outside the comfort zone

y'all, is there smoke coming out of my ears? cause this brain's had to do a lot of thinkin' recently. you see, i've been challenged creatively lately, and while the end product always makes me proud, the getting there can sometimes be quite the process.

here's the sitch - baby sister toots my horn for me alot. like alot, alot. mentions me on twitter. re-links my facebook updates. sends her buddies my way. the like. (THANKS! baby sister) so, when i received an email from her beau (EZ), i thought nothing of it. you know, maybe he wants some biz cards. or he's hosting a party for a friend. (pshaw - like boys host parties!)

uh, no. no basic designing here. when i opened that email, my jaw dropped open. dude wanted me to design his triathlon gear. all of it. shorts. tops. jackets. other tops. other shorts. say what now?

well, i thought, let's just put that away. then, i started hyperventilating. seriously. i mean i'd dabbled a little in t-shirt design. like, oh, telling the t-shirt company to center a logo on various sized shirts, and deliver them by x date, dabble. and, now he wants to be outfitted in rosita designs gear? i repeat, say what now???

after a good few days to process, and avoid the subject, i decided it was time to hunker down and get to work. well, lo and behold, it was pretty fun, and seeing the design come to life was really fulfilling! and, then seeing it worn for a race? ah.maz.ing!

here's what we sent off to the printer folks:

EZ wanted his gear to match his bike, so that meant red and black, so i started brainstorming ideas, and decided on a rounded square. then, as i manipulated the design, it started to feel to me like fish scales. which was perfect, since he's a past swimmer, and swimming is part of a triathlon.

he had his first race in the gear this weekend (the austin ironman - you go!), so let's have a little look-see at the gear in motion!

phew! i'm tired just looking at the pictures! great job, EZ! i hope you got a good long nap after that!

i also designed EZ a jersey and some shorts for baby sister. if they take a pic of those, i'll post about them too. while i don't think nike will be calling any time soon, it was fun being a "fashion designer" for the day!

i tell ya - custom rocks - the sky really is the limit!