Hello, my name is Melissa Ivone. I enjoy long walks on the beach, all Apple computer products, and peanut butter flavored ice cream. My turn ons include shopping at craft stores, double-stick tape, and retractable erasers. My turn offs include making logos bigger, PMS 349, and Bikerfox.

I originally went to college to become an elementary school teacher. One day, the summer before my sophomore year, I was a hostess at a local restaurant, and this young girl came up to me and told me every miniscule detail about her dance recital. After that conversation, I realized I didn't really like being around children. That was a pivotal moment. So I was in the market for a new college major, and I only had about a week to decide. I thought to myself, hey, I like to draw. And when I was 12 years old, after my family got our first computer, I spent a lot of time creating unique labels for my text books using Paintbrush. That’s kind of like designing. The only thing that worried me about joining the graphic design program was the fact that I hadn't taken an art class since the 6th grade, and my courses most likely wouldn’t be centered around making cotton ball snowmen and tin foil trees. I felt like I'd be way behind the other students. Turns out I wasn't, and I've had no regrets since.

When you graduate from high school, everyone’s advice is to attempt to find a career you love because you’ll be spending the next 40-something years doing it. I’m one of the lucky ones. I love what I do.