Downloadable Signs and Coloring Sheets to say Thank You to NYC and her Essential Workers

Inspired by the iconic THANK YOU shopping bags and my son’s kindergarten class’s sweet renditions of “Empire State of Mind,” I created some printable signs to hang in your windows to say THANK YOU to all the New Yorkers staying home and all the essential workers helping keep us New Yorkers safe and fed every day. (Scroll down for the black and white coloring sheet versions.)

Click on any design below to download and print!

I can’t wait to see them hanging in your windows—tag me (@lokitimestwo) in your photos!

Printable signs:

Coloring sheets:

I also created some in black and white for anyone who wants to add their own color (or is running low on color ink their printers). No printer? No problem! Hold a sheet of paper to your screen and trace!

A sign to encourage distancing in Brooklyn and beyond:

And a sign to encourage mask wearing:

I can’t wait to see them hanging in your windows—tag me (@lokitimestwo) in your photos!

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Thing I Bought That I love: Apotheke Brooklyn’s Sea Salt Grapefruit Candle, $38

Described on the Apotheke Brooklyn website as “the tang of sea salt, black pepper, and ripe grapefruit is balanced by dew drop accords and tarragon, for a fragrance like summer by the sea,” (which, let’s be honest, sort of half makes sense?) this candle is THE SHIT. The scent is just slightly sweet, but clean and crisp, like a perfect sauvignon blanc. It fills a room, but isn’t super perfumey—it’s sort of just makes it feel like your home just happens to smells that good all the time. The design is simple—this isn’t a status candle—but it is high quality and burns really well and thus fits any decor and could be a good gift for pretty much anyone.

In summation, Apotheke Brooklyn’s Sea Salt Grapefruit Candle is A Thing I Bought That I Love.

#NOTANAD

Inspired by Mindy Kaling’s long-defunct “Things I Bought That I Love” blog, I’ve decided to share some of my own favorite Things I Bought That I Love in a series I’m calling #NotAnAd. Never sponsored, always highly-recommended, these are all things that make my life easier or more fun, make me smile or feel good, or I just really, really like. And I’m sharing them because I think you might too.

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Lyndsey Zorich is a Houston-based blogger and fashion influencer with a dedicated community of followers for good reason: she is known for her all-American southern style, lavish yet down-to-earth entertaining, and amazing eye for beautiful, practical (enough) things.

As a well-known blogger, Lyndsey spent years linking to her favorite table accessories, fashion finds, and home decor. Always dreaming of opening her own boutique, this dream came to fruition as The Avenue, which we designed to bring that boutique, curated experience to the online shopper directly from Lyndsey herself.

OnlyOnTheAvenue(.com) you can:

• Shop with Lyndsey Zorich as your personal stylist: The Avenue lets you shop by curated collection (tablescape or look) or by item category (like placemats or earrings).
• Shop tablescapes with a single click: different styling options for the same products are shared so you can see different ways to use your favorite purchases
• Pick out gifts your friends will love: always the gracious hostess, Lyndsey wanted gifting to be a big part of the site, focusing on making sure things are packaged and delivered to her high and exacting standards
• Experience first-hand a true family business: if you’re in Houston, you can get same-day delivery for $5 and if you’re lucky, your goodies might even be hand-delivered by Lindsey’s adorable children, who often go with her on delivery runs.

Lyndsey really puts her heart into delivering at a high-caliber, and working on her branding and new site was a dream. She and her team are so talented, gracious, and such a pleasure to work with. And I especially love that we were able to implement design treats in so many places!

Go on and shop The Avenue here. Once you’ve checked out the shop, let us know what your favorite pieces are in the comments:

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I’m often asked how I organize my schedule and everything I have to do for my clients/projects and business/marketing. Having lots of clients and client projects all at different stages in their projects makes it really crucial that I stay organized on many levels.

First, the big picture:

It’s really important to know your schedule and what you can realistically do. Set goals, set deadlines, and make/schedule the time to do the work. Check your goals daily. Re-adjust as needed. Get an accountability partner if that would help.

Managing my time week-by-week:

In order to specifically track my tasks for each project and stay on track, I keep a spreadsheet (Google Sheets) with the weeks of the year down the left column (each week has 8 rows with 5 for my tasks and 3 for my assistant’s) and each of my current clients gets a column across the top with an additional column for “other client work,” “administrative,” and “content/other.” My assistant shares the spreadsheet with me and can check her tasks a week ahead of time and check in if she has any questions.

At the start of each week, I make the entire week’s text in bod and red, then, as I complete things, a de-bold, add a strikethrough, and change back to black. So satisfying!

This allows me to see what work I have on a weekly basis and where/when I can add a new project and plan things out longer-term.

Managing my time day-to-day:

Each Friday, I use my (chic, Parisian) weekly planner to then assign the next week’s tasks to a specific day of the week depending on my schedule. For example, if I know I’ll be at the Wing for a meeting or an event, I’ll assign non-design/laptop tasks to that day. Planning out the up-coming week of Friday also allows me to see if I need anything from someone else in order to complete a task, so I can reach out ahead of time (and relax over the weekend).

The big goals:

I also keep a macro annual list of goals that I check in with and make sure I’m working towards those things on a monthly basis.

It includes large goals as well as repeating goals like “blog three times a month,” “send monthly newsletters,” and “attend two events a month.” I’ll assign these things to my spreadsheet well ahead of time so I always have the time carved out.

How do you manage your projects? Are you a fan of pencil and paper like me, or are you digital all the way? Share your tips and thoughts in the comments:

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Let’s hear it for fellow Wing Woman and client Liz Bybordi, who was featured last week on Strategy Girl NYC. Liz has 7 years experience working on Wall Street and with the launch of She’s Good With Money, she has become the it-girl’s financial wellness strategist.

I am super flattered to be included in Liz’s list of inspiration/mentors, especially since Liz and her work is such an inspiration to me!

Liz’s parents taught her to manage her money early on, and after attending college with dreams of working in the hospitality business, Liz was unexpectedly offered a job in finance. Growing up with a strong understanding of money and how it works, Liz really enjoyed her new position, earning her Series 7 and 66 licenses as well as the CRPC®  designation and eventually started her own business providing one-on-one coaching to professional women. She uses her hospitality training to provide an excellent experience, and sets them up with “the personalized tools, money mindset, and strategies necessary to achieve their long- and short-term financial goals.” If you’re just starting your own business, Liz recommends staying organized, seeking advice from experts, and keeping overhead low. She defines financial wellness as “being in control.” Your finances may not be ideal, but she advises working well with what you have by spending less than what you earn and saving and investing where you can.

To read the entire article, click here. If you want to be “good with money” and  learn more about Liz (and see the work I did for her) you can find her website here and don’t forget to follow @shesgoodwithmoney on Instagram.

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I was really excited to see Loki Loki client, best-selling author, and fellow Wing Woman Lindsey Pollak host “The Mentoring Remix” talk at The Wing recently. Lindsey is the leading authority on millennials and the multigenerational workplace. Stemming from her new book, “The Remix: How to Lead and Succeed in the Multigenerational Workplace”, Lindsey crafted a captivating presentation that adapted the lessons of the workplace to mentoring. I took some notes and I wanted to pass some of her wisdom on to you.

I really liked/recommend her personal brand exercise:

• jot down three words your clients/coworkers would use to describe you professionally today
• jot down three words you would like your clients/coworkers to use to describe you professionally in a year from now
• now jot down three steps you will take to get there

What do you think? Is it easier to define where you are now or where you want to be?

My thoughts: I think it’s easier for me to know how I’m thought of now—I ask all of my clients for feedback after each project. Have you considered doing something similar? According to Lindsey, your personal brand is your North Star. Making an effort to elicit an honest opinion from clients can ensure you’re representing yourself well.

For Part 2, Lindsey stressed the importance of acknowledging generational differences.

It’s always interesting to think about how different generations communicate, but regardless of generation, it’s important to ask how people want to be communicated with. That’s why I always recommend my clients give their customers lots of ways to reach them on their website. Maybe you prefer email, but someone else might prefer phone or a form!

Interestingly, her new book is called “The Remix.” While the title is meant to reflect the importance of mixing generational communication styles, when Lindsey interviewed DJs about the term, they said it fits her inter-generational expertise perfectly: playing a remix is known to get different generations on the dance floor—the older folks know the original, the younger folks know the new version.

Part 3 was all about mentoring. If you’re thinking of looking for a mentor, here are a couple of tips for mentees:

1. Be professionally enthusiastic (take notes!)
2. Be specific about the advice/guidance you are seeking.

Are you a mentor? Lindsey also gave some tips for mentors:

1. Be mindful of individual differences.
2. Keep a file of good advice/ideas/recommendations

A personal advisory board can also be a good way to build a mentor group for your business.

Check out Lindsey’s book here and follow her on Instagram and connect on LinkedIn.

(All photos via Lindsey on Instagram.)

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I love working with Emily Roche. She’s whip-smart, decisive, and has a great sense of humor and a laugh to match. Our shared Massachusetts roots and passion for kitsch bonded us immediately and our mutual respect and appreciation have kept us working together for the past few years. 

Over the winter, Emily wrote to me to let me know she was registering an LLC with a name inspired by Little Edie and needed a logo. I’ll let her tell the story because she’s the writer, but needless to say, as someone who creeps past Grey Gardens every time I visit The Hamptons, I jumped at the chance and could not be more thrilled with the result!

As told to me by Emily:

“All freelancers know you have to invest in yourself whenever you can. Last year I had a good year and decided to form an LLC for my business. Forming an LLC is a strange process in New York. In addition to filing usual paperwork, you have to fulfill an old-fashioned requirement and advertise your LLC in print publications for a few weeks. That alone made me want to choose a unique name for my LLC. One night while doing dishes inspiration hit and the voices spoke: ‘The name of your LLC will be Staunch Lady Content.’

“Voila! I had it: a name not only flexible to handle whatever writing-inspired work I do in the future but more important, a name wrapped around a secret handshake that will make those in the know smile for days. Fashion icon, sunbather, truth-teller, and no one’s housekeeper, Little Edie is one of my patron saints. Apart from the hoarding issues (which were probably more Big Edie’s problem), I’m convinced she’d be a natural at content strategy. In content strategy you have to deal with a lot of strange circumstances that are beyond all reason and totally out of your control. You need to manage a lot of moving pieces and strong personalities with laughter and class. You need to be, you guessed it, a a s-t-a-u-n-c-h character. And so Staunch Lady Content LLC was born.

“Only Cody could whip up a brand identity for Staunch Lady Content. When we met in January to do some 2019 planning it was freakishly warm, so I wore my Little Edie leggings that I bought in Ptown for some inspiration. That was all she needed. A few weeks later she emailed me the logo, and I was knocked out. Of course it was fabulous (I mean, just look at it!!!), but it also seamlessly translates into the original brand identity Cody created for me a couple of years ago. I’m still in the early phases of figuring out how my LLC will take shape, but I can’t wait to see where Cody and I go with it. I’m beyond thrilled to have all the building blocks in place that I’m sure would make Little Edie proud.

“PS – I bought the leggings at House of La Rue, and they have a sister location in the Lower East Side, go see what’s in store!”

Once you’ve had the chance to pick up a pair of leggings, check out Emily’s website at emilyroche.com.

To create our Staunch Lady logo, I used the shapes from her logo, each one representing one of her services—messaging, writing, and content strategy—and transformed them into the shape of a scarf. And I can’t imagine a better costume for the day!

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GirlSkill Podcast Episode 99: Good Style, Good Design, and Good Business: Discovering Yourself, Work and Motherhood

I first learned about Anna Rova’s GirlSkill podcast when she featured my super talented friend and client Meagan Morrison of Travel Write Draw in Episode 72. Meagan suggested Anna reach out to me and today my episode is live.

I love Anna’s mission of sharing stories of strong women doing their thing in the world. As you’ll hear in the episode, understanding people’s stories is a big part of my life and as the years go by, I am getting more comfortable sharing my own. And while Anna and I don’t necessarily see eye-to-eye on the limitations of traditional gender roles, she couldn’t have been more gracious. I really enjoyed my conversation with her and I hope you enjoy listening in!

About The Episode:

Cody McBurnett has always lived and breathed creative entrepreneurial culture, splitting her formative years between her mother’s salon and her grandmother’s atelier. She learned early on about the importance of good style, good design, and good business—and how they can completely change one’s mood, outlook, and chances for success.

Like a great haircut or the perfectly tailored ensemble, good brand design is an eye-catcher that allows the real—and best—of what you have to offer shine through. On that same note, bad brand design, like a bad haircut or an unflattering outfit, can seriously distract from the good stuff. In this vein, Cody is Loki Loki’s brand stylist, nailing the design and strategy and attracting the eye of consumers so they can discover the outstanding products and services each client’s business has to offer.

I do have to produce and at the end of the day I can’t bullshit that. I have to spend the time and sit with the client, have the conversation, and followup, and deliver the design, and work with them and be invested in their business… It’s a lot more work than it looks like.

Join us for a conversation about producing excellent work, good brand design and working for yourself. We’ll also talk about:

• The power of a “Disney NO” in motherhood and career
• Cody’s tattoos journey
• Lessons learned from running Loki Loki
• Feminine vs girly concepts in design
• Cody’s idea of femininity
• Entrepreneurship and motherhood
• Definitions of success
• Top 3 qualities of producing excellent work

The post 99 (GirlSkill) Podcasts and This Biz is One appeared first on Loki Loki | Brand Identity Design.

Dr. Jenn, a badass gynecologist based in San Francisco (and fellow Wing Woman—she found me via the member directory!), contacted me to revamp the identity and build a new website for the kick-ass podcast she co-hosts with Dr. Erica, THE V WORD.

This project is one of the quickest I’ve ever managed: we kicked things off on December 6th, the day I got home from a five day stay in the hospital after my son broke his leg, and launched today, January 7th, while my son is still in his cast and out of school for two more weeks! The V Word team made decisions and got feedback to me very quickly every step of the way, but also, in so many ways, this was the project my creative muscles were itching for—the ideas just flowed. I’m really proud to be a part of this project and and proud of this brand identity and website, which I hope will help launch The V Word to the wide audience it deserves.

From the ABOUT page of their website:

“The V Word is a podcast by two bad-ass Ob-Gyn physicians tackling all the crazy, sexy, embarrassing, and amazing topics of women’s health with hard science, personal stories, and a good dose of humor. We cover everything from abortion to infertility to feminist porn.

“Vagina, vagina, vagina!”

Visit the site to learn more, listen, subscribe, and join the conversation.

(I’m a bit of a podcast addict, so it’s extra cool to see my work in this format!)

The post The V Word Podcast Brand Identity and Website appeared first on Loki Loki | Brand Identity Design.

Over 10 months, we are celebrating 10 years in business by highlighting 10 organizations committed to helping women succeed… And asking you to donate (at least) 10 bucks to each of them.

Because it’s really, really cold and every night in New York City over 23,000 children go to bed in a homeless shelter, this month we’re celebrating the work of Win. “For more than 33 years, Win has provided safe housing, critical services, and ground-breaking programs to help homeless women and their children rebuild their lives. In the past year, Win served close to 10,000 homeless people — including more than 5,000 children — and helped more than 700 families transition out of shelter into homes of their own.”

Because I support women at all career stages, I specifically want to highlight the employment assistance Win provides for mothers. “Win works with each mom to help her secure and maintain a stable job that provides a steady income. Win encourages goal-setting that will foster job growth leading to steadily increased income and works with agencies that specialize in placing moms in jobs that are suited to their knowledge and skill set.”

Help us celebrate our milestone in the most meaningful way possible—by supporting an organization dedicated to helping families without homes.

Because you’re thankful for the roof over your own head (and it’s our “birthday”), donate (at least) $10 to support Win!

And even though the warm-and-fuzzies you’ll get from making a donation are of course thanks in and of themselves, we’ve got a couple of things up our sleeves as well:

• Email us proof (to info@lokitimestwo.com) of your donation (of at least $10) to Win and (with your permission) we’ll list your name and a link to your business below.
• Send us proof (to info@lokitimestwo.com) of your donation to any organization we feature and you will be automatically entered to win a super-special surprise (we’ll select a winner at random in December, once we’ve completed all 10 features).
• Anyone and everyone who donates a minimum of $10 to all 10 organizations we feature and sends us proof (to info@lokitimestwo.com) will get an extra-extra special gift from us (in addition to 10 entries for the super-special surprise referenced above).

Take the #10years10orgs10bucks challenge and donate (at least) $10 to Win today!

Supporters include:

• Cody McBurnett (that’s me!)
• Your name here?

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