resources
· MyFonts
Use this site as a start on your search for great type. You can easily preview your name in the fonts by using it as sample text; it's an easy way to preview different logotypes. Don't be afraid to spend a little chunk of cash on a typeface! It's a valuable investment. You don't have to spend hundreds to get great type, but don't let a $30 price tag scare you off of a typeface you love.
· AIGA
AIGA is the "professional association for design". Their design archives have a ton of inspirational examples. If you're looking for ideas but don't know where to start, you can sort through the archives by choosing from categories.
· Webmonkey
Webmonkey has great tutorials on how to make a website. You don't have to be a master coder to create an online portfolio, it just takes a little practice and patience. Click "Authoring" and then HTML Basics. Once you have that tutorial down you can read their Stylesheets tutorial, otherwise known as CSS (Cascading Stylesheets).
· Artnet
You can use Artnet's artist search to find artist profiles with portfolio website links or simply use a search engine to locate online portfolios. The quality of someone's artwork does not necessarily guarantee a quality website, but you might get some ideas along the way of how you can better display your artwork.
· Business Card Designs
These are great examples of creative, engaging business cards. You don't have to do anything as elaborate as these, since many of them cost more money to make than the average business card. Nevertheless, you can see how these cards use type to their advantage, and great type treatments don't have to be expensive.
· Ellen Lupton
Ellen Lupton is an advocate for Do-It-Yourself design; her work has helped make design more accessible for non-professionals. Her books and the writing she features on her website are great reading for anyone interested in design. She also links to very useful resources, such as some excellent quality free typefaces in her "Free Font Manifesto."
· Design*Sponge
Design*Sponge is a popular design blog that higlights a lot of handcrafted designs done by small businesses and individual designers. This site is especially of interest for those who want to learn about how design can function in a three-dimensional space, since a lot of product design is featured. Printmakers should also check out Design*Sponge for examples of printmaking in a design context.
· Brand New
Curious about visual identities? Brand New is an amazing blog brought to you by the illustrious souls behind Under Consideration and its popular design blog Speak Up. Its subject matter is usually inclined more toward the visual identities of companies rather than the identities of individuals, but it still gives a lot of food for thought for anyone who is trying to create a logotype or identity. Whether you're a multinational corporation or an individual artist, your logotype should still take into consideration readability and cultural and aesthetic precedents. Brand New examines how various entities succeed and fail at the challenges of crafting a visual identity.