How I’m Feeling

For those of you who aren’t in my universe (ok so most of you); this is a stressful week for me. My university is hosting a charrette, or

an intense period of design or planning activity

Basically what is happening is in about one hour every graphic design/art major at my university will come together in one room, the department head will probably talk, someone else important will probably talk and then they will tell us a topic, it could be anything, it could be California, it could be self portraits, as of right now we (the students) don’t know! It’s exciting but nerve racking at the same time, they expect A LOT from us, they ARE giving us two days off from school for this…

I did this as a first year, not knowing what to expect, how competitive is it really? What do they expect from us? Well now I know. I am excited to have a little bit of experience under my belt before starting this all up again, but what if they have higher expectations of me then what I produce?!?! Well, all I know is I’m going to do my best and see where that gets me 😀

If you want to follow my journey search for #kaylinscharrette on Twitter and Facebook.

Weekly Round Up: Online Portfolios

I am currently taking a Web Design Class! One of the assignments this week is to look up some well designed online portfolios! And I decided to share some of my favorites with you! (I will post my online portfolio when I am done with mine!)

This first portfolio is my favorite of all of the ones I looked at! It was designed and coded by Alexey Chernishov! He did an excellent job with making his content easy to access and I suggest you check him out!!

The second is ANOTHER of my favorites. The portfolio belongs to Kevin Lucius and the content is simply presented beautifully!

The third (and final) portfolio for this post belongs to Soft. Although I can’t read the portfolio because it is not in english, I really like how you can hover over the four images on the home page to make them color!

Please go and check out the portfolios above and give the designers some love, they all do great work and deserve some recognition!

Lastly I have some bonus content for you all! If you are a graphic designer looking to create your own Online Portfolio check out this video by Karen Kavett! (She is simply amazing!)

This post was inspired by Day 23 of Zero to Hero!

A Week Of….

This is a post for the “Week Of…” challenge. This week it is branches!

Zero to Hero encouraged me to “throw your hat into the ring” of another Blogging Event. So, this is my response to Day 22 of Zero to Hero.

How Youtube has changed my life.

If you know me at all you know that I spend A LOT of time on Youtube, soaking in content.

If you aren’t “a youtuber” you’re probably thinking I listen to music and watch tutorials on pretty much anything….. Well actually, you would be wrong. I am subscribed to 67 different channels, with content ranging from the news based Phillip DeFranco Show, to watching the adventures of young graphic designer Karen Kavett, to watching the daily life’s of couple Alli and Charles Trippy, or Datev Gallegher, or the Butler Family.

I watch 4 daily vloggers who vlog everything and anything everyday of the year, birthdays, holidays and weekends included. This may seem unreasonable but it’s nice to watch something that you can relate to and feel for the people that are living their everyday lives just like you. Even if you don’t experience the same troubles as them, it’s nice to know that you are not the only one struggling.

Since subscribing to the channel CTFxC, I have added labels to myself. I have become a CTFxCer (Charles Trippy Fan/Friend/Family Core); A Nerdfighter; a part of the DLV; and a part of the Nation.

And finally, in the words of John Green (a young adult author and famous youtuber) “You can’t understand it from the outside you have to get an account you have to be apart of it.”

I posted this in response to Zero to Hero‘s Day 19 Prompt. 

Diamonds Are a Girls Best Friend….

Diamonds have had a consistent presence in my life…. and no I’m not talking about the jewel.

Baseball Diamonds:

America’s past time is baseball and it is something that my dad and I share a passion for. I’m an Angels fan while he’s a Dodgers fan (don’t ask how THAT happened….). But I LOVE the game, as the saying going there is two seasons, baseball season and winter, I truly believe this although it doesn’t feel much like winter here in CA… I follow the game all year long.

NRHH:

The National Residence Hall Honorary represents the  top 1% of students who live in the residence halls around the world. Although we stand by four pillars, our symbol is the diamond.

My Reputation….

So I don’t know… well I do…

I think I have different reputations depending on who you talk to…

My reputation from when I was in high school and the people that knew me then?

• My peers: An over achiever, over involved, student who goes for what she wants and stands up for herself.
• My teachers: A good student that does her work but has to work hard for it to be good.
• Administrators (people who knew my name but didn’t KNOW me): I’m a good kid; I stand up for and am not afraid to speak up for what I want and what is best for myself and fellow students.

Currently?

I truly think this is a harder question; I am constantly changing in the eyes of those that interact with me and are around me. I think my professors and my peers (at least in my classes) don’t really have a opinion. I’m only with them 10 weeks then we are separated; meeting new people learning new things, yes I have people who I have know for the three years that I have been here but even then I feel like I don’t let the people who are in my classes know the real me; they know the Kaylin that is dedicated to her school, overly involved and passionate about her studies; but the true me is reserved for friends, family, and those who are closer to me (personally and physically).

With them I feel as if my reputation is an ever changing web. I don’t know what they think of me… They would have to answer that question. They would have to tell you themselves. I am not one to speak  for others.

But I can tell you what I hope for; I hope that I am someone they can come to in a time of need; someone that is reliable and dependable; someone who is helpful; someone who is willing to learn; someone who is strong; someone who is funny; and someone who is great at her job (my studies for now).

This was in response to the daily prompt!

AND was inspired by my quest to finish Zero To Hero (even if it takes me more then 30 days).

First Successful Appliqué

Well kind of… I messed up in a few places but for the most part I did it!! I am kind of proud of myself, it’s something I have wanted to do for awhile and it’s done!!!

Had to share some of my creativity with y’all!!

My lifestyle…

“We have the spirit but don’t live the life.”
-Kevin [of the ladiedottie vlogs]

This quote definitely defines me and my life style. I think of myself a someone who is country but honestly?

I don’t COMPLETELY live the life.

YES; I listen to country music.

YES; I wear my (two) pairs of cowboy boots as often as humanly possible.

YES; I go line dancing consistently.

YES; I think sun dresses and cowboy boots are semi-formal.

NO; I am not afraid to get a little dirty.

But honestly?

I wasn’t raised on a farm.

I’ve never held a gun in my life.

I like fishing but can’t stay quite for that long.

I’m a city girl; I love skyscrapers, and taxis and the rush of not having to care about the people around you but at the same time wondering…. “What are their stories?”

So I’m a mix. I don’t hang antlers on my wall but my christmas stocking is made out of denim. I wouldn’t be able to go for very long without my flip flops (or the beach for that matter). But, for some reason I identify with the country life style. Maybe it’s my dad’s upbringing or some kind of urge to get out of the city… I truly don’t know. But I LOVE my best of both worlds experience!

Thanks Kevin for saying that! I’m not 100% sure why but it struck a cord! And if you a Dot do somehow end up reading this; thanks for daily vlogging! You two are one of my favorite daily vlogging channels!

Positive Attitudes

This is hard (trust me know!) but I think it’s important!! This picture was taken before a 6 hour training for my RA position (see my about me) and I was NOT looking forward to it! It was a Friday afternoon/night and I didn’t want to spend 6 hours listening to people lecture at me! It was the end of the first week of classes after all!! ANYWAYS! moral of the story is the time FLEW by! I felt like I was having the time of my life with AMAZING people and learning SO much!! Afterwards I was bursting with energy and dancing down the hall!! It just goes to show that even though your not excited doesn’t mean that you wont have an AMAZING time!

This definitely showed me that going into student affairs might JUST be a good idea… 😀

Why I started this blog…

Honestly?

I didn’t have a specific post in mind. I want a creative space. (Yes I am now basically EVERY social media website; see my social media page or click the three little lines ALL the way at the top of this page to see my Instagram and Twitter)

I joined because of Zero to Hero. Well kind of…

My partner wanted to do it. But who really sticks to these kind of challenges if you don’t have someone to make you accountable?

So we’re doing it together! It’s going to be hard; it’s going to be tough; but it will be fun.

I’m hoping this turns into a creative space but we’ll see… I’m open to ideas