OUGD503 YCN - The Grown Up Chocolate Company - Mock ups and Feedback

Mock ups:

I decided to physically mock up each of my designs as it would be easier to see how they looked rather than the flat net design. It would also help me to practice building the net as it can be quite fiddly.

1.

2.

(The printer wasn't working properly so colours are not correct)

3.

The hardest part of building the nets would have to be the tray as there are so many bits to fold over I will need to be careful when making the final design as it is quite hard to keep the edges glued down.

Feedback:
I showed my mock ups to a few of my peers to help me get more refined feedback for each design.

1.  It was felt that the concept of leaving the design in doodle form, like a colouring book didn't create an engaging enough design. The lack of colour makes the design fall flat and would not be exciting enough to create a good user experience which connects with the childish nature of the brand. However the pattern could be engaging if colour is applied appropriately. The large scale typography helps to grab attention and create intrigue, although it was felt that a question mark is needed, as it looks more like a statement than a question.

2. The background pattern definitely works better in colour, the mixture between fill and outline also helps to produce a more interesting design where the colours work cohesively rather than clashing together. The design will also work a lot better when it is printed out properly as the colours at the moment are too dull, they will need to be bright and vibrant so as to create excitement around the product. The added triangle pattern also helps the design to look more dynamic and interesting breaking up the design. The typeface again works well at adding drama and will provide high contrast in black, so that it can be seen from a distance. The message inside the tray also adds to the user experience and will help to connect to the consumer as it says it is 'made just for you'.

3. The more ordered pattern produces a more organised and structured design that loses the personality and character compared with the other pattern. However the bright colours do help it to stand out and appear vibrant which helps the design to seem fun. The use of brown for the sides and text help the consumer to identify that it is packaging for chocolate as well as providing a strong contrast. The angled type also helps to keep with the playful nature of the brand.

Overall the favourite design was number two as it was felt to represent the fun, playful nature of the brand more appropriately. Taking on this feedback this is the design that I am going to work with, the design is a lot brighter than the printed out version so should work well.

OUGD503 YCN - The Grown Up Chocolate Company - Developing Ideas (Tray Design)

Developing Ideas - Tray Design:

From the designs I have already done for the sleeve it allowed me to create the tray designs a lot more easily as I already had the main designs to work from.

Outside:

Inside:

I decided to keep all of the sides a dark brown to match the sides of the sleeve. I then used the pattern as the bottom of the tray inside and outside to provide cohesion with the tray and the sleeve. On the outside of the tray I have used the circle logo in the middle of the tray to provide a strong visual focus for there brand. I have also left the specified box for nutritional information. On the inside of the tray I have used large scale type with a message to help connect with the consumer. This will only be visible when the chocolate bars are removed from the tray. This is to make the consumer aware that all of the chocolate is handmade.

Outside:

Inside:

For this design I have decided to keep the sides white, the same as on the sides of the sleeve. The inside of the tray and outside use the same pattern as on the sleeve but the design is now landscape instead of portrait. This is because of the way you would pick up the box, turn it on its side to slide the tray out and look at the chocolate from left to right taking in all of the flavours, rather than portrait looking up and down. On the bottom of the tray I have used the pink logo as this works more cohesively with the design and was easy to place. The catchphrase has been placed inside a circle to draw attention and stand out from the patterned background. Again a box has been left for the nutritional information. The inside of the tray uses large scale typography which matches the sleeve to provide a point of intrigue when removing the bars from the tray.

OUGD503 YCN - The Grown Up Chocolate Company - Developing Ideas (Sleeve Design)

Developing Ideas (Sleeve Design):

As i've been struggling with the design I decided to try and work with the '?' and the '!' to see if that could produce a more engaging design. I made them quite large scale to try and take up most of the white space. I then used the brown circle logo as the dot for each punctuation mark. I applied large scale text over the top to provide a more dramatic visual. Using the pattern I had already created for the tray, I applied this to the sides of the sleeve.

Again I am not happy with the design, I don't think that it will connect with the target audience well enough, and I don't think it reflects the brand appropriately.

I think that if I take a more handcrafted approach it will better reflect the brand as all of their chocolate is handmade.

Therefore I have decided to draw out a range of question marks in different style to bring more fun to the design.

I then used the questions marks to make an abstract pattern to fill up the white space. The question mark style is appropriate for a younger audience but the use of colour and type helps it to be more appropriate for adults. The slogan is on the side of the box to draw more attention to it and the logo is on both the front side and back. The type is the one used on current packaging, quite large scale to draw immediate attention. However I am not sure on the colour variation as the black and white pattern might look too unfinished and could inject some more colour into the design.

Placing the pattern on a black background produced a high-contrast design that stands out. However, it is quite harsh on the eyes and it makes the type harder to read, so I do not think this is appropriate, it also looks very cheap.

I am still not sure on the colour choice, I want more vibrant colours that show fun. Looking back at the packaging for other products there are an array of colours signalling flavour, this will be good to use because it could be a combination of any of those flavours.

The picture above shows the different packaging for the different products and the different colours that they use, I made a colour swatch to work from for them.

Using this colour scheme I decided to create a more ordered pattern/design, that is bright and vibrant. Using brown for the sides of the packaging and the text to hint that it is packaging for chocolate as well as providing a strong contrast. I have used the circle logo to act like a sticker adding more fun to the design.

I then applied it to the design I already have, using the colours as either a fill or an outline. The white background helps to keep the design fun and light. The black typeface works cohesively with the design and provides a strong contrast from the background so that it is legible.

I felt like the design needed something extra to provide a more dynamic design. I sketched out a pattern that could be applied over the top in an interesting way.

This has helped to add more depth and detail to the design. However I think that a design that uses pink more within the design will be more effective and work more cohesively with the brand. 

Having the bright pink as the main focus colour has improved the overall look of the design. It helps to give off a bright and fun mood and works more cohesively with the brand as well as creating that connection of recognition.

OUGD503 Papyrus - Evaluation

Papyrus - Evaluation:

I decided to do the papyrus brief because it sounded like a fun brief and it was for a good cause. I connected with the brief as I felt like it was really trying to help address an important issue. Initially I felt quite stuck for ideas as I wanted to produce something different, something that hadn't been done before. I also wasn't all that confident with my drawing abilities, and it is a skill that I want to work on and improve. After submitting I didn't really think that it would go any further as I wasn't confident in the design I had submitted. However, hearing that it got shortlisted has really given me a confidence boost, and has shown me that I need to have more self belief. I think that this was really good for me as confidence in my work is something I really lack. It also made me create an instagram account, encouraging me to put more of my work out there. Overall I have really benefitted from this small brief as I've got a lot out of it, and it has encouraged me to keep getting things out there.

OUGD503 Papyrus - Shortlist

Papyrus - Shortlist:

I received an email from Laura on the 7th of March informing me that my submission had been shortlisted. She asked me if I could add more details onto the trees to add further areas to colour.

I was really quite shocked to hear back as I didn't think much of my submission, so it was really good to hear that they were interested in the design. I added as much extra details onto the trees that I could, such as pinecones and a bird house.

I sent the refined design back to Laura, she then asked for a link to any websites or instagram accounts. This is something that I hadn't yet got, so I quickly made an instagram account so that it could be included in the book.

OUGD503 Studio Brief 02 - Fur For Animals - Typeface Selection

Typeface Selection:

While Kieran works further on the design of the animation I am going to look at appropriate typefaces we could use for the text, trying to work cohesively with Kieran's design.

Special Elite

Neucha

Chelsea Market

ABeeZee

Pangolin

Didact Gothic

Copse

Overpass

Feedback:

After showing these typefaces to the rest of the group we felt that 'Chelsea Market' would be the most appropriate, relating to the design of the animation. The hand crafted style and variation in stroke width helps to create a fun and engaging typeface that will appeal to a younger audience and work cohesively with the animation. Sans-serif was felt more appropriate especially due to the rounded edges which help to create a more friendly mood, creating a more approachable design.

OUGD503 YCN - The Grown Up Chocolate Company - Developing Ideas (Sleeve Design)

Developing Ideas (Sleeve Design):

Surprise:
From the feedback I received that suggested that surprise could work with the brand cohesively, I have begun to sketch surprised eyes to work with.

Taking the top left eyes, I began to sketch out a design for the sleeve.

I then began to make a digital interpretation of the eyes in illustrator.

Working from my sketch I began to create a rough digital interpretation of what it could potentially look like.  

The white background make the box look too bare and unfinished, it isn't engaging enough to attract attention. The lines on the background also don't create a strong enough pattern.

Having a brown background creates a better contrast that is easily recognisable as a chocolate bar. Changing the stroke on the eyes also helps to give it a more handcrafted feel, relating to the handcrafted nature of the chocolate. The question marks provide a more interesting pattern and help to allude to the mystery of what could be inside.

Changing the background to pink with the brown outline makes it seem tacky and reduces the quality of what it contains. Having the text brown makes it stand out less, with the background being the main point of focus.

I felt that the background needed a stronger pattern to make the box more interesting and appealing, so I created a repeating pattern of question marks. I think that on this design the eyes really don't work, they seem out of place and don't work cohesively. The text also does not work in brown, it is lost in the background.

I tried the same design with a brown background which works a lot better but I don't think it catches the bright, fun, vibrant nature of the brand.

I tried the design in different colours and slightly different backgrounds / styles but Im still not completely happy with the design. I think the eyes make it look too childish and not suitable for a more sophisticated audience. 

Working with just pink, white and brown has been a struggle as it doesn't seem to reflect the high end chocolate. I want to try and see if I can include some brighter more attractive colours that won't seem to clash as much. I am also going to rethink my design as so far nothing seems to be working. I am struggling to come up with ideas, and so far I am not enjoying working on this brief. I think it would have been more appropriate to work collaboratively with someone from illustration.