Business Cards

Business cards are great for networking - it's an easy way to give people your name, contact info and possibly even an example of the work you do, depending on how you design your card.

I like to keep a lot of my favorite business cards on my wall both for reference and just because they look good. Most of these are from Thought Bubble, which is a great chance to find business cards and, if I do get a table next year, give them out as well.

My most favorite ones though are the ones that I feel stand out much more. For some of these it is the coloring, like the pink and Brogan Coral's pink and purple card, and the one above it. I also like how Maris Wicks and Gemma Correll have turned theirs into something other than a card with some illustration and a name on them - they're fun, and they stick out, and I feel like they give you a better feeling of who the person is and what sort of art they are likely to produce. I like how the simple text of The Space Adventures card gets to the point but stands out - there is no clutter on the card and there isn't any tiny, superfluous text that is hard to read. I also like the contrast and use of white in the card next to it, for Will Kirkby; the illustration takes up most of the card with the text overlaid, and it is a lot more interesting to look at than a lot of the ones in the image above, with one illustration and then a small block of text. It is more noticeable and is more unique than the ones above, as there are a lot less that seem to be using this technique. 

Making a business card looks fun, but there are so many places you can start with. I have already decided on rounded edges if possible just because of how much better I think the cards look with them. I am not sure whether or not to do a self portrait type card like some of the above, or have examples of my work instead. I might have to experiment with this and see which look better. I also have the choice of more text or more illustrating - I don't think that an even mix of both is as effective as seen in the first image, but I think that since I like my work to be bright with thick lines, using more illustration could be a good way of getting my card to stand out.