The Weekly Critique

The last part of design work for Spoon was to produce a few other cover prototypes. Most of the sell line typography is consistent with the original cover. I tried to always make the logo really contrast with the background. I particularly like the bright yellow on the fall cover.

Mostly, I'm just happy to be finished. But, as always, I'd love some critique as well.

Response: Website

As we looked at everyone's site's on Tuesday, I took a second to think back about where we all were at the beginning of the semester. Not only did we all accomplish the massive amount of design work and special projects, but we're all able to build a functioning, attractive web site.

It's also amazing how well we all learn from each other, and each other's mistakes. One person would learn some cool new flash trick or how to circumvent a common problem in dreamweaver, and share it with the class. It's been a really great learning environment for me, and I assume you all as well. It just hit me at we look at all the great sites: we've come so far..

You can't miss: FFFFound

Yes, I did actually spell it right: 4 f's and an ound. ffffound. It's similar to ImageSpark (a great find from Sarah.) Basically, it's just a bunch of images meant to spark your creativity. I love it because it's not just magazine design or product design. It's all art-based, whether photographic, computer-generated or wet-brush. Have a look; here's one I like.

This week in Veer: Photochromic Ink!

A week or so ago, I got this neat little cardboard postcard from Veer. (You should sign up to be on their mailing list for lots of cool stuff.) Anyway, it was a great, type-based beautiful postcard, that I didn't think much of at the time. Here's what it looks like



I was looking at it again today and actually read it (smart, I know) and discovered that if you take it outside, you'll get a special message. Really? Sure enough, there was one. Specific letters turned green and spelled out 'photosynthesis.' How cool, right? I always love learning about printing materials, so I really enjoyed the novelty here. I took this on my phone, so the quality isn't best, but you get the idea.

The Weekly Critique

We finished Spoon this week. Finally. Handed off the CD yesterday and now it's out of my hands. Great feeling.

All of my time was spent with that this week, though mostly doing copyediting fixes and not designing. But I'll post a few of my favorite pages now that they're all complete.


[On the web/Next Issue FOB Page]


[Splash page for the Throw Department]


[Q&A Dept. page]

Response: Congrats SSND winners

Yesterday was the Student Society of News(formerly newspaper) Designers contest. Missouri took a lot of awards home. Congrats to Phil, Meredith, Taryn, Kristin, Alex and Lauren for all getting a win!

For those of you there, I hope you had a chance to listen to some of the judges' advice. Here's some of the most helpful or recurring things they mentioned:

If you have a good idea, get out of the way and let it speak for itself.

Pay attention to detail. Design elements should be consistent and seem thoughtful.

No outlined type! Period!

Know when to stop. A mature designer knows when to stop adding stuff to the page and not overwhelm the user.

Want more? Check out the SSND blog to hear more of the judges' advice. More audio will be coming soon about their thoughts on daily categories and designer of the year.

You can't miss: In defense of eye candy

If you're not reading A List Apart, you should. They have tons of web tips, tutorials and great articles. I came across this one about so-called 'eye candy.' We've all been there: thinking more about beauty than content or usability sometimes (print and web). This is a great article by Stephen Anderson about how there is a place for beauty on the web. He even quotes a study about appearance and credibility:

According to a 2002 study, the “appeal of the overall visual design of a site, including layout, typography, font size, and color schemes,” is the number one factor we use to evaluate a website’s credibility.

This is sort of like judging a book by its cover, (how can you not?) I couldn't agree more with these findings. Whenever looking for somewhere to eat, shop, etc.. I always evaluate the place on their cleanliness and design sophistication. I assume if they're willing to put enough effort into their presentation, that they're willing to put effort into their product. Usually, I'm right.

This week in Veer: Creativity never sleeps

Lately I've been finding myself really interested in motion graphics and video. (Not that I love learning Flash or AfterEffects..) But they're definitely fun to watch in awe. Veer did a nice one all about Creativity. Attention to detail is key here; there are many little things to pay attention to and each one is a fun little treat for the viewer. Enjoy.

The Weekly Critique

A diversity of projects this week:

First, a wine label. This was done for someone that was making their signature wine, and needed a label to represent them (and the wine.) The guy is very much into aviation and has a plane. So I recreated the cockpit of his, and we thought of a clever name: straight and level, which could be interpreted a few different ways.



I've also been doing LOTS of Spoon work this week. Here's a sample for you:

Response: The future of print magazines

After doing my interview this week, and hearing some of the others, it seems like the industry is somewhat optimistic about the future of print magazines. I've always thought there is a benefit to the print product that the web will never be able to replace.

For me, the tactile sense of being able to hold a magazine, throw it in my purse, pull it out at the doctors office, etc.. is something that the web can't replace. Yes, the web is portable, but it doesn't deliver content in the same manner. A magazine reads like a book and guides you through different topics in a specially designed order and format, encouraging the reader to spend more time with it. On a web site, it's too easy to read just the story you were interested in and then jump to another site completely. Plus, it's nice to have an activity that doesn't involve hours at the computer. And I think(hope) many people would agree.

You can't miss: 60 years of color

I was going through the list of nominations for the webby awards (fascinating, check it out.) and came across a neat page from MoMA.

It has a very practical and gorgeous design. You can look at works through medium, artist, etc.. I



It's an interesting take on how color has become an everyday commodity of the masses (just like type), with the availability of computers, etc.. Take a look through the exhibit. Might be a good source of inspiration down the road.

This week in Veer: Anyone have a spare $200?

If you do, you can buy me this for my portfolio:


I know this isn't a hefty informative post, but I thought it was a neat product and an interesting look at how some people present themselves. This is the sort of product that would be great if you're looking at a magazine that's very environmentally friendly, etc... These last few weeks we've been talking about the little things that can set you apart, anything from a handwritten note, to possibly a fashionable portfolio case (though maybe one a little cheaper..)

Response: Industry advice

Everyone came back with some juicy details Tuesday after their designer interviews. I loved the tidbit about handwriting a card to a potential employer, such a simple touch that can really go a long way.

One thing that stuck out at me was the repetition of having a diverse portfolio. It's always a benefit to be able to show that you have multiple skills, but with every job market so tight it's especially important now. I remember in our original critiques of portfolios, some people had t-shirts, cd jackets, paintings, etc.. That's the kind of stuff that will really put us over the top. I've been doing some freelance work, emphasis on the free, to try and beef up my portfolio. Right now, a wine label. We'll see what comes of it, and I'll post it for critique later.

I think it's fun to change it up anyway, keeps it interesting.

You can't miss: creative logos

I think this logo says it all: concept. Yes, they could have just used a novelty typeface and and swoosh, or any other bland logo design. But this one really goes beyond that. (As do the numerous other logos on the story by Smashing Magazine.

The simplicity is one of the first things I noticed. This logo is only black and white, has very clean type and the only graphics are a few strategically placed circles. I think this is a great example of a success that doesn't involve intensive photoshop or illustrator skills, just some good ol' brainstorming.

This week in Veer: A new meaning of environmental portrait

Veer has a knack for doing funky, hip and smart slideshows. This is a fascinating one, that plays off of where environment and photography meet. Sometimes it seems like an optical illusion. There's a cool soundtrack to boot.

When being green has become so common, not that there's anything wrong with that, Veer takes this to a different level.

See it now.

The Weekly Critique

Here's a screenshot of a page on my site. This is probably what I've spent the most time designing in the past week or so. I like the color palette I'm working with and the general simplicity of it. But I know there's a lot of ways to improve it. I'll be working on that, as well as spending a lot of time with the Meredith project this week.

Response: Website building

What I hate about websites: they're NEVER complete. They never have a deadline, met with a sigh of relief. They're just sitting there on the server, waiting to be updated and revamped.

Well, just as I think I'm winding down with the big chunks of my website production, I read all the critiques from Tuesday which reinforced all the doubts I already had. So back to work for me. I like having the critique; it's a good motivator to get everyone headed in the right direction.

At the same time, it's just as helpful to be the critiquer and really put thought into what does/doesn't work and why. So different from a print product. There's a lot more levels to critique on aside from design stuff, ie: tech issues, usability, accessibility.

You can't miss: 10 versions of a web portfolio

As if you aren't already tired of working on your web porfolio, here's a contest where you can design a web portfolio for the fictional Steve Stevenson.

There are about 10 displayed on the site, and all completely different. None are terribly complex. They're beauty comes because of the thought process and structure, not because of any crazy coding. Here's one of my favorite:

This week in Veer: Get canned!

I think I've mentioned "Lightboxing" before. If not, it's a competition over at Veer that's a lot like what it sounds: a duel with a few stock photos and a typeface in your lightbox. Two designers compete to make an illustration with only those tools.

What's amazing is how different they are. Take a look.

BTW, I love the skyline in the background. It's made from cans of paint. Clever.