New work: Preservation Parks of Delaware County

Slagle Design is grateful for the opportunity to work with the amazing team at Preservation Parks of Delaware County. This collaborative process went from brand strategy, through multiple logo concepts, refinement and application.

“We are excited to share our new logo. It will differentiate Preservation Parks in a county that is fortunate to be home to state parks, a popular Columbus Metro Park, and other local community parks. Each step in the process was done with intent and with the goal on being good stewards to our natural and financial resources.”

–Tom Curtin, Executive Director of Preservation Parks

The creation of the new logo was not only to differentiate Preservation Parks, but to continue to communicate Preservation Parks’ mission to Delaware County residents. “To protect and conserve the natural and historic features of Delaware County and to inspire outdoor exploration and learning.”

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Not another “water and trees” logo

When it comes to parks logos, the world has too many “water and trees” logos. Just do a search for “metro parks logos” and you’ll see what we mean. We set out to create something as different and memorable as the experiences you’re likely to have at PPDC’s beautiful locations.

Recognizable at 45 miles per hour

A constant goal throughout the process was to create a logo that would stand out along a country road to drivers moving at speeds of 45 mph or more. The bright colors and bold type help the logo “pop” when surrounded by trees and natural settings. The colors also represent the sense of adventure and opportunities available to their constituents.

Stewards of the land and the logo

The new logo for PPDC is flexible and designed to be used in various sizes, orientations, and limited color options. PPDC is tax-payer funded by the residents of Delaware County and we set out to ensure PPDC would be good stewards of their money when it comes to brand implementation as they are for the land that they preserve and care for.

A Focus on flora and fauna

Wildlife preservation and natural surroundings are equally important when it comes to what visitors expect when they explore the parks. We set out from the beginning to ensure that we showed both aspects in a unique and unexpected way.

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“Jeremy always went above and beyond in our quest for a new logo! He listened to our entire team, he did his research and designed an amazing logo for Preservation Parks. He found a way to differentiate our growing park district from others and to put our mission in motion. Thank you, Jeremy!”

–Beth Mccollam, Marketing and Communications Manager

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Foxes are:

Unexpected

You forget all of the times you’ve spotted a deer or bird, but you never forget the times you have seen a fox in the wild. We are all about memorable and unexpected experiences.

Relateable

Humans have a natural connection with canines that we don’t have with other wild animals. Like humans, foxes are nurturing parents to their pups. Unlike wolves, they don’t live in packs, they live in small families called “leashes.”

Playful

Foxes are known to frolic and play. We want people to come to our parks and do the same.

Smart

The red fox is known to be an animal of intelligence and fortitude. This coincides with our love for learning and public educational opportunities.

Solitary

Despite their ability to thrive in towns and rural settings, foxes like to keep to themselves and avoid loud, active places. They “escape the busyness.”

Jeremy and Beth Join Jordan Raynor on the Call to Mastery Podcast

I have been a fan or Jordan’s writing for a few years. I picked up his book, Called to Create: A Biblical Invitation to Create, Innovate, and Risk and used it for a small group study with some fellow creative entrepreneurs. It’s fantastic. His recent book, Master of One: Find and Focus on the Work You Were Created to Do, is one of my favorite books in the last couple of years. I love his heart and the way he encourages entrepreneurs, business-people, and creatives of all types to lean into their calling and recognize we are uniquely created to do the work God has called us to do, and to do it with excellence.

When he started his podcast, I couldn’t wait to listen and it does not disappoint. He interviews some pretty heavy-hitters like N.T. Wright, Carly Fiorina, Tim Keller, Noah Elias, Lou Holtz (coming soon!) and others. I sent Jordan an email, telling him about our second Kickstarter campaign for a children’s book about empathy. I knew it was a long-shot but I figured it couldn’t hurt to ask if he thought we would be a good fit for his show.

Within a couple days, I received an email inviting us to hop on a call with him to shore more about our story. He loved it and invited us to be on as guests! We are so grateful for this opportunity. Thanks jordan!

You can find out more about Jordan, The Call to Mastery Podcast, and to sign up for his free weekly email devotional (which I love) at jordanraynor.com.

Follow him on social channels here: Twitter • Facebook • Instagram

Recent Project: Illustrations for ScripHero

Slagle Design worked with ScriptHero to create a series of illustrations for a recent issue of their on-line publication The PostScrpt about how to shop for prescription drugs.

“Slagle Design was an absolute joy and pleasure to work with on illustrations for ScriptHero's digital magazine, The PostScript. Jeremy took my bare outline of ideas and turned it into something clever and fun and, most importantly, something that communicated the article's thesis in a clear, impactful manner.”

Justin McIntosh, ScriptHero Content Manager

Visit the site here

Come on a field Trip with Brave Kids Art Club!

I’m super excited to have been asked by my buddy, Brad Woodard, to welcome his Youtube subscribers for a field trip to my studio where I teach them how to draw a chinchilla!

My desire to be a designer and illustrator started at a young age and Brad is using his gifts to inspire young artists to consider a creative career path with his free daily drawing lessons. It was an honor to join Brad on his channel!

Brave Kids Art Club is meant to be an outlet for kids to explore their creative curiosities, learn drawing tips and to simply have fun! Artists have to be brave but it isn't easy. So hopefully we can make that part easier by creating together in the Brave Kids Art Club!

We are going on a field trip to visit the studio of professional graphic designer and illustrator, Jeremy Slagle! Join us as Jeremy gives us a tour of his st...

Listen to Jeremy and Beth on TheFutur Podcast with Chris Do

In this episode, Chris talks with creative team, Beth Stafford and Jeremy Slagle. Together they've written, illustrated and published two successful children's books that shine a light on the importance of teaching empathy to both parents and their kids.

These two solopreneurs share how their truly collaborative spirit works, the perks and perils of social media and the unintended benefits of pursuing that side project you can't stop thinking about.

Both Beth and Jeremy are graphic designers, with Jeremy working largely in branding. Their motivation for writing children’s books came naturally and with no specific intentions; they do it just to do it.

The two were introduced through Beth’s husband, who originally, was creating the illustrations for Beth’s first children’s books. Their paths would later cross again, when Beth asked Jeremy if he would like to illustrate the book. Emphatically, he said yes.

The two searched the web for the best practices to curate the promotional messaging of the book. They raised funds entirely on Kickstarter to get their first book, Chin Up, Chinchilla, out on bookshelves and in the hands of parents and kids.

They were able to raise money for their first book rather quickly thanks to a mixture of both word of mouth and social media marketing. They met with child psychologists and took notes from other children’s authors to refine the story before publishing.

So why write about empathy? For Beth, she was curious to know what she could teach her daughter that she found was incredibly important as an adult. When she noticed how easily empathy came to her daughter, she knew that was vital not just for her, but for everyone to practice and apply to their daily lives.

If you're a parent, teacher or curious about publishing then you are in for a wonderful treat. Even if you're none of those things, give this one a listen, because there's always something to learn.

I was on Adobe Live!

I’m not gonna lie, the thought of streaming my process live was a bit anxiety-inducing. But, Andrew made the experience fun and engaging. I’m looking forward to the opportunity to do it again sometime.

If you missed it, lucky for you, you can watch both episodes right here:

Enjoy!

Hip Hooray, Hippo! is live on Kickstarter today!

Two years ago we launched a Kickstarter campaign to share a simple children’s book about empathy.

Little did we know we would have it fully funded in the first 6 days and continue to exceed the campaign goal by another $3,000!

We were so grateful for the people who took a chance on us. Since then, we have gone to a second printing, lead workshops on how to start a successful side project, done multiple book readings, and the knowledge I gained has become an ongoing Adobe Illustrator workshop that has lead to multiple conference opportunities, and new friends.

This morning, after working on the second book, we launched another campaign. The goals, once again, is to presell enough of them to get them printed. The second book is called Hip Hooray, Hippo! and follows a similar story as the first, only this time, we are teaching kids that it’s good to celebrate along with others when they get the first-place prize you had to settle for second or third. When good things happen to others, our choice is to be jealous and give into bitterness or to recognize their achievement and celebrate along with them. This isn’t just a good message for children. We could all benefit from cultivating empathy, no matter our age.

Illustrating this book has been so much fun! Here are some sketches and a few of the illustrations that are contained in the book. I always start with sketches in Procreate. You’ll see that some of them were pretty close and tierces changed as we laid out the book and mixed things up a bit.

Winning first prize at the fair ended up being very close to the original sketch and layout.

After this initial sketch we added the streamers to really add motion to the spread. Really happy with the way this one turned out.

We ended up flipping this one so the pacing of the book was better but it’s still pretty close to the original sketch.

We really changed this one up! I referred back to the Chin Up, Chinchilla board game spread for this. If you have the first book, you’ll know what I mean. There were several opportunities to tie the two books together.

Once again, this project taught me more than I’ll ever get paid for. Side projects like this aren’t often lucrative but the benefits of taking a risk and using it as an opportunity for professional growth and community engagement are awesome.

Thanks to the people who gave us great feedback and insight along the way and, most of all, thanks to Beth Stafford who has trusted me with her story again! You’ve been amazing to work with and I’m thankful for the opportunity.

For more information about our books, visit our website at www.happycargobooks.com

10 things I’ve learned over the last 10 years

Not only are we entering a new decade on the calendar, we at Slagle Design are entering our second decade as a business. We’ve learned a lot over the years.

I started as a reluctant entrepreneur. Ten years later, I’m a different person altogether. I’ve learned hundreds of things about myself, my business and about serving others in our work. Here are some of the best things I’ve learned, in no particular order. 

Success is less about talent and more about being a trustworthy partner.

Listening, really listening. Delivering on time and on budget. Looking out for ways to save your clients money and overhead. Getting to know them and their business so you can create great work that resonates with them as well as their loyal customers. Responding in a timely fashion. Keeping them in the loop as to what to expect next and what will happen after that. These will keep you in business and lead to referrals. It’s not enough to make pretty work if you are unable to meet and exceed the needs of your clients and ensure that you’ll be a reliable and empathetic partner.

Treat your business like a client.

Show me a “cobler whose children have no shoes” and I’ll show you a cobbler who needs to take better care of his family! We are creatives who help other businesses look great and communicate effectively and yet so many designers don’t care for their own business’ communications or creative side projects. You have to list your own projects right alongside your paying work–however you track such things (I’m currently loving Asana). When the paying work slows down or you’re waiting for a client to send approval, work on that much-needed update to your website or think about creating your holiday card, even if it’s April. You’ll thank yourself in November! It’s also a great place to list ideas for side projects or personal development goals. If you add it to your list and it still sounds like a good idea when you get around to it, it probably is!

We all get screwed by someone at some point. How we choose to respond makes all the difference. 

They will take your work and refuse to pay you for it regardless of having everything in writing. Fortunately, it has only happened a few times. I lost sleep. I got angry. I got my lawyer involved. At the end of the day, you have two choices: fight or forgive. Fighting is expensive—often times more expensive that what is owed you. Fighting requires a lot of time that you could be spending working with the clients who actually value what you do. Fighting leads to bitterness and anxiety. I have found that when there are no options left, you have to forgive and move on. This is insanely hard to do in the moment, but once you realize that it’s not about you, it’s about them, you can, over time, forgive them and turn your energy to the clients who care. This a healing process for me and I have found that every time I have forgiven, it gets easier the next time.

Believe in your process and stand by it at all cost.

We have a tried and true process. It is designed, not to make our jobs easier, but to deliver the best possible solutions for our clients and to ensure everyone is an active participant in the creative process. Sometimes, potential clients wish to skip key parts of the process due to budget, deadlines, or simply because they don’t value certain parts. Every time I have bent over backwards and or taken a project against my better judgement, I have regretted it. Figure out your tried-and-true process and stick to it. If someone wants you to cut corners, walk away. It means they aren’t a good fit for you and it’s not fair to either party involved. Remember that a healthy relationship is a two-way street. It’s not enough for the client to choose you as a good fit for them, it’s equally important that they are a good fit for you.

I’m far more capable than I gave myself credit for.

When I started out, I promised God (out loud) “I would not say ‘no’ to an opportunity if fear is the only reason.” Shortly thereafter I was invited to speak and present my work to design students and faculty at a university. I was terrified. The only thing I remember was getting up to speak and sitting down afterwards. I have no recollection of what I said or even if I said anything at all. Then I accepted an opportunity to speak to another group, then another. Over the years, speaking has become an opportunity I actively seek out and has given me a platform to encourage and inspire others in ways I couldn’t have imagined and has led to some great friendships.

It’s good to be a generalist.

We don’t listen to people who tell us to “stay in our lane” or “you have to specialize.” If you want to add to your skill set, take a class, learn something on Skillshare, get some equipment and learn how to use it. Intern for someone who is willing to show you the ropes. I started out as a designer but I also do quite a bit of illustration and photography. Branching out and adding new skills keeps things interesting and fresh. It also gives you knowledge about how things work. So even if you end up outsourcing projects that you like to do, you have an understanding of the ins and outs so you can communicate well with your creative partners.

Trusted, vetted, creative partners who treat your clients as well as you do are essential.

While it’s good to be a generalist, its equally important to know your boundaries. We partner with some of the smartest, most talented, most reliable people around. They are developers, writers, producers, animators, printers, and architects to name a few. Our clients love them and we couldn’t do our job without them. We trust them to work directly with out clients and often the relationships extend beyond our scope of the project. We love hearing when clients continue their relationships with our creative partners long after our part of the job is complete.

Invest time in your website. 

I see it all of the time: killer social media presence with a non-existent website. We get a ton of work from our website because we have made it the primary focus of our attention. Social media platforms come and go. They change their algorithms and change the rules. They use your work to sell advertising and your information as currency. But your website is 100% under your control. Posting on your blog, keeping your portfolio up to date and making regular updates makes a huge impact on your bottom line. It’s a sandbox where you get to set the rules and build what you want without conforming to someone else’s. After all, when clients are looking for a designer, they typically search on Google, not Twitter, Instagram or Facebook.

Social media isn’t social.

 People will say things on-line they would never say to someone in-person. They will trash people they have never met, practice moral superiority, and add anxiety and drama to your life. Life has enough drama of its own. Be actually social, join and support local creative organizations. Attend conferences. Grab coffee with people. Have real conversations. You’ll find out that people have more in common than social media would lead you to believe, and maybe hearing from others can change your perception and even your opinion.

Joy comes from gratitude.

Working for someone else and expecting a regular paycheck is very different than relying on whatever work comes your way in a given month. When I started Slagle Design 10 years ago, losing a regular paycheck and benefits was really scary. It took a good five years before I was mentally out of “scarcity mode.” Focusing on scarcity means you aren’t able to see provision when it’s staring right back at you. Gratitude is about focusing on the provision. When that mental switch flipped it changed everything. When I recognized I had little control over my workload and income and it actually gave me peace. What I can control is how much we save and how much we spend. We learned to save, save, save, during times of plenty so when the drought comes, you have plenty of margin to cover any losses.

Hip Hooray! 50% off Adobe Illustrator Brushes this weekend!

Use the promo code SMALLBIZSAT at checkout to receive 50% off all Illustrator brushes this weekend only!

Chin Up, Chinchilla Holiday Gift Bundle available now through Thanksgiving Weekend!

Here's for the perfect present for the kids and critters on your list.

Now through Thanksgiving weekend, get this $50 deal for only $30! A perfect gift for the kids on your Christmas shopping list.

Includes:

• Two hardcover books

• E-book download

• Two sticker sheets (while supplies last)

This deal ends Saturday 11/30 at 11:59 p.m. EST, so take advantage of this great deal while supplies last.