dankbar designs.

Here it is guys.  I've been hinting for awhile at the project I've been working on - well, here it is.  Dankbar Designs is my new project.  Working with acrylics, canvases, ink, and paper, I'm working on bringing my love of typography to you.

It's been a lot of work - making designs, creating words, floating them past friends and family.  After making a housewarming gift that my sister requested, it truly catapulted and I decided now was the time.  You know I've been looking for a job, that I went through Cake for Breakfast, I did the Willpower Council last year with Molly Mahar from Stratejoy and loved it.  Each of those steps, the steps that have required me to dig deep and press uncomfortable buttons, has pushed me towards people, creation, and collaboration.  I want to work with you to put your words to paper, or to canvas.  I want to make things that speak from my heart, your heart, our collective heart that we put into it.  I am so grateful for all of you, my family, friends, future customers, past customers, and everyone in between.  I wouldn't be here without you; this is not only something I'm doing for myself, but it's for you, in a way.  Dankbar is German for "grateful", and putting that on everything I do, in front of me and my work, it's to thank everyone for getting me this far.

I can't wait to see what comes of this, so feel free to check out the Etsy shop, and please, please, like Dankbar Designs on Facebook!  I love you all, thank you!!

sundown on the sunshine state.

                                        

Well, as I'm preparing to leave Florida, I'm looking back on the last week and smiling. I'm quite happy to be heading back to Minneapolis, but seeing my family has been wonderful, albeit exhausting. I've had a blast with every experience, with every daydream, and every life revelation I've had on this trip. I can't wait to get home and share them with you! Xx

beach must-haves

Before we go down to the beach each day, Mom makes sure we have bags packed. Plenty of water, - SmartWater on doctor reccommendation for all of us, for the electrolytes - a hat, some sunnies, a pair of head phones, a good book, and a cover-up. 

As fair skinned girls, Mom, the Sisters, and I are pros at protecting ourselves from the sun. Sunscreen is applied in copious amounts, and reapplied two hours later. I choose my outfits carefully for sunny vacations - a tank top cover up for early in the trip, and a light popover for when I don't want the sun directly on my lobster skin, but don't want to swelter. Hats have become a must for me over the last year, as I've started to notice more signs of aging on my face (eek!), sunglasses are necessary, and Chapstick with SPF is my most forgotten item, but one I'm working on making sure I remember! (Burnt and chapped lips are no fun!)

I'm notorious for lugging way more books around with me than I need, so it's no surprise that I make sure I'm good on reading supplies. I like to have a good book and a magazine, just in case. Today I have The Golden Notebook and the June Vanity Fair with me, so I am completely satisfied. 

What are your beach must-haves?

Beach Week

Posts may be a little slow this week, as I'm not near my computer currently. After a long semester and a stressful month for my family, we are currently enjoying five days in Fort Myers, FL on white sandy beaches. 

We flew in yesterday around 1:30pm local time, got to our hotel and promptly took a much needed nap. Followed by pizza, card games, and sleeping in this morning. I'm writing to you from the beach, where I'm reading, working on some projects, and catching Starfish with my sisters. I'll post soon!

Twins Win!

With my family, Baseball is the beginning of summer.  I got to go to the game a couple weeks ago for the game, and it was a blast.  Always a good time when the Twins win!

As one of the lucky first 20,000, we all got baseball caps when we entered the stadium.  Marshall was so excited and couldn't pick which of his hats to wear.  Obviously, wearing them both is the only way to go.

My dad gets great tickets through his work, which means we get access to the club concessions on the lowest level.  TC Bear tends to frequent this spot - go down for a drink and wind up with a picture of everyone's favorite!  

What a fantastic time.  Cannot wait for the rest of the season!  

What's your clue it's summer?

Cocktails at the Castle

A couple weeks ago, Nathan and I attended Cocktails at the Castle at the American Swedish Institute.  What a wonderful event!  Neither of us had ever been there before, and had no idea what to expect of the event.  I heard about it from a Facebook post an old work friend of mine had posted and wanted to go.  I love talking about art, I love the Minneapolis art people, and thought it would be a great way to meet people and do some networking.  Nathan just thought it'd be old people.  Well saying we were surprised was an understatement.

There was such a wonderful mix of people there.  Artist talks, live music, Indeed brewery, Swedish cooking, custom cocktails, museum tours, a DJ, discounts for biking to the event, I could keep going on and on.  After talking with people who are consistent ASI goers, employees of the institute, and a few others, I learned what a great event this has become.  They have a few similar events a year, geared towards making themselves more widely known throughout the metro and gaining a wider patron-base.  Anything that promotes the arts is good for me.  The cost of ticket, drinks and food was around $60 total, which wasn't bad, especially since Nathan and I tried as many of the foods and cocktails as we could.

I can't wait for Cocktails at the Cabin this summer!  Until then, planning a non-event based visit is on my list of things to do.  Looking further into the future, I've heard it's gorgeous there at Christmas!

Have you been?

Your Super Awesome Life

I've worked with Ashley Wilhite of "Your Super Awesome Life" before, on her series "Cake for Breakfast".  I love her work, I love where she comes from, and I love her methods.  She truly wants everyone to live a Super Awesome Life.  Working with or on whatever program she's doing, video call she's hosting, or email she sent out always challenges me in a wonderful way.

The video call I participated in was on increasing income of your freedom-based business.  I don't have mine yet, and I was only able to be present for the first of two calls, but what an experience it was.  I worked on finding my sweet spot, wrote down tips and tricks for finding your perfect client and tailoring to the, and learning to not sell myself short.  I've been hinting at the new endeavor I'm working on, and each call or email I receive from her makes me think of the great things ahead.

If you haven't yet, check out anything fro Ashley you can get your hands on!  (You can always follow her on Twitter here)

**this post is not sponsored.  I was simply going through my notes from the Backstage Call and wanted to share with my readers a  quick post about how fantastic Ashley, Your Super Awesome Life, and Ashley's services are!

bakery series:: Taraccino

It's absolutely awful, I know.  I've been working my way through the drafts I started, but never finished because of school or whatever else I had on my plate at the moment.  I want to go back to Taraccino just to keep working on everything.

An adorable little cafe in NE, it's connected to Breuggers.  I always passed it on the bus on my way to the internship I had downtown this last semester, and I'd been wanting to try it for awhile.  Nathan and I went on a cloudy morning around brunch-time, and were quite surprised.  They don't have a huge bakery selection (they are connected to Breuggers), but they have ahhhh-mazing waffles.  If you buy a specialty waffle, it comes with drip coffee, which is a fantastic deal.  Beautiful brick work and art, it's an easy place to go and just drink coffee and look around.  There isn't a ton of seating, but I would definitely go there with friends for waffles and coffee!  (I was looking at the pictures again and my mouth started watering for waffles...SO GOOD!)

Republic:: Minneapolis musts.

Republic is my absolute favorite restaurant in the Twin Cities.  I don't even really remember how I discovered it, but it is my go-to place for happy hours, dinners, and random everythings.  I spent my 20th birthday here, brought my parents when they were in town, celebrated my graduation, met up with friends, and ate a ton of fries at the Seven Corners location (I've yet to be to the Uptown location).

My favorite burger there is no longer on the menu - I can only hope the Brie Burger with a red-wine sauce comes back on the rotation soon.  As I was explaining to my family one time - no one has anything bad or even mediocre to say about the food.  A great beer list, a great wine selection, yum-yum sauce, homemade ketchup...wherever you're looking on the menu, you're going to be impressed (even my six year old brother loved the place and food!).

The food isn't the only fantastic thing about this place.  The environment and decor is great too.  Deep colors, beautiful crown molding and stained glass windows make me think upscale and intimate, but the environment is warm and welcoming.  I've never had a bad experience here, and neither will you.

on the hunt.

Guys, applying for jobs is the worst.  My delay in postings has been from finishing up school and attempting to apply for jobs.  I know it's not an excuse, but that's what I've been up to for the last few weeks.  From here on out, I'm hoping it'll be smooth(er) sailing with hopefully more consistent posting.

For the last few weeks I've been working on endless applications, attempting to decipher fraudulent craigslist posts from legitimate ones, crafting follow ups, and trying to decide when it's appropriate for whichever number of follow up I'm working on.

I've got a few leads that I'm working on right now, which is so exciting.  Nothing fabulous or full-time, just positions that I'm hoping to enjoy and be able to work around the summer classes I'm taking.  It's all been such a process, I'm starting to consider myself somewhat of an expert on the whole thing.  Here's some obvious and not-so-obvious tips I have for you:

Dress to Impress (but not for a date)
There are so many articles out there on how to dress for an interview, especially for women.  There's the obvious - not too much leg, not too much cleavage - and the not so obvious.  I'm one who tends to forget the "don't be overly fashionable" rule.  I'm all for dressing to impress and dressing to be remembered, but wearing pink pants or a sequined dress shirt to an interview is almost always a no-no.  The exception would be a fashion based job.  Wearing all black and no jewelry is always safe, but it's not terribly memorable.  While the goal isn't to be too flashy, I like to go with the idea that I'd like to be remembered.  I tend to wear colored heals, a white button up with diamond buttons, or a classic but memorable bag.  Each is simple, doesn't draw away from the overall professional look of the outfit, but if an interviewer compliments your shoes, likes your shirt, or notices your professional carrier, you stand out that much more in their mind.

Give Thanks
This one is pretty simple, but absolutely crucial in not only the search, but the interview and every step afterwards.  If emailing your resume to HR, thank them for their consideration.  If filling out a generic web application, place your thanks in the 'additional comments' box that is almost always included.  If you get an interview, thank them for contacting you.  Thank them when you get to the interview and when you finish.  Then send out the ever-so-important thank you card after your interview.  Each thank you is important and will set you apart from those who tend to forget the simplest of gestures go a long way.

Don't Sell Yourself Short
There's always an interview question about your accomplishments, or a line in a cover letter that requires you to promote yourself.  Don't shy away from how great you are!  If you wrote a business proposal in high school that the city picked up (even if it didn't go through to completion), say it anyways.  You accomplished something great at a young age!  Being considered for an honor even if you didn't make the final cut?  You were still a candidate out of tens, hundreds, or thousands of others.  Everything you do is probably fantastic.  Make sure everyone knows it.

Be (Mostly) Honest
Don't lie about your age, your education or your abilities.  Don't say you're proficient in Photoshop if you only use it to crop photos.  But if your biggest weakness is time management or ability to work with others, it's okay to find a different weakness.  Use your best judgement.

Go With Your Gut
This is the one I struggle with the most, and one I feel a lot of recent grads are going through.  Applying for jobs is a process; there are applications and interviews, and some jobs move quicker than others.  If I'm offered a job that I'm not a hundred percent sold on, part of me wants to accept the position simply because I'm afraid I won't find anything else.  However, it is so important to trust your gut.  If it's not a company you love, not a position you feel you can succeed it, or you're simply taking the position out of fear, it's not right for you.  Keep persevering, you'll find the one.


Good luck everyone!  I'd love to hear your tips for when you're 'on the hunt'!