Jakob & the Hound Creative

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United States
Utica, IL
Jakob & the Hound Creative

Helping small-to-medium-sized businesses create marketing and design that works. DM or email to get started!

From social graphics to flyers and presentations, I make your brand look professional and resonate with your audience.

08/24/2026

Nothing better than seeing a project come to life in the real world! 🥒

A happy customer sent me this shot of fresh jars from Salty Leo’s Precious Pickles, all dressed up and ready to go with their new custom tags.

From creating the design to coordinating the printing, it was a lot of fun helping give these small-batch pickles a look that’s every bit as memorable as the name.

Need custom tags, labels, business cards or other printed pieces to help your business stand out? Jakob & the Hound Creative can take you from idea to finished product.

Thanks to Salty Leo’s for trusting me with the project—and for sharing the finished product in action!

08/17/2026

🥒 Small batch pickles deserve big-time branding.

Recently, I had the opportunity to create these custom jar tags for Salty Leo’s Precious Pickles — a small-batch homemade pickle maker that needed a look with just as much personality as the product itself.

From the custom Salty Leo’s branding and illustrated pup to the “Small Batch. Big Crunch.” tagline, the goal was to create something memorable, approachable and just a little playful — while giving each jar a polished, professional finishing touch.
The two-sided tags also give Salty Leo’s a simple way to share contact information with customers, turning every jar into a little piece of marketing.

One of my favorite things about working with small businesses is finding creative ways to make even the smallest touchpoints feel intentional.

Have a product, side hustle or small business that could use a more polished look? Let’s create something that feels like you.

🐾🥒

08/05/2026

⭐ Feeling incredibly grateful.

Receiving thoughtful feedback like this is one of the most rewarding parts of what I do. Helping clients take an idea and transform it into something that exceeds their expectations is exactly why I love what I do.

A huge thank you to Life Balance Counseling & Wellness for trusting me with your Spravato® marketing campaign, including social media, flyer and brochure design, and printing. It was truly a privilege to help bring your vision to life.

If you or someone you know is exploring treatment options for treatment-resistant depression, I encourage you to learn more about the compassionate care and innovative Spravato® services offered by the incredible team at Life Balance Counseling & Wellness.

Thank you again for your trust, partnership, and incredibly kind words. I'm excited to continue creating great things together!

💚

08/02/2026

🖨️ From Screen to Print.

One of my favorite parts of any project is seeing it move beyond the computer screen and into something you can actually hold.

I'm excited to share that Jakob & the Hound now offers professional printing alongside branding, graphic design, and marketing support.

Whether you need brochures, flyers, business cards, postcards, signs, banners, or other marketing materials, I'll help guide your project from concept to professionally printed pieces you're proud to share.

The brochures featured here were created as part of a recent campaign for Life Balance Counseling & Wellness—a project that included strategy, design, patient education materials, and now professionally printed collateral ready for patients.

Thank you to Life Balance for trusting me with this meaningful project and for allowing me to share it.

If you have a project in mind, I'd love to help bring it to life.

📧 Let's connect: https://jakobandthehound.com

07/19/2026

Every project I take on starts the same way—not with a computer, but with a conversation.

Before I think about layouts, colors, or typography, I want to understand the people we're trying to reach and what we want them to walk away with.

Once those answers are clear, the design has direction.
(The coffee just helps. ☕)

That's the approach behind every project at Jakob & the Hound: thoughtful design with purpose, because meaningful communication starts long before the first pixel is placed.

I'd love to know—what's one part of your own process that people might not expect?

07/14/2026

What a great start to the week! Every small business remembers its first review.

When I started Jakob & the Hound, my goal wasn't simply to create good-looking designs, it was to help organizations communicate with clarity, purpose, and impact.

Receiving this kind of feedback is incredibly rewarding because it reminds me that thoughtful design is about more than the final product. It's about listening, collaborating, earning trust, and bringing someone else's vision to life.

A huge thank you to Ashley and the Aden Lamps Foundation for trusting me with such an important project and for taking the time to share these kind words.

Here's to many more meaningful partnerships and helping great organizations tell their stories.

— Jake

07/08/2026

I've been a little quiet on here lately, but it's been for a good reason.

Recently, I've had the opportunity to work with organizations doing meaningful work—from nonprofit awareness initiatives to mental health marketing. While every project has been different, they've all started in the same place: understanding the message, the audience, and what we want people to take away.

The colors, fonts, and layouts come afterward.

Thoughtful design isn't just about making something look good—it's about helping organizations communicate clearly, build trust, and create meaningful connections with the people they serve.

That's exactly the kind of work I love doing.

06/23/2026

Yesterday's rain gave me an excuse to slow down for a few hours and pick up a paintbrush.

I spent the day painting Starved Rock, and it reminded me why I've always been drawn to creative work in the first place.

In a world that constantly pushes us to move faster, create more, and check the next thing off the list, there's something refreshing about slowing down and focusing on a single canvas. No deadlines. No meetings. Just the process.

Whether I'm painting a landscape, designing a logo, or helping an organization tell its story, the part I enjoy most is the same: taking something meaningful and bringing it to life in a way that connects with people.

Creativity isn't just about making things look good. It's about helping people see something differently.

What's something you do to recharge your creative batteries?

05/07/2026

May is Mental Health Awareness Month, which felt like the right time to share this piece I created earlier this year for CAVS Day at LP High School.

CAVS—Cavaliers Activating Voices of Support—is all about encouraging conversations around mental health and making sure people know they’re not alone.

For the design, the goal was to keep things clear, bold, and easy to navigate—balancing school identity with sponsor visibility in a way that felt organized and intentional.

Grateful to have had the chance to contribute to something that supports a message like this.

Design can do a lot of things, but when it helps amplify something meaningful, it matters a little more.

05/06/2026

Why Jakob & the Hound?

A lot of my best work happens in my office, with my basset hound, Frankie, stretched out at my feet.

If you’ve ever been around a basset hound, you know—they’re a little stubborn, a little quirky, and completely themselves. But they’re also approachable, friendly, and hard not to like.

That balance stuck with me.

Jakob & the Hound is a reflection of that energy. Work that feels thoughtful and intentional, but still human. Creative that doesn’t try too hard to be something it’s not.

Still early, but it feels like the right place to build from.

Address

Utica, IL
61373

Website

https://jakobandthehound.com/

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