Week 4

The website is under way! I've created the home page, and immediately inputted content, by now the home page is ready to be edited using css! Next week, I'll be stylizing and finishing the homepage.

Obviously, I've already added just the baseline css, things like div ids, centering text, and whatnot, but next week, I plan to add color, a font, box outlines, and everything else in terms of css next week!
See you guys then~

Week 3

This week I further researched symbols and how they're implemented, I also began constructing more in depth of what the website would like, the color scheme, font, etc. So far, as for the color scheme, I plan to use Light Steel Blue (#b0c4de), and I've drafted 2 color schemes, using Color Scheme Designer, I was able to easily create a complementary and analogical color scheme for Light Steel Blue, these are the two-


                            


I'm leaning more towards the complementary one, using the secondary color as a header and footer, then using the darker blue as a menu background, Light Steel Blue as the background for the site, and the lighter blue as the background of content divs, but that's just concept for now. As for the font, I think I'm going to go with either;
Trebuchet or Verdana
I'll likely stick with Trebuchet, but Verdana may go better with the color scheme.

Week 2

This week I researched famous fonts that were used historically, and compiled a list of 6, with this I started on forming guidelines for what my font chart will look like, I also expanded on ideas for website, and begun writing content for the website. So far, the website will have the following pages:
History, Symbols, Uses, and a general Home page

In the image below, you can see the list I've compiles, and the content I've begun writing-

From here, I will continue to compile content and information, next week I plan on creating the site and inputting what I had.

Portfolio part 1 reflection

For the past few weeks, I've been working on a portfolio site for myself as a web designer, I wasn't restricted on any aspect on the design, I just had to make it about me, which turns out to be a lot harder than it seems. Making the design was easy, I just made it the way I wanted it, and if I didn't lie something, I took it out. That was one of the benefits of making a website about me, If I didn't want something, then why keep it? It was my website, after all!

As a pre-assignment to this project, we went through a packet about making web design portfolios, and did some activities to practice out personal branding skills. We did things like formulate a catchy yet professional tagline, find a font that's appropriate for you and for your portfolio, and think about professional displays of past works for client reference. After we honed those skills, we put them to the test by creating logos and taglines, then shortly after that, we started the website!

Throughout my portfolio design, I've had to restart from scratch twice, that's two times where my design broke, or just went too far in the wrong direction, to where I just had to delete and try again, and through those two mess-ups, I learned that not everything I want to do will happen, or will even be possible, so instead of trying to do things in a bunch of different directions, I just focussed on the main aspects that I needed, and added cool features later.

Overall, this project was probably the most difficult I've faces, but I've learned so much about myself, and about writing myself already, and it isn't over yet.

Melody Baker - College Q&A

We had a senior from last year, Melody Baker, come back to our web class for a visit. While she was here, we got to hear what her college experience has been like so far, and get to ask questions we were instructed to create before we started. Here are the 5 questions that were the most helpful to me

1. How much did was your total cost before scholarships?
 -Tuition - $8500
 -Room & Board: $5000
 -Books & Other: $2500
 -Total: $16000

2. Are your professors willing to provide help outside of class?
 Most of them are, but if they aren't, then there is a study hall on campus in the library where you can get help from other students/tutors.

3. How many classes would you need to take per week for a 4-year degree?
 15 credit hours/5 classes per week.

4. What have the dorms been like?
 The dorm rooms are split into girls/boys, and both are on 1 floor. The RA (Room Advisor) organize events for special holidays, or to help out with mid-term papers/tests.

5. Any general advice for college?
 Study a lot, do your homework on time, plan your weeks out, and don't drink on Sundays.

Lapis Lazuli co.

Lapis Lazuli co.

Introduction-

Lapis Lazuli is a company based off of 4 random things i pulled out of a hat, the 4 "things" I got were Elephant. Lapis Lazuli, 72, and the letters X and O. I used these various things, and based the name, design, and function of a fictional business. The business I decided on would be names "Lapis Lazuli est. 1972", or just "Lapis Lazuli", LL is a fashion and beauty retail chain, their slogan is simply "XOXO".

Logo process-

The actual design for the logo went through many phases, as you can see below, I first started with the idea of having the elephant head facing forward, with either teardrops, or an X and an O for eyes, and the trunk in the shape of an L

Right off of the bat, I didn't like the drops, so I stopped using them, and 2 eyes seemed like too much, so I instead decided to move the X into the O, I also wanted to see what the trunk would look like if it were straight, since the L-shape looks creepy and unnatural

I tried out some alternate colors

After taking a good look at these, I turned to other elephant based logos for direction, and I ended up finding that all of them has the elephant head turned sideways, this is when I made a big decision, and that decision is what brought me into the final stage of designing, and my last draft was my official logo, and for the font to go with it, I chose Lao Sangam MN

Commercial Use-

After I decided on my final logo and font, I went to make commercial uses for it, things like signs, business cards, billboards, a mobile app, envelopes, and even stationery. Each one of those uses the same elephant symbol, but they use different parts of the text logo

Conclusion-

After weeks of work, revisions, and sampling, and more revisions, I learned that it takes more than just a few designs to complete a logo, I had to do more than just look at it myself, I had to get the critique of my peers. And to go even further, I had to turn to the internet to look at other ideas, only to realize that I need to start from scratch, just so i could turn the head of an elephant sideways. All in all, I learned valuable lessons from this design project, and I'm happy with the final product of my efforts.

Steal like a artist

"Steal Like an Artist" 

  Summary-

This first chapter of "Steal Like an Artist" gave a brief explanation on the phrase "steal like an artist," it explains that there is no such thing as an original idea, every creative thought is built upon even the smallest base. It tells you to embrace stealing, to use it to your advantage, and gives many tips on stealing from art, only without directly stealing.

  Reflection-

In my opinion, yes, this book tells the truth, it is right that no idea is original, and that creativity truly comes from works that others have created. This chapter talks about following a "family tree," or a history of interests by artists to draw where their creativity, and repeating that process as far back as you can. Although I agree with the message of "Nothing is original," I really do not agree with some of the other statements this book makes. I do not agree with the suggestion that you should google before asking, because a lot of questions are too specific for google, and you should really ask the people you know before asking google. I also don't agree with the statement that you should be looking for ideas to "steal" from, I really don't like this because while it is good to draw creativity from other works, it is unhealthy to instead attempt to base everything directly off of another person's work.

  Conclusion-

This chapter has a good meaning, nothing is truly original. But, later parts of the chapter are pretty pretentious, and honestly bad advice. You should stress the human resources, rather than dismiss them, and instead see google as a more valuable source of information. Overall, you should probably just read the first few pages, and just skip the rest.