Help us make some Cambodian kids smile

Excitement is building within the Slagle household as we prepare to leave for Cambodia in May--just a bit over a month away! Our kids are wrapping up the school year and are learning about the Cambodian people and their history. 

The primary purpose of our trip is to spend time with our extended church family: the staff and children of Asia's Hope Prek Eng 2 children's home—30 kids who can't wait for our visit. We have all of our travel plans and expenses covered but we really want to treat them to some special things while we are there. That's where you come in.

This is your opportunity, friends, clients, family, to treat orphans to a special meal, a trip to the zoo, a trip to the market to buy something special...

Please consider contributing some money to help us accomplish this task. 100% of the money we receive will be spent on the kids of PE 2. Let's show them how much Central Ohio really loves them. You may not be able to go yourself but any bit you can spare really adds up. The U.S. dollar still goes a long way in SE Asia.

To donate to our fund for the kids of PE 2 you can follow the link below. All gifts are tax deductible.


Join us on our adventure and follow our trip blog.

Thank you all so much!

PDF Slides iPad app is perfect

I had the opportunity to talk to my church this past Sunday. I used Indesign to build a PDF sideshow but I wanted to be able to be able to keep notes along with each slide without having to print out a stack of paper. It took more than three hours of searching on the app store before I found the PDF SLIDES app. There are plenty of options for PowerPoint users but this was the only one I found that works for PDF files.

It does everything I want it to do:

  1. Shows the current and next slide in the presentation
  2. Allows notes for each slide that do not appear on the presentation
  3. Times your presentation from the moment you advance the first slide (I recommend a "cover" slide that you can swipe past when your presentation starts.
  4. Shows a small timeline so you can see how far you are into your presentation (Very nice!)
  5. Works with Apple TV or video out (set it to mirroring)
  6. Works with Dropbox
  7. Laserpointer! use your finger to circle or point to parts of the slide. Nice feature.
  8. BONUS: there is a free app for the iphone or ipod touch that works as a wireless remote!

As nervous as I was to do the talk, the app really helped my keep my thoughts straight. I highly recommend it.

 

 

Brēzel Rebrand

Brittany Baum returned from a trip to Germany with a deep desire to recreate the authentic Bavarian pretzels she fell in love with while over seas. After perfecting the recipe, she treated her friends to these amazing delicies and then began selling her pretzels at local farmers markets. Brittany quickly realized she was on to something big. For the past two years, Brittany has had a space in Columbus' historic North Market where her business has blossomed. It's not uncommon to find her pretzels, pizza crusts, hot dog buns and rolls feautured in many Central Ohio restaurants.

Now, for the first time, Brēzel's pretzels will be available outside the North Market, in the grocery store frozen food aisle.  

It was my privilege to be able to work with Brittany and her team along with writing/strategy superstar, Christine Myers, to craft a new logo and Identity for their new North Market space as well as their pretzel stick packaging.

Be sure to watch for Brēzel Sticks to start popping up at Central Ohio Whole Foods and other grocery stores.

You can read more about their business expansion on Columbus Underground.

 

 

100% for Cambodia through June 2013

 

Quaint Co. was a result of a 2012 new year's resolution. As a graphic designer by trade, I was selling posters and art prints on my company website at www.jeremyslagle.com. I needed to separate my design business from my personal artwork so as not to water down my business offerings. It turned out to be a great idea.

As of last August, the sales were up a little but not nearly where I was hoping they would be. Then I got an email from fab.com; they wanted to sell my posters at the same time that I was leaving for a three week trip to Cambodia. Thanks to my wife and mother in law, they were able to fullfill the orders in my absence. The Fab sale was just what we needed to jumpstart sales.

I went to Cambodia with a few friends from my church to visit the children in an orpanage that my family has supported for the past seven years. I had no idea the impact that that trip would have on my life. You can read more about in on my travel blog here.

While I was there, I called my wife and asked her to consider something: What if Quaint Co. could be a way to raise enough money to bring the whole family (Becky and I and our two children) to Cambodia to meet the kids in 2013? She enthusiastically agreed. The following months were amazing! Between August and the end of 2012, sales increased by over 23 times! Enough to buy our tickets, PLUS send two of the older kids at the orphanage to college for their first year, buy a new motorcycle for the orphanage director, and donate a chunk towards rebuilding a new orphan home which had been destroyed by fire in Thailand! Amazing.

So, as of 2013, we are going to be more public about our involvement with Asia's Hope in Prek Eng, Cambodia. Not only to give you an opportunity to support us but to raise awareness of this amazing organization which we support whole-heartedly. 

As of January, we still have some expenses to cover on our trip and we are putting 100% of the sales between now and June, 2013 towards covering our remaining expenses plus we'd like to have some extra money to spend on the kids while we are there to take them out to dinner and spoil them a little. 

Every poster makes a difference!

I cant wait to see what happens in 2013. Thank you to all who have supported our vision by buying our artwork. Quaint Co. and the children of Prek Eng 2 orphanage appreciate it!

ALSO: if you don't have any more wall space for cool art and wish to donate to a fund that goes directly to spend on the kids of Prek Eng 2 you can donate at the link below. All of this money will be spent on helping out with the orphan home. None of these funds will be used for our travel expenses.

 

Lilly Script

As I look ahead to 2013, one of my goals is to spend time practicing custom script.

In 2009 I began taking engrosser's script lessons from Bill Lilly. Shortly thereafter I lost my job and subsequently started my own business, so I dropped our weekly lessons due to the uncertainty of my situation at the time. This December I reconnected with my old friend and began taking lessons again. I forgot how much I missed learning his trade, even more importantly, spending time with him. 

Bill Lilly is a Columbus treasure, recognized world-wide by those who are insiders in his craft. Visitors come from all over the country, and some from other parts of the globe to spend time learning from him.

William A. (Bill) Lilly was born in Marion Kentucky in 1927. Bill displayed an interest in and appreciation of art as a boy. His interest developed into a talent that was encouraged by his parents and enjoyed by his family and friends. During these early years, Penmanship was an integral part of the school curriculum in America and Bill's abilities with a pen showed early promise that grew with time. In the late 40's, while Bill was attending Western Kentucky State Teachers College, Professor of Penmanship G.G. Craig became impressed with his student's abilities and advised him to refine his skills by attending the Zanerian College of Penmanship in Columbus, Ohio. The Zanerian was considered the foremost American school of penmanship and engrossing at that time. Bill took Professor Craig's advice and enrolled. There his natural talent was enhanced by the expert teaching of the master penmen at the college, E.A. Lupfer and Palmer Bloser, while he was exposed to all aspects of the engrossing art, from broad pen lettering in Old English and German Text styles to the more demanding Engrosser's script. This last he especially loved and it became his primary interest. Mastering the beautiful 400-year-old script, with its disciplined contrast of fine hairlines and shades, its elegant simple and compound curves and its graceful flow, required long hours of concentrated study and practice. Bill's study at the Zanerian was rewarded in two ways: during his last six months there he was employed by the commercial arm of the Zaner-Bloser enterprise as a professional writer of script and then earned a coveted Gold Seal Certificate of Merit, the top award given by the college. --- quoted from www.zanerian.com


Today, Bill lives on the south east side of Columbus with his wife Sandy. He keeps busy with frequent individual and group teaching sessions in his home. When he's not teaching, he stays active by bicycling and rollerblading.  

Because his craft is a bit of a lost art, the tools of the trade can be hard to come by. Bill also makes pens (called oblique penholders) on his lathe in his basement woodshop and sells them online here. 

 


(above: my feeble attempts at capital letters)

If you want to learn more about Engrosser's Script, just search youtube. You'll find plenty of demos and how-to videos. If you are interested in contacting him to set up a session yourself, the best way to reach him is via email. Be sure to tell him Jeremy sent you.