Notes

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Design Thinking NewsPaper and My Overall Experience

           I was going to originally go with an old-fashioned newspaper design with big bulky type and an old yellowed paper background. I did not like the way it was turning out so I completely re-designed it. I wanted a more modern and sleek look. I gathered ideas off of pinterest and took bits and pieces of other designs and complied them together. I focused primarily on an underlying theme that could be carried out throughout the newspaper. I chose to incorporate water and waves and use clever word play in order to tie it all together. I wanted the newspaper type to appear clean and concise which is why I chose to use black san-serif over a white background and organized everything into neat rows and columns. The blue and white shades in the water create a relaxing and calming tone throughout the design. I also included a couple of pictures from past projects in order to convey to readers the primal stages of design thinking. The four steps of design thinking (observation, brainstorming, prototyping, and implementation) are so important, I purposely reserved the inside left page for them. On the inside right page I go more into depth on my experience with design thinking. In order to really make it look like a professional newspaper I paid careful attention to headlines, subheads, fonts, font size, page numbers, consistent theme, columns, rows, pull quotes, color scheme, format, information, photographs, illustrations, and graphics. 

          I found this to be the most difficult project in comparison to my others (tri-fold brochure and mood board) because it requires a lot more detail, informative content, and formatting. It came to me much quicker, however, because I have exercised my brain with design thinking that I was able to breeze through the steps with ease. I did not get discourage when I found my first attempt unsuccessful because I learned from my mistakes and produced something much better than I had ever imagined. I kept looking at pinterest to gather ideas and find inspiration. I sifted through hundreds of pictures of newspapers and I paid close attention to all the details that make it what it is. Even during my printing process I was recognizing tiny mistakes that need to be corrected. I misplaced rule lines, saw that the type blended too much with the background, overshot the bleed lines, and made the font too big. All of which I went back and corrected only further improving my design. This was by far my most successful accomplishment as a graphic designer because I used the design thinking process and created something that I never imagined. I stepped out of my comfort zone and tried something completely different and it ended up working out. In the future I will be applying this way of thinking to my life as a means to encourage myself to continue expanding boundaries and stepping outside of my comfort zone. Everyone has the ability to become a design thinker; all it takes is practice and hard work.

Notes on Mood Board design.

          Creating a Mood Board I found to be quite challenging because I didn’t exactly know what a Mood Board was. It’s essentially just an arrangement of text, drawings, etc. that are meant to evoke a certain style or concept. I decided to go the hand-drawn path. I wrote down “Design Thinking” in loose script, and then proceeded writing the steps on different colored post-it notes. Along with each step of the process, I drew a doodle that represented each one. For example: the eyeballs for observation. I took photos of my notes and drawings and transferred them into the computer. I then edited them in Photoshop, and then inserted them into InDesign. I was going for an equally neat and interesting balance of type and hand-drawn design. The outcome was unsuccessful because it looked like a poster rather than a mood board, which was very disheartening. I tried fixing it by rearranging the type and trying to fill up more of the space, however it just wasn’t turning out the way I wanted it to.

          My solution was to start fresh with a whole new take on things. Using the design thinking process: I observed all kinds of different Mood Boards on Pinterest and compiled different ideas and color palettes from what I found. Looking at what others in the class had created also sparked inspiration of what details I needed to focus more on. In my first mood board design I didn’t pay close enough attention to formatting, I focused too much on the hand-drawn aspect. The hand drawn elements also made the design appear more childlike rather than professional. I drew up different designs, patterns, and words. I then resolved to use the scanner rather than take photos of my work, this way they would come out crisp and cleaner. I overall used better type and colors and eliminated blank space. My final design turned out to be far more successful than the first in many different ways. The colors were bolder and compelling, the type was neat and legible, and it looked far more professional.
          
          Creating this Mood Board was definitely a big challenge for me because it forced me to step outside of my comfort zone. Although I wasn’t successful initially, I learned along the way and had to think on my feet. I applied the design thinking process and it helped me immensely to achieve something greater than I had anticipated. Design is all about failing until you finally succeed. Design and redesign helps you to create something better than you could’ve imagined. I applied Observation by looking through Pinterest Mood Boards, I then Brainstormed by compiling ideas and designs together and forming a general idea of what I wanted to accomplish, I prototyped by designing and redesigning, and then I was finally able to implement my final design because it was a more concise representation of my design that had exceeded my expectations. This experience was very beneficial to me as a designer because I learned that failure is a necessary step to achieve greatness.

Final Design:

                                                                       Original Design:

Final Design

My final design displays a neater, cleaner, and more professional tri-fold brochure. I went for a bold white text over black background to make it pop. The informational content is placed in its appropriate folds of the brochure. The font is legible and clear to readers and the pictures are of the highest display quality to help peak interest while giving a good depiction. I got rid of some of the purple lines that cramped up type space. I also enlarged the pictures to make them look more appealing, fixed the back cover and flap to make the content make sense. Getting rid of the spaces between the paragraphs and the tab lines created a neater appearance. I rearranged where certain type went in the folds to create a more cohesive flow about the brochure, making it easier for the reader. 

Although creating this tri-fold brochure seemed to be a difficult task at first; however, once I learned the process everything else became easy. It helped me to apply my knowledge of design thinking and creating something useful with it. Although it was a lengthy process, it helped me learn how to correct myself and improve overall. This learning experience was definitely an eye-opener to how the creative process works. In order to create something great, it takes a lot of mistakes and re-designing.

Designs

After going through all the technical steps to establish a baseline, it was time to add content, type, and pictures. I utilized the design-thinking process (Observation, Brainstorming, Prototype, and Implementation).

Observation- I looked around on websites such as Pinterest to see examples of finished tri-fold brochures in order to gather ideas of where my content and pictures should go and get an overall idea of what direction I wanted to go.

Brainstorming- I brainstormed what pieces of knowledge and picture examples would be most useful to readers. Also, how to be cohesive, clear, and create a legible brochure. I tried using all different fonts until I could find the one that would appear equally professional and appealing.

Prototype- I created different prototypes, placing pictures in different places, rearranging content from one panel to the next and changing fonts to make everything come together cleanly. My first design was boring, plain, and disorganized. The content was in the wrong places, the font didn’t quite work, and the pictures were not the best quality. My second design was more successful; however there was a lot more that it still needed. Margins needed to be corrected; the pictures had black lines around them; the paragraphs didn’t line up; etc. My third design was more improved, however it still needed work. The front cover needed to be switched out and the type needed some adjustments.

Implementation- I took everything that I learned and took the mistakes I made and used it to make a perfect final design. I am now satisfied with the pictures, content, type, font, layout, and overall design.

Research

Creating a Tri-Fold Brochure was a confusing concept at first, however, after learning the step-by-step process using in-design, things became much more clear. It is very important to know where the appropriate information goes on each of the six folds. Starting from left to right on the backside of a brochure: left fold is the inside flap; middle fold is the backside of the brochure; right fold is the front side. On the inside of the brochure, that is where key information goes. It is essential that appropriate type and font sizes are used and the pictures are of high quality and are also relevant to the content of the brochure. These are the key important steps to creating a baseline for a tri-fold brochure:

Step #1

Open In-Design (File>New>Document) Number of pages: (2).  Gutter: (.125 in). Margins: (.25 in). Set origin to landscape. Create a (.125 in) bleed. De-select facing pages.

Step #2

Use the rectangle tool to fill panels.

Step #3

Add pictures (File>Place>Select picture>Open). Adjust picture to fit frame.

Step #4

Add text boxes and type.

Step #5
Make the text behind the image (Arrange>Send>Backward).

      I decided that my second design was along the lines of what I wanted however it wasn’t exactly what I wanted. The curly script and small font size makes it difficult to read and the word “fun” should be larger. I completely re-drew just the words “fun” in a similar hamsa pattern and made it much larger. The reason I did this was so when I scan it into the computer it will be crystal clear and show more detail. 
     My design isn’t fully completed because I need to add in the rest of the quote, which I decided would be put into bold type. I chose to do it this way to make the image clean, clear, readable, and appealing. Keeping it black and white gives it a dramatic look. As seen in the picture directly below, we turned our designs into greeting cards. To gather creative ideas and inspiration I found a card store and closely examined different fonts, styles, and designs. The ones that had bold type rather than fancy script, I found to be more attention-grabbing. Seeing completed designs and figuring out first-hand what makes it interesting at first sight was a huge help and I made what I learned applicable to my own design.

       This is my original design thinking quote “Creativity is intelligence having fun” which I found on Pinterest. I chose this quote because many can agree that a lot of time and thought goes into any design process. What makes it fun is the fact that imagination and creativity have no limits. I can directly relate to this quote because it defines my way of thinking. My intelligence is not based around mathematics or science; I think creatively. Drawing has always been my way of expressing myself and I put a lot of thought into each and every drawing or design that I make. I drew the letters in curly script in order to create a fun sense of movement and provoke interest. The issue I found in this first design was that it’s too busy and the background can be distracting which makes it very difficult to read. Even though I colored the letters, it was not what I wanted therefore I deemed to be unsuccessful. 
      I decided that I wanted a clean, neat, and bold design. I really want to emphasize the “fun” part in the quote. I decided to keep it black and white and to fill the word “fun” with pictures and patterns. Hamsa hand designs were a big inspiration for my “fun” patterns in my second design and it gave me many different varieties. Ultimately I was able to develop a strong foundation, which will eventually lead me to my final design that is still in the works. 

What is Typography?

Design Process and Design Thinking

Design Research and Methods

Today I enjoyed a fresh peach mango smoothie from the farmer's market :)

Doing anything design-related demands a person to shut off the intellectual side of their brain in order to allow the creative side to take over. I took a crash-course on how to think creatively, it was nothing like I have done in a class before. The object was to re-create the “gift giving process.”  It forced me to step out of my comfort zone and think differently all at a fast pace. Using the materials around me, I had to re-invent the last gift my partner gave to someone. I found it to be an odd task, but surely enough it taught me a lot. It showed me that you don’t necessarily need to know what the outcome will be; you just have to take things one-step at a time. By doing this, you are able to drum up all different kinds of ideas along the way; each new thought alters the outcome. As Tim Brown explained in one of his seminars, we as designers should think big. http://www.ted.com/talks/tim_brown_urges_designers_to_think_big. We must learn that design goes far beyond aesthetics and image; it should be useful and innovative. By focusing less on the object and more on design thinking we are then able to achieve far greater things that we had never imagined before. The end goal is re-designing something to be better than ever, possibly sparking an innovative movement.

By applying design thinking to everyday tasks, eventually it will start to come naturally. Our brains will function in this certain way like it never has before. We will utilize the step-by-step process and come up with all different kinds of ideas. We are limited through intellectual reasoning because it is through creativity that we are able to reach beyond what we know and stretch past our comfort zones. Comfort zones are good, but nothing can really grow there, it allows little room for expansion. Thinking in a new and creative way allows us to branch out, learn new things and meet new people. If there is one thing that I learned from my in class crash-course on design thinking, it’s that you can surprise yourself with what you are able to achieve. I would never think that with a brief sixty minutes that I could: learn a lot about my partner, one of their gift-giving experiences, come up with different ideas, and finally re-create with it with some paper and tape. I can only imagine how incredible the outcome would be if I were given an even more challenging task and more interesting materials to build from. This is exactly why Tim Brown urges designers to think BIG. By allowing ourselves to dive head first into a project and just roll with the punches. Growing up as a throughout school and learning that everything has proper structures, rules, and guidelines made me afraid of failure. What I realized in this class experience is that failure is okay, it happens and it’s how we learn and improve as designers. It is a different way of thinking. We have to learn that failure will happen and mistakes will be made, but that is okay because it is how you learn. You can always re-invent and correct mistakes; there is always room for improvement.

I would never be able to survive without expresso. It keeps me running all day long. I snapped this picture of me and my friend's lattes from our favorite coffee place. :) It was the perfect sendoff before we went away to college!

This is my beagle puppy, Tucker, He's my favorite thing in the world. Energetic, cuddly, friendly, and adorable. I wish I could have him on campus with me :( He's the thing I miss most when I'm away.

Who am I??? Friends and family know me as a sarcastic-humored 18 year old who has an obsession with almost everything art-related. It ranges from: cartooning, sketching, painting, designing, and photography. Favorite color is purple, obviously :) and the things I love most are my family, friends, my two beagle pups, coffeeeee, and of course... ART! I will be posting a lot of my favorite things and some designs as well so please enjoy :))