Runners and designers have really stepped up in the wake of the Boston Marathon bombings on April 15, 2013. For example, running clubs all across the country gathered for a jog on April 17th to show their support, calling it the Run For Boston. And this past weekend, Philadelphia held its 34th annual Broad Street 10-mile Run where participants showed their love for Boston by running in red socks. Both events were a beautiful thing to be a part of and a nice reminder that if you look around, there really is a lot of love and support in this world.

As for designers, many have created awesome logos and apparel so that we can all (quite literally) show Boston our support. I wore my “B Strong” t-shirt (below) for the first time yesterday and got dozens of nice comments. These heartwarming and reassuring designs are a nice way to remind us all to keep Boston’s victims in our thoughts.

To donate to the recovery of fellow runner/designer, Christian, who was injured in the Boston explosions, and to learn about his progress, visit his funding page. Let’s support one of our very own.

As inspiration, Minted provided designers with ten quotations about beauty. The perfectionist in me chose the quote, “If you look for perfection, you will never be satisfied.” by Leo Tolstoy. With it, I created a simple print that will never hang perfectly straight on your wall.

I’m excited to say that the Art Director at PEOPLE.com, Maggie Hong, chose it as one of her favorites. And it is now featured on PEOPLE.com. Check it out!

Maggie is quoted saying, “It’s so smart to have the design tilted to echo the message of the quote. I love designs that make you think.” And that is always my goal. To create designs with a concept behind them. To me, designs that make you think are much more intriguing than designs that are pretty, and only pretty.

And now, you can also find Always Askew for sale at minted. If you feel inclined to buy it, don’t forget to use the promo code SHOPYR7HP4 to receive 10% off. In my opinion, the print is a great daily reminder to let go and embrace imperfection. I might just have to get one myself!

But unfortunately, the Midnight Marathon wasn’t the end of my strange Marathon Monday experience. As you know, two bombs went off at the finish line. I was a block away when it happened. It was awful. Devastating. And infuriating. My thoughts and prayers are with all of those affected.

Below is an Instagram from what should have been a beautiful marathon weekend in Boston, taken by my old co-worker, Michael McCrary. I thought it captured the beauty and spirit of this fantastic city so sweetly. The beauty and spirit that I know will help Boston get through this tough time.

As you may have guessed, it was once a hardware store. For 62 years, in fact. And I think it’s pretty awesome that the new owners kept the hardware store name. And even more awesome that they kept the original, vintage signage. Check it out:

I appreciate how the restaurant embraced the history of their space. They built upon what they were in the past to become who they are now. And this makes them really stand out as a unique restaurant (not to mention a designer’s dream).

Moral of the story? We should embrace who we are and where we’ve been. Especially if it’s different. How else will we stand out in this world?

In short, I challenged them to come up with the next big thing in social media. The next Facebook, the next Twitter, or a great new app. Then, to advertise a product using only their new creation. Because as we know, we can’t rely solely on television and print ads anymore. Social media is where it’s at.

So last week, the students came up to Red Tettemer + Partners to present their ideas to me. It was so much fun to see what they all came up with. They really exceeded my expectations with their innovative ideas. In fact, I’d love to share a few of them here, but they’re so good, I’m afraid you’ll steal them and make millions! So instead, I’ll just share some of my favorite photos from the day, and hope the students continue to push their ideas into reality.

As a self-proclaimed perfectionist, I just had to create a print using this quote from Leo Tolstoy. So I designed something that will never hang perfectly straight on a wall, and totally embraced imperfection. If you’d like to see the design sold on Minted, click here to vote!

Well, to help you out, Minted has done something pretty awesome. They’ve created a new way to shop for invitations. By inspiration.

So, if you have a wedding coming up and you have no idea where to start, I suggest snuggling up on your couch this weekend and taking a look through all the gorgeous inspiration boards on Minted. Not only will you likely find an invitation you love, but you’re certain to find plenty of overall style ideas.

For example, I created the inspiration board below for a wedding invitation I designed called Journey Together. It conveys the playful, vintage-inspired wedding these invitations were meant for, as well as the fun, unique, tandem-bike-riding couple I had in mind while designing them. Enjoy!

Even still, I knew I wanted to pursue a career in the arts. So when I went to college, I majored in design. In four quick years, the Visual Communications program at the University of Delaware taught me everything I needed to know to make a career out of my passion. So naturally, a few weeks ago, when my professor asked me to guest lecture for his senior ad class, I agreed without hesitation. It was the least I could do for all that they taught me.

Going back to the classroom was seriously nostalgic. And seeing the second-semeseter seniors preparing to graduate was exciting. I remember being in their shoes all too well.

After I gave the students the low-down on my role in advertising and answered any questions they had, my writing partner and I assigned a project that we’ll critique in a few weeks. It calls for some serious creativity and I can’t wait to see what they come up with! I’ll be sure to let you know how it goes. But in the meantime, let’s take a walk down Art School Memory Lane with a few photos from my day on campus.

[a blue door in Cusco; hikers climbing to Dead Woman's Pass on the Inca Trail; a porter and native of the Inca Trail; "te amo" or "i love you" carved in a cactus on the Inca Trail; rugs hanging in Aguas Calientes; a colorful café in Aguas Calientes; teens walking home from school on a Friday in Cusco]

But there are certain jobs that you just can’t pass up. Like this one. Designing the lifestyle blog of my good friend, Risa. This blog is Risa’s online presence. Her online identity. So it was pretty important that someone who knew her fairly well did the job.

Risa was looking for something simple, clean and sophisticated. Something that could grow with her. So here’s what we came up with:

Turns out, missing a night or two out with the girls is worth it if it means a happy friend. And sweet emails like this:

Hi. I just thought I’d start your day with a little happy email because you should know I’m so excited and absolutely love my new blog design. thank you so much. xo

Not to mention, I probably dodged a couple of killer hangovers.

So stop by Really Risa today to check out her new look, or to learn how to make homemade sushi. Yum!