet.

Next on her To-Read list:

The Design Entrepreneur, Steven Heller and Lita Talarico
Fingerprint No. 2, Chen Design Associates

Currently on the look out for:

How To Steal Like An Artist, Austin Kleon
A Smile In The Mind, Beryl McAlhone & David Stuart
The Corporate Creative, Andy Epstein

Read any good books lately? Drop your recommendations here!