Sierra Lesiak

Tethered Closures on Bottles are the New Hot Trend in Beverage Packaging Design

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Text animators are such a powerful tool. The deeper you dive, the more you uncover.

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I recently designed the Summer 2024 edition of "The Infusion Advocate" for the National Infusion Center Association (NICA). Did you receive your copy? Did it look a little different? NICA recently underwent a brand uplift which includes a new font system, simplified color palette, and updated iconography. Print newsletters are a tangible form of communication that brings ideas directly into your hands. Does your organization need a newsletter? Considering updating yours with a new style? Please leave a comment below or DM me to set up some time to how I can help you achieve your communication goals. #graphicdesign #newsletters #IVtherapy #infusiontherapy #marketing

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Did you know it's perfectly legal to discuss your salary? Companies often discourage this and may try to intimidate you if they find out. So here goes. 15 years experience. Sr Art Director, 163k year, left with 125k/RSUs vested and about 80k unvested. In a tough job market, it’s crucial to ensure you're negotiating what you're worth, not just what they say they can afford. Often, they can pay more. Don’t settle out of desperation. Your pay is significant—I didn’t even get a raise this year, so I understand how important it is. I was shocked to learn that some, women especially, I previously have worked with made nearly 40-50% less than I did. While there are reasons for different pay scales, the pay range for the same roles shouldn’t have a $60k-$100k disparity. Pay disparity remains a significant issue, particularly for women, with black and Latino women facing even greater wage gaps. On average, black women earn about 63 cents and Latino women about 55 cents for every dollar earned by white, non-Hispanic men. This disparity is influenced by systemic biases, discrimination, and limited access to higher-paying jobs and opportunities for advancement. Addressing these inequalities is crucial, not only for achieving fairness and equity but also for fostering economic growth and stability. Ensuring transparency in pay and advocating for equal compensation are vital steps toward closing this gap. Go get your money. Don’t let a company gaslight you. If it takes nine interviews, you’re worth it.

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One of my favorite techniques for creating compelling logo marks involves utilizing narrative to ignite the imagination. Each mark is designed with a layered approach to construct a dynamic scene, typically featuring three distinct sections: foreground, middle ground, and background. This method not only enhances visual depth but also enriches the storytelling aspect of the design. These storytelling marks are the ones I'm most proud of, and the one that make me feel the most nostalgic. #logo #logodesign #minimallogo #narrative #storytelling #minimal #modernism #abstractlogo #branddesign #branding #identity #minimalism

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Mechs. So many mechs and so many styles. I started exploring --sref again looking for additional good graphic novel/comic book styles. In my testing, I would bounce from mechs to some of my weird west prompts to see how it handles humans and creatures. Some work great for both, some not so much. #aiart #aiartwork #aicc #aicccreators #midjourney #midjourneyart #midjourneyai #illustration #nijijourney #NIJI #characterdesign #characterart #generativeart #generativeai

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People can detect authenticity immediately. In a world full of canned responses, templates and stock images, we have become adept at instantly telling the difference between original and copy. Persistence to save time and cost is confusing to Creatives desiring to see a breakthrough innovation in communications. Speed is important, but not at the expense of attention. Unusual ideas stand out more clearly as they engage viewers with more value. The work may be getting done, but its significance is rapidly diminishing. We create original animations for business communications.

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Political posters serve as powerful tools for visual communication, shaping public perception and mobilizing voters. They combine art and politics, often reflecting societal issues and movements. While digital media now dominates, these posters remain a vital part of political campaigns, offering a historical snapshot of political and social landscapes. In Ireland, Designers Aaron Fahy and Paul McBride discuss how most Irish posters tend to stick to a tired, outdated formula, though some are starting to modernize.

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Guys, I still can't make page numbers in illustrator! Adobe Illustrator - Tips, Tricks, & Tutorials -- how do I make page numbers? lol I am not using inDesign because I need the final file to be illustrator (plus, because no one else on my team uses indesign) #adobe #helpmeoutplz #usererror #pagenumbers #featurerequest

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Consistency vs Perfection... Lately I've been struggling with myself trying to post consistently. Because I don't want to put out only half-baked graphics. As a research report designer my typical work takes weeks to fine-tune. I go over every detail to ensure proper printing and that PDFs for webs still look awesome when older audiences zoom into them at 400%. But for social? Things need to move fast so managing my own social and keeping up my posting schedule can be really difficult. I may not be a fantastic social media manager for myself but I design a mean long-form document.📃 If you have any research report or other long-form document projects coming up in the next year check out my new Discovery Form and let's have a 15 minute call. ☺️

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😅 When your client wants more changes but you're on the brink of design death... 💀💼 Ever felt like you're running out of time and ideas, and suddenly your client hits you with more changes? It's like designing on borrowed time! ⏳💣 But hey, who said we designers aren't up for a challenge, even if it's a race against time? 😅 Embrace those changes, they might just breathe new life into your project! 💡💀 #DesignLife #ClientChanges #graphicdesigner

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💥 Here are the top 5 things I would tell my younger designer/illustrator self. I wouldn't change anything about my past because I wouldn't have learned any of it without the experience. Would love for anyone to add to my list, even if your advice isn't specifically for creatives. 1. Always pursue creative projects outside of work; this ironically prevents me from burnout. You may never get your creative “fix” completely fulfilled at your job, at least in my own experience. Picking and choosing the right freelance clients is also a good move and could make a great career when you’re ready. Oh, and make sure you have a contract, get % upfront, and be on the lookout for 🚩 I’ll do another post about this another time. 2. Design is not always glamorous, but beautiful design is simply communicating a message. In fact, I’d argue design isn’t art unless that is the intention of the design itself. Rather, art is one of the avenues you can use to communicate a message through design. 3. Design and illustration can also be subjective and should be; you’re communicating to a target market who have different values, beliefs, and needs. But the fundamentals are the solid ground. And good design principles are objective. Learn the rules and then know how to break them. 4. Function should be allowed to come before form in design [unless you’re going for an art piece, mentioned above]. If that bothers you, you can flip the script in illustration 😜 Study your audience. Sketch out your ideas; you’ll find inspiration in unexpected ways. 5. Think of yourself as a problem solver; clients love this. Branding and Brand Identity are not the same thing. Tune into Marty Neumeier TheFutur and Chris Do content/books. They explain this better that I can. I’ll leave you with this. 🔥 Create more than you consume. Listen more than you speak. Give more than you take. Plant more than you destroy. Let me know your thoughts and add your advice. *Artwork is an unused client sketch created a couple years back. #CreativeAdvice #GraphicDesignTips #IllustratorLife #DesignInspiration #CreativeJourney #FreelanceTips #DesignPrinciples #ArtAndDesign

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A valuable lesson for any designer looking to choose a niche or specific target client type. “ If you want to make more money, be more useful, to people who have more money. “ – Codie A. Sanchez Find the people who need what you have and are willing to pay top dollar for what you can do for them and their business — that they can’t do for themselves.

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Perfect for designers and creatives, these tools streamline your process, saving time and sparking innovation. Explore how AI can elevate your projects. Try Await Cortex: 🤖 https://ow.ly/kWyf50QVhIK #creativeAI #designinnovation

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Kinetic typography project by Broc Schmidt. There are sound effects that accompany the motion. #sau #stambroseuniversity #sauartanddesign #typography #kinetictypography #motiongraphics

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