Sharing the Love ... Spreading some "good" around.

In a world full of challenges ... I wanted to comment on being grateful and take a minute to share some links.

But first - - - a bit about my blogging spurts.
I know it's a good thing I'm not a professional blogger because I'm not exactly consistent on posting regularly. I love to write but typically my writing is dark often times helping me get through something or find a new solution. For a perfect example, check out this piece that I wrote in December 2007. My step mom calls it "depressing" but I think it's probably one of my best yet. Upon reading it, I'm sure you will wonder how in the world I contribute to a moms blog. I wonder that myself sometimes when I'm having trouble writing my next post. But somehow I manage - although I have to work on writing more than just one a month.

I am a firm believer in having many outlets for our creativity, our frustrations ... you name it. My outlets include blogging and most recently, a freelance artists group that I started with my friends, Will and Rachel. I love creating things whether it is a website or a well-thought out Lego castle. But as my business grows and my responsibilities grow, I find the need to create something that has nothing to do with money. So far, our venture is doing well - so in exchange, I'd like to share some links of friends, colleagues, clients, etc.

Will McCarty Freelance Graphic Artist and Friend
http://www.wmccarty.com/

Ben Asaykwee Fabulous Musician and Friend
http://www.benasaykwee.com/

Rachel Hanel Fashion Photographer and Confidant
http://www.rhanelphotography.com/

Steve Samler Musician Specializing in Digital Music for commercials and more (also a member of our group)
http://www.stevensamler.com/

Christopher Ciesielski Fellow Graphic Designer and new to Chicago (also a member of our group)
http://www.design-duo.com/

Emily DeWan A freelance portrait & wedding photographer and member of our group
http://www.emilydewan.com/

Juana Ryan awesome photographer and owner of Stella Lily Studio 1 (and friend)
http://www.stellalily.com/

Jennifer Khatchatrian self-employed mom and Friend
www.fandspace.com

Diana Adams Portrait Photographer in Fairfax, VA (and client)
http://www.fairfaxtimes.com/news/2008/apr/08/Pictures-pro-bono/
www.studiodiana.com

MJ Tam super-mom and blogger (and friend)
wantsugar.blogspot.com

Makeba Waller owner of Ultraview Imaging in Arlington, TX and also a client of mine
http://www.ultraviewimaging.com/


-------

Chicago Freelance Artists Group and Blog

Freelancers Union

Chicago Smart Green Families

Post Secret ( one of my favorite sites )

Who needs "please" when we've got guns?

As most professional moms do ... I juggle A LOT! I've added one more task to my plate these days and that is blogging for "Chicago Moms Blog". I love to write and I love blogging because I don't necessarily have to tell a story - I can be opinionated, personal and even weird if I want to. The Moms Blog fits well with my lifestyle ... I work at home and most of my day is spent balancing my work load, my kids' schedule, my family's demands and lastly my own personal needs. My new found interest revolves around anything that helps me make this world a better place for my children.

I recently had my friend (and professional photographer), Rachel Hanel take these photos of my beautiful children wearing political tee shirts for one of my clients. I took it a step further and created a political family portrait. (**please note, my husband says he is not a republican but also note that he supports Bush so what should we call him? let's blame it on his military upbringing and move on.)

Thus my new found political expression spawned my first blog entry to Chicago Moms Blog. Coupled with a toy gun Jazper received as a gift ... I felt the need to read about how other moms felt about violence and at the same time try and justify my "no guns" policy.

____________________________________________________________________________________

Ralphie: “I want an official Red Ryder, carbine-action, 200-shot range model air rifle, with a compass in the stock and this thing that tells time.”

Mom: “You’ll shoot your eye out.”

We all know Ralphie Parker, the quintessential toy gun owner from “A Christmas Story”. In the world of hot parenting topics, boys and imaginary gunplay ranks at the top. And I became personally affected when my four year old was recently given the gift of a toy gun; which I politely rejected. Even though I don’t allow it, my boys will go to great lengths to make a gun out of anything: their finger, a stack of legos, even a sandwich. In a culture already filled with toy soldiers, armed pirates, violent video games and images of real war, I find it unnerving to see an innocent child pretending to kill someone. I keep asking myself if I’m giving it far more power by forbidding it.

I think children see guns and weapons as “hero worship” and along with that they also witness the power they possess. Rarely, if ever do we see the hero defeating the villain by “talking”, more often we see the hero defeating the villain with violence. Sadly, our children see that violence works. Violence is power. It becomes stylized and children are more likely to look at the violent solutions they see as a “real” alternative. How can we allow this natural boyish behavior of playing with guns and still educate them that violence is not an answer? How can we explain the difference between their pretend play and the fact that real violence can not be retracted?

My grandparents argue that imaginary games of cowboys and Indians or cops and robbers did not turn them into violent adults. This may be true, but as children “real” violence was not pumped into homes with quite the regularity it is now. So, it is a stance I take to not encourage gun play and violence. I will not provide toy guns for them nor will I allow them to receive them as gifts. But on the other hand, I can not forbid their creative methods either. I will continue my crusade to make it clear that I do not approve of play that involves hurting others, even if it is only pretend play.

**thanks to Jack Johnson for this post's title ... inspiring and empowering my want for non-violence, peace and change.

New Work / New Lease on Blogging

Isn't that saying, "a new lease on life"? I had to google it to be sure. I realized the other day that not only was it February 20th ALREADY, but it had also been 2 months since my last blog. Wow, time flies when you are busy and I think I also find it hard to blog about work. But it recently came to my attention that I could blog about not only my new work but my new learning experiences, and my life in general. If you have been to my myspace page and read any of those blogs, you know that I love to write. Those blogs always seem to take a lot of myself to complete them ... I suppose putting them out in public makes me spend more time polishing the phrases with a certain poise. But then again, that's my job, to make things look pretty whether it's graphic design or just words.

I recently started a Freelance Artist's Group (in collaboration with fellow designer, Will McCarty and fashion photographer, Rachel Hanel) here in Chicago in the hopes of creating an artistic outlet for myself and my peers and hopefully developing a good network of talented folks. If you are local and interested, please visit our site and contribute some ideas to the cause.

Click here to check out
The Chicago Freelance ARTISTS Meetup Group!

In the spirit of "new lease on blogging", it is my goal to develop a more wide-spread topic range for future blogging. But on the same notion, I also need to share my recent work with you.

A good friend of mine, Jennifer Khatchatrian has recently started a new organizing business. Like me, she wanted to find something she could do from home so she could be with her kids more and still make a living. She came to me for a logo and we are soon to get started on the website.

www.fandspace.com

And my blogging spirit is now cut short by the 5pm bell and the sound of my children coming home from a day of play. I have much more to share with you ... as always stay tuned!

Niches

It was recently brought to my attention that designer children's web pages might be a well-sought out niche for me. I was recently designing a web page for my 4 year old. He's started playing on the computer more and more and I wanted to have more control over what he was viewing as well as give him an easy tool for getting where he needed to go on the world wide web. My husband called me an over-achiever but my friends said they would pay me to design one for their kids. Hmmmmm... my wheels are turning / What do you think?

Here's the page I designed for Jazper: www.jazperrovinsky.com

Happy Holidays!

3 NEW Web Sites ...

. . . for your viewing pleasure.



1. Azul Hospitality / An HTML design inter-weaved with Flash.

Azul is a hospitality management group specializing in restaurants, resorts and golf courses. They are located in San Diego, CA.

View the Site:
www.azulhg.com










2. Catered Creations / A purely Flash Design used in conjunction with ASP form mail and PDF menus.

Catered Creations is a catering and event planning business owned by a very talented, Judith Williams. Judith finds her niche in creating ethnic chic cuisine. Catered Creations is located in Miami, FLA.

View the Site:
www.cateredcreations.biz






#3. My Paper Store / HTML-based design featuring a javascript gallery. This web site will serve as a placeholder for a much larger e-commerce site that will sell invitations, announcements and stationery. (*and also offer live personalization).

Wendy Bloom is the owner of My Paper Store and currently operates a store called Announce It. She recently came to me wanting to take her business online. Stay tuned for more. Wendy is located in Detroit, Michigan.

View the Site:
www.mypaperstore.com

PS: I designed the logo too!

An Official SNEAK PEEK at the NEW Rovinsky.com

Yes, I know, it has been a long time since my last blog. For all of you loyal "Fans" out there, I do apologize. The life of a graphic designer / mother / wife / woman / etc. is sometimes demanding yet always rewarding. I have been busy working on my new web site, which will launch mid-month. I'm really excited to bring you a simple, clean, user-friendly yet incredibly sophisticated NEW Rovinsky.com. I am so excited, in fact, I thought I would provide you with a tiny sneak peek of what you can expect to see with my new design.



Now that you have seen a little tidbit of what is to come, I also want to share with you some details about the new work you see in the sneak peek movie above. I'm really excited about the work I've been doing. I'm learning new things and really branching out to a higher scale of design and marketing. I'm also very proud to say that I'm building some fantastic professional relationships along the way. I think that is really the best part of my business - being able to build relationships with people all over the world and really thread my marketing ideas with their business.

FIRST UP ....

Azure

(Building Development Web Site)

Over a year ago now, through craigslist.org, this fabulous advertising and design firm from NYC found me. Engine No. 9 is the company I work with and I'm very proud to unveil two new web sites that we've finished recently. Both marketing tools for new building developments in NYC, the first of which is www.azureny.com.

This web site is built in flash using .asp framework. The site is built for a screen resolution of 1024 x 768. However if you are viewing on a smaller screen, the site will scale to your viewing area. The web site features an on-load menu animation as well as page-by-page image animation. Currently, we are building administrative functions so the client can update pricing for units themselves through simple point-and-click technology. Go ahead, sneak a peek!

Adagio
(Building Development Web Site)

The second site I've designed and built with Engine No. 9 is for the new building development, Adagio. This site is also built using flash and features the scale-able coding I mentioned with Azure (above). This web site features drop down menus that are defined within the .asp framework. We also feature a transparent flash background to allow for our patterned background in html. Check it out: www.adagio60.com.

Cleveland Eye Clinic
(Direct Mail / Quarterly Newsletter)

This next company is the Cleveland Eye Clinic. This client came to me via referral almost two years ago. Since then, we've built a web site (see the link above), created ads, designed trade show booths, postcards, brochures, etc. I'm proud to be a part of their marketing and promotion. The latest project we just completed is a quarterly newsletter. CEC came to me wanting to create a template for a quarterly newsletter mailing. The above image is our final result. Please click here to view the entire Newsletter (PDF).

Stress Eraser
(DVD Insert / Instructional Video)

Lastly is a DVD insert I created in collaboration with a marketing firm in San Francisco for a new product called the Stress Eraser. I worked with Point Marketing on a regular, yet freelance basis during my 2 years living in SF. I was happy to hear from them last year, now living in Chicago. The piece is not exactly a newly completed project but I'm very proud of the design. And since creating this piece, I've noticed this product in magazines and in the media. Thus, making it noteworthy in presentation today.

That wraps up my blogging duties for the day! But rest assured, there will be more soon! But for that to happen, I must get to work! HAPPY TUESDAY!