Today sees the launch of a new theatre company - GB Theatre Company. I have been working on the branding, website and venue leaflets throughout February and March.

I have been working on a new identity and website for Hangfast Climbing for several months now. The site will be launched in the next few weeks. Hangfast have two sides to their business – designing, building and maintaining climbing walls, and rigging, which includes hanging huge screens at sporting events and concerts.

The project involved upgrading the existing logo of a figure abseiling (left) which had become well recognised with the company.

Designers frequently refer to their work as innovative, yet it rarely is. However, Dyson have just launched a range of fans without blades – the Dyson Air Multiplier. Without blades it’s safer, easier to clean and produces a consistent airflow without buffeting. It’s also stunning to look at! Only ‘but’ is…that it’s autumn, with winter fast approaching.

A really enjoyable day working alongside professional photographers Matt Swift and his assistant Guy in a steel works in South Yorkshire. The photos are going to be used on a new website that I am currently designing and will be launched in the next week or so.

The last month has been very busy with a number of design projects on the go. The British Shakespeare Company’s 2009 tour programme has just been printed in time for their first show this friday. I really liked the idea of mixing gold and silver.

I have just designed a new 44 page website for Braithwaite & Jackman. One of Leeds leading chartered architects and quantity surveyors, they wanted to showcase their commercial work for clients including Bhs, Kingfisher, Leeds Bradford Airport, Polestar, Leeds University, Norwich Union and Cambridge University Press.

For the last two years I have designed and been responsible for the monthly updates to The Countryman website. It’s brought me closer to the British Countryside and developed my interest in wildlife and landscape photography. Getting the chance to redesign it to incorporate advertising, involved changing 100+ webpages and was one of the projects that made November and December especially busy.

I am very conscious that this blog that was supposed to be about graphic design has become a photography blog. I have been working on a number of literature projects that I cannot display here. Anyway to show that I do actually still design things, here is a theatre programme that has just gone off to print (above), and a small leaflet for Olivers Lighting Company, to be displayed in local shop and pub leaflet dispensers.

Having a website means I sometimes get calls from people outside the Yorkshire/Lancashire region. June Wentland is an author and lives in Bristol. She needed a cover design for her first children’s book Nana (Computer Genius) and the Amazing Roberta. The book is aimed at children 5 to 7 years old and has illustrations by Simon Goodway.

The last few weeks have been spent organising printing of banners, programmes and posters for Leeds and Oxford. Anyone passing Leeds Town Hall will find these banners on the front, and 20 more hanging from lampposts in the surrounding streets and around Leeds centre. The shows open tomorrow night and some tickets are still available – bring some friends and have a fabulous night! Have a look at the websites: British Shakespeare Company and Comedy in the Park. A year’s work and it will all be over in the next four weeks, but already our thoughts are turning to the 2008 shows.