Our 2017 calendars: The faces behind the pages

We might be biased, but our 2017 calendar lineup is gorgeous, helpful and unique. That's all due to these dedicated guys and gals you see here. Led by our amazing graphics manager Susan, this group of designers has spent the past several months creating a collection we think you'll love.

Geoff

What’s the most important thing to consider when designing a calendar? Keeping it fresh. They have to be better than the year before.
​Where do you find inspiration for your designs? I get inspiration from everything around me. Sometimes from other designs, but usually just from everyday life.
Which calendars did you design?
I designed the inside pages for Beaches, Healthy Living, Standard Real Estate, Jumbo Real Estate, Standard Planner, Jumbo Planner and Jumbo Recipe. I designed the covers for Beaches, Healthy Living, Living Green and the C642 Happy Holidays foil cover.
Geoff's design background:
Geoff has been practicing graphic design since high school. He earned his degree in communication design from Virginia Western Community College. He's been at Magnets USA for 12 years. 

Toni

What’s your favorite aspect of this year’s calendar lineup? We’ve expanded and improved on our past collections, giving our customers more variety this year. I’m glad that I was able to take part in the new animal Year-at-Glance calendars coming out soon. I feel like there are a lot of animal lovers out there that will love them.
What’s the most important thing to consider when designing a calendar? Making sure your calendar is pleasing to the eye, incorporating all the essential parts with room left for creative liberty.
What are you looking forward to in 2017? I hope to volunteer in wildlife rehabilitation. This is one of the great joys in my life. There's nothing more satisfying than watching as the orphaned or injured animals you nursed back to health are re-released into the wild.
Toni's design background:
Toni began her career making proofs the old-school way —  manually. Over the years, she has worked in contacting, opti-copy and photolithography. She was a freelance designer for 14 years before coming to Magnets USA.

Linda

Which calendars did you work on? I created the inside pages for the Living Green calendar.
Where you do find inspiration for your designs? I try to draw inspiration from various online sources and trending colors.
What are you looking forward to in 2017? My daughter is moving to Boone, N.C., to teach at Appalachian State. I will be visiting her a lot!
Linda's design background:
Linda started working in newspapers right out of high school. Over 20 years, she worked for five daily newspapers across the country. Before coming to Magnets USA 13 years ago, Linda worked at an advertising agency in the Roanoke Valley. There she designed logos, billboards and magazine ads.

Katy

What’s your favorite aspect of this year’s calendar lineup? I love that we offer a wide variety of calendar choices, from quotes to help you start your day to yummy recipes you can use for years to come. This year, I was able to work on the Standard Quotes Calendar, Jumbo Quotes, Standard Recipe and the Christian Calendar.
How do you get the creativity flowing? First, I brainstorm — this involves lots of lists and sketches. You can never have too many! Then I look for inspiration. I find it helpful to save eye-catching layouts, designs and photos so I always have another resource for future projects. Collaborating is also an important part of my process. I love surrounding myself with people who are always willing to lend a fresh set of eyes and even a critique or two ... or 10.
What are you looking forward to in 2017? There are three important dates on my calendar for 2017: My husband and I will be celebrating our eighth wedding anniversary in April, our son's sixth birthday in June and our daughter's second birthday in November.
Katy's design background:
Katy earned her degree in communication design at Virginia Western Community College. This October marks Katy's 10th year at Magnets USA.

Andy

Where do you draw inspiration for your designs? I usually start by searching for photography and images. I'll build my ideas off of a photo, illustration or graphic I find inspiring for the concept of the design project.
What’s the most important thing to consider when designing a calendar? Entering the dates correctly!
How do you get the creativity flowing? The internet provides plenty of resources to look through quickly for inspiration and ideas. I will also start thumb-nailing loose design ideas as a way to see what works and doesn't. Eventually things start to click and ideas start emerging from other ideas. Coffee and sugar tends to help as well.
Design background:
Andy received a degree in art from Virginia Tech. Throughout his career, he has worked on several award-winning designs and was a designer for Advance Auto Parts. Before returning to Roanoke, Andy spent several years in North Carolina working as a designer and photographer.