Linda returned recently from her annual camping trip to the north woods, wet tent and muddy kayak in tow. This year it was to the Upper Peninsula, Michigan, to the Pictured Rocks lake shore. Maybe it doesn’t seem to make sense that hauling a kayak, dismantling a tent in the rain, and chopping firewood is energizing, but it is! And now science backs it up. It’s called Shinrin-yoku: The Medicine of Being in the Forest. Shinrin-yoku is a term that means “forest bathing.” Visit a forest preserve, walk under the open sky and among the trees, and feel the calming and rejuvenating benefits to this simple practice.

The scientifically proven benefits include lower blood pressure, lower stress levels, and significantly higher immune system markers. Your natural killer cells, white blood cells that fight infected or tumor cells, are significantly higher after forest bathing. (from The Washington Post)

Hiking along rushing waterfalls and exploring the lake shore of Pictured Rocks was a wonderful way to rejuvenate and come back refreshed. The views were awe inspiring, which is actually a state of mind that has been studied by psychologists. Feelings of awe and wonder were described by the astronauts who have experienced earth orbit, and is called the “overview effect.” The emotions experienced can be life changing.

Along with forest bathing, Linda was able to
have a little fun experimenting with camera settings
to create the “soft water” effect.

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We enjoy designing websites. As digital designers, this is only one of the types of projects that we encounter. At the lesser end of fun, we design forms and format newsletters. This type of work can be tedious, although we never complain about having work to do. There is a satisfaction to completing a meticulous job and seeing the final in print. Websites, on the other hand, we classify as work that is fun for us to do. There is a challenge in taking a list of information and creating something that is beautiful, functional, and reflects the client’s vision.

We are excited to announce a new website that we recently completed for the Arizona Glass Alliance (AGA). Linda belongs to a local glass group, Midwest Contemporary Glass Art Group (MCGAG). As a member, she volunteered discounted services and we developed the MCGAG website a few years ago. We were pleased to get a call this spring from AGA, complementing us on the MCGAG site, and asking for a quotation to format the site for their group. They liked the functionality and the look of the site, so our challenge was to utilize that same template while giving AGA a unique look of their own.

Are you looking for a design team that will listen to what you need and format a site that suits your needs? Take a look at our portfolio, scroll through some of our site designs, and let us know if we can present you with a quotation for your website vision. It can take your business to a whole new level.

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