Elum Designs

What do you look for in a great portfolio? 

When looking at portfolios, good typography is really important and something that we scrutinize closely. It not only tells us right off the bat if you have an eye for design, but it shows that you've paid close attention to the details and put a lot of care in laying out the information and researching the right fonts. Versatility is another important aspect that we look for in a great portfolio. You should be able to achieve a range of styles. A lot of our clients come to us because we offer a multitude of looks within the same design house. It is also best to avoid techniques like stock filters because they can be a dead giveaway of your skill level and dependency on the programs for design.

What qualities and skills do you look for in a graduate? 

We look for designers with a passion for what they do and the industry that we are in. We create products that are extensions of one's lifestyle and it's important that we make products that we want to buy ourselves. We seek out unique individuals whose voice will become a part of our brand. Some of the tangible things we look for in addition to good typography and versatility are illustration skills, color theory, pattern design, and a sense of humor since we are not only designers but copywriters as well.

Who's on the team, what are their roles and why do you love them? 

The design team here at Elum consists of a range of designers and illustrators whose different personalities and strengths make for a well balanced team that we are truly proud of.

Shannon Lamb, our Senior Designer who has been a part of our team the longest. She came to us with more of a web design based background it soon became clear that she was hiding away an incredible illustration talent. Her adorable quirky characters illuminated our stationery line and her product concepts and copywriting skills continue to amaze.

Our other Senior Designer, Samantha Kurtz joined the Elum team after moving from New York and working the in fashion industry, designing for brands like Armani Exchange and Coach. Her portfolio mostly consisted of pattern design, but her sense of style, trends, color theory and painting skills made her an obvious choice. She has excelled quickly here with her ability to take on new design challenges with great success.

Ali Kurzeja, is an illustrator who formerly worked at American Greetings. Coming from the same industry, Ali brings a depth of experience of the greeting card and stationery world, that we have not had before. Her illustrations, whether they are painted by hand or created digitally in Photoshop or Illustrator, are beautifully sweet and are immediately requested by our clients.

Olga Griesinger is a graphic designer who joined us a recent graduate. She was highly recommended to us from Less + More where she did an internship. Olga's extensive art schooling, both here San Diego and Belarus, make her creative talents endless. She has an incredible sense of humor that not only comes out in her copywriting but in her characters who explode with personality.

What have been some of your biggest disasters and how have your learned from it? 

Our largest client changed buyers which resulted in a decline in sales. We were not sure if we would regain these lost sales in the future. We decided to take a step back and concept new product ideas. We explored new materials, different types of binding and structural formats for desk and stationery products. This departure from our target customer was risky but it resulted in a refreshing new addition to our established line of products. This line introduced our company to new audience and impressed our current buyers, in addition to opening doors to new buyers.