Chris Piascik

While browsing through Behance network, i came across a typography/illustration artist called Chris Piascik. I was really inspired by his portfolio, as it appealed to my style that i am aiming for, and he had a broad range of work from t shirt designs, to printed book work. I even ended up buying one of his books that he designed around bikes called 'I love my bike'. 
One of the most inspiring parts of his website was his 'daily drawings' page. I found it incredible that he has the time to fit in 5 new personal drawing every week to keep his mind fresh all the time.


Here are some examples of his work that i really liked, but it was hard to choose from!

I have bookmarked Chris's website, so i'm sure i will be looking back at his work for inspiration in the future!

Little White Lies - Negotiated project

For my negotiated project, i decided to take on the 'Little White Lies' brief in designing an illustrative front cover for their magazine. The brief instantly appealed to me because of my love for illustration, and consider the magazine focused on another love of mine, films, i didn't hesitate to choose this brief. 
Looking at the brief, there was a list of films that were on offer for the front cover, one of which was one of my favourite films of 2011, Super 8. The brief stated that the cover had to be focused on the main character of the film, so i had to consider this when creating my illustration.

I was quite pleased with the outcome of my project. I really struggled to choose a style that i thought was unique enough and hadn't already been done for previous covers of the magazine. I was really inspired by David Fullerton's paper texture illustrations, which eventually became the main inspiration for my cover. I was pleased with the way the hand drawn type turned out , and i felt it sat well with the illustration style. I feel as thought my illustration skills have somewhat improved from this project, although it was quite a simple outcome, i felt that it worked well. I will be submitting this to D&AD so hopefully i'll get somewhere with it!

Time plan 30/01/12

Monday - Feedback on illustration


Tuesday - Finalise illustration


Wednesday - Finally illustration


Thursday - Develop folder work for live brief


Friday - Develop folder work for live brief

Time Plan 23/01/12

Monday - Develop Live Brief


Tuesday - Development


Wednesday - Development


Thursday - Class feedback & continue development


Friday - Catch up with college posters

Time plan 16/01/12

Monday - Decide on live brief 


Tuesday - Start research into live brief


Wednesday - Continue research


Thursday - Catch up with college posters


Friday - Continue research

How to write a CV without sounding like a fool

We were given a very useful presentation by Laura Sharpe from Sharpe Recruitment, who left the class with a great amount of tips towards helping to write a good CV. I especially took interest in this as i recently decided that i won't be applying for a 3rd year course to do my BA Honors degree, opting instead for going out and finding myself some work.


Laura posed some key questions to consider while writing your CV
A few i picked up on are:

• Make sure your CV is clear, simple and well structured
• Create yourself a professional email address (sexy_stevexxxxx@hotmail.com doesn't look too good to a future employer)
• Make the CV relevant to the job you are applying for, highlighting key words tailored to your specific skills and qualifications 

Laura also gave us advice on our web presence and how it is important to have an easy to find URL linked to your online portfolio on your CV and covering letters. It is also important to update your portfolio, making sure never to fall behind in current trends as that may put off potential clients/employers.


Finally, and possibly the most important of all, was to get yourself known. Attend networking events to meet new contacts and potential clients. Furthermore, Its no use having a brilliant portfolio and a mind full of ideas if no-one is there to see or listen to them. Get involved in placements/internships and gain valuable experience all tailored to making yourself more employable.


These are all great tips that i will consider when i come to write my own professional CV, and i'm sure they'll help me out a great deal!

Nuby Rebrand

Nuby rebrand

What I enjoyed about the project

I enjoyed the opportunity to work on a packaging project, as I hadn't really tried much packaging design before this.

What I didn’t enjoy about the project

I found it quite hard to structure information on my packaging, as I was unsure of how much room to take up with text, trying not to spoil the design.

Problems I encountered

The main problem I encountered was making sure my final outcome was suitable for both children and parents, so that it would be marketable.

What went well

I think my illustration worked really well for the final visuals, and I came up with a lot of ideas for possible outcomes, which expanded my creativity.

What didn’t go well

Some of my ideas wouldn't work in the real world, or be possible as packaging designs, so I had to tweak quite a lot of my ideas.

New skills acquired

I think my illustration skills improved a lot during the process of this project, and I have now become more confident in vector illustration.

New knowledge acquired

I have gained a greater grasp of what is possible in packaging design, through extensive research and websites such as 'thedieline'

Time management

I managed my time well during this project, setting myself weekly goals to achieve so that I hit my deadline with ease.