Arch Viz Blog
One of the coolest things about 3D modelling is having the ability to bring your designs to life through renderings.  Ronen Bekerman has put together a blog with tons of tutorials to help you stitch together those super realistic renderings.  Even if you’re not interested in learning, the images are at least awesome to be in awe of.

Bluehost
Once you’ve graduated and entered your field of design you’re naturally going to want to show off what you can do.  Most of your colleagues are going to put together a physical portfolio and lug it around to interview.  If you want to stand out, putting together a portfolio website with a [yourname].com is a sure way to do that.  It may seem like seeing up a website would be hard but it’s not.  I show you step-by-step how to setup a portfolio in 5 minutes or less with little to no tech. knowhow.

Adobe Kuler
Back in the second grade I failed a color wheel test in art.  I’ve certainly come a long way since then!  I visually know what colors do and don’t go together, but sometimes just need a little to help get things going.  Kuler is one of my favorite design resources to create your own custom color palettes or get inspiration from shared ones.

Gimp
I’m a huge fan of Photoshop, but I know it’s not for everyone (especially financially).  Gimp is a free, open-source, alternative to Photoshop. However, be forewarned, it’s a little bumpy to use, but as they say, beggars can’t be choosers.

Wetransfer
As a designer, transferring large files to clients or consultants can be a pain.  I’ve worked at firms that spend hefty monthly fees just to send and store files.  With  wetransfer you can send files up to 2 GB for free.  The files last 7 days before they’re deleted.  It’s the go-to way of sending files in our office.  The drag-and-drop interface is simple and easy.

TED
While I was in architecture school two things were incredibly important: research & presentation.  If you’ve ever been on the internet you know finding credible sources is tough.  Knowing how to present takes practice, but watching great presenters can help mold the way you share your ideas.  There are few other places that give such high quality & quantity content as TED.

Quotes on Design
Famous designers often say famous things.  I’m a firm believer in learning from those who’ve gone before me and had success.  These quotes on design are great snackable sizes for a quick fix of inspiration or motivation.

Continuing Education Center
Having credentials to stand out in the building design and construction industry is awesome, but those letters after your name usually come with the requirement of continuing education credits.  To keep my LEED credentials I need to log 15 hrs ever 2 years.  That may not seem like a lot until it’s a few months before they’re due.  There are certainly a lot of actual classes and lectures you can attend to get credits, but if you just want to log some quick free credit hours during lunch, you can head to the Continuing Education Center, read some articles and take some quizes.

Master Sketchup
A while back I had a Designer Insider interview with Matt Donley of Master Sketchup.  He’s a stand-up guy and his website focused on (you guessed it) sketchup is an amazing resource.  He’s been at this for a few years so he has a nice library of tutorials, has a book on Sketchup to Layout, a video series on Sketchup to layout, as well as a Sketchup podcast.  Seriously, this guy really is the sketchup master.

You Suck At Photoshop
Learning a new program isn’t always fun.  But My Damn Channel attempts to change that for anyone learning Photoshop.  This series of youtube videos weave in comedic (Dane Cook-like) stories while teaching you how to use different tricks and tools.  Great for a productive chuckle.

Visualizing Architecture
No matter what architecture school you may have gone to, chances are you romanticized over beautiful renderings.  It’s usually during that time when you hone your rendering skills.  So whether you missed your chance in school and want to brush up or are in school and want to up your game, Alex Hogrefe has really slick rendering tutorials for free.

99% Invisible
My commute to and from work is incredibly long (about 1 hr and 15 minutes one way).  At first I just listened to the radio but I got bored.  I graduated to using spotify but got bored of that too.  Now I fill my time with various podcasts.  One of which is 99% invisible.  If you’re like me, the entertainment you like is also informative.  This podcast fits that bill perfectly.