New release from Heavy Clothing - No.1 Heavy T-Shirt.
Inspired by No.5 Chanel perfume bottles.

You can get yours now at the Heavy Online Shop.

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It's been a while since I've posted anything up on here.

Lately, I've been putting a lot of focus onto design work the last couple months.
I tried advertising for the first time on a free online medium, and the results have started to pay off.

I've had numerous projects keeping me occupied for the last little bit, and have not had the chance to update posts on my blog.

One of my latest projects is a website for my new design studio.
www.heavydesigns.ca
If you're ever looking for any graphic design work, be sure to keep me in mind.

Between Heavy Designs, and working on concepts for Heavy Clothing, I've got my hands full, but will try to make time to keep all of you updated on what's going on.

Mike Read More

Certified Heavy will be a weekly showcase to pay homage to the Heavy's around us all.
It could be a cool website that offers great tutorials, a link to some great resources to help you out with your designs, artwork to draw inspiration from, or recognizing someone for their accomplishments.

What's a Heavy?
Someone/thing that inspires others, that is at the top of their game, or innovates. A Heavy sets the trends. They can be the unsung Hero or the frontperson. Heavy can mean... soo many different things.

Basically it will be a showcase to giving props to the Heavies that deserve it.

Have a suggestion for Certified Heavy of the week?
Drop us a line and let us know your suggestion. Read More

I came across a list from wakeuplater.com the other day that covered the 10 "No's" fro freelancers. If only I had read this while I was trying early on in my career.

These "No's" will definitely not only save you time, money, and ultimately make you more productive as a freelancer.

Here's my experiences with some of these "No's":

Can you show me a mock-up to help us choose a designer/developer?
Can you give us a discount rate?
I have a great idea. Do you want to...?
Do you have an IM account?
Can I just pay the whole amount when it's done?
Is there any way you could get this done tonight or this weekend?

My experiences with some of these "No's" after the jump

Can you show me a mock-up to help us choose a designer/developer?
When I first got into designing, I was real eager to impress my clients, and would offer to create mock ups thinking they would help me a contract with the client. Bottom line, don't do unpaid work thinking that you it will help you land job. If you were a mechanic, would you give out free engine overhauls hoping it would turn into repeat business? That's a bit of an extremem example, but it's definitely a practice I learned to not do. The best case scenario (though rare) is that you get a job with a client who knows that you'll work for free when necessary. The worst case scenario is that they don't pay you, and still use your stuff, knowing you don't have the legal resources to do anything about it. Most likely though, you’ll just waste time.

Can you give us a discount rate?
There are A LOT of potential clients out there that don't see graphic artists being worth the money we charge. We should not let these type of people be our clients. I've had multiple stories from friends who took on lots of work during college. A majority of it, at discounted rates, thinking that they could make more money, by taking on more jobs. Let me tell you that it's not worth it. Ever. Remember, you may be doing this company a favor, but on the flip side, you're hurting your own future, and your family's. I've worked out a pricing structure for my work that lets potential clients know up front what my rates are. If they're willing to work with me, cool. We go on with the job. It's simple math really -- if doubling your rate loses half your client work, then you're still making as much in half the time. If you do excellent work, get paid for it – there will always be comparable "firms" charging double what you are.

I have a great idea. Do you want to...?
Not much different from the first point of the free mock ups, but could be a much larger time waster if you agree to it. I'm just being blunt, but if you say yes, you are working for free again. I don't know about you, but I am not working out of the goodness of my heart. Working for free may be ok with you, but for, this is something I would only consider for family and friends. If your clients serious, they'd hire and pay you to work on this "idea"

Do you have an IM account?
Guilty for giving out my IM account in the past. I've only done this, if I'm working on a project of a larger scale, but generally no. I don't want to be the "on-call" guy for the company on my free time. Do you?

Can I just pay the whole amount when it's done?
50% deposit before I start working on anything. I need to have the confidence that my client will ultimately pay me after the project is done. Again tying into some of the other points, we are not doing this work for charity. We all depend on this income for families, bills, etc. More often than not, those that do not pay upfront, will be more likely to not want to pay you after you've invested a lot of time into a project. By asking for a deposit, you are just weeding out those that are not that serious.

Is there any way you could get this done tonight or this weekend?
I like to work with my clients on an acceptable deadline. If the deadline is too aggressive, I have passed on certain jobs. Once they know that you helped them out one time, they will expect it in the future. For me, I love to design at night. It's quiet in the house, and I can focus on the task at hand. I know a lot of freelancers that charge night/weekend hours as well, so that might be a possible route to take. I only reason I bring this up is because you're working as a freelancer why? Because you like the flexibility!

This is not a definitive list that you must follow. Merely my own experiences of some great points from the original 10 "No's" list. When in doubt, just pull an Obama, "Aw Hell Naw!"
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Are you planning an event? Need a logo for your company? Sponsoring a new club night? Playing your first gig? Throwing the party of the year?

Whatever your promotional needs are, Heavy Graphics can supply you with the some Heavy Artwork for your flyers, posters, t-shirts, website to help you spread the word.

We have quick turnaround times, and a group of talented artists.
For a consultation on your promotional needs, please contact us via the "Contact Us" link.


*MJ is not actually performing at Ensomnia. This is merely a poster/flyer mockup* Read More

Planning on adding some hoodies to our first collection

Result of Cardeno messin around...


Looks pretty dope so far..will tweak final image a bit before the drops Read More

Check out Feel Good Thursdays at Lucy Mae Brown for some good times, good music & good company!

It's all about FEELIN' GOOD at the end of the week & pre-partying for the weekend! Thursdays are the best nights to party!

Featuring DJ YEPPA & DJ SHAUNIC playing HIP HOP, R&B, Old School, Electro Mashups & Remixes (These guys play some goooood music!)

Email for Guestlist & Inquiries:
feelgoodthursdays@gmail.com

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Just saw the trailer for X-Men origins and had the idea for this one...
Still got plans to tweak it a bit more, but something along these lines will be released soon.

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Another Heavy to be released soon...

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