Hope you're having a fantastic August! With just one more week left in the month we wanted to take the time to celebrate everything our TDK Community has been up to lately.
We've officially re-launched our TDK Mexico City chapter with the help of Cherry Bomb legend Gabriel Tinoco. First event back was a massive success, we can't wait to see what they get up to in the coming months. Our π₯FREEπ₯ TDK Dream Job Toolkit is also going strong. We currently have a few more in the works and are excited to share them with you all shortly.π
This month we interviewed the talented Oli MuΓ±oz, founder of Uncommon Studio! Oli shared with us how he navigated the industry in the beginning of his career, the story of how he launched his studio and the best ways he gets work done. It's a good one π.
Anddddd of course we collected a whole bunch of epic resources, discounts and general cool shit in our STUFF WE LOVE π section.
As always, let us know if there's anything you'd like to see next month. We're putting these newsletters together for YOU... our amazing TDK Community.
Your feedback is always welcome!
Enjoy friends! π β
Lauren Danger Koste βHead of Community, The Design Kids βlauren@thedesignkids.org
Support TDK: The Design Kids relies on your support to create community, connection and impact for emerging graphic designers around the world. If you would like to sponsor an issue of TDK Monthly, just hit reply or learn more here.β
Hola, Mexico City!
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Mexico City is amazing. It's a sprawling, hectic city home to cool neighbourhoods, world famous street food, a million top-notch restaurants and bars, stunning architecture and a unique design scene. Our Mexico City Host, Gabriel Tinoco, told us that whenever he talks to potential clients outside of Mexico City he likes to brag about the incredible design scene that's been brewing over the years. β Mexico has such a rich cultural heritage that it isn't a suprise that the mix of these vibrant cultures and design trends is creating an innovative creative style. The community itself is supportive, growing and thriving β with new art markets, festivals and events popping up each year. We dare you to book a plane ticket there and check it out for yourself. π
TDK CITY HOST
Meet Gabriel
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Gabriel and TDK actually had a beautiful meet cute in Mexico City back in 2018 when TDK Founder, Frankie Ratford, caught up with Gabriel's creative studio, Cherry Bomb. Fast forward to 6 years later β Gabriel has revived the TDK Mexico City chapter, with his first #TDKtuesdays event this month, and we couldn't be more stoked to have this legend on board!
Mexico City's first (since 2019 π€―) #TDKtuesdays was pretty epic. Gabriel organised a Design Speed Dating event with a bunch of quirky ice breakers and tons of beers. TDK Mexico City is officially back in action! If you're in the area make sure you head to the next one on Tuesday, September 3rd. π₯³
It's no secret that we're massive fans of Mexico City based creative studio Cherry Bomb. So much so that we recruited Cherry Bomb founder, Gabriel π, to host the Mexico City #TDKtuesdays!
This transition from one culture to another has enriched my perspective, proving that sometimes, ignorance can indeed be bliss.
My career aspirations initially led me to dream of becoming an Art Director at a prestigious agency. I climbed the ranks to Lead Designer, but after a decade, I realised my true passion lay in challenging clients' ideas and working for myself. This realisation led to the birth of Uncommon, a testament to the power of following your dreams.
You and Uncommon have gone from strength to strength lately,whatβs your secret to great creative work?
There's no secret recipe; it's all about the execution. When we have internal discussions, design showcases or ideation sessions, I always ask my team to 'imagine it better' and to build upon each other's ideas (especially mine!).
This means that we all arrive at the best possible solution as a team. We have three pillars when working (internally or in partnership with clients): Communication, Collaboration and Clarity. Communication ensures that everyone is on the same page, Collaboration fosters a team spirit and allows for diverse perspectives, and Clarity helps us stay focused on the goal.
With these three, we always keep each other accountable and do our best work. Last but not least, when presenting concepts, we change our language from "I" to "we"; this positions the idea from a collective point of view, not an individual, strengthening the rationale behind a design. You can follow our struggles and achievements on our Instagramβ
Lastly, Whatβs your advice for designers who want to learn more, grow and thrive in their careers?
Back in 2013, on my last day of internship at a branding studio, my Creative Director told me that I should always be proud of my cultural background and pour its flavour and passion into everything I do, especially regarding work.
This advice, to mix design with traditions, is a testament to the value of embracing one's cultural background. It's my 'unfair advantage,' And it's what I invite anyone to do: find what's yours and lean into it.
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TDK Sponsor
Free resources for designers looking to upskill
Our friends at the Process Masterclass are offering the TDK Community free resources to celebrate the reopening of their flagship course thatβs helped over 2500+ UI/UX designers! It's been taken by designers at Apple, Google, Adidas, Huge Inc and Slack. If you are looking to take the next step this is for you.π
This newly released Catlendar by Montreal based Baillat Studio is EVERYTHING.
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We're obsessed. Baillat Studio is celebrating their 9th anniversary by launching a new merch line featuring some brilliant feline πββ¬ imagery. The new range includes notepads, tote bags and an epic calendar. β βBuy here!β
*NEW* Foundry
Type of Feeling
Type design that'll make you drool.
Brought to you by Jessica Walsh and the &Wash team, Type of Feeling their newly launched retail and boutique type foundry. Head to their website to check out all their beautiful new fonts. π€€
We were so bloody excited when we saw this. No more faffing about in Photoshop. Finally, a browser-based mockup tool that we can get behind. Give it a go. π
Colour combos curated by a famous kimono designer.
Want to feel inspired? Sanzo Wada (1883-1967) was a kimono designer during the avant-garde Japanese art and cinema era. He developed traditional and Western influenced colour combinations, helping to lay the foundations for contemporary colour research. Such a beautiful and handy little book to have.
Level up your creative leadership and do more meaningful work.
Join two of the Australian creative industry's most respected leaders over two days to develop your creative leadership skills and doing meaningful work. For anyone of any skill level, these workshops are currently running around Australia, and will run in your city if there is demand!
Use the code FRIENDSWITHBENEFITS and get 25% off The Strategy Masterclass online course! Learn the fundamentals of good strategy and apply them to brand, design, digital! Expires Aug 31.
If you're struggling with the 'sales side of creativity' this short mini course is for you! Learn about sales pipelines, CRMs and all things presenting and selling creativity in this mini-version of The Creative Pro course. Use the code TDKMONTHLY for 10% off!
Support TDK: The Design Kids relies on your support to create community, connection and impact for emerging graphic designers around the world. If you own a studio, business, product, service or school that supports designers and would like to sponsor an issue of TDK Monthly, just hit reply or learn more here.β
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