Seems pretty simple but I've found that when designing, zooming in and zooming out are crucial. I have to see the design through a microscope and a telescope as it were. From one angle I can see the small details and ensure that they're perfect. From the other, I can see whether the perfect details are coming together as one.

The other day I was working on a brand mark that was shaping up to be my favorite choice for the client. Having "zoomed in" for quite a while and figuring it was gold, I tabled it to work on the others. Later, I "zoomed out" and met with the rest of the team to discuss. They're honesty and sensibility helped me see that what I thought was perfect still needed work. I was blind too see what they saw so easily. I was too zoomed in, too attached.

I've found that perfect pieces don't always make a perfect whole. Nor does a perfect whole assume perfect pieces. The goal for me is a right relationship or balance. If I only design zoomed in the result will most likely be detailed but lack overall form. If I only design zoomed out the result will be nicely composed but shallow.

Whaam! by Roy Lichtenstein

Who are you and what do you do?
My name is Jonathan Lawrence and I’m a graphic designer.
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Where are you from?
Born and raised in Jacksonville, Florida.
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What led you into your role?
When I was a kid, I would make up sports teams and draw their logos and uniforms with magic markers. It was graphic design, I just didn't know it. Once I discovered their was a job for what I loved to do, there was no other option.
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First month impressions?
Excited to be a part of this super-talented team.
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What do you bring to the table that’s unique?
A passion for simplicity, thoughtfulness and cohesiveness.
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What are you currently reading or watching?
The Catcher in the Rye – J.D. Salinger, Design Form and Chaos – Paul Rand, and Designing Brand Identity – Alina Wheeler
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What inspires you?
Typography, old signage, cleverness, being outdoors, music.
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Something you are obsessed with at the moment.
Finding a place to live in Atlanta.
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Where is your favorite meal in Atlanta?
Fellini’s Pizza.
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Drink of choice?
Sweet tea.
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As shown in the gif above, Jonny Law is unstoppable.

1. A physical office environment matters. It can help or hinder a brand's perceptions and a team's morale.
2. Selling an idea doesn't happen at the first presentation, but at the first handshake. Great ideas are sold through relationships & trust.
3. Spontaneous creativity needs to be scheduled on the calendar or it won't happen.
4. Fields tests & focus groups results are contingent on asking the right questions.
5. A company is smarter & overall much better when it hires females.
6. When great things happen celebrate and open your doors for others to enjoy.
7. If you want to start something new, jump in and just do it.
8. Set goals and go after what you believe in, even if it leads to uncomfortable situations.
9. If you are doing great things find a way to tell an equally great story.
10. Take time to think about what you believe in and write it down.
11. Put super talented and fun people around you.

We all had about three weeks to ideate, plan, and build our very own handmade creation. The literal instructions communicated from Alana via email were:

===

listen up.

i have decided to make a contest in preparation for christmas.

each person has to make ONE christmas ornament related in any way to design / matchstic / team members by December 19th (monday 8am meeting).
we will put these up on our christmas tree.
winner gets an artisanal, hand-made "Christmas Champion 2011″ award and bragging rights!

this is serious. i will remind you guys each week.

===

The final entries were judged by our neighbors Octane and based on three categories:

1. Craftsmanship
(was the ornament created with craft in mind, are die-lines, fingerprints, and/or glue visible)

2. Creativity
(is the subject matter cleverly represented, is the ornament unique from its counterparts)

3. Experience / interactivity
(does it have special effects, does the matchstic team understand what the ornament conveys, is it humorous to all)

Below are all of our entries. Tell us your favorite!

"The Fire Ball" by Me – 250+ All-Purpose weather proof wooden matches (later ignited, as seen below, for dramatic presentation).

"Sneaky Creek" by Alana Dy – A replica of a miss-kerned cabin sign at our previous retreat. See the original sign here.

"Flame Soap" by Becky O'Mara – Inspired by Becky's home-made soap (featured on etsy) and held close by in case someone needs a good ole' fashioned mouth cleansing

"Da Bomb" by Jason Orme – Octane & Matchstic are an explosive combination… quite literally.

"S.S. Alina" by Staci Janik – A handmade creation dedicated to our advisory board member & team mentor Alina Wheeler, who's father was a polish sea captain. Complete with quote from our last session with Alina.

"Flaming Pile of Coffee" by Alvin Diec – A handmade paper cup, octane cut paper logo, and floating matchstic flame.

"God Jul" (pronounced "goo yule" which means "Merry Christmas" in Norwegian) by Craig Johnson – A common Norwegian ornament made in honor of Craig's wife & kids.

"Arctic R2D2″ by John Bowles – What do you do with all those recalled white Coke cans? Make an amazing star wars action figure, of course.

Dustin Britt was awarded the "Hat of Shame" for not entering.

And the judging:

The judges scorecard…

And the winner of the 2011 Matchstic Christmas Grand Champion (Adult division) is… (drum roll)…

Staci Janik with her "S.S. Alina" creation. The judges were quoted as saying "The craft & detail was simply hard to beat. It's a tiny boat with tiny sails for goodness sake." The other competitors were quoted as saying "This contest was over before it started. I knew Staci was entering it."

Kudos Staci. You are the official champ.

But you can still place your vote for the People's Champ below!

First, forgive my cliche fire innuendos, but I'm excited.

It has been quite a year. A new office, new team members, and finally — some new materials. We've had a new brand identity in the works for sometime now (reminded of the old saying “The cobblers kids don't have any shoes”). It started in fact last January when we decided to leave the Matchstic house behind and relocate to the Jane. We wanted to set the right perceptions for our own brand and felt the house just was not up to par with who we'd become. With a new office came a new matchstic once that again wasn't properly represented in our logo type. We needed a change.

Like all rebrands, we have two choices, evolutionary or revolutionary, when considering a change. We love our flame and wouldn't lose it for the world, but other outdated and uninspired elements were up for grabs.

We started with an update to the Matchstic wordmark. Running on over five years of use, the old type and banner was beginning to show its age. Not to mention the old banner had the by-line “Branding + Design”, a moniker found nowhere else since switching to “A Brand Identity House” in 2008.

For inspiration on a typeface we looked at our giant, metal found letters that hang by the front door. “Matchstic” is spelled out from a group of mismatched fonts, with a letter “t” that stood out with interesting character details. We used these characteristics to customize a new wordmark, simple with a subtle hint of personality, but better yet with a significant story to tell. Another slight tweak was evolving from a lowercase character setting to a title case. Even though our sign is all lower case we felt the new word mark held a stronger presence with a capital “M”.

After the word mark was complete and paired with our flame we moved into new collateral on a “doing retreat” back in October. We simply created, experimented, and had fun for a day. We came away with an idea of creating a system of standardized tools (like stamps) that ensure a consistent look and feel, but could be applied in infinitely unique and flexible ways. The result of that idea is 30+ custom Matchstic stamps that can be applied in various ways on business cards, note cards, packaging, and any other printed material (including body art). Included in the set is every team members personal stamp with their contact information to applied to our business card shell. This allowed us to letterpress two versions of really high-end cards for a fraction of the normal cost. The only catch is having to hand stamp all of your business cards (or have intern Patty do it). This stamp system allows us to have fun with our collateral. It allows us to make every piece unique. I no longer just send another thank you note, but I create one.

A few process images from our “doing retreat”:

Brainstorming Board

T-Shirt Comps

Some final products:

Blind Deboss – 2-ply 80# French Pop Tone glued to 279# Crane Pearl Kid Finish

Back Variations – "Start Fires" & "We ignite passionate brands"

Stamp Test Pad

Full Stamp Collection

Applied Stamp Set

Thank You Notes w/ "ch" blind deboss

Msc. Body Stamping

Gift Packaging & Set

Big thanks to Crayton-Heritage Letterpress in Charlotte for all their help.

#10 – WE RECOGNIZE THAT ANY SUCCESS WE ACHIEVE IS A GIFT FROM GOD

This belief is centered around the idea that life is at its core, a gift.  Our work is a gift.  Our talents are gifts.  Our clients are gifts.  Matchstic is a gift to us all. One thing about a gift is that it's given, not earned.  While we all work hard each day to do our very best, we also know that we're not the orchestrators of life. Rather there is one greater than us all that has hung the stars, crafted us with his hands and pulled us all together to do this work we love.  It's about living a life of gratitude and being content with what we've been given.  It's knowing that the paths that have brought us all together are not accidental.

This belief hits home for me.  Truth be told, I'm an accidental entrepreneur.  I never dreamed of owning my own company, but I kind of fell into it through a series of events that I cannot take credit for. Knowing how easy it is for me to try and take credit for something, it's important for me to hold this belief close to my heart and know that at the end of the day, there is one far greater than me giving me gifts I don't deserve.  And for that I am incredibly grateful.

Past Beliefs:

• #1 – We hold each other's feet to the fire.
• #2 – We follow through on our word.
• #3 – We rise and fall as a team.
• #4 – We know the difference between a career and a life.
• #5 – We will be profitable; this is not a social club.
• #6 – We recognize that it's their flag, not ours.
• #7 – We know our clients aren't always right, but neither are we.
• #8 – When in doubt, we will fight for relationships.
• #9 – We will make our city a better place to live.

#5 – WHEN IN DOUBT, WE WILL FIGHT FOR RELATIONSHIPS.

As Project Manager here, I have the pleasure of working directly with many of our clients, so this Belief is extremely important to me and permeates everything I do.

More than great design, cool websites, or the most impressive brand mark, our business is about relationships. When we begin a project, a client is entrusting their business to us. To do great work, we approach every project as a partnership. We are truly for our clients, and more than anything want their businesses to thrive. In the event that a project goes south and our design and the client's objectives aren't connecting, we will do everything in our power to salvage the project. We want our clients to know we value and respect them, and even if a project does not work out in the end, they'll know we've done everything in our power to try and make it work.

We also fight for relationships with our partners. We don't burn bridges or abuse trust for our own gain. Finally, we fight for relationships within our team. When there are mishaps or disagreements, we work through them, for the sake of the relationship and person's well-being.

We believe this principal strengthens our business, respects the dignity of every person, and promotes health in our workplace and client relationships.

Past Beliefs:

• #1 – We hold each other's feet to the fire.

• #2 – We follow through on our word.

• #3 – We rise and fall as a team.

• #4 – We know the difference between a career and a life.

• #5 – We will be profitable; this is not a social club.

• #6 – We recognize that it's their flag, not ours.

• #7 – We know our clients aren't always right, but neither are we.

#5 – WE WILL BE PROFITABLE; THIS IS NOT A SOCIAL CLUB.

While we are all each others BFF's, we wouldn't have as much fun if we weren't making money. For our business to be profitable we must produce great work which can't be acheived if every one is there to just be friends. This statement means we don't just show up to work on our social stats. It means having to say no to some ideas that "would be so awesome if…" but don't seem to make any business sense.

Past Beliefs:

• #1 – We hold each other's feet to the fire

• #2 – We follow through on our word

• #3 – We rise and fall as a team

• #4 – We know the difference between career and life

#4 – WE KNOW THE DIFFERENCE BETWEEN A CAREER AND A LIFE.

Our friend and advisory board member Alina Wheeler says it best – "Be a citizen of the world".

If we are going to find true inspiration and do unexpected and memorable work – we need to be out in the world doing more than just our work. We need to be experiencing life.

More than that, our worth as individuals is not based on climbing a corporate ladder or the next accolade we receive.

If we're spending all our time working on our career, our career will overshadow our ability to do good work.

We need rest, breaths, and experiences. Our work will benefit, and so will we as humans.

Past Beliefs:

• #1 – We hold each other's feet to the fire

• #2 – We follow through on our word

• #3 – We rise and fall as a team

Today's belief is…

#2 – WE FOLLOW THROUGH ON OUR WORD

This belief is simple and straight forward at first glance.  It means we do what we say we're gonna do.  As we looked deeper, we noticed the words "WE" and "OUR".  This is not just about us individually doing what we said we would do, but we have to cover for each other.  We have to do what others have said would be done, and we are all accountable to those results. We have to cover each others tracks and stand up for the collective word that Matchstic proclaims. We can't make promises that we can't keep, which means having the hard conversations as early as possible.  It also means that when we do make a mistake, as we inevitably will, we own up to it and take responsibility for our actions. It means we take our word seriously. Ultimately, we have to be able to trust each other as a team to do great work for great clients.

I've often said that my role at Matchstic is to make big promises that everyone else has to keep, and I sleep incredibly well at night knowing that they will.

Past Beliefs:

• #1 – We hold each others feet to the fire