Let's kick off another week with a peek into graphic designer,
Amanda Genther's workspace and a little background behind her business and blog. Amanda always has really helpful and well thought out blog posts about building your brand. Be sure to hope over to her blog and check it out! But first, read all about her creative voyage...
Tell us about yourself as a creative.
I am a graphic designer and web developer. I work with a select group of highly passionate creatives through an amazing process (if I do say so myself) that uncovers their true uniqueness and purpose, which in turn, helps me create the perfect identity for them to show off. I am constantly inspired most by nature and simplicity, but I love to tie in that extra pop of color. I am constantly learning new and better ways of doing things, which is leading me to a big brand redesign (launching in September). I decided I wanted to focus a bit more on a specific group of people, so my redesign will be catering to these people and I couldn't be more excited to reveal it.
Describe your creative journey.
I went to school for Marketing and Graphic Design. I knew I wanted to do more than 'just' design. My passion for entrepreneurship is just as strong as my passion for design, so I decided to focus on both so I could tie them together and offer my clients something really unique. When my husband and I graduated, we moved right away. I'm a Michigan born and raised kind-of-girl, so when we headed off to Chicago, let's just say I was pretty excited. I had planned on freelancing right out of college, but told myself that if I got offered a design job I would take it, because I wanted to get a little inner-office experience first. I got offered a job right after we had moved in, so for about a year I was working at a local Web Design company. I continued to freelance on the side for a few clients at a time.
Things really changed after I attended Alt 2012 (a mutual feeling among many of the attendees), and I knew I wanted to focus more on my own business. I found a couple of clients at Alt and wanted to keep going off of that momentum, so my last day at my job ended up being my birthday, February 13th. From then, I've been building my own business, working with my own clients and I couldn't be more happy. I feel so lucky to be doing what I love at such a young age, and equally as lucky to know so many other inspiring creatives that are the same age.
Share a little bit about your space.
My space is temporary, as it feels like we are constantly moving, so I've never really been able to settle down somewhere. We recently moved to a 2 bedroom townhouse, allowing me to finally have a whole room for my little business. That was pretty exciting. I've done as much as I can with it for now, until we make our next move, but I still feel that it represents my style. I like pops of color, quirky details and enjoy being surrounded by a ton of inspiration. I'm inspired by nature, first and foremost, so I always make sure to have some kind of plant in every room.
What's your favorite thing about your space?
How large my desk is! It's huge, and I still wish it was bigger, though. And I have two of them in the room (for the intern when she's here, but for sketching when she's not). I like to spread my work out and get pretty flustered if I don't have enough room to work. I bet you can only imagine how it was when I was working out of my dining room! Yea, that wasn't pretty.
What's one thing you think every creative needs in their space?
This one's hard to not point out the obvious, but I would choose a window. I think natural light is so crucial to keeping a positive creative energy going. I purposely shut my shades at night JUST so I can open them in the morning. It's kind of like "Welcome to a new day"!
Thanks Amanda!
Photos by Amanda Genther
