general update

i have been doing some more experimenting with the splat/inkstain logo today and have come up with some workable results. im just a bit worried about running out of time. i could quite easily bang out some reasonable designs using the simple design but i wouldn't be as happy with them. Also i dont think it meets the brief as well. im going to go for it tomorrow and hopefully make what i came up with today into an actually logo that i can start to apply to swing tag etc.

I'm also really concerned with the website stuff as im really struggling with it. i find it really hard to design for myself for some reason. i might just pretend im designing for someone else in order to produce something.

i have a general idea for my next project however i need to refine it more so that i am able to focus properly on how, why etc. im quite excited by it and the fact that this project will be over.

The essay is also worrying me as i dont really know what im going to write, however i have been reading a bit and have bought some books on visual culture.

swing tag and labeling research

i have developed one of my logo designs for cotton candy but i find it really boring. I've done a bit of experimentation with inks for the other logo but I'm still drawing a blank. i think I'm going to do some more tonight at home on a smaller scale just to get an idea of what to do, also i need to get used to using inks and how they work. If I don't end up using it for cotton candy I might try and do it for my personal id because what I've come up with so far isn't really my style.

website research

i need to decide how i want my website to look and work so this is some usefull info to help:

more to come...

Logo decisions and development

I have come up with two plausible ideas for the cotton candy logo; the first is a paint splattered flower. This idea is quite interesting but i need to simplify it down to just 1 or 2 colors i also need to change to shape of the flower. The reason i chose this flower was because it is the cotton flower but i doubt many people know what that looks like anyway. I am thinking about making my own flower out if splashes of paint. For example each splatter would be a petal.

The second idea is a much more simplified and kind of corporate, the color scheme is still debatable but i have down loaded some 1950's color palettes to play around with. I'm not really sure which of the two ideas are stronger but i do know the second idea would be easier to complete quickly. whether i'd be happy with it or not is my worry. i have also tried to incorporate the two ideas but it doesn't really work.

im worried that im not going to be able to develop something good enough and that im not designing things as well as i have done before. i feel like my work is getting worse rather than better for some reason and i don't feel like i'd be happy to present anything i've produced so far this year to a potential client. I guess its just a matter of pulling my finger out but its hard to force creativity.

Sorry i've been a bit slack with the blog for the past couple of weeks, but here is some of the research i've compiled. For the Fashion show project:

Today Oli taught us about color, RGB which is the way light mixes, made up of Red Green and Blue. which is also Additive color.

CMYK which is what we use to mix inks for print, made up of Cyan Magenta Yellow and K means key but is Black. this is subtractive color

He also told us about the pantone color matching system and why its used, basically its so that you make sure you get the exact color on each print. its mainly useful for spot prints in which The inks are mixed before it is printed and each layer of color is printed separately.

i have been stressing out about tis editorial project really badly not sure why. I thik it is because i have been doing loads of work but not really getting anywhere for some reason i find it hard to asses editorial stuff, i gess thats down to lack of understanding. I can tell when i like something or not but dont know why i like it. in saying that i have learnt how to use indesign more effectively through donig this project. i need feed back on my work and hopefully it will only take a bit of tweeking to make it work. to be honest i think i could of produced something much better if i had gone down a slightly different rout but i do think what ive done is ok. wheher thats because of the 3D novelty factor is another story. I have pushed myself in the sense that i have done it in a style i wouldn't of normally done.

will be happy when this project is over...

I've been feeling quite overwhelmed by the work load the past week or so, i think that for some reason this has meant that i haven't been able to get work done as easily. I seem to be worrying about doing the work more than actually producing anything. However i have managed to start producing things and ideas of a standard I'm happy with. I've have been to B&Q tonight and bought what i need to produce the artwork for either the cover or the article, i haven't decided which it would best on yet. Once i have actually made it i will find it easier to decide.

I have also began to set out the article, i am slightly worried that it isn't going to be designee enough but i am going to try and incorporate how the 3d revolution could effect designers, advertising being one example. I was considering changing the article to be about a designer/artist james told me about called javier mariscal who's work is quite stylized but he uses 3d graphics/sculpture quite a lot. This would have been a different type of 3d design, that would fit the theme i've decided on. i think i will have this article on the contents page so that i can maybe add it to my portfolio at some point. i've added a couple of examples of his work.

I might look at other types of 3d design as well like architecture and product design for the other parts of my contents. but now im going to start wrting the article because it will be easier once its started.

I have done more design work and research over the past week and im fairly happy with where its going. i just hope at least one of the tutors agree! i think the theme of my article and cover is going to be 3D, the rise of 3D movies, TV, and Games. This gives me something interesting to work with for the cover, and i think i will be able to come up with an article fairly easily.

Ive started to design my grids as well mainly the contents one so far because im pretty sure of how i would like it to look.

The main thing ive done differently with this project is ban myself from the computer. the results are pretty good and i seem to work more fluidly but it does seem like it takes longer to get results from ideas.

New project

I haven't been on here for a while and i've finished one of the projects now although I really didn't do enough work for it. I think it was because i believed the idea i had was really god and so i wasn't motivated to improve it. Also I've been distracted by my personal life quite badly, which i wont go into now. Im going to have to become a lot more self-disciplined if im going pass this year. saying that i've started the next project pretty well, i got a lot done today. I need to get the logo approved by one of the teachers before i can really move on productively. I have also began to brainstorm what the article and theme can be. I want to get all of the simple stuff/decisions out of the way as quickly as possible so that i can start pushing things a bit.

I need to think about my personal identity more as well because im going to find it hard to decide on which rout to take. From the last project i kind of have a better understanding of the type of designer i am/want to be. Just need to delve a bit deeper i guess.

Oli gave me a really good idea about embossing the letters instead of printing that I'm going to research.

Man to look at Simon Schubert just so I don't forget.

I think im going to screen print it as well whatever but just using the same design.

My business suite.

To be honest I completely forgot we had to do it (sorry Oli) But i have started to collect stuff for my scrap book so im not too far behind people.

Gunna collect some cool business cards for inspiration:

really like this.This is really good as well

Organic Designs – Calling Cards You Can Watch Grow

What could be a more dynamic way to leave your mark than handing out something designed to actually grows and changes on its own over time? These can be used to advertise landscaping services or other plant products or simply to leave a lasting (and evolving) impression on the recipient. (stole this from another blog)

Should get me started...