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.