Brand & Product Design Studio

Bring your brand into frame.

Brand identity, websites, and marketing — designed to take growing brands to their next stage.

ServicesView our services

A full toolkit for your brand's next stage.

Brand Identity & Strategy

Logos, visual systems, positioning, and the story that ties it together — so your brand looks and sounds the part.

  • Logo & visual identity
  • Brand guidelines
  • Positioning & messaging

Web & Product Design

Websites and product UX, from research to responsive build.

  • Websites & landing pages
  • Product UX & UI design
  • Responsive build & handoff

Marketing & Content

Campaigns, social, and content across every touchpoint.

  • Campaigns & social
  • Content & copywriting
  • Email & collateral

Brand Growth & Consulting

A clear roadmap to scale — turning where you are today into where you want your brand to go.

  • Positioning & roadmap
  • Brand audits
  • Ongoing consulting
WorkSee all work

Selected projects.

Hmong Cultural Center

Hmong Cultural Center

Responsive Redesign UX Research
Park n Go

Park n Go

App Design UX Research
Wellness in the Woods

Wellness in the Woods

Brand Marketing Web
HelloSpoke

HelloSpoke

Rebrand Website
Graham Ivy
AboutMore about me

Hey, I'm Graham.

Open Frame is my studio. I take brands from A to Z — turning ideas into designs that connect people, culture, and commerce.

From identity to interface, I help growing brands become remarkable: strategic, human, and built to grow.

ContactGet in touch

Ready to bring your brand into frame?

A project in mind? Start one — or grab a free 30-minute call and let's talk it through.

Work

Selected work.

Hmong Cultural Center

Hmong Cultural Center

Responsive Redesign UX Research
Park n Go

Park n Go

App Design UX Research
Wellness in the Woods

Wellness in the Woods

Brand Marketing Web
HelloSpoke

HelloSpoke

Rebrand Website
Needlework Guild of MN

Needlework Guild of MN

Identity Web
ContactGet in touch

Like what you see?

I'm open to freelance, collaboration, and full-time roles — let's talk about your next project.

Graham Ivy
About

Hey, I'm Graham.

Designer & brand consultant in Minneapolis.

The studio

Studio of one.

When you work with Open Frame, you work with me — not an account manager, not a rotating cast of freelancers. One designer, start to finish, who treats your brand like it's my own. Fewer hand-offs, a single point of view, and someone who actually remembers the details.

Off the clock I'm usually scuba diving, out salsa dancing, or elbow-deep in some amateur paleontology — the same curiosity I bring to every project.

Principles

How I approach the work.

Human-Centered

Empathy, inclusion, and real-world context guide every decision. I design for actual people — their needs, their constraints, the messy reality they live in — not an idealized user on a perfect screen.

Creatively Focused

I bring imagination and clarity to problem-solving — finding thoughtful, engaging ways to meet user and business goals without ever losing sight of the craft that makes work memorable.

Data-Driven

Grounded in user research, testing, and analytics — so solutions aren't just creative, they're effective. I let evidence, not ego, settle the hard calls.

Always Evolving

I embrace feedback, iterate often, and stay curious — because great design is never finished, only improved. Every project teaches the next one.

Off the clock

Life outside the frame.

Scuba diving
Salsa dancing
Fossil hunting
Minneapolis
Career

Where I've worked.

ContactGet in touch

Let's make something together.

Whether it's a brand, a site, or a big idea you're still shaping — I'd love to hear what you're working on.

Contact

Tell me what you're building.

Tell me a little about it and I'll get back to you within a day or two — or reach me directly at hello@openframe.design.

Services

How I can help.

Brand Identity & Strategy

Your brand is more than a logo — it's how people recognize, trust, and talk about you. I build the whole system: a distinctive mark, a cohesive visual language, and the positioning and messaging that tie it together — documented in guidelines your whole team can run with.

  • Logo & visual identity
  • Brand guidelines & systems
  • Positioning & messaging

Web & Product Design

From a first landing page to a full product interface, I design sites and experiences that are as usable as they are beautiful — grounded in research, prototyped, tested, and handed off ready to build (or built by me).

  • Websites & landing pages
  • Product UX & UI design
  • Responsive build & handoff

Marketing & Content

Design that actually gets seen. I create the campaigns, social content, email, and collateral that carry your brand across every touchpoint — consistent, on-message, and made to move people to act.

  • Campaigns & social
  • Content & copywriting
  • Email & collateral

Brand Growth & Consulting

Sometimes you don't need a deliverable — you need a plan. I act as an ongoing design partner: auditing where your brand stands today, mapping where it's headed, and guiding the decisions that get it there.

  • Brand audits
  • Positioning & roadmap
  • Ongoing consulting
WorkSee all work

See it in practice.

Hmong Cultural Center

Hmong Cultural Center

Responsive Redesign
Park n Go

Park n Go

App Design · UX
Wellness in the Woods

Wellness in the Woods

Brand · Marketing · Web
HelloSpoke

HelloSpoke

Rebrand · Website
Needlework Guild of MN

Needlework Guild of MN

Identity · Web
ContactGet in touch

Not sure where to start?

Tell me what you're working on and we'll map the right service to where your brand is right now — no pressure, just a plan.

Brand Identity & Strategy

Look like the brand you already are.

Positioning, identity, and the story that makes a brand unmistakably itself. From strategy and naming to logo, type, and a full visual system, I build brands that look sharp and hold up everywhere they show up. I partner with growing brands, nonprofits, and startups — based in Minneapolis, working with clients anywhere.

Start a project
Brand Identity & Strategy
The process

How we'll work together.

Collaborative and transparent from day one — I can take a project start to finish, from first idea to launched, or step in wherever you already are.

01

Hello & intro call

Send a note about your goals and we'll hop on a free 30-minute call to align on scope, timeline, and whether we're the right fit — no pressure, no jargon, just a real conversation about what you're building.

02

Proposal & kickoff

I put together a clear proposal with a flat-rate quote, so there are no surprises. A 50% deposit kicks us off, and we gather your content, brand assets, and references together.

03

Draft & revisions

We start with a rough first draft and refine it in clear, focused rounds. This is the fun, collaborative part — you're involved at every step, and nothing moves forward until it feels right.

04

Launch & beyond

Final polish, hand-off, and go-live. Then I'm still around — retainer or hourly support whenever you need a tweak, a new page, or the next big thing.

Selected workSee all work

Projects in this space.

HelloSpoke

HelloSpoke

Rebrand · Website
Wellness in the Woods

Wellness in the Woods

Brand · Marketing · Web
Needlework Guild of MN

Needlework Guild of MN

Identity · Web
Services

Looking for something else?

Web & Product Design

From a first landing page to a full product interface, I design sites and experiences that are as usable as they are beautiful — grounded in research, prototyped, tested, and handed off ready to build (or built by me).

  • Websites & landing pages
  • Product UX & UI design
  • Responsive build & handoff

Marketing & Content

Design that actually gets seen. I create the campaigns, social content, email, and collateral that carry your brand across every touchpoint — consistent, on-message, and made to move people to act.

  • Campaigns & social
  • Content & copywriting
  • Email & collateral

Brand Growth & Consulting

Sometimes you don't need a deliverable — you need a plan. I act as an ongoing design partner: auditing where your brand stands today, mapping where it's headed, and guiding the decisions that get it there.

  • Brand audits
  • Positioning & roadmap
  • Ongoing consulting
ContactGet in touch

Ready to bring your brand into frame?

A project in mind? Start one — or grab a free 30-minute call and let's talk it through.

Web & Product Design

A site that works as well as it looks.

Websites and product experiences that are clear, fast, and built to convert. From research and wireframes to a polished, responsive build, I design sites that feel effortless to use and easy to grow with you. I partner with growing brands, nonprofits, and startups — based in Minneapolis, working with clients anywhere.

Start a project
Web & Product Design
The process

How we'll work together.

Collaborative and transparent from day one — I can take a project start to finish, from first idea to launched, or step in wherever you already are.

01

Hello & intro call

Send a note about your goals and we'll hop on a free 30-minute call to align on scope, timeline, and whether we're the right fit — no pressure, no jargon, just a real conversation about what you're building.

02

Proposal & kickoff

I put together a clear proposal with a flat-rate quote, so there are no surprises. A 50% deposit kicks us off, and we gather your content, brand assets, and references together.

03

Draft & revisions

We start with a rough first draft and refine it in clear, focused rounds. This is the fun, collaborative part — you're involved at every step, and nothing moves forward until it feels right.

04

Launch & beyond

Final polish, hand-off, and go-live. Then I'm still around — retainer or hourly support whenever you need a tweak, a new page, or the next big thing.

Selected workSee all work

Projects in this space.

Park n Go

Park n Go

App Design · UX
Hmong Cultural Center

Hmong Cultural Center

Responsive Redesign
HelloSpoke

HelloSpoke

Rebrand · Website
Needlework Guild of MN

Needlework Guild of MN

Identity · Web
Services

Looking for something else?

Brand Identity & Strategy

Your brand is more than a logo — it's how people recognize, trust, and talk about you. I build the whole system: a distinctive mark, a cohesive visual language, and the positioning and messaging that tie it together — documented in guidelines your whole team can run with.

  • Logo & visual identity
  • Brand guidelines & systems
  • Positioning & messaging

Marketing & Content

Design that actually gets seen. I create the campaigns, social content, email, and collateral that carry your brand across every touchpoint — consistent, on-message, and made to move people to act.

  • Campaigns & social
  • Content & copywriting
  • Email & collateral

Brand Growth & Consulting

Sometimes you don't need a deliverable — you need a plan. I act as an ongoing design partner: auditing where your brand stands today, mapping where it's headed, and guiding the decisions that get it there.

  • Brand audits
  • Positioning & roadmap
  • Ongoing consulting
ContactGet in touch

Ready to bring your brand into frame?

A project in mind? Start one — or grab a free 30-minute call and let's talk it through.

Marketing & Content

Show up where it counts.

Campaigns and content systems that grow reach and keep a brand consistent. From strategy and social to copywriting and collateral, I make sure every touchpoint pulls in the same direction and sounds like you. I partner with growing brands, nonprofits, and startups — based in Minneapolis, working with clients anywhere.

Start a project
Marketing & Content
The process

How we'll work together.

Collaborative and transparent from day one — I can take a project start to finish, from first idea to launched, or step in wherever you already are.

01

Hello & intro call

Send a note about your goals and we'll hop on a free 30-minute call to align on scope, timeline, and whether we're the right fit — no pressure, no jargon, just a real conversation about what you're building.

02

Proposal & kickoff

I put together a clear proposal with a flat-rate quote, so there are no surprises. A 50% deposit kicks us off, and we gather your content, brand assets, and references together.

03

Draft & revisions

We start with a rough first draft and refine it in clear, focused rounds. This is the fun, collaborative part — you're involved at every step, and nothing moves forward until it feels right.

04

Launch & beyond

Final polish, hand-off, and go-live. Then I'm still around — retainer or hourly support whenever you need a tweak, a new page, or the next big thing.

Selected workSee all work

Projects in this space.

Wellness in the Woods

Wellness in the Woods

Brand · Marketing · Web
Needlework Guild of MN

Needlework Guild of MN

Identity · Web
Services

Looking for something else?

Brand Identity & Strategy

Your brand is more than a logo — it's how people recognize, trust, and talk about you. I build the whole system: a distinctive mark, a cohesive visual language, and the positioning and messaging that tie it together — documented in guidelines your whole team can run with.

  • Logo & visual identity
  • Brand guidelines & systems
  • Positioning & messaging

Web & Product Design

From a first landing page to a full product interface, I design sites and experiences that are as usable as they are beautiful — grounded in research, prototyped, tested, and handed off ready to build (or built by me).

  • Websites & landing pages
  • Product UX & UI design
  • Responsive build & handoff

Brand Growth & Consulting

Sometimes you don't need a deliverable — you need a plan. I act as an ongoing design partner: auditing where your brand stands today, mapping where it's headed, and guiding the decisions that get it there.

  • Brand audits
  • Positioning & roadmap
  • Ongoing consulting
ContactGet in touch

Ready to bring your brand into frame?

A project in mind? Start one — or grab a free 30-minute call and let's talk it through.

Brand Growth & Consulting

A steady partner as you grow.

An ongoing design partner as you scale. Audits, roadmaps, and steady senior support — the strategic guidance of a design lead, without the cost of a full-time hire. I partner with growing brands, nonprofits, and startups — based in Minneapolis, working with clients anywhere.

Start a project
Brand Growth & Consulting
The process

How we'll work together.

Collaborative and transparent from day one — I can take a project start to finish, from first idea to launched, or step in wherever you already are.

01

Hello & intro call

Send a note about your goals and we'll hop on a free 30-minute call to align on scope, timeline, and whether we're the right fit — no pressure, no jargon, just a real conversation about what you're building.

02

Proposal & kickoff

I put together a clear proposal with a flat-rate quote, so there are no surprises. A 50% deposit kicks us off, and we gather your content, brand assets, and references together.

03

Draft & revisions

We start with a rough first draft and refine it in clear, focused rounds. This is the fun, collaborative part — you're involved at every step, and nothing moves forward until it feels right.

04

Launch & beyond

Final polish, hand-off, and go-live. Then I'm still around — retainer or hourly support whenever you need a tweak, a new page, or the next big thing.

Selected workSee all work

Projects in this space.

Wellness in the Woods

Wellness in the Woods

Brand · Marketing · Web
HelloSpoke

HelloSpoke

Rebrand · Website
Services

Looking for something else?

Brand Identity & Strategy

Your brand is more than a logo — it's how people recognize, trust, and talk about you. I build the whole system: a distinctive mark, a cohesive visual language, and the positioning and messaging that tie it together — documented in guidelines your whole team can run with.

  • Logo & visual identity
  • Brand guidelines & systems
  • Positioning & messaging

Web & Product Design

From a first landing page to a full product interface, I design sites and experiences that are as usable as they are beautiful — grounded in research, prototyped, tested, and handed off ready to build (or built by me).

  • Websites & landing pages
  • Product UX & UI design
  • Responsive build & handoff

Marketing & Content

Design that actually gets seen. I create the campaigns, social content, email, and collateral that carry your brand across every touchpoint — consistent, on-message, and made to move people to act.

  • Campaigns & social
  • Content & copywriting
  • Email & collateral
ContactGet in touch

Ready to bring your brand into frame?

A project in mind? Start one — or grab a free 30-minute call and let's talk it through.

Park n Go
App Design · UX Research

Park n Go

Reimagining the event parking experience — a mobile app that lets event-goers reserve their spot in advance, before the stress ever starts.

Role

Sole prototyper

Scope

UX research, UI & prototyping

Timeline

3-week sprint · 2023

Tools

Figma · FigJam · Miro

Background

Parking is the one part of a night out no one plans for.

Everyday parking already had plenty of apps, so we narrowed in on the gap no one had solved: event and concert parking — where fans plan every part of a show except where they'll actually park.

How might we take the most stressful part of attending an event and make it feel effortless?

A packed event parking lot from above
Discover

A stronger signal than we expected.

A survey and four in-depth interviews pointed to the same pain point again and again — parking for events and concerts specifically. The numbers were too consistent to ignore.

100%struggle to find parking at an event

I never know which lot is closest until I'm already circling the block.

78%would pay to reserve in advance

I'd happily pay upfront just to skip the stress on the night.

66%spend 10–20 min hunting for a spot

No app shows me real-time availability before I leave home.

Define

Who we're designing for.

We framed a primary user and mapped how the parking journey actually feels — where the stress spikes, and where a good app could turn it around.

User persona
Sarah, a frequent concert-goer
Sarah, 27Frequent concert-goer · Houston, TX

Goes to two or three live shows a month around Houston. She plans the outfit, the dinner, and the group — but never the parking, and it's the one thing that turns an exciting night into a stressful scramble.

Goals
  • Reserve a spot before leaving home
  • See price & walking distance up front
  • Arrive calm, not frazzled
Frustrations
  • Circling unfamiliar lots as the show starts
  • No idea what parking costs until she's there
  • Ending up parked far from the entrance
User journey
1
SearchUnsure

“Where do I even park for this?”

2
CompareFrustrated

Too many lots, not enough info.

3
DecideStressed

Guessing, with the clock ticking.

4
ReserveHopeful

A spot locked in, ahead of time.

5
ArriveRelieved

Straight to the space, no circling.

UnsureFrustratedStressedHopefulRelievedSearchCompareDecideReserveArrive
Ideate

From rough sketch to real screen.

The venue-search flow moved through three fidelities — proving the layout as plain boxes before a single colour was committed.

Lo-fi wireframe
Mid-fi
Hi-fi
High-fidelity venue search screen
Design

Park n Go: seamless event parking.

A high-contrast dark UI with a signal-gold accent — prototyped and user-tested from mid- to high-fidelity. Move your cursor to tilt it; the screens cycle on their own.

Venue search Booking a spot Reservation receipt
Feature 01 — Venue search

Find your event in seconds.

Search by venue or event name and see every nearby lot with live availability, walking distance, and price — before you commit.

App screenVenue search screen
Quote

Seeing every nearby lot and price on one screen means I finally trust where I'm parking.

FeatureLive availabilityevery nearby lot, before you leave home
Feature 02 — Booking a spot

Pick a section, set your time.

Preview the lot map, choose start and end times, and compare real-time availability and hourly rate by section — then reserve in a few taps.

App screenBooking a parking spot
Quote

Picking my section and locking in the time took all of ten seconds.

FeatureReserve aheadcompare rate & availability by section
Feature 03 — Reservation receipt

Everything, in one ticket.

Every booking lives in “My Parking” with the full charge breakdown, section, date and time — plus one-tap directions to the lot.

App screenReservation receipt
Quote

My ticket, the charge and directions in one place — exactly what I always forget to screenshot.

FeatureOne ticketcharge, section & directions in one place
Test

What testing changed.

Five quick usability sessions on the mid-fidelity prototype surfaced three fixes that made the flow click — small changes, big difference.

Observed

Users skated right past the A / B / C section toggle.

Changed

Enlarged the lot-map tiles and added a live availability count to each.

Observed

“Reserve” felt final — people hesitated to tap it.

Changed

Added a review step with the full breakdown before payment.

Observed

The QR code was buried at the bottom of the receipt.

Changed

Pinned the QR & directions to the top of “My Parking.”

Result
4/5booked a spot unaided on the second pass
~35sto reserve — down from ~90s
3fixes shipped into the hi-fi build
UI design kit

Accessible, modern, full of movement.

A high-contrast palette meeting AAA compliance, with a bold logo and street-inspired energy across type, color, and iconography.

Color
Black#000000
Signal Gold#FFC857
Dark Grey#212121
White#FFFFFF
Iconography
Typography
AgLexendBold · headings
AgPoppinsBody & UI
Deliver

From a stressful scramble to a few taps.

Park n Go turns the most overlooked part of a night out into something effortless — reserve ahead, arrive easy. The three-week sprint reinforced how much a tightly-scoped problem pays off: by resisting the urge to solve all parking and committing to the event-night moment, every screen earned its place.

Next stepsValidate the reservation flow with a live pilot at one venue, add real-time lot availability and in-app navigation to the space, and test how far the signal-gold system stretches across ticketing partners — turning a three-week prototype into something a real crowd could lean on.

Happy concert-goer · parked with Park n GoA happy concert-goer arriving relaxed at an event, phone in hand
Keep exploring

More work.

ContactGet in touch

Ready to bring your brand into frame?

A project in mind? Start one — or grab a free 30-minute call and let's talk it through.

All work Responsive Redesign · Nonprofit

Hmong Cultural Center

Revitalizing a community's online identity — a responsive redesign for a Saint Paul cultural hub, built around accessibility, belonging, and a clear path to resources.

Role

Sole prototyper · research

Scope

Discovery, strategy & design

Timeline

3-week bootcamp
Hmong Cultural Center hero
Overview

Designing for a real community hub.

Over a three-week UX bootcamp, my team partnered with the Hmong Cultural Center in Saint Paul — a hub offering everything from traditional embroidery to citizenship courses. We set out to revitalize its branding, streamline its information architecture, and improve access to resources for the people it serves.

Project overview
The approach

The Double Diamond.

Four phases — Discover, Define, Develop, Deliver — from a wide-open problem space to a focused, shippable redesign for mobile and desktop.

01

Discover

A heuristic audit of the current site plus surveys and interviews. Because the center is unique, we analyzed sites serving similar markets — and listened to what a successful new-user experience needed to feel like.

02

Define

We met Mai Yer Xiong — a first-generation immigrant with limited English — and framed the problem: a more visual site with prominent iconography and easy access to English-language and citizenship classes.

03

Develop

The old sitemap buried the most important resources. We simplified the IA, mapped a fast user flow to language classes, and moved from paper to mid-fidelity wireframes with a vibrant, high-contrast UI kit.

04

Deliver

Mid- to high-fidelity in three days — a signup-focused hero, simplified color-coded navigation, and branded section banners, all consistent across mobile and desktop.

Discover & define

Listening first.

hmongcc.org · before
The original Hmong Cultural Center site
User persona: Mai Yer Xiong
Research insights
UI design kit

Vibrant clarity.

Ink#050505
Jade#329459
Fuchsia#FF6388
Cloud#F2F2F2
AaOutfit BoldHeadings
AgOutfit RegularBody & UI
UI design kit Paper wireframes Mid-fidelity wireframes
The delivered site

Built for signup, easy to navigate.

High-fidelity designs
Hero for ESL and citizenship programs
Navigation system
Reflections

Strong systems = success.

A robust design system — consistent color, typography, and layout — kept the site cohesive and genuinely usable for English-language learners, while weaving Hmong cultural elements into the identity and surfacing key offerings like ESL and citizenship classes.

Delivering a full redesign in three weeks demanded tight prioritization and agile teamwork — and we shipped a high-fidelity prototype for both mobile and desktop.

Keep exploring

More work.

ContactGet in touch

Ready to bring your brand into frame?

A project in mind? Start one — or grab a free 30-minute call and let's talk it through.

All work Product & Marketing Design · B2B SaaS

HelloSpoke

Simplifying enterprise communications through strategic product-marketing design — a scalable marketing website that turns a complex unified-communications platform into a clear, sales-ready story.

Role

Product & Web Design

Scope

Site, IA, design system

Timeline

2023 — 2024
hellospoke.com
HelloSpoke marketing homepage
Overview & challenge

A complex platform that wasn't landing.

HelloSpoke keeps property teams connected — from first call to completed request. But a broad, technical product had a website that didn't communicate its value, with overlapping features that made it hard for prospects to understand what was on offer.

  • Overlapping services, unclear messaging
  • Technical language overwhelming buyers
  • No clear funnel, no scalable system
hellospoke.com · before
The original HelloSpoke site

The original site — dense and hard to parse.

The approach

Research to shipped site.

A full product-marketing workflow — understand the business, restructure the story, systematize the design, and build it responsive.

01

Discovery

Got up to speed on the communications industry, mapped customer personas, and reviewed competitors — surfacing the real pain points and the questions every visitor was trying to answer.

02

Information architecture

Restructured navigation so each product had a home and each journey had a clear route — Core Platform, Assist, Dialtone, Pricing, Resources, About — reducing cognitive load for non-technical buyers.

03

UX strategy

Anchored the whole site around the five questions a buyer asks — what it does, is it for me, why it's different, what it costs, how to start — and made each page answer one clearly.

04

Design system & build

Built a reusable system — type, color, buttons, cards, spacing — then shipped it responsive in Divi on WordPress, so new product pages could be assembled quickly and stay on-brand.

Key pages

A broad product, made to feel simple.

hellospoke.com
HelloSpoke homepage
hellospoke.com/core
HelloSpoke Core platform page
Design system

Consistency that scales.

Navy#003A5D
Emerald#24C676
Spoke Navy#182D3A
Sky Foam#7CD0F4
Fog#F8F8F7
AaNunito BoldHeadings & UI
AgNunito RegularBody copy
Brand shapes and illustration Lou — the AI assistant mascot HelloSpoke logo
Outcomes & reflection

A clearer, scalable presence.

The redesign delivered clearer product messaging, improved navigation, a modern identity, and a scalable architecture that better supports sales conversations — and sharpened how I design for enterprise audiences.

UX

  • Information architecture
  • User flows
  • Responsive design

UI

  • Visual design
  • Design systems
  • Component libraries

Product

  • Product marketing
  • SaaS UX
  • Feature comms

Build

  • WordPress · Divi
  • Responsive build
  • Design QA
Keep exploring

More work.

ContactGet in touch

Ready to bring your brand into frame?

A project in mind? Start one — or grab a free 30-minute call and let's talk it through.

All work Brand & Communications System · Nonprofit

Wellness in the Woods

Building a scalable brand and communications system for a statewide mental-health nonprofit — one consistent, hopeful voice across peer support, fundraising, events, and everyday content.

Role

Communications Designer

Services

Brand, social, print

Timeline

2025 — 2026
Wellness in the Woods brand communications
The challenge & goal

Many programs, one brand.

As the organization expanded its statewide reach, communications became fragmented — virtual peer support, fundraising, conferences, podcasts, newsletters, and events all needed to feel like one recognizable brand, balancing professionalism with warmth.

  • Visual consistency across every platform
  • Faster content production for staff
  • Better accessibility & readability
  • Reusable systems, not one-off graphics
Deliverables

Across every channel.

Instead of treating each request as a one-off, I built an integrated brand system — shared type, color, photography, hierarchy, and tone across everything.

01

Brand

Brand guidelines, a Canva template library, design standards, and a marketing toolkit — so staff and volunteers can stay on-brand without a designer in the room.

02

Marketing & social

Social-media campaigns, fundraising graphics, event promotion, and awareness campaigns — consistent, on-message, and quick to produce.

03

Digital

Email newsletters, Facebook templates, podcast branding, and presentation decks that all read as one organization.

04

Print & community

Flyers, posters, signage, conference materials, VPSN programming graphics, volunteer materials, and resource guides — the whole in-person toolkit.

Featured project

Virtual Peer Support Network.

One of the largest recurring initiatives: reusable monthly, weekly, and daily social templates staff can update quickly while keeping a consistent visual identity and messaging structure.

Monthly VPSN calendar template
Weekly VPSN template
Daily VPSN template
Design system

Warm, accessible, unmistakable.

Bark#57463D
Sage#949D79
Periwinkle#5F6E9C
Tan#8E724E
Cream#F8F5E4
AaStaatlichesDisplay & headings
AgLatoBody copy
Weekly events flyer Next Step announcement Educational graphic
Results & reflection

A framework, not just materials.

Rather than isolated pieces, the project established a communications framework spanning fundraising, education, peer support, conferences, podcasts, and newsletters — making future content faster and presenting the organization as unified and trustworthy.

Successful nonprofit branding isn't about individual graphics looking good — it's about building systems that let organizations communicate consistently at scale.

Keep exploring

More work.

ContactGet in touch

Ready to bring your brand into frame?

A project in mind? Start one — or grab a free 30-minute call and let's talk it through.

All work Brand Identity · Web · Nonprofit

Needlework Guild of Minnesota

Bringing a longstanding craft community into a welcoming, easy-to-navigate digital home — without losing the heritage that makes it special.

Role

Brand & Web Designer

Scope

Identity, website, UX

Timeline

2024 — 2025
needleworkguildmn.org
Needlework Guild — redesigned homepage
Overview & challenge

Heritage that was hard to reach.

Since 1972, the Guild has fostered excellence in needlework through classes, retreats, and a passionate community. But the old site made it hard to find what members care about most — classes, retreats, and membership — and the identity didn't reflect the warmth of the craft or invite newcomers in.

needleworkguildmn.org · before
The old Needlework Guild site

The site before the refresh.

My approach & goals

Refresh the identity, restructure the site.

I reorganized the site around what members actually need — joining, learning, and gathering — so the most important pages are the easiest to reach, with warm, traditional colors and classic type that honor the craft.

  • Make classes, retreats & membership easy to find
  • A warmer, more welcoming identity
  • Honor the Guild's 50-year heritage
  • Keep it simple for volunteers to maintain
Improved information architecture
Restructured around joining, learning, and gathering.
Design system

Classic, warm, and welcoming.

Deep Indigo#2A3A6E
Cranberry#A43E4F
Golden Thread#D4AF37
Spruce#356859
Linen#F7F4EF
Charcoal#333333
AaMerriweatherHeadlines & titles
AgOpen SansBody & UI
Needlework Guild logo Brand pattern Brand marks
Key areas

Joining, learning & gathering — made easy.

Needlework Guild brand hero
/meetings
The redesigned meetings page
/events
The events page
Results & reflection

A warmer front door.

The refresh gave the Guild a clearer, friendlier presence — easier navigation to classes, retreats, and membership, and an identity that honors a 50-year legacy while opening the door to new members.

Designing for a heritage community is about honoring the past while lowering the barrier for newcomers — small, respectful changes that make a longstanding organization feel current and welcoming.

Keep exploring

More work.

ContactGet in touch

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