Emily Q. is a Designer at VerdanaBold. Emily received her Bachelor of Arts—with a focus in Graphic Design—at Northern Michigan University in Marquette, Michigan. She is the resident expert of website design and being a plant mom. When she’s not helping create kick-ass presentations at VerdanaBold, you can find Emily at a concert around the city or at home watching a movie.
Learn more about Emily in the Q&A below!
What is your favorite thing about working at VerdanaBold?
I love the team-oriented working environment at VerdanaBold. It’s very casual, but I’m still constantly learning and getting work done. I know if I’m having a problem or stuck on an idea, I can show it to anyone on the team and get feedback or learn something new. I also appreciate that when large projects come in or the occasional late night happens, everyone contributes. You can tell everyone is working hard to help the company and each other out.
How do you measure the success of your designs at VerdanaBold?
I measure the success of my designs based on knowing that we delivered the best solution for that particular client’s needs; each project has a slightly different design solution needed, and finding the right one is key in having a successful design.
What do you most pride yourself on in your presentation design work for VerdanaBold?
I pride myself in my attention to detail, as well as my willingness and ability to make the tiniest of changes—changes that might not seem noticeable at first, but that will help elevate the design to the best it can be.
What is your favorite book? What is your favorite book cover design?
My favorite book is The Book Thief by Markus Zusak. As for cover design, I have a set of the Lord the Rings books that have a more simple cover designs—a black background with illustrations of key elements from the books—and I really love the simplicity of them.
At what store would you like to max your credit card out?
Top 3: 1. Bookstore 2. Ulta. 3. Gardening Center – I love plants.
What is your secret talent that no one knows about?
Relating anything back to a scene or quote from The Office.
What’s your best productivity tip for working from home?
Just all of the lists. I am someone who needs to write something down or I'll immediately forget about it, so I have lists everywhere. I use my planner religiously, I'm color coding, I'm marking down deadlines and what my projects are for the day, and it just helps so much seeing everything written out. And you always get that satisfaction of crossing it off.
What is your favorite restaurant in Chicago?
There is an Italian restaurant near me called La Scarola and we absolutely love it. It's one of those places that feels like it hasn't updated the decor in 40 years, you still have to call to make reservations, and they have photos of all of the celebrities that have eaten there all over the wall. All of the waiters are very no-nonsense and will tell you exactly what is the best plate, and you get huge portions of just the most incredible Italian food. Absolutely love it.
Update (02/24): we’ve revised this article to add some new info on working from home and restaurants in Chicago
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About the author
Danielle John is the founder of VerdanaBold. She has more than 25 years as an award-winning designer and creative lead, directing the visual expression and production of thousands of high-value new business pitches, C-level presentations and internal presentations for major global brands. When she’s not busy at VerdanaBold, she can be found antique shopping and spending time with her husband and two kids.