Nick Murway Mailer 012
This is a previous issue of Nick Murway Mailer. If you’re into it, sign up here to get the latest mailer once a month.
Hey y’all,
September turned into a pretty wild month of travel and work. Most of what I shot can’t be shared yet, but that that just means more good stuff below for your viewing pleasure. I’ll be sharing a cool Chicago travel guide type thing I did with Porter & Sail on Instagram over the next week or two, so follow along there @nickmurway if you’re interested!
Anyway, enjoy this month’s haul and I’ll see you next month.
Nick
ON INSTAGRAM
DISPATCHES FROM NYC: I spent a whirlwind of a couple of days in NYC for a shoot (more on that later). I didn’t get to go out all that much but boy do I enjoy the fact that you can pop around almost any corner and have yourself a deli sandwich and a beer after a long day’s shoot. I’m also always stoked on pizza by the slice, so there’s that too.
QUESTIONS WITH FRIENDS
Thanks so much to Chloe List for doing this month’s Questions with Friends! I’ve been a big fan of Chloe for a while and I couldn’t be more excited for her to share some stuff! I’m also looking forward to seeing what her new endeavor Slow Down Co. does!
Where do you live and what do you do?
I just moved back to Chicago after two years in Oakland, California. My move back coincided with starting a branding and communications agency called Slow Down Co. with my partner/work wife Jenna Liberman. We’ve deemed me the “creative lead,” so day to day it’s a lot of designing things like logos, menus, marketing collateral, gifs and other fun things for clients in the food & beverage, hospitality and lifestyle space.
What’s a project you’ve worked on lately, or are currently working on, that you’re excited about?
We recently finished up the logo and menu design for the guys at The Orbit Room, which was a blast to work on. I’ve also been working on designing social content for a plant based yogurt that’s launching soon, which couldn’t be more up my alley.
What does the first 60–90 minutes of your day look like?
I’ve gotten pretty woo woo in the last year (maybe that’s what a few years in the Bay Area does to a person). On an ideal day, I wake up, do morning pages, mediate (I use Headspace), and either go to a yoga class or make breakfast and what I like to call a “potion” while catching up on all my daily reads on the Internet. Mornings are my favorite.
What are some of your favorite food/drink spots?
I’m still getting in the groove of being back in Chicago, but avec and PQM will always be my #1s. Lately I’ve been frequenting Real Good Juice Co. and Left Coast, and hope to visit Giant, Bad Hunter, Cellar Door Provisions and Red and White Wines soon. My favorite spots in the Bay Area are Timeless Coffee, Kronnerburger, Berkeley Bowl, Good Earth Natural Foods and Rainbow Grocery (I’m kind of obsessed with grocery stores). Cutting myself off here because I could go on and on.
What are you listening to lately (music, podcasts, audiobooks)?
I love music from before my time and listening to full albums, so a lot of Van Morrison, Cat Stevens, Simon & Garfunkel, George Harrison, Paul Simon, Talking Heads, Supertramp etc. Every month I look forward to BIRP! playlists, which are how I discover most of the new music I listen to. While I’m designing I love listening to One Part Podcast, Bon Appetit Foodcast, The mindbodygreen Postcast, How I Built This, Radio Cherry Bombe and Design Matters.
Where do you go for inspiration?
If we’re talking screens, I love cubicle refugee, designspiration, and creeping my favorite creative people’s Pinterests and Instagrams. For analog inspiration, I have this old book called Menu Design in America that is filled with tons and tons of old menus and is always refreshing to flip through. Really anything that was designed before computers inspires me. There’s also nothing more energizing or exciting to me than wandering on foot through a city alone, especially one I’ve never been to before.
How do you unwind or relax?
My morning routine helps set me up for a day where I don’t get wound up too tight, but cooking is my favorite way to unwind. Something about it has become so meditative to me (probably because you can’t scroll through Instagram when your hands are covered in food). Reading and long walks with good music never fail to calm me down either.
Are you reading anything currently?
I’ve gone a little crazy this year and have already read 28 books. Turns out those reading challenges on Goodreads can actually be very motivating. Some recent favorites are Grocery: The Buying and Selling of Food in America (it made me cry at the end), You Are a Badass, Outrageous Openness, Sapiens and The Seven Husbands of Evelyn Hugo.
TOTAL EYE CANDY
On August 13, 2017, at precisely 12:00 pm Eastern Standard Time, 88 artists all over the world stopped what they were doing, looked up, and drew the sky. What each artist saw was unique to the time, the weather, and the place. The locations ranged from Tel Aviv to Brooklyn, Buenos Aires to rural Georgia.
ON YOUTUBE
How I dealt with depression | Daily Creative
In this episode, we’re talking depression. I’m not an expert in this area, but I have dealt with depression myself. I share what worked for me and dig into the thing I think all of us could do a little bit more of — self care.
QUICK LINKS:
How To Retain More From The Books You Read In 5 Simple Steps Before I even think about which books I’m going to read, I think about what I’m trying to achieve. I strongly believe that the content of books should align with what’s going on in your life.
Optimized or maximized? I once drove home from college at 100 miles an hour. It saved two hours. My old car barely made it, and I was hardly able to speak once I peeled myself out of the car. That was maximum speed, but it wasn’t optimum.
This Is How Your Fear and Outrage Are Being Sold for Profit The world feels more dangerous. Our streets seem less safe. The assault on our values is constant. The threats feel real. The enemy is out there — just check your feed.
Thanks for reading! Have something I should be covering? Let me know!
Be well,
Nick
