KATIE’S ANSWER:
well, katie evans is a very common name. katieevans.com is actually being used by a doctor in oregon. if i couldn’t have my name i wanted something funny or with a story behind it. in college (and to this day) i love telling really funny (bad) jokes. they make me laugh so hard. the person i’m telling the joke to usually laughs at me laughing instead of the joke because i look and sound pretty ridiculous. so…there was this one joke that i liked to tell… a lot…

Q: what does the two headed monster say?
A: hello. hello.

i would act it out and usually get confused looks from friends. anyways – it stuck. hello hello design was born in 2009 and is living a humorous life.

BRI’S ANSWER:
i still remember the day i was sitting in my cubicle at my 9-5 job three years ago and i asked myself “why the heck do i NOT have a blog? that looks way more fun that what i’m doing.” i started it right then and when the computer asked me to fill in the blank “blog name?” i paused for a moment…stared at the screen…and thought to myself “how am i supposed to pick one thing, when i will be blogging about all the things i love?”

then i thought about the word orgy and THAT didn’t seem very appropriate. but i wanted a name that represented a bunch of cool design all living in one space. love fest! ah-ha! designlovefest came alive—with the tagline: where type and images totally make out (the slightly tamed down version of orgy. keepin it PG-13, peeps!)

it was a 5 minute decision and luckily i’m still into it. (which rarely ever happens.) do you still like your choice? or do you regret it big time?

(illustration by katie evans. a bunch more freelance advice posts are here.)

photo one / two

photo via tar magazine

a lot of my friends are a bit older than me, which means i’ve had a peek into what my life might be like in a few years. a lot of them are in that baby makin’ phase and it has me thinking lately…i wonder what my kid will look like. will they be outgoing? will i have any idea what i’m doing when that time comes? am i going to be a strict parent? will we live in los angeles then? how far away is this anyways?

just thoughts. no actions. believe that.

what age did you start thinking about this baby jazz? it’s funny because i think about it a lot more ever since we got pets.

and a lovely shot by my friend bonnie tsang…

my life needs real balance and something had to give. no more talking about balancing, actually doing it. rue was an incredible learning experience for me, but it was also a lot of time, energy and all-nighters. i’ve come to a point in my career where i need more focus. you know that saying “pick one thing and get really good at it”?  i was doing 4…yeah, my life was cray.

i’ll never forget when i started at rue, i felt unprepared and super nervous. the photos up above was actually when i met the rue girls. i was just wearing pretty dresses in a ban.do photo shoot for issue 1. i had done magazine design work in the past, but not to this extent. not designing 100s of pages of content all by myself extent. i pretty much threw myself into the lion’s den and learned from my mistakes along the way. (gosh it pains me to go back and look at the very first issue!) now i feel like i could design that thing with my eyes closed. and i had a ton of fun doing it. (i mean, just look at this video after an all-nigher, ha!)

there were actually several times where i thought i couldn’t take on the task anymore. the deadlines were really tight and i was managing far too much. but i loved what i was doing and it wasn’t the right time then. and i am also not a quitter. i have to do my best and try not to look at this as quitting, and more like passing the torch. i’m thinking of it as rue part deux!

thank you for following along my rue journey. i feel so incredibly lucky to have been surrounded by all the creatives that put their time, energy and awesome ideas into this magazine. i have met some lifelong friends and will never regret my decision to be a part of it. this magazine taught me a lot about myself and who i am as a designer. now, it’s on to the next chapter for me…best of luck to rue! -bri

photo credit, top to bottom: ilenia martini / max wanger /  steve pappin / arian soheili

shop: picture / hat / bird earrings / luggage tag / crop sweater / scarf / purse / belt / sneakers

(psst! see more colorfest here!)

i was super excited to be featured in this LA Weekly article all about bloggers! (she captured my personality perfectly on the second page)

have a lovely weekend, you guys! -bri

Clemence Poesy in Glamour UK February 2012

what you’ll need:
- 4 inch round gardener’s cork mat (available at hardware stores in the house plant department)
- Gold Spray Paint
- Blue Spray Paint
- Gold Craft Paint
- Small round paintbrush
- Felt
- Craft Glue
- Scissors

how to make it:
- Spray entire cork surface gold spray paint and allow it to  thoroughly dry
- Starting at the center, lightly spray blue paint from the center to the edge, adding more paint in layers to create an ombre effect. (I found it easier to keep the spray can steady and move the coaster through the spray to make the gradient more subtle. I also practiced a few times with paper to get the hang of it)

then:
- When spray paint has dried make dots with gold paint using a small round paint brush. I evenly distributed the dots at first, gradually adding more to the edge
- Next, apply a thin layer of craft glue to the entire surface of the backside of the coaster and glue felt taking care to smooth the felt onto the surface.
- After the craft glue is dry trim excess felt with a pair of sharp scissors.

- Pour a tall, cold glass of your favorite libation, sit back and enjoy your handywork!

if you make any of our crafts, we would love if you posted them over on my facebook page for us to see! it makes us really happy to see you guys putting these tutorials to work!

(photos & creations by natalie shriver – see more DIY projects here!)