ABOUT ME
The Basics: I have been drawing since I could hold a pencil. After high school, I graduated from the Art Institute of Seattle majoring in "Animation, Arts and Design."
For the last 18+ years, I have been working full-time as an artist at various companies in the arts and crafts, scrapbooking, fabric and bedding, and area rug design fields. I have also worked freelance out of my home during this time.
The Good Stuff: I'm a wife and a mom. My daughters brings me so much motivation and inspiration; people thought I was creative before them...now I've taken it to a new level. It doesn't take much chatting with me to know that the girls and my husband are the loves of my life.
What do I want in a job: To be able to grow in my skills both digitaly and as an artist. I love working in a team - being able to teach and learn from each other. I bring a lot of passion to what I do and I want to be able to share that and to be fullfilled in my career.
Work History
CREATIVE DIRECTOR, Carpets for Kids Apr 2004 - Present, Portland, OR
I am responsible for everything creative at CFK from advertising and media, social marketing and web design, photoshoots and digital editing to product design and development. I take all of our products from concept to final approval for our many product lines, while managing multiple clients, projects and deadlines. In addition to designing, I work alongside the marketing department to create presentations and product recommendations for clients and facilitate the layout, displays and goals for both dealer and end user tradeshows. I travel around 4 times a year meeting with clients to gather new ideas and expand our product line. Since 2004 I have introduced 6+ new product lines and CFK's sku's have grown by more than 800%. Many of my designed products rank in the top 10 of our total sales. In my time at Carpets for kids I have been credited for being innovative as I have streamlined many of our processes and have brought efficiency and organization to our files and our design process. I pride myself on my great relationships with our clients, the originality of my designs, and the fast pace at which I work.
FREELANCE ARTIST, Pure Joy Studio Feb 2001-Current
I have worked creating textile patterns and layouts, nursery bedding, and artwork for style guides. I have also designed logos and business branding images, promotional materials for churches and even some set design for concerts. In addition I create custom hand painted artwork for the home.
GRAPHIC ARTIST, Daisy Kingdom/Springs Feb 2003 - Jan 2004, Portland, OR
I worked with a team of artists to design fabric and textile products for the retail market. This included pattern and repeat work, layout design for pieced panels and apparel, and color reduction techniques. In addition to original artwork and design, some of my biggest accomplishments were my work for Barbie/Matel, as they were one of our pickiest clients. My bosses were impressed to see how quickly my designs were approved and moved through the licensing process. In addition to Matel, I also worked with Disney and Peanuts.
GRAPHIC DESIGNER, Hot off the Press April 2001 - January 2003, Canby, OR
I designed in a WIDE range of areas; from book covers, layout and design of instructional books, to designing patterned papers, stickers and embellishments for scrapbooking. I create art both on the computer, and by traditional drawing and painting with watercolors; using many different artistic programs. Although some of these products were created more than 15 years ago, you can still find them on the shelves at your local craft retailer.
Education
Art Institute Of Seattle, AAA Animation Arts & Design, 2000 Seattle, WA