Experimentation

HEALTH AND SAFETY

There are many issues to think about when working throughout my project. These are listed below:

• Don't work at a mac too long otherwise it will strain my eyes.
• Sit correctly on chairs, wrists straight, back straight, shoulders up.
• Be careful when using a scalpel and scissors when cutting though different materials. If I do injure myself, wash with warm soapy water and hold pressure until the bleeding stops.
• Make sure that none of the materials that I use go into my eyes, if they do, wash with cold water.
• Be careful with tree bark, making sure I do not injure myself in any way. 

I sketched out the name of my restaurant on card in the typeface that I am very fond of using. I used a scalpel and a cutting matt to cut the letters out, creating a stencil.

I chose to use soft pastels for my first experimentation piece. I used a brown shade because this relates the most to my wooden theme. I really like the effect that the pastels give the typeface, as it creates an adventurous feel, like the bark of a tree in the woods. which is exactly what I am aiming for. However, the overall look is very blurry and smudged, making the structure look crooked. I do feel that the structure of the characters have been kept really well compared to the other media I used, shown below.  I am interested to use this medium, however, the type design isn't crisp or clean, making it harder to read, especially from further away.

A closer view:

 Coffee granules

This was my first attempt at using coffee granules. I feel that it went particularly well as the typeface kept its shape. I used this type of medium because it links to what I will be selling at my cafe/restaurant.  

This was my second attempt. It was harder to keep the structure of the typeface for each character because the stencil wasn't very sturdy, therefore it kept moving. I used the end of a brush to refine the structure, however it does not keep the same effect. I do like this idea, however I do not think it is very effective. 

I also experimented with the reverse idea, spreading coffee granules on a sheet of card, then using the end of a paintbrush, I wrote the type. This idea is definitely effective as the handmade reverse type stands out so well against the brown granules acting as negative space. I did however find it difficult to keep the structure of each character as the coffee granules kept moving into the letters that I had created. This makes it harder to read, which isn't what I am aiming for. I need my type to be legible and grab the consumers attention. I feel that the reverse type would grab their attention, however the lack of structure of each character makes it harder to read and understand. Therefore, I do not think I want to use this form of media for my final idea design.  

 Watercolour

I really like this effect, as the typeface looks really delicate and fancy, which is the theme that I am trying to go for. The different tones and shades of brown and black used link to the wooden theme. However, I do feel that this particular structure of the typeface is too delicate to be easily read and understood from a faraway distance, as it needs to be able to catch the viewers attention. 

This is another variation using watercolour, however it is definitely harder to read because of the way the paint has been applied. It looks blotchy, which creates my eye and the viewer's eye to be confused. It is pretty hard to read against the white space, and I doubt it would be any easier against a black negative space because the structure of the typeface is so delicate. I am not really that keen on using watercolours for my final outcome because they create a very delicate design, making it harder to read and understand for different age groups.