Giveaway: Kristen from "Ahoy Graphics"

Friends, it is my pleasure to introduce you to a pretty amazing lady today... seriously, I'm way excited for you today. A few months ago, I won a giveaway on a sweet blog... prize= shop credit to "Ahoy Graphics"... and I'm pretty sure that I tinkled myself out of the excitement jumped up and down out of joy. You see, at that time, I was in a bit of a transitioning process on the blog (changing names and the direction I saw my blog going in) and was at the point in my photography business, that I needed a little branding. So what's a girl to do... that's right, I used my credit and had Kristen, from "Ahoy Graphics" create some branding for me. You see my lovely blog header up there... yup, the one with the FUN ferris wheel and lettering... yup, that would be one of her lovely creations. Kristen took the time to address all of my interests/ideas/favorite colors/etc... and it was like she had a supernatural power to see into my mind, because what she came up with, was exactly what I was dreaming about in my head... ever since working with her, I've been smitten.

Kristen's mission is to educate small business owners on the importance/power of branding, to listen to design needs/help define business goals, offers strategic and honest advice and to love on her clients with 1-on-1 attention... and she did just that. Not only is she an amazing graphic designer/artist... but she's also a military spouse like yours truly... and she's so sweet and kind, that she's going to be giving away some credit today for one of my lucky readers... maybe you?! So come on... let me introduce you to to Kristen... pretty sure you'll be smitten too.

Tell us a little bit about yourself, by using 5 words to describe who you are:
artistic

energetic

neat 'n' tidy

fun-loving

geeky

What's your favorite color combination?

Alizarin Crimson and Lavender or Lemon and Phthalo Blue-so hard to decide

If you could live anywhere in the world, where would you want to live?
St. Thomas in the Virgin Islands

What's the most embarrassing thing that's ever happened to you?

A few months ago, I was eating a seedless watermelon and hadn't had any in awhile so naturally I was scarfing this badboy down. Hubby, concerned for my well-being said, "Shouldn't you slow down? You're goingto make yourself sick." Shocked, I confidently convinced my husband that I used to eat a 1/4 of a melon when I was a kid all the time. My husband just shook his head and went on playing his video game. I continued to eat my eyeballs out in melon and an hour later...

BIZ

Okay now some "shop" questions... but first, let me share some of Kristen's latest work:

Just like the chicken or the egg... which came first, blogging or designing?

Definitely designing. I try to commit to a blogging schedule to write posts but the artist in me wins every time :)

How did your beautiful graphic design skills come about?

I originally majored in Graphic Design in college but their competitive spirit was so overwhelming that I got intimidated and changed to ArtEd. Because I wanted to be a great teacher and loved design in general, I decided to take extra courses in graphic design- a decision I'm so thankful that I made! When my hubby joined the Navy, I could no longer teach with our new lifestyle and started working for myself as a bookbinder and graphic designer to keep a steady job. "You can't fire yourself" was my logic.

Do you have a favorite creation? I'm pretty partial to my blog header (wink wink!):

Oh goodness, it's sooo hard to decide! If it's on my portfolio page- it's definitely a favorite of mine, which includes Celebrating Life's branding that I did for Karen :)

Any words of advice for those that are wanting to start a handmade/graphic design business?

I had a Nashville design student ask me that a couple of months ago and I was humbled as I still feel like a newbie myself. All I can say is what I've learned:

1) Don't disappear! If it's not working out, grow some balls and confront the issue in a professional manner.
2) Come feedback time, make sure your client knows their role and respects yours but always make sure you made them happy to have been your client.
3) Hiring a designer is nerve-wrecking for some and won't know how to express what they want until they see it. This is an opportunity to educate, not to get frustrated.
4) The articles I read really gave me a lot to think about and act upon. Here's a few on my list of RSS feeds that I subscribe to:

Cash and Joy
Marie Forleo
Designer's Couch
DesignM.ag
Smashing Magazine
AIGA
HOW Design

Is she not amazing? Seriously... I wish she was here in Korea, so I could give her a big "squeeze"! Especially after she used the word "geek" to describe herself.

For you... one of my lucky readers, Kristen is so sweet to give you, $120.00 to put towards design work. This can give you a good chunk down on a logo, which is $600, or 2 free items to use with your current branding—like a banner, business card, hangtag, Facebook page profile pic, etc.

Here's how to enter:

- If you're a follower of this blog, leave me a comment telling me you are...

- In a separate comment let me know what you would have Kristen create for you...

- Follow Kristen on twitter and leave a separate comment telling me you do...

- Follow me on twitter and leave a separate comment telling me you do...

- Tweet about this giveaway, linking back to this post, or using @AhoyGraphics and @kdaviscreates in the tweet, and leave a separate comment telling me you did so...

That gives you 5 different chances to be "entered" into this fabulous giveaway...Giveaway closes next Wednesday, August 10th... so get to it!