April 2017 | California edition
I don’t think we’re in Atlanta anymore, Toto. Meet El Segundo, a sunny paradise where the cost of living is off the charts (or, as this website scores it, “F” for cost of living). But, I’ll reiterate, sunny paradise. And the beach is only a mile away! Here in Seattle, the cost of living is near El Segundo’s, but it’s been raining for 200 days straight (we just broke a 122-year-old record), so I’m not sure why we’re all still here.
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2 BED, 1 BATH: $799,000
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CHATTANOOGA, TN, LITERALLY PERFECT
If El Segundo isn’t your place, maybe Chattanooga, Tennessee, will strike your fancy. After all, as their [cute? clever? immodest?] marketing videos point out, Chattanooga, TN, is literally perfect. This is a pretty fun marketing campaign.
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EAT THIS WATERBOTTLE
What will Californians think of next? Just kidding, this edible water pouch is the brainchild of some students in London, but it seems like a product that would’ve come out of the sunshine state, amiright? (Just trying to tie everything back to Cali.) My favorite water bottle is made of squishy silicone, and it’s not too weird to use. I could see drinking out of a water pouch.
Since the world doesn’t revolve around California (unless you’re Californian…or about to be one!), I have some design-related articles for you too:
I haven’t seen an infographic in a while – when did those go out of fashion? – but this one is fun to peruse. AT&T is right on target in the communications category (blue = clarity…unless you’re talking about ice cream, in which case it equals sweetness).
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COLOR AND BRANDING
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SKETCH TIPS AND TRICKS
Once you have the basics of Sketch down, you can graduate to using these shortcuts.
I prefer painting at an actual easel, but just like nearly everything on the internet, it’s way easier to open a webpage and paint (or draw) than to, you know, actually paint. When I tried out AutoDraw, I drew some squiggles resembling a house, plus a stick figure. AutoDraw suggested real-life objects that I might be trying to capture. They thought my first doodle was an ant, a hotdog, or a dachshund. (Side note: Does anyone know how to spell “dachshund” off the top of their head? No, me neither.)