Anagram International Website

I am thrilled that the website that I designed for Anagram International (the world's largest distributor of metallic balloons) is finally LIVE! I see the developer made some changes to the site, but overall maintained the look that I created. The concept that I came up with for the site was "celebrating life's precious moments." I suggested that Anagram include imagery from many different types of celebrations, from bringing baby home to college graduation.

If you saw Anagram's old site, it looked like it was designed in the 1970's. It was almost impossible to navigate and it was in dire need of a makeover. One of the challenges that I faced when designing the site was how to make the Anagram logo look updated without making any changes to it. Complimentary colors and a circular design pattern successfully updated the logo and made it look timeless and classic.

I loved working on this project and have to say thank you very much to Vencio for choosing me for the art direction and design of the Anagram International site!

Vavavavoom

Here is my Ranier. She had her hair glammed up by Jamie from Euphoria Salon in St. Paul, MN. Jamie is an awesome stylist and because of this, Ranier and I couldn't help but have an impromptu photo shoot. It was nighttime and the goal was to get some glamorous photographs with very dramatic lighting and shadows. Mission accomplished. Check out Ranier here, here, and/or here.

Naturally Dying Easter Eggs

My Sofia and I dyed Easter eggs using goodies that we found in our kitchen. First, we blew out the eggs by creating two small holes in either end of the egg. Then we pressed our lips to each egg and forced the contents out of the eggs with our powerful lungs. It is not a glamorous task, but allows you to display your eggs for a much longer amount of time. Removing the contents from within the egg shell also allows for more versatility with the eggs. For example, you could create an egg garland with your shells. We are displaying our eggs in a glass vase upon our mantle.

We dyed our eggs using vinegar, warm water, old glass jars, blueberries, beets and mangoes. Our egg dying process is strictly experimental and we did not follow any guidelines. We added our foods to jars along with a splash of vinegar in each one. Then we placed our eggs in the jars along with hot water. We left our eggs overnight and were surprised by some of the results. The egg colors are very earthy and mellow. My favorites are the eggs dyed by blueberries. My least favorite eggs are the ones dyed with beets. I left the skin on the beets, which is why I think the eggs turned brownish, instead of pink.

If you would like more information on naturally dying Easter eggs click here.

Mr. Grayson

I just finished making the most adorable kitten for my little one's Easter basket! This was my first experience felting with needles and I enjoyed almost every second of it (except for the five or six times I stabbed my fingers with the barbed needle).

I hope to make more creatures for my Sofia and plan on making gnomes next. I found this awesome tutorial on how to make felted wool gnomes.

Play Time!

I cannot call my job "work" anymore because I am simply enjoying myself way too much to call it that. From now on, I will have to call it "play."

My illustrations are metamorphasizing into miniature pieces of art -- greeting cards, calling cards, customizable stationary and more.

Here is a snap shot of what I have been creating.

Celebrations

I had a lovely weekend filled with bright and bubbly people. My eight year old niece, Erinn stayed with us for the weekend, along with her brother's WII and Super Mario Cart! My husband and I battled it out several times and he was victorious over and over again, leaving me only slightly bothered. (We get a little competitive.)

Saturday night, I celebrated my 27th birthday with some of my favorite girls on the planet and laughed a lot!

Last, but not least my birthday celebration continued on Sunday with my family. My sweet mom made the most delicious meal including shrimp, Alaskan King Crab, and steak...Finished with the tastiest double layer chocolate cake. YUM. Moms are the BEST!

Thank you to my friends and family that all made my birthday very special, especially my husband, who was my slave all day Sunday.

Snow Angel

Wow, toddlers are one of the most challenging (but FUN) subjects to photograph. My cat is a much less difficult model. He just sits there and stares into my camera lens with his intense glare. My toddler on the other hand runs and jumps and makes silly faces and requires a bribe of chocolate to say “cheese.” Birds are also a test; they’re swift and they almost never stop moving. Here is the cuteness that is my tot, Sofia, my cat, Kikugawa Gato, and the bird that was torturing my cat outside my kitchen window

Sofia acting silly

Tada!

Good morning tea party

Snow Angel

Warming up

My Kittie

Watch out for my kittie

Live, Love, and Enjoy Life

I think that most grandparents would agree that the very best present that you can give them for Christmas is more grandchildren. The second best gift that you can give grandparents for Christmas is photographs of their already existing grandchildren.

For my parents, I designed a book full of photographs that I took of my daughter and family during 2008. It captures many fun and precious moments from our year and also illustrates how much my daughter changed, physically.

Here are a few pages from the book.

Holiday Recap

Said “Welcome” to my husband’s best friend/ future brother-in-law, “Uncle Doo-Doo.”
Recovered from a cold with the help of Greens, Emergen-C, and Acupuncture.
Visited my never-boring family Christmas Eve.
Laughed as my brother expressed his admiration for the yule log on tv.
Enjoyed watching Sofia open sooooo many Christmas presents.
Cried as we all said “Goodbye" to my twin sister, who moved to Chicago.
Found my daughter during a game of Hide and Seek.
Ate Dim Sum Christmas morning.
Traveled to Orr, Minnesota Christmas night.
Sledded down a hill with two feet of snow.
Snow Shoed across a frozen lake.
Played hours of Super Mario Cart on my nephews new Wii.
Ate way too many Christmas treats.
Celebrated my 2nd wedding anniversary with my husband.
Took a very long nap with my daughter.

Drew and Shelly

Greens

Hide and Seek

Nap Time

Winter Leaf

I found the shape of this winter leaf quite intriguing. I love the way that it hangs delicately from the branch, curling around itself.

Hello Sunshine

I love the way the sun is illuminating these photographs, snapped today when the sun started to set.

Quiet

Winter time quiet. Photographs taken in my front yard.

Winter

I found some colors in my own front yard this afternoon. What is left of my garden is actually much more interesting than I could have ever imagined. Winter creates new shapes that are much more organic, unusual and imperfect than in spring and summer.

Out of Season

Copyright 2008 Jessica Wood
I am in the mood for some vibrant colors, so please enjoy this taste of nature from my photography portfolio.

Hiking in NW Portland, Oregon

I snapped a few photos while on a post Thanksgiving jaunt through the woods in NW Portland to remind me that green plants can thrive outdoors in the United States, even in December.