rantcliff

Random thoughts on curiosities, creativity, design, and the occasional rant.

The Brandscape

One thing designers these days seem to salivate over is moodboards. If you’re not in the know, a moodboard is a collection of images, colors, and such all artfully arranged to show a client – or yourself – the look and feel of a design. It is my firm belief

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Ratcliff Creative

Good design is equal parts thinking and doing.

If there’s too much doing and not enough thought behind it, you end up with lots of pretty ephemera that in the end doesn’t matter. If there’s too much thinking and not enough sweat put into it, you end up with an over-intellectualized, boring, blow-hard design. Striking the right balance

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2024 Week 4

Several years ago, I got into the habit of recording all the articles I read or videos I watched online that I found helpful or inspiring. Here’s the latest attempt to get back in the habit of sharing the things I found enlightening. Mastering Meetings: The Art of Asking Powerful

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Ratcliff Creative

Good design is a good idea.

Seems simple enough but these few words strung together have a much deeper meaning. “Good Design” was a term coined by mid-century designers to describe their work. Good Design was carefully crafted to solve specific problems, inherently beautiful, responsibly used materials, and timeless. More than the axiom of “form follows

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Week No. 06

21 Tips for Entrepreneurs to Survive Creative Highs and Lows Turning ideas into products is an emotional and financial roller coaster. How ThoughtMatter helped an arts centre find its way in a new neighbourhood When arts centre Tacoma Arts Live moved to a new area, a brand refresh and new

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Week No. 05

The DixonBaxi Way  When good is no longer good enough by Tobias van Schneider In defense of design tropes Bolt’s controversial rebrand is a good reminder of why clichés exist in the first place. by Brian Collins On The Evolution Of Creativity And Creative Ad Industry Icons David Droga and

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Week No. 04

  4 Trends All Small Business Owners Should Be Aware of in 2023 Here are four trends shaping the small business landscape to be aware of as you implement your plans throughout the year. 101 design rules from Collins Musings, ramblings, and principles that I’ve shared with my team and

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Engineering vs. Design

I am fortunate enough to live in a community with parks scattered throughout the area. There are a few like this one that sports small waterfalls. On pretty spring days, you’ll find an endless stream of people lining up to take pictures on the rocks or in front of the

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Good Design Makes Sense

I love a good double entendre. If you are wanting to reach people, it only makes sense to develop thoughtful ways to communicate with them. Or, design what you want to say. On the other hand, the whole point of design is to help you and me make sense of

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