it's all beginning

The end of this class is near. Our final portfolio review is next week and I am working very hard at getting all what I need finished and perfect. This class was just a stepping stone in preparing me for what's to come in the real world. I can't thank my professor's enough these past four years in making me become a better designer. Good or bad, each one has helped me along the way and I appreciate them all very much.

This part of my life is ending and a new chapter is beginning. I'm ready to learn on a different level and become even better than I am now. All I can do is apply what I have learned in classes and through my internships to have the best career in design that I could ask for. It's really hard to think about how much of a baby I was four years ago in my first design class on reserach and methods. I have grown so much. I have better skills, I can handle critique, I can properly critique, have a better eye for this industry.

getting the actual products

BEST DAY EVER! I got my business cards in the mail! I'm so excited to finally have what I made printed and in my hands. I'm ready to hand them out and hopefully get something out of it.

HERE THEY ARE :)

Though my design is perfect, I'm unhappy with how they were cut. You can't see it, but someone else's business card wasn't cut off on my blue/grey set. It's unprofessional and I called for a re-order. This is for my grade and my career. They reflect me and they need to be perfect, so I hope this new batch is just what I want.

struggles with code

I have a love/hate relationship with html. My website is underway and there are still many kinks to work out. I have my home page all ready to go, but now it's onto showcasing my work. Since my brand is simple, I wanted that to reflect in my website. I use my same color pallete and lines. In order to show my work I am using a fancy box. Because I limited myself with a smaller than usual design, I think this works quite well and it looks really nice when clicked on and displayed.

Trying to get the fancy box to work took a long time. The second I finally got it up and running correctly I jumped around like I won the lottery. I guess I tend to feel that way after I get any code to work. I think I just get way to excited when I figure out what's not working all on my own- sometimes with the help of others or the internet- but it's a really satisfying feeling. I realize that I have to push through my frustrations with code because at the end of it all I know I accomplished something awesome.

finishing my brand

Now that I have my letterhead all set, it's time to apply the design on everything else! I realized I had way too many colors in my palette, and chose two to really focus on and create my brand around. As you saw in my previous post, I chose a purple and a grey-ish blue. I wanted to do something a little different regarding my business cards, so I used both colors to have two sets. Below is my final business card design:

I really love how they came out. I think they reflect me who I am as a person and designer. They're clean and they're fun. Just what I wanted. Now I can't wait until I have them all in my hands ready to give out to people! In addition to a business card and letterhead, I need an envelope:

...a picture is supposed to be here but it won't load, but I think you get the gist of it all. The "am" bleeds off and instead of my contact information it's just my home address. I stuck with the purple because it stands out more.

Lastly, I've been working on my website. It's coming along nicely, I'm really happy with the progress I am making even though sometimes it becomes incredibly frustrating. I've said it before and I'll say it again- it's incredibly rewarding seeing your finished product- something you worked incredibly hard on that you did all by yourself. I think that's why I really enjoy coding html. I may not know all the ins and outs with it, but it's a puzzle that makes you really happy and satisfied once completed.

it's all becoming real

I GOT MY PORTFOLIO! I took the trip to Hulls and finally got my physical portfolio, and it started to really hit me that in just a few short weeks i'll be in the real world going on interviews showing my work proudly displayed in here. It's a beautiful black portfolio, just what I wanted. Now it's just time to fill it. It is so important to have a portfolio that fits you and what your design aesthetic is. I've been started to get all my work ready to be printed and laid out to be presented. I would post a picture of it, but I haven't had the chance to take it out of the plastic container protecting it to admire it and love it. Is that sad? That I love my portfolio? I guess not, that's my whole career! I'm so proud to put all the best work from over these past four years into this portfolio and share it to fellow designers!

Getting this portfolio has literally made me feel like a grown up. I knew that this class was going to force me to grow up more than I have and develop my own brand to be professional and a real adult. I just never knew how much of an impact having a physical portfolio in my hands makes me feel. I imagine this is how I'll feel when I get my cap and gown for graduation. Reality is smacking me in the face. HARD.

finding out who i am.. for now

Through my next round of comps for my brand I hit a breakthrough and managed to get a seed! I got rid of the black and the mess and started to reign things in a be simple. I put together a color palette:

that complimented me and that would manage a modern feel in the end. Out of all the comps that I made for my letterhead, this is the one that became my seed to re edit into my final design.

This comp made me realize how simple I want my brand to be and with a little inspiration and some minor edits, I came up with my final design soon after this. I found this great brand on Pinterest that happened to have the "A" bleed off. I love bleeds and since the beginning I wanted to just use initials and so I came up with my own version and I am really happy with how it all came out.

Everything is trial and error. It is a bigger process than you think to really get something great. It's rewarding when it finally happens.

next step in branding

In this field there will always be people telling you no or that they don't like what you've made. That's the nature of it and you have to learn to take it and grow. Holding onto that rejection will just hold you back. That being said, after reviewing my sketches for a logo, it was best to start over. That's how you learn and it's best to learn that nothing is great the first time around anyway. Frustration usually sets in around this time of the process and I was stumped. I thought playing around in Illustrator would help me find a direction. And it did! It made me realize that that's not a good way to do things either. I came up with this: 

I really like a clean and modern feel yet chaotic at the same time and I guess I tried a little too hard with these comps. It was fun to make though and play around with different tools in Illustrator, but I ended up going in a different direction.