by Rick Mullenix | Community Manager
We have a very experienced graphic designer to feature this month. Currently sitting atop of 333 wins, and being a Finalist over 950 times, this artist was reluctant at first to get involved with 48HoursLogo.com. But that hesitation was a couple of years ago, and in that time Karjen has used this unique form of crowdsourcing to fine tune his skills.
Karjen grew up in the province of Bacoor, Cavite Philippines and is currently residing in Dubai. At 28 years old he’s married to Jenalyn, and they hope to have children someday in the near future. Multilingual, Karjen speaks Tagalog, English, and a bit of Arabic.
In this interview we’ll discover what designer influenced Karjen to join up with 48HoursLogo.com and see what he has accomplished with his prize money from contest wins.
ABOUT KARJEN
48: Thank you for the interview! First off your name, Karjen, where does that name come from?
KJ: Oh it’s my honor. Well the name, it’s a combination of mine, Karl, and my wife’s name, Jenalyn.
48: That’s a bit romantic, if you ask me, very cool. Does your wife influence your designs in any way?
KJ: Both of us are graduates of Industrial Engineering. She pursued her line and is working now as a system analyst in a global paint company, while I took a little skewed road and pursued what I really love to do (drawing & designing). She’s one of my inspirations in working with designs, especially with color because she love’s fashion and I’m a little weak at that! She has a very keen eye on details so whenever I’m working on something she finds faults on the project, suggests to me how to improve it and then comes the winning design!
48: She sounds like a good source of inspiration! In your free time, do you have any hobbies to unwind with?
KJ: Aside from designing, I love playing musical instruments like drums, guitar, piano etc. I also love trying different kind of cuisines and dishes. Right now I enjoy driving to different places in Dubai.
48: Do you have any musical influences or favorite artists?
KJ: I Love Country, Pop and Classical music.
ABOUT DESIGN
48: So how did you learn to be such a creative designer?
KJ: My brother taught me how to draw using the machine we call now computer, haha sorry.. I was really a stone-age person before..
48: That’s ok, we all learned at some point. How long has it been since you became a designer?
KJ: Drawing is my inborn talent God has given me ; and been solely a 48HoursLogo designer for two years. I just keep remembering that the moment I stop learning..thats the moment I stop leading 🙂
48: Where do you find inspiration for your work?
KJ: Top Designers are my inspiration! I usually browse Top Designer concepts, look at them closely and always ask myself “How did they do that?” Whenever my wife and I go for a walk, I usually look at all places and take pictures of different signs and study them at home, how did they create it. Jenalyn always told me I’m crazy because I’m doing these things but I always tell her that Thomas Edison & Einstein once was called CRAZY & INSANE but they are the FOUNDATION of intelligence & success nowadays!
48: You’re right about Edison and Einstein. What three fonts do you find yourself always going back to?
KJ: I like SF Fourche, it’s very versatile, Serpentine because it’s smooth and smart, and Trajan Bold, 100% effective for corporate business.
48: In your own words, describe your personal artistic style.
KJ: I actually do different styles. Sometimes I read the brief well, sometimes not 🙂 Sometimes I depend on making a best design, sometimes I just depend on luck. I try to compete and mix the two words “Quality & Quantity.”
48: Are there any habits that help you while designing?
KJ: Yeah! normally I keep my stomach full first before designing.. and I hate interruptions! When I do designing, I want it continuous without anyone or anything interrupting me.
48: Do you have any advice for up and coming designers looking for success?
KJ: Just don’t give-up! Be consistent! And have a goal to try to SAVE every cent that we get from our hardships that can add-up to our inspirations and motivations to be a GREAT DESIGNER!
48: That’s well said, good advice. What do you think about when you start working on a design?
KJ: Honestly… Blank! (for the first 5mins) Then I give time for my brain to think…then it comes out naturally 🙂 Most of the time my wife has better idea than me, I always use that as an inspirations and BOOM! “Your Logo Has Just Won!”
48: Now that sounds like a good wife! Are there any certain types of contests that you prefer?
KJ: No. We should not be picky if we want to be a good designer. I usually join all the contest as much as I can and share the talent that I have to everyone.
48: Is there any kind of specific feedback you look for in the Contest Briefs?
KJ: I just need the nature of their business and, of course, the name.
48: Do you have any advice for someone starting a contest?
KJ: Just trust us and we’ll do the rest!
48: Are there any current logos that you feel are overdue for a redesign or update?
KJ: NASA is so GREAT but they really have an outdated logo 🙁 I really love to redesign it!
– Anyone reading this at NASA –
You can start a Logo Design Contest with us for just $29, and be sure to send Karjen an invite!
ABOUT 48HOURSLOGO
48: So how long have you been an official, registered logo designer with us?
KJ: Two years and three months, to be exact, haha.
48: How did you first hear about this site?
KJ: Joining our Design Community was really unexpected. I didn’t have any idea about earning money on the internet by doing logo designs. 48HoursLogo was introduced to me by my brother, Ryuzaki, one of the first designers here. I’ve been too busy on my job before and rejected my brother’s offer to join as a designer twice because I’m thinking that it was some kind of a scam. After a year of insisting I decided to join the site and start designing. It took days… weeks… months… til the time came that I almost gave-up! But my brother told me not to! He said that he got his first win after three months! Then very fortunately I got my first win after a month of struggle and withdrawn my first pay-off! That moment I told myself that this is true and start pushing myself to the limits till I got this SUCCESS!
48: Very good story about the importance of persistence. Is there any reason you choose working through 48HoursLogo over any other crowdsourcing design sites?
KJ: Are there any other sites aside from 48HL? Don’t tell me. I don’t even want to know! 48HoursLogo is my home sweet home.
48: Sounds like you’re pretty loyal, is there anything that make 48HL so special to you?
KJ: The “time” is the trademark advantage of this site. Everything goes so fast which keeps me excited and motivated.
48: So has your life changed at all since joining up with us?
KJ: It’s really a Big Change! I was just a normal employee before for 5 years, satisfying my boss and everyone. But now, I’m so confident that even if I don’t satisfy them much, I’m more happy because I have more happy clients appreciating my talents. After two years I saved most of my income and its now generating another income as well. Because of 48HoursLogo income and savings I acquired, Jenalyn and I bought a brand new CAR!! Which Im glad to share to all of you. Hopefully to serve as an inspiration to all of us to keep on going as we all know that winners never quit and quitters never WIN!
48: Congratulations on the new car, very excited for you! You mentioned being an employee, what kind of work did you do before becoming a designer here?
KJ: As Ive said, I’m a dependent employee just expecting a payoff every month and when I woke up “yesterday” – I found out that there’s better future behind doing the Job you love to do! Thank you to 48hourslogo.com! It really is a privilege finding you!
From all of us at 48HoursLogo, Karl I want to thank you for sharing in the interview! We wish you and your wife the best! To see more of Karjen’s work, visit his portfolio page here.
What do you think about Karjen’s interview?
Let me know in the comments below!
Don’t miss our infographic, Is Your Logo A Cliche? or the last Featured Designer interview with prodesign.