Up & Running

KateSteib.com is up and running! Check it out and let me know what you think. I welcome any and all critiques.

M.I.A

Been away for a while, but for good reason. I've finally purchased my domain name, woo! I've been working on my online portfolio, but until it's ready for public eyes, I've got a very fancy construction page for you to look at:

Ta-da!

Very Tempting...

Took a nice, long break from blogging over the holiday (as is pretty obvious), but now I'm back and ready to post! Easing in, though, with just a simple link:

How much do I want to apply for this job?

Happy Election Day!

The first of the poll closings will be happening in a few minutes and I thought I'd congratulate my fellow prisoners voters with another type of presidential poll:



You can check out various results here.

Tattoos

I was reading a post of Kevin Cornell's recently, about tattoos. I am of the same opinion as him when it comes to permanently inking my skin: if I were to do it, the tattoo would be drawn by me (or someone I know) and it would be useful to some degree.

Then I started thinking about what I would get if I had to get a tattoo, and here's my list, in no particular order:

• The imperial scale, or a ruler. I can't tell you how many times I've searched in vain for a scale in order to measure a particular element in a drawing. If I had it tattooed on my forearm, problem solved!
  
• To Do List. This might possibly be my favorite idea. It would basically just consist of "To Do" underlined, with unchecked boxes underneath it. Better even, would be a tattoo that merges my love of lists with my love of post it notes. Just get a yellow (or other color) post-it note tattooed on the inside of my forearm, complete with a corner curled up and shadow underneath.
  
• Connect the dots. I don't know what image I would want it to look like, but it would look just like the "connect the dots" activities found in children's coloring books.
  
• A list of CAD shortcuts, whether for AutoCAD, Rhino, Illustrator, Photoshop, etc.

So, if you had to get one, what would you get?

A Frightening Prospect

Just got an e-mail from Ashleigh with an awesome link:

Frightening Prospect



I have already downloaded the poster, put it on my flash drive, and plan on printing it out tomorrow via plotclub.

It reminds me of a site I found a little while ago:

Design for Obama

They also have posters for download, and I must say, most of them are pretty awesome.

Undecided

Check out this article written by one of my favorite authors, David Sedaris, about the undecided vote. He sums it up quite nicely.

Poladroid

Sad that the polaroid camera is being phased out? This will help!

Go here to download the software for free. (Sorry, for Mac only.) Then just drag and drop picture files onto the camera and out pops a polaroid version. Plus, if you "shake" the polaroid while it's developing, it will develop faster. Here are a few test runs of mine:



Driving through Kansas.



From my Chicago trip.



The tree in Ma's front yard.



Just before Kansas City.



Watson with his serious face on.

New Blog!

I started up a new blog, dedicated to my thesis project, "The Science of Cute." Please check it out.

Oh! And if you love me, you will take my Cute Survey. It has a purpose, I promise. And you can send it to any one of my numerous e-mail addresses.

The Mystery Box

I forgot my Mac power cord this morning and am forced to use my PC in studio. I got on and opened Firefox to my homepage, this little blog. My good lord, it's ugly on a PC. I don't know what happens in translation, but it's one hideous looking web page. So I apologize to all you PC users. There's not much I can do, however, so you're going to have to live with it.

As I mentioned in previous posts, I've been reading up for my various classes, so I thought I would share a few of my sources with you all, you know, just in case. Most of them, I will pass on, however, because they will be sources for theming, such as my "How Does Earth Work? Physical Geology and the Process of Science" book, which is helping me get around the educational aspects of the ride.

I'm afraid I can't divulge the idea for the project because I am most likely going to enter it into the competition. I'll try and post my most vague renderings and other little tidbits along the way, though. Like this book that is an awesome source of work done by actual imagineers:



"Designing Disney's Theme Parks: The Architecture of Reassurance"

There's an amazing photo of the model for Sleeping Beauty's castle in Paris. It must have taken ages to build. This isn't the photo but it's the closest I could find out on the world wide web:



The book also has some interesting sketches and renderings that give me a good idea of the caliber of work that is put out at Disney.

Also as part of my research, I have been listening to short talks given by some very inspiring people at TED. So far, I've been listening to talks that focus on children, learning, creativity, story-telling, and technology. In particular, I'm loving this one given by J.J. Abrams entitled "The Mystery Box." Good stuff.

Most Stressful Cities

Forbes has just released its list of America's Most Stressful Cities.

10. Philadelphia, PA

9. Providence, R.I.

8. Salt Lake City, Utah

7. Cleveland, Ohio

6. San Diego, Calif.

5. San Francisco, Calif.

4. Los Angeles, Calif.

3. Detroit, Mich.

2. New York, N.Y.

1. Chicago, Ill.

Among the factors considered were gas prices, poor air quality, population density, and unemployment rate, to which I said, "San Francisco, really?!" I'm also surprised at Chicago being number one, mainly because I visited there early this Summer, and it was a very clean city. At least compared to St. Louis. I think the only thing keeping St. Louis out of the running is that we have the lowest gas prices in the country.

Go by Bike

While I was at The Pathfinder, Manhattan's local outdoor living shop, this week, I picked up a neat little flier about a movement going on to promote bicycling in America. It was full of a bunch of interesting figures:

Just 3 hours of bicycling per week can reduce your risk of heart disease and stroke by 50%.
The U.S. could save 462 million gallons of gasoline a year by increasing cycling from 1% to 1.5% of all trips.
In 2003, cars stalled in traffic wasted 5 billion gallons of fuel.
25% of all trips are made within a mile of the home, 40% of all trips are within two miles of the home, and 50% of the working population commutes 5 miles or less to work.
60% of the pollution created by automobile emissions happens in the first few minutes of operation, before pollution control devices can work effectively.

And on the back, they have a website where you can check out some how-to videos on starting to bike, keep updated on important issues and events, and pledge miles of your own.

Since I've been in Manhattan, I've been really very good about biking when I can, even going so far as to ride in the rain (with my fancy rain jacket on of course so as not to catch cold). So far, I've ridden to every class, ridden to Planet Sub to steal food (shh, don't tell), and ridden to the UPS store on the opposite side of town to send my Europe phone back. I haven't been to the grocery store yet, but I'm planning on going tomorrow to stock up on things.

By the way, if you're wondering what to get me for my birthday, a giant Chrome or Timbuk2 bag for carrying books/groceries/Target goodies is very high on my list right now.

So anyway, since I've been so good, I thought I'd make it official and pledge my own miles. I figured out that if I rode to campus 7 times a week (figuring in multiple trips a day or going in on the weekends), made 1 trip to the grocery and 1 miscellaneous trip a week, then I'd travel a total of 121 miles a month. I was amazed to find out that I would save about $26 a month in gas. That's about $230 over the course of my last year at K-State. That's pretty significant.



I've attached a widget to my blog (to the right) that will follow Manhattan's "Go by Bike" contribution.

Even if you don't plan on biking, I suggest checking out the Go by Bike website. It's refreshing to see so many people pledging so many miles. And to see a response to the energy crisis that isn't a hybrid SUV.

Why I Want Need a Kitten

Or 8.







Courtesy of the Itty Bitty Kitty Committee.

Tristan Thiel

As you can imagine, coming to a prestigious design school for a summer semester means meeting students with various different levels of experience and achievement. I've mentioned Tristan before, but didn't know he had a website until we were all talking about our various blogs, sites, and portfolios.

He has absolutely amazing photography, and his furniture is more like art than furniture. Personally, I am in love with the "fire hydrant cozy."

Alex Ostrowski

I found this designer via The Serif, a wonderful site that provides readers with "a daily dose of design inspiration."

Alex has finished up his last year of schooling and is working with Think Public. If I were to sum up his design work into one category, I would put it at Interaction Design. He's very interested in his effect on the public through design, a demographic that is consistently forgotten when dealing with clients and briefs and all the complications in a project. He recently took a lone trip to Denmark to research "The Happiest People in the World." He compiled his findings into a book, of which only one copy exists, sadly.





He also designed a book called "Note to Self," a series of posters with short bits of advice for everyday life.



I love his outlook on design and the fact that he based a whole year of schooling on the subject of Happiness. Please check out his site here for more of his projects.

2008 Summer Mix

This week (and last) has been horribly hectic, but I've managed to scrounge up a little ear candy for you. I tend to make a music mix every season or so, and this summer's mix will not disappoint those who like Indie Pop Rock, lady singers, or piano & violins. I worked hard and found free (and very legal) downloads of the songs, so get 'em while they last! Just left-click to listen or right-click and Save As to download. Needless to say, if any of them don't work, you can either send me a comment or check out my source of free and lovely music, The Hype Machine.

1. Elevator Love Letter - Stars
2. Campus - Vampire Weekend
3. Animals are Cut in Two - Half-Handed Cloud
4. Second Chance - Liam Finn
5. I'm Not Going to Teach Your Boyfriend How to Dance with You - Black Kids
6. Think I Wanna Die - Someone Still Loves You Boris Yeltsin
7. A-Punk - Vampire Weekend
8. In This Home on Ice - Clap Your Hands Say Yeah
9. The Party's Crashing Us - Of Montreal
10. Soft Revolution - Stars
11. Foundations - Kate Nash
12. Mr. Blue - Catherine Feeny
13. I'll Follow You Tonight - Anna Ternheim

There are a couple repeat bands (i.e. Stars and Vampire Weekend), but that's just because I am continually impressed by them and their sound. The mix starts out kind of quick and happy, even "Think I Wanna Die," which manages to use the word twee, which is now my Favorite Word^TM. Then it gets into female vocals with Kate Nash and slows way down into Catherine Feeny and Anna Ternheim. So it's very fitting to the summer months: fast-paced and action-packed pools and zoos and sports then picnic and nap in the park.

THE Question

I found a neat little firm that does every sort of graphic design under the sun, and they do a lot of book design, inside and out. I love looking at the websites of graphic designers because not only do they showcase their work, they give visitors an idea of how they work and who they are. That and they give impeccable attention to detail. FWIS does this simply by how they organize their projects. Not only can you view them by type, but you can check out projects that they didn't get paid for, projects that they argued over, and projects that "scored [them] babes." You can just tell that they are doing what they were meant to do.

Speaking of which, yesterday I got the question that every full-time, paid-by-the-hour, time-and-a-half-overtime employee LOVES to hear.

Can you work extra hours?

It took me about 1/16th of a second for my brain to process this equation:

Working overtime now
=
Less working during the school year
=
More time for studio and shop
=
LOTS OF DESIGNING AND BUILDING COOL FURNITURE

And really, when it comes down to it, that's how most of my equations end. Needless to say, I agreed.

Also on the job front, although not mine, I found the absolute best interview/presentation idea over at Swissmiss:



Video paired with art/design has been around a while (check out Stefan G. Bucher's Daily Monster and witness your jaw dropping to the floor), and I LOVE LOVE LOVE to be able to see artists and designers in action. Everything from methods to tools to the way they position their paper or the music they listen to while working or the space they work in; it's all in a video. I had always thought a wonderful way to publicize the College of Architecture at K-State would be to produce a time-lapse video showing a hand-drafted finish sheet from the first pen line to the last. Or initial sketch to final design. Set to a good song like:

Of Montreal's "Disconnect the Dots" or
Phoenix's "North".

Maybe with my oodles of non-Planet-Subbing next semester, I can borrow a nice camcorder from the library and take that on. It would be pretty awesome, and I imagine useful, to see how I sketch or brainstorm in super-fast mode.

Short for Kathryn Howell III

I've been having to do a lot of things in preparation for my upcoming study abroad in Copenhagen, such as making payments, ordering luggage, reading up on Denmark, arranging my flight, sketching like a madwoman, picking housing, uploading my transcript, etc. etc.

Well recently, I had to submit a photo of myself to DIS so that I could be issued a student ID. This is actually quite thoughtful of them, seeing as the alternative would be to catch us off guard and bleary-eyed after a 13-hour transatlantic flight. So I took some shots with my shnazzy camera and hooked her up to Beatrix (as in Beatrix A. Macbook). And what did I find, other than the ungodly horrors of what a wide angle can do when it's two feet away from its subject? Pictures from Chi-Town! Enjoy!

First up, beautiful shots of the city:











Next, some B&W:











I still have a lot to learn about my camera. Ashleigh, my sister-in-law, has already given me some very useful tips about settings I didn't even know I had, so she's to thank for some of these actually turning out semi-decent.

And yes, that was Panic at the Disco a week BEFORE I saw them in St. Louis. We happened upon them very much by accident while trying to find Paper Source, the most beautiful store I have ever laid eyes upon.

And here's just a little nugget I spotted while in a Tacky Tourist Shop:



Both spelled my way, I might add.

Like Such As

I've found a wonderful little site that makes me want to drop everything and sketch for a week without stopping. It's called 'Skine Art, which is short for Moleskine Art. Most of the drawings are characatures or cartoons, but there is also a hefty amount of still art and architecture.

Two artists who post regularly on the site have caught my attention. Here are some samples of their recent work:



First is Mattias Adolfsson. His imagination and attention to detail are amazing. And I really like the humor he puts into his drawings.



Next is Wil Freeborn. I especially like the sketches done during meetings, where he starts off taking notes and gets distracted (like you do) and starts drawing the people around him.

And on a completely unrelated note, sometimes I get curious and I google my username. Just to see what is out there. Today's search brought back mostly Twitter and LastFM links. This one I found to be interesting:



Apparently, I am a current top listener of the Phil Collins song, "Only You Know and I Know." (That's me right there in the bottom right corner.) Now, I think I know what happened here. I ripped the CD onto my iTunes and it automatically started playing as I walked away to do something equally unimportant. And that song played. Once. I feel slightly unworthy to hold this title, but a small competitive part of me wants to play the song endlessly until I achieve number one listener status. But then I realize that's silly. Why would I make number one on that song when I could be number one for "Don't Lose My Number?" Makes me really want to know a person named Billy so that I could annoy them endlessly.

Manhattan Kansas, The Big Corn

So I found this while browsing a link in an I Love Typography post.



I'm kind of surprised I haven't seen it before, at least at the local Thread shop. Nevertheless, it's a funny take on "The Little Apple" motto.

And here's another great little gem. If you're at work and trying to read my blog (shame on you!), you can input the url and the whole browser turns into a Word document.

Here's the link to my 'document.'