ABOUT THE BLOG

It was my second day of grad school, and my professor told the class that we had to fill an entire 14″ x 17″ sheet of newsprint with perfectly straight, parallel lines of even thickness. We also couldn’t use rulers. What?! One half of me was flustered, “No rulers! But why?” The other half of me was indignant, “I was paying up the nose to sit in a class and draw lines?!” Well, I drew lines, and more lines, and even more lines. Over 10 sheets of newsprint later I had one that was decent enough to present. The professor still ripped it to shreds.

Up until a year ago, I had no idea what Industrial design was. I wasn’t looking for this field. It found me. But once we met, I knew that this was going to be the start of a beautiful (and dramatic) friendship. I’m one year into a 3 year program and I am overwhelmed, overworked, and under caffeinated. My first semester has brought with it blood, sweat and tears (literally), and I wouldn’t trade any of these experiences for the world.

Living on the Straight Edge is one woman’s mission to find the humor, clarity and sanity in the demanding and straight edge field of design. It will catalog the journey of a bull headed, tech (semi)literate, woman trying to navigate a tech savvy, male dominated field where there seems to be more “no’s” than “yes'”. I’m teetering on the line between rocking the boat an capsizing, trying to find the middle ground.

ABOUT THE DESIGNER

My earliest memories consisted of covering the length of the living room sofa in marker drawings, covering the kitchen cabinets with paint and crayon, and spending my days trudging through Minnesota farm fields only to return home a muddy and sweaty mess. With an commercial illustrator for a mother and a carpenter for a father, I grew up in a creative household where making came second nature. I was raised to know the difference between a flat head and a Phillips, magenta and red violet, Monet and Manet.

That creative spirit was matched with an insatiable drive to learn about the world and the people in it. An eclectic resume and a half filled passport later, I am now pursuing the next chapter of my life as a professional designer. A current student at The Georgia Institute of Technology, I have been thrust into unfamiliar turning and slowly transitioning from wannabe hot shot to a seemingly legitimate designer. For the first time in a long time I am both scared out of my wits and excited as all get out. I wasn’t looking for design, but I am finally where I needed to be.

Want to know more about my work? Take a gander at my resume or mosey on over to my personal website and let me know what you think!