January 2015 - Veda House Veda House

I’m afraid of torrential downpours (the good and bad kind)

Freelance Journey

This past fall, I had the opportunity to contribute on article to the Fear Confessions series over at Organized Creatives (thanks Krystal for having me). My confessed fear was being afraid of torrential downpours of the creative kind. Even since that featured was published back in October, I’ve experienced both the good and bad kind of downpours, so I thought I’d share that essay here on Veda House with a few amendments.

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I’m afraid of torrential downpours (the creative kind).
Shared By: Krystle Lilliestierna ON OCTOBER 14, 2014

If you know me on a more personal level, you’ll know that I frequently talk about missing my calling to be a professional (paid) storm chaser. I’ve always loved watching thunderstorms roll in and secretly hope I get to experience the beauty of a mid-western tornado…only if no one is hurt in the process. Knowing this, it might be peculiar to read that I’m afraid of torrential downpours. How silly is that!

I should clarify a few things. When I’m talking about downpours, I’m referencing the phrase “when it rains, it pours.” I should also note that we aren’t talking about a delightful rain shower here, we’re talking about the “when it rains, it pours in a bad flood kind of way that destroys everything you’ve been building…” kind of sprinkle.

As a freelance designer, I jumped into this career knowing perfectly well that the job title comes with a lot of uncertainty. I’m constantly terrified that the struggles of running my own business will evolve into something I can’t keep grasp of. I’m afraid that if I lose one client due to budget conflicts, that I’ll lose ALL my clients to budget conflicts. I’m afraid that if I am unable to regain inspiration for an upcoming project, that I’ll lose my inspiration for everything future project. I’m afraid that if I make one huge mistake, that the result will negatively impact everything that follows.

I know all of this sounds a bit extreme and maybe I’m exaggerating just a bit, but the fear of getting stuck in a downpour is debilitating. The phrase “when it rains, it pours” has proven to be true in my life time and time again so I have a few tips that might help weather the storm. Let’s also remember that it can shower a whole lot of “awesome” (aka: paying work) too. Those of you consumed with work and drowning in the process know exactly what I’m talking about.

Tips for the good and bad kinds of downpours after the jump!

Notables No. 48

FRIDAY FINDS & FAVORITES

Happy Friday, Friends! We’re doing things a little different over here today. Usually I share a collection of my favorite links from the week, but I thought that I’d share a few items on my holiday wish list this year. It appears I’ll be doing a lot of cooking and wearing clothes. HA! Hopefully these ideas help you with your gift buying duties 🙂

A few holiday gift ideas:

1. A new (fancy) teapot – here

2. Book: Tartine Bread by Chad Anderson

3. Beautiful scissors by Individual Medley

4. T-Bar earrings in gold – here

5. Buddha aromatherapy diffuser for essential oils

6. Book: Sunday Suppers by Karen Mordechai

7. Book: What Katie Ate by Katie Quinn Davis

8. Sorel Out and About boot

9. The worlds softest tee – here

Tailoring your Portfolio to get the clients you want

Freelance Journey

I’ve got lots of exciting posts half written/half scheduled for the remainder of January. Can’t wait to share some fun projects I’ve been working on as well as some more Freelance Journey posts. The first topic I’d like to chat about is how to tailor your portfolio to get the clients you REALLY want, while also using other strategies like the use of hardware as a digital signage media player which help you show your products and services to the clients. .

I tend to get asked this question often by new graduates, first time freelancers, or those looking to overhaul their existing portfolio. For me, I’ve been learning along the way by following Ravi at RTM and have JUST NOW really understood what my brand means to me. That’s the challenge right? Obtaining work that really identifies with your overall brand story. Below are a few steps I took to better understand what Veda House stood for as well as how I’ve slowly morphed my portfolio into something I’m proud of. Warning…this is another long-winded post.

Tip One: Know what you like & identify what you don’t.
Figuring out what you want your brand to represent can be a really daunting paralyzing task. For me, figuring out what I liked mean’t sifting through a lot of what I didn’t. For years I’ve been using Pinterest to catalogue all the things that visually inspire me. I’ve found this resource to be a good way to “look back” and see how things are evolving over time. Find trends in the things you are pinning. You can also keep a running list of buzz words that relate to the type of content you pin. For Veda House, these buzz words are clean, simple & natural, touch of class, sophisticated materials, inspiring spaces…

5 more tips after the jump!

Bringing "Au Naturel" into 2015

Studio Hours

Happy 2015 everyone! Sorry for the radio silence over here. The year is starting off at 500mph and I’m just now coming up for air. I wanted to stop by and loosely talk about goals. You may have noticed that I didn’t share any 2015 goals on the blog this year. Every year at this time I get really excited about what the future holds and pretty thankful that the universe has given me a “do over” card. Not that 2014 called for a do over, in fact 2014 was one of my favorite years so far. Even with a really awesome 2014 it’s still nice to have a clean slate to dream big and conjure up more magic. I have a feeling this year is going to be the best yet.

This year, I’m trying to really focus on letting things happen naturally without to many drastic changes or forced transitions. 2014 was the year of MASSIVE change and I’m ready for a little more calm. In the spirit of letting things unfold naturally, I’m also striving to bring more “natural” into my life in the form of whole food eating, adopting a more consistent yoga practice, attaining streamlined wardrobes & home, and incorporating more natural products in my home.

Challenge One: Eating “Whole” Food – I’m currently smack dab in the middle of my first Whole30 challenge, day 16 to be exact. If you know anything about me, you’ll know that I’m one of the pickest eaters you’ll ever meet, with vegetables not being my strong point. Times are changing, folks! I’m happy to report that eating a plant-based diet 75% of the time has really been amazing — check out Amazon – Although I’m still craving sugar in the evenings, I’ve learned to like so many things in just a short time. You can read more about the Whole30 program here.

Challenge Two: Yoga – I used to practice yoga every Tuesday and Thursday but have recently fallen off the regularity wagon. My goal is to sign up for this online yoga studio to be able to practice yoga in my own home and also practice a wide variety of yoga disciplines. I’ve heard great things about these classes. Any of you tried them out? Check out these natural medicines to help handle stress.

Best of 2014 – Reader Favs (and mine) – Vehicle

veda news

Hello Everyone! I hope the holidays are treating you well.

With New Car Design

We’re back in Colorado now and have been spending the last few days cozied up in a beautiful home up in Breckenridge. I was lucky enough to have my best friend fly in from Chicago to spend New Years with me, so I’ll be bowing out for a few more days. Until the work week ramps back up, I thought I’d revisit a few posts from last year – some are your favorites, some are mine. Thank you guys for being such an awesome audience and thank you for allowing me to blabber 😉 As we welcome in the new year I wanted to revisit some of my favorite blog posts from 2015. Some are reader favorites a some were my favorites. Enjoy jumping in the little time machine. What seems fitting is a Akku Poliermaschine Test With the brand new car and vehicle inspired design these are sure to make a kill for the engines!

A super fun client moodboard that would start off a really amazing year working
with The Citizenry –> Read

Hello Everyone! I hope the holidays are treating you well. With New Car Design

Most Popular Posts

Outside the crop

Tailoring your Portfolio & Working with Dream Clients (pt.2)

Veda House – FAQ Answers (Pt. 2)

I’m afraid of torrential downpours (the good and bad kind)

Lesson Learned: Saving time with Streamlined Blogging

Hello Everyone! I hope the holidays are treating you well.

With New Car Design