Blog Evaluation.

Alphabet Soup - Condense.

This was the first main brief that we did. The theme was quite basic but it allowed us to really focus on the concept in a direct way. My word was condense, to begin with I found it easy to find ideas to apply but as I got further through it got more challenging. Although I found that the ideas I came up with later were perhaps more successful than the originals. My research for this wasn't very specific because of the number of variations we had to create. As well as this I also looked into current typefaces that I could base my new design on that would accommodate my designs. I feel the most successful of the set are the condensation drops, bubbles and drips.
Alphabet Soup - Partner.

This is one of the briefs that I found I connected with and I really liked my end piece. Initially I found it difficult to apply the answers from the questionnaire to a typeface, although once I had decided on my compass idea and started experimenting with it I found it fitted into place. I found the most challenging part of this project was finding a suitable original typeface to use that fitted with the grid I had made. When I had finally completed it the time consuming part was transferring it by hand onto tracing paper especially with all the dotted lines.

Proverbally Yours - 3 posters.

Next up was proverbally yours where we were given a proverb from the randomiser, I got 'Absence makes the heart grow fonder' which I was really happy with as it was one that I was familiar with and I thought I could produce some nice imagery to go with it. The research I did for this was very limited and could definitely be improved on, I think if this was done it would also improve the overall look of the posters too. I feel I did a good amount of layout experiments for the posters which ensured I chose the right option.

Proverbally Yours - Mail Shot.

Linking to the last brief we then had to create a mail shot, but with an added aspect of having to refer to a certain occupation. I had a rapper which turned out to be really difficult to link with my original proverb. Originally I had the thought of creating a cd consisting of rap songs associated with love, but after thinking about it I moved on to the links with that style of music and gang and violence culture. I liked this idea but I don't love my final piece as I find it isn't a style that I am aesthetically attracted to. I think the tattoo aspect fits well with my album cover research and the type style also links with my original poster design.

How To - Group.

This group started off individually with a how to question, we then got combined into larger groups of people with similar themes. After getting together we decided on the idea of how to grow vegetables. As a group we did a fair bit of research into this such as questionnaires, imagery and audience related. We found that when we went into our crit our idea changed quite a lot as it was brought up that it could cater to our student audience more. This put quite a bit of pressure on the group which was difficult and I got pretty stressed out right at the end and was relieved when it was over.

How To - Individual.

This was our main research orientated brief. It went on for a long time which allowed for a big body of work to be created. I found gathering the 3 sets of 100 really useful for when it came to collating my final piece. To begin with I was concerned that I wouldn't be able to create all 5 zines as it was a lot of work, although I found that once I had created one I found that the others came easier as I already had a template to work with.
The Poster Brief.

This was the first live brief we have been given and it was interesting reading a brief in a new format. I really enjoyed creating the imagery for this as I felt there was lots of avenues I could go down and I developed a style I hadn't used before. I did a lot of experiments for this which has been documented thoroughly on my blog. I didn't change a lot after my final crit except to alter some words and some colour tones.
Communication Is A Virus.

This was another group brief that I did with my 3 closest friends on the course. Initially we were slightly worried about the situation as we were unsure how we would work together in a group but afterwards e found that we worked successfully together, got a lot done and created some successful end results. We all had quite specific jobs to do within the project which worked well, this also helped when were presenting as we all knew what to say in each section. One thing I am proud of that we did during this was getting our product out into the environment via the local cafe's as we successfully pitched our idea the business owners and created our products on time to be used.
Stamp It.

I really liked the pieces I made during this brief and I really felt I explored a different style. After drawing my illustrations I had quite a strong idea on what I wanted them to look like so I was happy when I achieved it. The main challenge of this brief was condensing my ideas onto a small surface area and still conveying the intended message. After completing my stamps I am going to have to alter them slightly to focus on a different idea that was suggested in the crit.

End of Module Self Evaluation.

Proverbally Yours Message and Delivery Feedback Response.

From my feedback it was suggested that I could develop the outer layer of my design, so I have gone back and reworked my initial idea...

With this image I decided to try and replicate my title text from the poster. Although I came to find that even though it worked successfully on a larger scale after it had been scaled down the appearance was not as attractive and the readability of the address, something very important for an envelope, has been compromised.

This is the most subtle of my changes and I think it is the one I like most. I like how the added lines link with the poster and carry on across the composition framing the address.

This is my final adaptation. I positioned the additional typography so it would fall across the fold. I did this so not all of the text would be visible to hopefully not distract from the address already there. I also think it is interesting viewing the tattoo design without the body.

Alphabet Soup Illustrator Alphabet.

Here is my final design for my Illustrator brief. I am really pleased with how it has turned out, especially because I have no experience with the programme. I was surprised when as I was creating my letters  to how much easier it was than how I thought. I think this alphabet looks aesthetically interesting especially with how the shapes blend into the background because of the lack of outline yet are still readable.

Here is the process that I went through to create my typeface. First of all I selected my chosen style, I picked this one because I think it had the most interesting concept and appearance out of my set. I then made a pattern that I could apply each of my letters on top of. After I selected both letters and pressed the 'make/release clipping mask' button. It was an easy technique that was very quick and efficient.

Here is the final printed version of my alphabet...

I think if I was to print this again i would to it on maybe a smoother whiter stock like white card, to get the texture more even and the colour more accurate.

Alphabet Soup Illustrator Alphabet Colour Variatons.

Alphabet Soup Illustrator Initial Ideas.

Proverbally Yours Message and Delivery Final Designs.

Here is my final design for my poster, I am happy with it as I think the colour and composition work well together to create a lot of impact. I think the colour works well because I think it segregates the different pieces of information well and helps the audience to focus on the main areas. I think my imagery has been successful I like the use of the tattooed man as I think it really links with the genre and will be easily recognisable and appealing to the audience. I am also happy with my gun icon as it is a strong visual cue for the theme and I think that the dashed line representing a shot has been a good way to link the two images and to also act as a way to separate the poster and the information.

This is the reverse side of my poster and when folded will act as the envelope. I wanted to keep the design really simple. I chose black for the envelope as it is unusual and will get the audiences attention before they've even seen what's inside. I also continued with the same typeface to help with continuity.

Here is my mailing list. I have continued along the same idea very strongly just duplicating my imagery and continuing with the same font style. I chose my subjects for my mailing from searching on google, I looked for youth offending units in the Leeds area. I picked these as my audience as it is quite possibly something that they could have been or been tempted to be involved in so my poster would act as a persuasive tool to keep them away from it.

Here are some photo's of my final designs...

I decided to print these image on cartridge paper as I like the texture, I especially like the effect this gives with the black ink as it has a weathered and interesting appearance. I had quite a few problems with printing as it took me a while to get the settings right with the paper thickness and double sided format. Initially I was printing both sides in the same session, although this didn't work well. I then had to do each side individually which gave a smoother coverage of ink. I also had a problem where I would print and a green outline would appear around the tattooed figure, it would always be in different  thicknesses. I asked the technician about but he couldn't work out why it was happening so it was just a process of trial and error.

Proverbally Yours Message and Delivery Layout Ideas.

Here are some layouts I have been working on. They all follow a similar idea with just slightly altered compositions. I further developed three main ideas, I think my favourite is the top because I like it's directness and simplicity, unlike the second where I feel the zig-zagged line is unnecessary and takes away from the idea. The third looked at creating bullet holes within the 'O's' but I think it will need some development to make it more obvious.

Proverbally Yours Message and Delivery Prototypes.

Prototype 1

This is the first prototype that I created, it is the most basic of the three but also the most suitable. It folds up easily into itself so that one piece of paper can be used for the envelope and the poster.

Prototype 2

I then moved on to this design it is quite similar to the first except from the tab, which is a good addition but I don't like how it makes a slit in the surface which will transfer to the poster.

Prototype 3

This is my final prototype it is different to the others with the additional sides. Even though it creates additional surface area, I don't think the additional panels work well for the aesthetic.