emily savage • rolfing® : beautiful, bilingual, responsive

Emily's a very inspiring young woman who has invested a great deal of time and energy in becoming qualified as a Rolfer® (see emilysavage.com if you don't happen to know what that is). 

Her new website is especially appealing because of its simplicity, muted color choices, and exceptional photography - all original photos from Emily's own travels around the globe. The site is built on a Squarespace template and offers a large image on each page which gradually vanishes as you scroll down - a lovely effect.

Because she is fully bilingual in English and Spanish, Emily wanted her site to be equally available to users of both languages. We used a couple of simple menu choices to make her site flow smoothly between the languages. The home page offers 3 choices: home - english - espanol, with drop down menus to the navigation for each section. We added a toggle just above the footer to switch between languages, too.

One more item of note: Emily is of the generation that tends to view the web entirely from phones, in her case, an iPhone. Having a site that features responsive design is essential to her ability to communicate with her peers.  

Bittersweet ending, exciting beginning

For the past 17 (!) years I have worked for VocalEssence in Minneapolis, the wonderful choral music organization led by Philip Brunelle. Over the years more and more people asked me for help with their communications-related projects. Eventually the free-lance work increased, so I downshifted from VocalEssence Marketing & Communications Director to a part time position as Communications Manager. At the same time, I launched Dakota Street Design from my home in Red Wing. 

August 1, 2013 will mark a major change of direction as I leave VocalEssence and begin a new position with Minnesota State College-Southeast Technical in Red Wing as Director of Communications.

I will continue to provide graphic design and website development services under the banner of Dakota Street Design LLC. For most of my clients — especially those who are located across the United States and Europe — this won't make much difference as we'll continue our relationships via email. However, for the most part, I won't be as available for face-to-face meetings and phone conferences during weekday business hours.

While it's bittersweet to leave my dear friends at VocalEssence, I'm excited about working closer to home in a college environment. I'm giving up a 60-mile commute for a quick 3-mile ride on my motor scooter.  And — as the creative director of Dakota Street Design, I look forward to continuing my work with you!

The Shoemaker's Children

But who is wurs shod, than the shoemakers wyfe, With shops full of newe shapen shoes all hir lyfe? — J. Heywood, Dialogue of Proverbs, 1546

​I've long heard the proverb about the Shoemaker's Children — it's a syndrome that has affected my own work. In modern English, "Who is worse shod than shoemaker’s wife?" (or the shoemaker's children) refers to the concept that the shoemaker puts the needs of his customers above those of his own family. In my case, it's been more that I've put the marketing needs of my clients above my own business's needs.

When you're a free-lancer, you've got to make hay while the sun shines (sorry to be mixing proverbs here). When I've got lots to do for my clients, the last thing I want to do is take time to work on marketing my business. But I would advise any client, whether a non-profit, an artist, a musician, an educational institution or a business, that it's vital to continuously market your services. ​

That's why I'm so pleased to have at last launched a re-vamped version of dakotastreetdesign.com. It's build on a sleek platform with all the latest bells & whistles, including responsive design. The template is intrinsically beautiful with very little modification on my part, allowing me to spend more time developing content (always the most challenging part of any project). ​

Now I'm happy to say my own site is up-to-date and I'm taking my own advice.