3 Bicycles

Greetings From Albuquerque

todd — Fri, 10 Feb 2012 20:31:19 +0000

3 Bicycles Creative has relocated to Albuquerque, New Mexico! Just a quick thanks to all of our clients who have been patient with us during the transition. January was all about tying up loose ends in North Carolina, but from this point forward we are back running at full speed.

It's been a very busy 2012 so far and I'm very excited to finally be getting settled and unpacked. We're already soaking in the mountains and the fresh air of the high desert. We have a lot of new projects in the works, some launching this week even. Check back here for more news.

PK Docks Launches

todd — Wed, 07 Dec 2011 14:20:32 +0000

PK Docks has a new online home! Click here to take a look. PK Docks is the family-owned, premier dock building company in the Possum Kingdom Lake region of Texas. Russell and Joy Madden have owned PK Docks since 2009, when they acquired a long-established dock building operation at Possum Kingdom Lake. They believe reputation is everything and only use premier, quality materials in delivering all services.

A custom design, dock store, photo gallery and Dock Requirement's Checklist are just some of the website's features that will make a big impact in selling and adding clients to their roster.

Web Hosting Services

todd — Tue, 08 Nov 2011 20:36:08 +0000

We host websites. I know, I forgot to tell everyone. The truth is we've hosted websites for years. It's something we have always talked about with our current customers, but not always our potential customers. We're starting to change that.

There are plenty of good hosting options out there, so why host with us? There are a few reasons...

Over the past 3-5 years, the cost of web hosting has dropped dramatically, which is great. But the bad news is the quality of customer service in hosting has also dropped off a cliff. If you host with 3 Bicycles you will get affordable hosting with solid customer service. You won't have to seek out the best host by trial and error. We've already figured it out.

Secondly, it saves time and ultimately money if we control the hosting environment. If you host with us, installation, upgrades and maintenance of your site will be done more efficiently. Whether it's Drupal, Wordpress or an e-commerce website, we've got you covered.

Lastly, our hosting is carbon neutral and we have discounted plans for non-profit, 501(c)(3) charitable organizations. If you're into that kind of thing. :-)

Growing a Business

todd — Thu, 25 Aug 2011 14:58:49 +0000

I've thought about writing business posts before, but I've hesitated for fear of sounding like I know something other don't. However, lately a lot more people have been asking me about I how got started. Mostly from people who are feeling underappreciated or underpaid at their curent job, and some just want a more flexible schedule because of family. If that sounds like you, here are my two main pieces of advice.

Start Small
There are a lot of tips and tricks out there about how to build a business, but the number one piece of advice I give is "start small". When I was in my twenties, I moonlighted for years as a way to learn about tools and technologies that I wasn't being exposed to at my day job. Unwittingly, in those early years I was slowly building a client base for 3BC. To quote Jason Fried of 37 Signals, "We're not talking about all-nighters or sixteen-hour days - we're talking about squeezing out a few extra hours a week. That's enough time to get something going".

Deliver. On Time.
Even if it means under-promising and over-delivering, getting the job done on time NO MATTER WHAT. Your next lead, your next project and your success is counting on it.

Instructional Design Guru App

todd — Tue, 09 Aug 2011 00:36:01 +0000

This past spring we worked on the logo and icon set for Instructional Design Guru, an iPhone app created for anyone involved in designing learning experiences: instructional designers, educators and instructional technologists. It‚Äôs a reference defining over 450 relevant terms related to instructional design, cognitive psychology, learning theory, multimedia, and more.

Instructional Design Guru just became available at Apple's iTunes Store. Check it out on iTunes.

UNM Email Templates

todd — Wed, 13 Jul 2011 20:31:05 +0000

A few months ago we created email templates for The University of New Mexico. Like most large universities, UNM has many organizations and institutions that fall under the UNM umbrella. There are hospitals, business schools, museums, alumni organizations, and on and on. These email templates are designed so the header logos can be easily swapped out with the correct UNM organization logo and then published in-house.

PK is OK Campaign

todd — Mon, 13 Jun 2011 21:16:48 +0000

We created an identity for the campaign to restore Possum Kingdom Lake, and to make the public aware that PK is open for business after the wildfires in April.

In April, wildfires spread throughout Possum Kingdom Lake, a popular lakeside retreat west of Fort Worth. The fires scorched nearly 150,000 acres and destroyed 160 homes and two churches. Needless to say, many lives were turned upside down, however PK is a resilient community and it's as beautiful and inviting as ever. In short, PK is OK!

Hideaway Website Launched

todd — Thu, 12 May 2011 00:35:33 +0000

Over the past two months we've been working on a website redesign for Hideaway Cabins & Inn. The design is casual and fun, with a dash rustic charm. I wish we could have updated thier logo as well, but they are invested in the old one. Overall it makes me realize that summer is quickly approaching, and I hope we all get a chance to sit back and kick up our feet soon. Cheers!

Real-Time Displays for Wave Transit

todd — Fri, 22 Apr 2011 17:52:10 +0000

We were asked to help with the design of real-time arrival screens at Wave Transit‚Äôs new Forden Station in Wilmington, NC. While we worked on the typography and pixels, Jason Dudley worked his magic with the Google Maps API creating real-time maps that display the location of Wave Transit buses that are en route. This Google map coordinates with real-time arrival screens that shows when each bus will come into the station.

Selina's Mexican Cantina Launches

todd — Fri, 15 Apr 2011 13:23:22 +0000

3BC just finished a new website for Selina's Seafood & Mexican Cantina. Located in Graford, TX they offer spectacular dishes and drinks! From cold beer and delicious margaritas to out of this world fish tacos and enchiladas we have something everyone will love.

Rockin' S Website Launched

todd — Wed, 06 Apr 2011 16:58:53 +0000

Rockin' S Bar & Grill gets a brand new online home featuring a photo gallery, video, an event calendar and more. View the new website. Located in Graford, Texas they opened their doors in May 2004. Featuring specialty pizzas, sub sandwiches, appetizers, fajitas, hamburgers and cold beverages. The Bar is a private club that features beer & wine and mixed drinks. They have music and live entertainment during the Summer Season as well as a game area including pool tables, shuffleboard and video games.

Tanglewood Web Design

todd — Mon, 28 Feb 2011 20:31:32 +0000

Above is a website design we completed last year for Tanglewood Construction in New Mexico. We worked on design only, so no link yet. Also, we're excited to be working on four new tourism/travel websites for small businesses in the Forth Worth area. These website will go live in early March. I'll post them here in a few weeks.

Travel and the New Year Ahead

todd — Fri, 21 Jan 2011 17:35:18 +0000

Happy new year! Glad to have you checking in again in 2011. We've been traveling over the holiday season to Phoenix, Bisbee AZ, and Chapel Hill NC. It's good to be back and planning for the year ahead. Out of the gate: We started the new year working on print design for University of New Mexico and Flash animation for Newmar's 2012 line of Ventana motorhomes. Also, today we're starting branding for a (top-secret) iPhone app. More on that later.

Rob Fahey, Christmas Card

todd — Mon, 13 Dec 2010 04:58:34 +0000

We finished the album and poster art for Rob Fahey's newest release, Christmas Card. Needless to say the music is amazing. I wish I had a just fraction of Rob's musical talent. Also, a special thanks to the Smithsonian National Postal Museum for letting us use photos from their archive.

The album was Recorded at The Deep End Recording Studio in Baltimore, MD and produced by Tony Correlli and Rob Fahey. It's now available at CD Baby, Dig Station and iTunes soon. A perfect Christmas gift I think! Yes!

UNM Foundation Design Projects

todd — Wed, 03 Nov 2010 20:28:36 +0000

We've been updating UNM Foundation's print collateral and email marketing templates over the last month or two. It's been rewarding to see these materials get a consistent, clean design refresh. Just a quick status report from 3 Bicycles Creative. Thanks for stopping by!

Techvisions Logo, Before & After

todd — Fri, 08 Oct 2010 19:30:23 +0000

Techvisions has been a leader in business and technology consulting in New Mexico since 2003. They wanted to retain the overall composition, color palette and tech feel of their existing logo and identity, while at the same time streamlining the shapes and bringing a professional / friendliness into the fold. That's exactly what we did.

Smoothing the sharp angles and creating consistent weight across all letterforms resulted in a new logo that scales well for both print and screen. Also, the new Techvisions logo looks crisp in white when reversed out on a color background.

End of Summer

todd — Wed, 15 Sep 2010 14:10:00 +0000

It's felt a little like an endless summer here at 3 Bicycles Creative. June, July and August have been our busiest months to date... and we are loving it! Here are a few things we have been working on this week: finishing up two brochures for The University of New Mexico Foundation, starting design concepts for Rob Fahey's new Christmas album, adding new products into Corporate Mohawk's online store and doing a lot of Flash development in between everything else.

Our Mobile Site Launches

todd — Fri, 03 Sep 2010 20:29:54 +0000

3 Bicycles Creative just launched a website specifically designed for mobile devices. It's compatible with multiple platforms such as Android, WebOS, iPhone, iPod, Blackberry, Windows Mobile, etc...

Why develop a mobile site? Basically, the user experience (UX) of our desktop website on a mobile device was far from perfect. Also, it's obvious that mobile web not going away. Reports show that mobile web use will eclipse desktop web use by 2015. I'm sure by 2015 we'll be working on the holographic version of our website, but for now it's a lot easier to keep up with 3bicycles.com on your smartphone.

Vox Thread Fall 2010 Handbags

todd — Mon, 23 Aug 2010 02:16:09 +0000

Vox Thread Handbags just officially launched their Fall 2010 collection. Which means 3 Bicycles just officially launched their website! Bravo to Alicia for creating so many amazing pieces. Visit the Vox Storefront as well.

Corporate Mohawk Shop Launches

todd — Wed, 21 Jul 2010 14:43:00 +0000

Rock Gear. Punk Rock Prices. Corporate Mohawk is a brand new on-line shop offering an eclectic and exclusive collection of gear, tees and apparel representing only a select group of indie bands, tribal belly dance entities and creative artists that they truly believe in.

Time to get back into it

todd — Mon, 19 Jul 2010 16:57:38 +0000

Vacation was fun, now it's time to get back into it. A few things in progress at 3BC Studios today: design and animation for Heritage Home Healthcare, beta-testing the Corporate Mohawk e-commerce website, adding new products into the Vox Handbags shopping cart, Flash animation for Newmar Motorhomes... and there are some new projects and site launches in the works that I will announce soon.

Free 3 Bicycles Wallpaper

todd — Thu, 01 Jul 2010 15:35:06 +0000

These 3 Bicycles tileable wallpapers are 3 parts java, 6 parts bike geek and 2 parts Gorey. The artwork was hand drawn with ink and brush on paper, then scanned in. Oh, just make sure you choose the "tile" option in your desktop settings, they won't look as good stretched. :)

‚Ä¢ Dark Roast Wallpaper
‚Ä¢ Medium Roast Wallpaper
‚Ä¢ Light Roast Wallpaper

Links of Interest

todd — Mon, 28 Jun 2010 18:32:36 +0000

Hollis Brown Thornton: This VHS marker drawing would make for a nice mural in my office.
Summer Mix Series: Lots of good music for download. I look forward to this every summer.
Leah Giberson: Prints for sale. I like the bright light and crisp lines of these suburban landscapes.

RSS Autodiscovery

todd — Fri, 25 Jun 2010 20:02:21 +0000

I just added RSS autodiscovery to 3bicycles.com. Now it's even easier to add the 3 Bicycles Blog to your favorite feed reader. It looks pretty snazzy on my mobile xFeed app. Lock it into your Droid, iPhone, Google Reader or your preferred browser RSS reader.

Zines and Creative Inspiration

todd — Wed, 23 Jun 2010 19:21:09 +0000

Get those creatve juices flowing! Fanzinepaper's photostream (mostly in Espa√±ol) provided inspiration for some design and illustration projects I've worked on recently. These are fun, edgy, and go beyond the current trends of traditional print design. Enjoy!

Art of Sketching

todd — Wed, 02 Jun 2010 18:42:57 +0000

Sketches I've seen recently that prompted this post: Austin Kleon's Sketchbook, Urban Sketchers, Nathan Fowkes' Land Sketch

Whether it's in my notebook or DS Light, every project starts with a sketch. For me, sketching quickly reveals what will work visually and conceptually more than if I jumped right onto a computer. A by-product of sketching, it's nice to have a physical diary of projects that I have worked on over the years. It's a luxury to flip through quickly and see what the "ah-ha" moments were 2, 3 or 6 years ago.

Diaspora* vs. Facebook

todd — Fri, 28 May 2010 15:09:30 +0000

What will come after Facebook? Four young fellows in NYC are starting Diaspora*, an open-source social network that will address privacy issues that have plagued Facebook. With attention from The New York Times and Inc. it will be interesting to see what happens from here. I'm always searching out alternatives to what is popular, good or bad, so I'll be following the Diaspora* Blog.

William & Mary Success Story

todd — Mon, 24 May 2010 14:45:54 +0000

The William and Mary Law Review came to 3 Bicycles Creative because they wanted to streamline the way they published and archived volumes of the The William and Mary Law Review online. Their staff is mostly student based and is in flux year to year, so it was critical that the new system would have minimal learning curve.

Design through launch, 3BC built wmlawreview.org using Drupal CMS, along with custom programming to make the archiving process automatic. All articles within each volume are PDF's available for download as well. The sheer number of PDF's on the site also required some custom processes to be set in place. This was a super fun project thanks to everyone at William & Mary.

FontStruct Gallery

todd — Wed, 19 May 2010 15:07:56 +0000

One of my favorite places to look for eclectic / one-off typefaces is the FontStruct Gallery. Beacause all of the typefaces are handmade, there is a huge range of style, refinement, quality, ect... Which is exaclty why it's so fun to look through the gallery.

Here are some of my favorites: Hunstruct, Lyrical, SlabStruct Too, Luchador