I’m a hands-on Creative Director, Art Director, Illustrator and Maker with over twenty years of professional experience and a track record for creating thumb-stopping social creative and developing high-performing teams. So yes… I’ve been around the block a few times; and starting my career post-grad in a small town and exhausting all the creative roles there meant that I learned a lot—but the job titles I had never matched what I did. I led all Creative for Dippin’ Dots, Inc. for over five years—and helped develop “Minion Madness Cookie Dough” as a co-branded tie-in with Illumination Entertainment when the first “Despicable Me” came out—but my title there was only ever “Designer.” I’ve driven initiatives for scalable digital creative solutions in addition to leading custom social content and video productions that resulted in double-digit sales increases. My career began in print design and gave me a strong grounding in production specs and “doing work right the first time” to avoid costly reprints. I’ve championed the power of social and new media; leading the launch of Facebook for Dippin’ Dots, Inc. (2007) and TikTok for Arby’s (2018) and The Home Depot (2022). I empower and challenge my teams to think strategically—not just creatively—as we work to elevate the brands we touch and make content that resonates with our audiences. I enjoy passing along what I’ve learned and teach new shooting, editing and software techniques to my teams on a regular basis to help everyone develop new skills. I’ve worked freelance, long-term contract, in-house and agency-side as a single contributor on a larger Marketing team as well as a Creative team leader and mentor—hence the number of titles that don’t accurately reflect the job I was hired to do. I identify as a member of the LGBTQ+ community and proudly bring my whole self to every role. I’ve won awards for my work, including a Cannes Silver Lion and a Shorty Award for Art Direction; but the one that means the most to me is the HOW Design award for the wedding invitations I created for my husband and me in 2014.
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New work is coming!

We're midway through the year and I haven't updated my site since January! Which means it's time to get new, fun stuff added! However... My site will be password-protected very soon. I have a …
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August 12, 2024
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“Define: Dancing” Egg

Another Bombshells ATL Egg Hunt submission! Wall•e and EVE are blasting off in one of my favorite sequences from the movie wall•e when EVE asks wall•e to "Define: Dancing" and they have a beautiful …
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April 14, 2022
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Villain-tine’s Day 2020

Neither my husband nor I are big on Valentine's Day; we're both of the opinion that if we're not showing each other enough love every day of the year, then doing it that one …
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February 14, 2020
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“Adventure is Out There” Egg 

Vanessa Toro is one of the masterminds behind Bombshells ATL, a free "artful egg hunt for adults" in Atlanta. Green plastic eggs are hidden in lieu of the art eggs, and each has a …
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April 12, 2019
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Villain-tine’s Day 2019

Neither my husband nor I are big on Valentine's Day; we're both of the opinion that if we're not showing each other enough love every day of the year, then doing it that one …
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February 14, 2019
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Villain-tine’s Day 2018

Neither my husband nor I are big on Valentine's Day; we're both of the opinion that if we're not showing each other enough love every day of the year, then doing it that one …
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February 14, 2018
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Jack-O-Lantern and Pumpkin Cheesecake Shake

Published October 1, 2016 View the Post and Comments: A simple Jack-O-Lantern built for another post that we repurposed to promote the Pumpkin Cheesecake Shake. The final version was posted on Twitter and Instagram. …
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October 1, 2016
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Paopu Fruit from “Kingdom Hearts”

Created September 26, 2016 A box for gift cards and small swag modeled after a Paopu Fruit from the game "Kingdom Hearts." This was the first time we'd gotten the breakfast clamshell packaging from …
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September 26, 2016
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Flaming Battle Axe from “Destiny: Rise of Iron”

Published September 20, 2016 View the Post and Comments: Servers are slammed so we had some time to burn. #RiseofIron pic.twitter.com/1EQlkveLNc— Arby's (@Arbys) September 20, 2016 The Flaming Battle Axe is a weapon that …
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September 20, 2016
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Smite Gem Hat

Client: Arby's Restaurant Group Fabrication: Scott Hunt Fabrication: Jennifer Barclay Copywriting: Brandon Kraemer
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September 15, 2016

Wanna find me elsewhere?

Take a look at my cut paper artwork that has moved its way over to Instagram, or connect with me on LinkedIn.

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