POWER of branding

Here’s an example that takes “brand loyalty” to a whole ‘nother level. According to a scientific study on the brain activity of Apple devotees, reactions to the Apple logo and product images are comparable to reactions that people have to religious imagery.

“The Apple products are triggering the same bits of brain [activity] as religious imagery triggers in a person of faith.”  (full article here)

No way! This concept is creepy yet fascinating, it’s branding at its finest. So interesting it led BBC to make “Secrets of the Superbrands”, a documentary about the subliminal effects of brand on consumers. Will definitely be adding this to my list of things to watch!

Want more proof that branding is powerful?

More and more people are getting logo tattoos. It’s become so popular that companies are taking notice and capitalizing on it. Ecko offers a 20% discount for life to anyone who gets a tattoo of one of their logo images. While you’ll literally ‘wear’ the brand for life, there is one catch though: you can’t double up on tattoos for multiple discounts…! All I can say is W O W.

Now I’m not suggesting that most people will love your brand to the point of worship or through the form of a permanent body marking, but these extreme examples are just fascinating. Moral of the story: don’t underestimate the power of brand recognition no matter how small or large your company may be!

(PS – I’m sure a lot of people have been reacting to the news of Steve Job’s resignation… another example of just how successful the Apple brand is on connecting with their consumers on an emotional level.)

Nostalgia

2011 has been a year of new beginnings for me! Being newlywed and relocated across the country to sunny California, life has been both hectic and rewarding. Now I finally have time to catch up on my blogging…

I’ve recently been obsessed with a new photo app – Instagram – which allows you to filter your photos and turn them into a piece of nostalgic memory. I’ve always had a fondness for black/white and vintage photos from the past, so this is a super easy way to apply the look to modern photography. Through the app, you can upload your pics to a community of users and follow, comment and post to your heart’s desire.

My favorite thing about it is its immediacy, and that it requires no design software knowledge allowing anyone to have fun with their photos. There has also emerged many self proclaimed artists and ‘street photographers’, who have really made a name for themselves among Instagram users and in the photog industry. Here’s a glimpse of what I’ve been up to and you can also follow me @creative_enthusiast. Try it and you’ll be hooked too!

 

Beautiful Monterey CA

My pup turning into a true CA wino

 

Recent work…Milestone Events

For the past month, I had the pleasure of working with a local Brooklyn Wedding planner to do a LOGO redesign for her business.

Kristy of Milestone Events by Kristy was in search for a graphic designer to rebrand her business, which has really taken off since her beginnings in 2009. The goal was to use her existing color preferences and logo font as a starting point, in creating a new brand identity that echoes chic elegance, and professionalism for her company. I had so much fun designing her Logo, I also created a complimentary Monogram to go with her rebranding, which would be useful for a profile image or labels/tags for her business -

I should also mention that the way we met was very serendipitous. I was sitting on the train reading a destination wedding magazine earlier this year (I was planning my own wedding at the time), and Krsity happened to sit next to me on my way home from my first dress fitting. She immediately struck up a conversation with me, telling me about her wedding planning business and left me her card. Being the *mild* hoarder that I am, I kept her card along with most things and found it one day, while doing my post-wedding cleanup. I decided to look her up, found her Facebook business page, and what were the odds – she was in need of a graphic designer! Proof that you never know who you will meet and how your paths would cross one day…

Having personally worked with Kristy and seeing her dedication as a planner, I recommend Milestone Events if you are ever in need of some wedding help!

really.cool.photography.

I know there has been a hiatus on my posts, life is buzzing for me lately

But today, I’d like to share a unique style of photography that I recently came across -

IMPRESSIONIST PHOTOGRAPHY

It is the marriage of photography and impressionism, the romantic and movement-like art form made famous by Claude Monet and one of my favorite artists, Edgar Degas. The technique of prolonged exposure of the camera results in beautifully blurred images resembling the small brush strokes of an impressionist painting. Never would you think that photographing without a steady hand would produce such incredible works of art.

Here are some I’d like to share by two photographers:

Eva Polak -

(Gorgeous beach shot)

(Beautifully stylized, the blocks of color almost reminds me of a Mark Rothko)

(silhouettes are one of my favorites! especially with a blend of rich color)

*Featured* in Wasabi Fashion Kult

Hello all!

With the many things going on in life (new fiance, new apt, wedding planning, and new puppy!), I needed to post this little bit of fun I recently took part in. I was approached by Pam, the founder of this lovely and very unique niche site – Wasabi Fashion Kult – to be a featured writer for their upcoming issue. With wedding plans on my mind constantly, it was the perfect opportunity to merge these ideas with my admiration for Japanese pop culture, linked to one of my other favorite things: fashion!

Here is the end result of this project, an article about Harajuku Weddings and some fun info on Harajuku Styles!

I hope you enjoy reading these articles as much as I had fun writing it!

How to wear your Zipper

Truly gorgeous, I’d like to share the work of another artist that turns an everyday commodity – zippers – into wearable art. Kate Cusack creates a beautiful and sophisticated jewelry line out of the common zipper, and I love how these pieces add a rockin edge to any outfit…

(copyright Kate Cusack)

Beautiful hand sculpted shapes + the way color is married with metal = absolute innovation!

“In art school,” Kate explained, “I realized that once you allow yourself to use materials in unconventional ways, then, just about anything is possible. It’s ironic that most fashion designers try to hide or disguise zippers in their creations. However, I love zippers’ shiny metal teeth and I want to show off, not hide, their sparkle and their sinuous flexibility.”

Makes you think…”Why didn’t I think of this?!”

Kate is also a fellow Brooklynite!

Wedding Fever…caught!

It’s crazy how one event can instantly change your life and your future…

So this is the most recent event that occurred in my life: My boyfriend proposed to me on top of Edinburgh Castle on 6-8-09!! It was our 2-yr anniversary and I didn’t think twice that he would pop the big Q. Of course, it ran through my mind, but he was clever enough to deceive me in the right way to think it wouldn’t happen during our vacation to Scotland…”What idiot would risk losing such an expensive thing while travelling across the world?!”…but he was that idiot =)

Here are some shots of beautiful Scotland, and the spot where he proposed at the Castle…

Since then, it has been nothing but lots of warm wishes and happy moments with my family and friends. I cannot wait to plan out the details of our wedding, and to live a full and happy life.

Ahhh!