Since my last post, and actually prior to it, I've actually taken employment with a company called Dominion Enterprises, click here for company site, in their new R&D department as a User Interface Designer. The department is brand new headed up by my boss Greg Graf who just moved back to SLC from Virginia where the company is actually based. I work, right now, with two developers and Greg. Our first project is for the domain name Sold.com, click here for our splash page to sign up for email notification at launch, which were are building to be a competitor for sites like LivingSocial and Groupon, basically a 'daily deal' type site. The project is well underway and will hopefully launch in a few months.
Dominion Enterprises is a very large company with 2+ million in revenue last year. We were original partners in Autotrader, though we have since sold out but retain similar properties like BoatTrader, Classic Car Trader, etc. We also own Real Estate oriented sites and matching publications such as those you see on the stands in the entry ways of grocery stores like Macy's. You will notice the company name on plaques on those stands and we run/own all the brands on those racks.
I'm quite thrilled to be part of this company and this department, which has the feel of a startup but with the financial security of the large corporation that it really is. The only down side is they gave me a Mac to work on.... I know, as a designer I am a rarity but I strongly prefer Windows.
As for Lunacium news, I have been working on some side projects. One of which have been especially fun because the task is to create clip art style illustrations for use in a marketing collateral builder that is part of a web site oriented towards small boutique type shops. To complete the job, I've been working with my old Wacom tablet a lot. The age of the tablet is becoming more and more apparent the longer I work with it but I am getting better and better at using it; and as I said I'm having a lot of fun. This particular project has inspired me to branch out from just using Illustrator with the Wacom and jumping over to Photoshop as well and begin developing my own designs for use in a line of hotrod/kustom car clothing that I've been wanting to create.
The other project is one I've had for awhile and has progressed slowly as the client figures out their own business and makes the appropriate decisions. It is a line of products that are patriotic themed like shirts, hats, bumper stickers, etc. I recently completed the shirts and hoodies portions and have just received word that they approved my design for the bumper stickers as well. Hats are next, something I hope to be done with in the next week.
I will be posting some samples of my work from both projects soon but getting them done in the next few weeks is more important. Part of the reason for needing to get them done is two fold. One is I have a potentially large project, branding and a website, on the horizon. Second is that my wife, son, and I are going to be moving in a month. Upgrading to a larger place, from a condo to a full house actually. We are pretty excited but it is, as always, a stressful situation.
-Jake
