versatile blogger award!

AMY, over at the thoughts & tales of amy k has nominated me for the VERSATILE BLOGGER AWARD!
i am so happy she loves to read my blog as much as i love to read hers. check it out if you haven't yet. she's brilliant! i won a marilyn monroe wall jammer from her not too long ago, & it currently resides in my bedroom. i love it! thank you so much for the nomination, amy!
in exchange i must nominate 10-15 blogs i love, according to versatile blogger rules & such. here we go:
1. melissa at "my soul is the sky." she was my roommate my sophomore year of college, & her blog is full of creative hair & makeup ideas, not to mention her lovely life with her awesome husband & puppy doggie.
2. jamie, over at daises & dandelions. her positive views on life are more than invigorating. what a beautiful soul she is!
3. emily, over at LIVING & LOVING, who has been my best friend for several years. not to mention i have been told on more than 1 occasion that we look alike, & who wouldn't want that kind of compliment? her blog is simple, beautiful & brightens my day every time i read it.
4. the pineneedle collective, aka where i get all of my DIY ideas (they are so brilliant!)
5. nicole, over at THIS IS ME. her brother is marrying my sister, & she is just darling. i love how open minded she is, & how she speaks her mind.
6. the gallo's, who have no idea i exist, but are so lovely. they are a beautiful christian couple who just adopted a young girl from uganda. basically my ideas of adoption instead of having my own children came from them.
7. taylor, my adorable cousin, who is headed to USU (AGGIES!!!!!) this fall. i couldn't be more proud of her. her blog is adorable. she reminds me so much of me when i was her age.
8. nikaela, a beautiful photographer, over at rose & crown. her photography will make you think. promise.
9. susan, my amazing sister-in-law, always seeing the positive side of things. plus, she has the cutest baby in the whole world. i love my little nephew preston!
10. vanessa, my other sister-in-law, whose blog i can't get enough of because she documents the wonderful time her family is having in texas. i miss them more than words can say.

brooke bell - web designer.

guys, meet BROOKE BELL, an SLC area web designer/developer who basically rocks at what she does. she's my age, already graduated & using her degree on a daily basis... talk about giving me some good motivation to finish school! brooke is amazing, & here's some of her thoughts about web design, & how she got there! hope you enjoy

xoxo

My name is Brooke Bell and I just graduated from the University of Utah with a degree in New Media Communications, with a minor in Arts Technology, and I am a web designer and developer. I currently work for Overstock.com in their marketing department. I design campaigns, emails, print ads, as well as code emails and landing pages. I also do freelance work in my spare time, and I am currently working on a nonprofit organization’s website, Create More Art Inc. based out of Portland, Oregon.

                I am somewhat of an anomaly amongst web designers and web developers, where I can do both coding as well as design. Most people in my field are either a straight designer or a straight developer. I have found this give me a leg-up, but can also be frustrating when applying for positions. I don’t want to give up either skillset, but there aren’t many positions where I can do both.

                Before Overstock, I was completing my degree while working for a media company, PoleVault Media. PoleVault was started by two of my fellow classmates, one a Masters’ student and the other following in my same degree path. They started PoleVault Media to give other students opportunities with real clients, and learning things the University of Utah was unable to provide in a classroom setting. We developed websites, print-work, logo and branding packages, and shot and edited film. I worked on such projects as I built and helped design from the ground up, the University of Utah’s Fine Arts website,  I designed and developed 8 websites for a Stem Cell research company, had my hands on Kathy Smith a Beach Body fitness guru’s website, amongst many other projects. I have attached a few screenshots, and more are featured on my personal website, www.brooke-bell.com I still keep in close contact with PoleVault and we plan to start an evening class, as well as develop an education tool for others in our field.

                I can honestly say that following my heart and my hobby has provided me with opportunities that I love and I am excited about every day. I am a firm believer in doing what you love, and the money will come. 

jess.

so as many of you know, i truly enjoy photography.

it's not something i'm especially good at, but i love looking at other's work.
this week i'm featuring 2 guest bloggers, & one of them is JESS.

this is my friend jessica scholes & her SERIOUSLY adorable daughter, everly.

[i'm not kidding when i say adorable...this kid is one of like three in the world that make me baby hungry.]

i love jess' work. i love the simplicity of her pictures. these days there are so many effects & phone apps to make pictures look fancy that some pictures lose their originality. jessica's pictures are not only original & unique, but captivating! there is something about each picture that makes you stop & think. let me show you what i mean:

beautiful, right?

guest bloggers wanted!

Are you interested in being a guest blogger on my site?
Email me at laur.gardner@hotmail.com & we can collaborate! I'm looking for writers, DIYers, and college students to represent themselves on my blog, but I'm open to all sorts of writers! Let me know if you're interested!