Inkers Attend the HOW Design Live Conference

Last weekend my fellow Inker Ben and I traveled to Chicago for the HOW Design Live Conference. Thousands of designers, freelancers, and in-house managers came together to learn and be inspired — by each other and the many speakers working in the design industry. There were sessions about technique, new technology, brainstorming, staying creative, and how to make your in-house design more desirable. After four days you leave feeling energized, full of ideas, and ready to create!

We got the inside scoop on Martha Stewart Living’s ipad apps and digital magazine, which made me want to run out and buy an ipad just to use them! We learned creative ideas for brainstorming from the folks at Disney. We heard about various exercises to get the creative juices flowing for yourself or your design team. We learned the difference between Lettering and Type design from Jessica Hische (check out her wonderful blog the Daily Drop Cap). And finally, we got to see products and work from loads of vendors including stock photography, paper samples, t-shirt designers, t-shirt printers, and letterpress studios. Even Adobe was there showing off their new suite of software.

As you can see from the collection of swag above, French Paper was there, generously giving away examples of their lovely paper. The line for their booth was humongous, and the guys were feverishly running around trying to keep up with the demand. They ran out of stuff before lunch on the second day, and there is good reason too. Check out the Sample Room, a blog displaying various artists’ work using French Paper. With their long history of eco friendly paper making and wonderful color selection, I definitely know what I am using for my next non-tshirt project.

When we weren’t in sessions, Ben and I were sharing all our experiences over delicious lunches around town. Chicago continues to creep-up my favorite cities list by offering so many delicious food options. My new favorite is Chicago style hotdogs… if only I could get them at east coast ballparks! I will be dreaming of those dogs, as I create new artwork and design templates for you this fall. In the meantime, share some of your inspiring blogs, artists, and design with us in the comments!