Moodboards of Initial Ideas
I made some mood boards to research into the two ideas I had because I thought finding examples of the kind of thing I could create would help me to decide which idea I liked best and would be the most enjoyable for me.
Hand made typography book
- I liked the idea of creating typography out of different materials and I decided the best way to present this would be in a book, so I found some examples of the sort of typography I would create and a bit on the layout of the book.
Album covers
- I also liked the idea of redesigning album covers of popular artists music that I thought would better show the actual content of the album. I decided that vinyl covers would be the best way to present this as they have a much larger surface area so I could fit in a lot more design work so I found examples of some vinyl covers that I liked.
HANDMADE TYPOGRAPHY BOOK
I decided to explore the idea of making a handmade typography book where I would create all of the typography myself and photograph it/scan it in or draw it. I decided on this because there is a lot I can do with it and I can be very creative with what I make as well as being able to design the layout and front cover of a book.
Similar product research
First I found some examples of similar products to see what was already on the market and to give me some inspiration of layouts and designs for my book as well as seeing what I think works best and what to avoid. This is also giving me some inspiration for the style of the book because some of these books have gone more along the hand painted/drawn look where others have focused more on photography of type and creating it out of objects. I think I would like to try both so would like my book to be a mixture between the two styles. I found from this that brightly coloured type is really effective and stands out off the page without the need for a background colour which keeps the type the main focus. These designs mostly have a lot of white space and don't really have much else on the page other than the typography and I think this is effective as it keeps it in focal point and keeps the page from looking cluttered so I can learn from this. I also like the idea of the book being a bit interactive and having cut outs in pages to reveal images behind that colour in the type like one of the examples below.
Similar Visuals
Next I found some designs that had a similar visual style to what I wanted to create. I found a couple of book layouts and covers for the inspiration of the actual design and layout of the book and also some handmade typography to inspire the actual content of my book. I found the creating quirky alphabets could be a good way to go but I also like the idea of creating actual words and sentences out of the type so I might try a mix of the two. I want my book to be a bit quirky and be fun and colourful and maybe a little interactive with foldouts or cut outs on pages. I also like the idea of having a wooden cover and stitching the pages into it as this would really go along with the handmade theme and looks a bit quirky but this could be very difficult to do as I would basically have to hand bind it myself. It could also be difficult to get any words on to the wood and this might have to be laser cut etc so there could be issues with this but it is an idea I would like to explore.
Book Layout Research
I wanted some inspiration for the actual layout and visual design of my book so I found some existing products and annotated them with my thoughts on their effectiveness and any inspiration I could take from them. From doing this I have found that I would like to have the pages in sets of 2 with an image on one side and text on the other. I also would like to try switching up the layout slightly to make it more interesting by switching the side of the page that the image and text are on, as well as maybe adding some interactive elements by adding in textures or different types of paper/materials.
Handmade type research
I wanted some inspiration for how to create and layout the letters so I put together a mood board of some of my favourite examples for me to look at when designing. I like the mix of backgrounds behind the text because I think it will keep it looking more diverse and interesting than just using plain white backgrounds for everything. I also like the idea of mixing up typefaces and switching between serif and sans serif and decorative to keep diversity within my designs.
Existing similar products - primary research
I went into a local bookstore and looked for existing products that were as similar to what I want to create as possible to get inspiration for the design and layout of my book, and also to pick out things I don't like and want to avoid. From doing this I have found that it is important to vary the layout/positioning and colours of each page in the book to keep it interesting hold attention better, and I would also like to create my cover in the same 3D handmade type style as the rest of the book as it helps to give a preview to the contents and will really make it stand out on a shelf.
Mindmaps of objects
Next I made mind maps of objects the started with the same letter as each letter of the alphabet. Doing this helped me to explore lots of options and I know have lots of ideas to choose from when I start my initial ideas.
