Stephanie Dunn

Stephanie Dunn is an amazingly talented gal. She is a great photographer. She enjoys photographing cultural celebrations, doing portraits and weddings and travel photography. She also enjoys designing invites and materials to support her photography endeavors. AND, she even designs and builds furniture in her spare time. She does it all! So, she needed a logo that could encompass all of her talents. The simple square shape pattern works to symbolize all three of her talents and her style. You can find her at design.dunn@gmail.com if you'd like to inquire about her talents. 

Word Savvy

I've just finished some work for the lovely Kathleen West of Word Savvy! She is a very talented writer who decided to open her own Marketing Communications business. Flourish helped with the naming and design for Word Savvy. For those of us word-challenged people, I think Word Savvy says it all. Words come easy to Kathleen and she has a witty way of delivering them. So, put down that pencil and call Kathleen. She will make it look easy.

The logo was so much fun to work on. The "punctuation flower" came to life through sketches and seemed to be the smart and witty direction that Kathleen was looking for. You might not notice the punctuation at first but that is the wit of it. I enjoy the surprise in design when you look closer and realize the details. Savvy, eh? The color palette came naturally from the most basic of writing tools - the pencil. Pencil yellow and a metallic graphite grey.

We kept it modern and clean on the business cards and simply wrapped the logo around the edge of the card, creating the balance between the words and the savvy of Kathleen's writing.

Nature Palettes

I thought it would be fun to look for new color inspirations outdoors since it's spring and everything is so vibrant these days. Here's my first...

Iowa

We went to Iowa last weekend to play on the farm with Chad's family. Brutus had a blast, as you can see! He loves asparagus and riding on golf carts. He tried to make friends with the cows too. On Saturday we went morrell mushroom hunting and found a ton of them! They grow on and around dead elm trees and are sooo yummy! We also went asparagus picking on a cold windy Iowa morning. I'm going to pickle some asparagus today. I can't wait! 

Driftless Folk School

Cheese making class - this is my calling. I'm originally from Wisconsin (and my husband loves cheese) so I think we need to go back to the homeland to learn the ways of homemade cheese making. The Driftless Folk School is in beautiful Viroqua, Wisconsin. On June 27th they will teach you how to make butter, feta, mozzarella and several soft cheeses. That sounds like an amazing day to me. You'll also head home with samples of the cheeses and a culture to make some at home. I'm in!

Shade Perennials

Hakonechloa/Japanese Forest Grass

Tufted Hair Grass

Cohosh

Elderberry Sambucus 

(sun or part shade)

Black Chervil

Palm Sedge

Gray's Sedge

Angelica 

(sadly, friends school had a crop failure on this one so none at the sale this year)

Maiden Hair Fern

Hakonechloa/Japanese Forest Grass

Hakonechloa/Japanese Forest Grass

Lily of the Valley

Hosta

Japanese Painted Fern

I found some good shade/part shade perennials this year and had to share them. It's hard to find shade plants for zones 4 and 5 that have some flair. So, enjoy! And don't forget to go to the Friends School Plant Sale this weekend. I'll be volunteering in the rare plants area Friday from 3:30 til 8:00. Stop by and see me!

Lucy Michelle and the Velvet Lapelles

Just had to post about my favorite band ever! The first time I heard Lucy sing was last year at the Hootenany in Java Jack's basement. There was a big crowd so I couldn't see the stage, but heard the most beautiful voice singing the most amazing songs ever! Her voice is loungy without the chain smoker raspyness plus a hint of innocence. As if it couldn't get any better, the band is based here in mpls so live shows are a plenty! They have a Cinco de Mayo (that's May 5th) show this week at Eclipse Records in St. Paul.

Ikat

I love Ikat patterns! I'm going to try to draw up some for my graphic needs. Here are some awesome pillows from Uzbek Craft. They also sell fabric too if you're into sewing.

DIY Lamps

I've got a little affinity lately for electrical work and making lamps. I've been (trying) to fix outlets and switch light fixtures. I took a pottery class on making lamps with pottery creations awhile back and made a log lamp for my bathroom. Now I want to make some sconces by combining pottery with some of these fun lamp parts from Mohn Electric Co. I'm undecided on the design, but think I'll sketch it out. I can't wait. Soon everything in my house will be made from pottery. Hot damn.

Peacocks

Meet my peacock friends I made at Schells Brewery in New Ulm, MN. They're so pretty yet modest. I wish I had a tail like that. Chad and I celebrated valentines day this year with a brewery tour. It was so much fun — and the fried sauerkraut cream cheese nuggets at the german restaurant in town were amazing. Sometimes I want to hide in the corner like this lil' peacock lady above. Like today. It's raining. Blah.