the power of style...

Prepare yourself, folks.

I'm about to show you something waaaaaaaay cute.

Are you ready?

Really ready?

Here it comes.



This is the amazing illustration of Michelle Romo of Crowded Teeth. Her style reminds me of everything that I loved about my childhood...like being at the Sanrio store! Animals and objects with the sweetest faces? Of course I love it!

I've been reading Michelle's blog for a few months, and have really enjoyed it. But when she released her new style guide, I was immediately hit with inspiration. If you work with design, you may be familiar with the idea of a style guide. It's a collection of standards for using a design, logo, website, etc.

Michelle used this idea so well when creating her illustrated characters. On the left you see her illustration; on the right she gives a description of the characters and shows colors and patterns and icons that go with them.



By doing this, it really makes you think about the feel of the illustration. You consider how it will work with other things and what things should and shouldn't be combined. It gives the groupings of illustration a really cohesive look.

When I create illustrations for my items, or just for fun, I usually use a limited color palette. But I've never thought about making a style guide. Look at those patterns! Aren't they amazing? Michelle makes those a huge part of her illustration...they contribute so much to the whole look. And then there's the way she displays the icons and patterns and extra elements. They are fun and functional!

My personal goal after seeing this is to incorporate the use of a style guide like this into my work. And to make more patterns. This kind of style can be a powerful tool. I can't wait to see how it will stretch my mind and my creativity...

(Thanks to Michelle for letting me use her images!)