Rebecca Chick

Tuesday

Starting off the morning I had a tutorial with David talking about my idea but mainly as I was unsure on how my outcome could be shown. This led David to give me an example creating my outcome into three sections where each section could be a different layer, which could be shown as a booklet. By talking about my design we then discussed what each section could consist of which helped me massively by making my design clearer to myself. This led that the base section should be about Newport city centre including my own, my families and other peoples opinions on how they would describe the place, the next section would be about my area of Newport where my old house was. The final section would be why I don’t feel safe in that area anymore, this was because of all the bad and scary memories I have had there were a big impact to myself. Rather than general memories as everyone would have them.

However, from a previous tutorial with Craig and talking about my materials idea. I decided to bring this up with David whilst also bringing in the materials to show, as I was unsure if I would be able to link this into my design for my childhood memories as I was thinking of doing a more digital background than physically drawing one. From talking to David I decided that I didn’t want to over complicate my design where I would be confusing myself due to only having a short period of time to make my outcome. But because I also thought I didn’t need to have two of my ideas into one design at that moment in time as I was still trying to work how a way to present it. Overall after this tutorial with David I went away thinking of a range of layout that this could be produced ready for my next tutorial.

Thursday

Due to being absent for my next tutorial with Craig I had move ahead and started making design ideas so that I could start gathering all the materials that I may need for when it came to making my final outcome, so that I wouldn’t fall behind schedule.

By producing a range of design idea this had helped me massively to getting a rough version in my head how I actually wanted my design to be like. As I had then decided that I wanted the based of my design to actually be cut out into the shape of Newport not just the outline of it on card. From looking at my design ideas I was most drawn to my first idea where this then led me to produce a very rough digital layout on how I would want each section to look like.

However, with the third section I was thinking of having the memories attached to wire where they would be coming off the image of my old house, although In was still at the early stages of my design I was very happy at where I was as I normally wouldn’t be at this stage into a project. Therefore the first image would be the base layer using words to describe what the city centre is like, the next section would be my old house with the memories and the last image was a rough version on what it would look like. From doing this digital version I can quickly moved onto developing my design even more, so I can get closer to the final outcome whilst making sure I’m heading in the right direction with what I am trying to show.

 

Tuesday 

Starting the day off David gave a lecture giving a debrief of what our project needs to consist of, which was the meaning of ‘psychology’ which is based on emotions and behaviour of individuals but also ‘geography’ which is specific effects of the geographical environment where we would then put the two together calling it ‘psychogeography’ for our outcome. By having the debrief for our project it had given me a better understanding on which direction I wanted to go down with my project making me lean more towards my childhood memories in my old house due to having a better connection with that idea. 

However we had a small activity to do where we would be walking around the surroundings of Cathedral High School making note of all the parts that we were drawn to, by doing this I had discovered that I was most drawn to sound but also the different features that was around that area as I had never walked around there before. When thinking about my project, and what I was going to produce I did double think if I wanted to base it on sound but being a more hands on person I felt that making a model would make me more drawn to the project and engage better. After we finished this small activity we all came back and talked about what we were most drawn to as an individual to everyone, which by doing this made it all very clear to myself what I wanted to do.

Following on after this activity we were given a group activity where we had only 48hrs to produce an outcome, as a group we were given Cardiff city centre to explore. In our group of 3 we decided that two of us myself and Charlotte would sit in the back of the car, where one would be focusing on the left side of the road and myself looking at the right side where Tom would drive us around Cardiff city centre shouting out what he was drawn to. As a group we had all decided to focus on the surroundings rather than in the city due to the fact that we have all been there many time and knew the area very well compared to the surroundings on the outside of the centre.

Thursday

By gathering all our research we had then produce our final outcome as group, where we then presented in front of everyone. Where we talked about what made us drawn to the areas that we had written down, for myself I had mainly been drawn to the amount of construction that was happening in the centre as you don’t see it due to it always happening behind the buildings. I was also drawn to the amount of traffic that was caused in areas where I have never particularly gone but thought they would be quite quiet and also the amount cameras on traffic lights. As when in the centre you never see these things as your mainly focusing on shopping and getting to places.

To finish off the day I had gone to a tutorial where I would discuss my next move with my project. From my previous talk I had gone away and produced more mind maps which the first three consisted of my 3 ideas where I had gone into a basic thought process with what I could talk and show, once I had done this I quickly developed that I wanted to focus on my childhood memories of Newport where I produced a slightly more detailed version of memories but then another which was detailed full of memories, by doing this it allowed me to get a head start with myself and think of which memories I would want to chose for the final outcome.

Due to producing my memories I had a clear understanding with what I was doing, however having my tutorial with Craig he had then mentioned about possibly linking my third idea (materials from where I live) into my idea about childhood memories where I could gather materials and start to draw with them to see what they would produce. Where if they worked well I could use for example a stick to draw one of my memories. This then led me to gather some materials and see what they would do.

 

 

Tuesday

During the first week back after my Christmas break, it was time to move onto my new field module known as ‘Psychogeography’. The first day back started with an early 7am start to make our way to Birmingham City to learn about the history of the place. Due to arriving to our destination at 10:30am we had to wait half an hour before entering the gallery to see the exhibitions which were booked. In the time span of 3o minutes myself and two other students walked around the city of Birmingham taking photographs of what we were all drawn to, one area we were all drawn to was a pathway with the odd bricks made out of broken materials. As a group we found it unusual as to why odd bricks would be like that and if there was a meaning behind it, however we couldn’t find a plaque stating a reason. I however was mainly drawn to it due to the use of colour as there was red, dark green and turquoise shown in a range of different bricks, but also because I thought that it didn’t fit into the area due to the surroundings around them all looked quite modern.

During the visit to the gallery I had been drawn to a range of artwork that caught my eye as shown below, due to the fact that they made you question on what part of the artwork you should be looking at but also the meaning behind them as most artwork can be easy to understand what is happening. I had also been drawn to the downstairs section outside the giftshop due to the use of colour that was used in the wallpaper but the texture that was use to give it an effect as I always noticed myself constantly looking at it.

The next part of the day was having a guide tour around the city finding out the history of Birmingham this was given by Carl Chinn, throughout his tour I had found it very interesting with all the changes that have been made and how around the city is a canal but how close the buildings were to the water. As at one point it almost felt that you would be walking around Venice. Over the whole tour I’d say I was mostly drawn to the boat house as it was mainly built from wood but because it looked so different to the other buildings with them using brick and stone making it standout more.

Finishing the day off we then walked around the city taking more photographs, this of which I took images that you wouldn’t tend to see back in my home town of Newport. This had mainly consisted of the telephone boxes as many of these got taken down due to society changing, making them have no use anymore I had also taken an image of a stained glass window. This was because I was drawn to the original features around the city whilst also looking at features that tend to have a lot of history about them. Throughout the day I had really enjoyed and learnt a lot about the city, whilst I did find it quite a challenge to keep warm due to the weather conditions.

 

Thursday 

Starting the day off we did a quick recap based on our trip to the Birmingham city where we talked about the photographs we had taken based on what we were drawn to, this had then led us to get into our small groups where we then listened to other groups gathering our own thoughts about there images.

By listening to the other groups I had found it very useful as everyone’s thoughts were all different in there own way. The first group I had mainly drawn attention to was when they were talking about the art museum and how the rooms were out dated and in need of refurbishment, but how the centre of the room you could looked down into there storage section and see how messy it was. But also the fact that they said not many people would walk in to visit or when they did they wouldn’t stay long. The next group I had found interesting was when they based there’s on sound as they walked through the city and listening to a range of noises as most of the time you never really listen carefully on what’s happening around you or in the background.

To finish the day off Craig also went through our brief of the project and what we were expected to do for our final outcome, this led me to become very confused and unsure as to what I needed to do. Due to Craig doing tutorials I decided to book myself for one where I could speak to him one to one to get a better understanding, by having this talk I was able to come up with three ideas which consisted of memories from Ireland, memories from my childhood home and finally materials from where I live. This had helped me massively as I was no longer confused on what I needed to produce but that  I was able to go away and think about my ideas ready for my next meeting to see what my next steps could be.

Overall during these 5 weeks of intense designing for the deadline Magda was able to produce the presentation showing all the stages we went through to produce our set, due to all of us sending all the photographs we had taken throughout the whole process. However following on from when the professional photographs were taken of our set Magda was also able to make all the edits to get out final image at it’s highest standard which when looking and then they all looked amazing. With the final edits complete we were also able to produce a 3 double page spreads of our set with written work on which would look how it does in a magazine. Further into this project we had also took many videos where Mya was able to put together to show our whole process of our whole set where were able to present together when doing our presentation.

 

Reflection Post

Throughout this entire module of Interior Styling I have massively enjoyed learning what it takes to design a set for either a marketing or editorial content, especially when we had to produce our set out of recycled materials and paint which we were lucky enough to have donated to us. Looking back at the overall project for myself I believe that I have increased my knowledge greatly, due to when it came to the colour proportions and certain colours against others as with slight changes it could make the set look so much better. I also feel I have expanded my knowledge when it came to the use of pattern, texture and materials used in our set as at the start I wasn’t very confident on what the set would look like once finished however, I can now use this experience further down my path as an interior designer and also in future projects to come giving the best outcomes I possibly can.

When engaging with this module I enjoyed the fact that we would be working in groups, as I love to get different views of input from a range of people on a variety of different courses showing their design process. However, as a large group of eight I had found it very challenging as there would always be someone in the group that wouldn’t like something when everyone else would. Although the most annoying part would be when certain people wouldn’t help and give their input on what they thought of the design of the set, or even attend. Throughout this project I feel that myself, Grace, Yasmin and Chloe. M had given the most input throughout this project as a group, whilst Magda and Mya took in charge of the Video and Presentation as they were more experienced in these areas. However, when it came to listening in the group to what we all had to say I felt that we worked extremely well as a whole due to the fact that we wouldn’t move on from each section until all of us as a group agreed that we liked what we had done. By doing this I feel that when it came to the overall view on the set, we were all extremely happy and loved how the final outcome looked like.

Overall from this module I feel that we have strongly achieved the Empower Up style of S/S 20 in the theme of Miami Blocking as we were able to create a vibrant and bold colour palette whilst also including geometric shapes and lines whilst also including some natural curves. I also feel that having the floor yellow made our set striking linking into our theme as well. By having Sian, Anwen Peagrum (Interior Stylist) and Keith Davies (Photographer) input on how to improve our set, has been able to improve my knowledge more by developing their skills.

Coming up to the final week of this interior styling project, we all felt that we were able to relax a little bit due to the fact that we were ahead with what we thought. By doing so much work the week before we were finally ready for Keith Davies to take the professional photographs of our set. When Keith had arrived to the graphics studio due to our set being in that space it had taken him awhile to set up all of his equipment properly. So whilst we were waiting we decided to still fiddle around with the layouts of our props on the desk, this soon change as Keith was all set with his camera ready.

To start the arrangement of props we decided to go by section by sorting out firstly the desk arrangements, this had taken the longest to get correct as there was a range of props that we removed which consisted of some books, laptop, jars etc although we did add more props in which were the ping pong balls, pencils, written text. Overall when taking lots of different photos of the different arrangements for the desk we had finally found one where we discussed that the less of the table the better it would look and standout more. Carrying on with the arrangements we then moved onto the lighting where we decided to cut the fringing slightly shorter as it would contrast better with the black paper fans shown below, we also made sure that the light structure was under the black stripes and it made the marking standout clearer where we also moved more central into the set.

With some slight changes to the cushion placement we finally had our final outcome complete where Keith was able to take the final shot making sure the lighting was correct, he had also took photographs of close ups of the set to get a better insight on the detail shown in our set. Although we were torn whether to have the plant on the side of the image as with the plant it create a realistic image where without it created a more magazine approach, in the end we decided to go without the plant when deciding as a group.

Following on from the first two weeks into week three of this project, we have moved onto getting the correct colour shades that we will be using for our set. Although from a student bringing in lots of recycled paint we were able to get hold of a white, yellow, cherry red and black. However due to having nearly all of the paint we needed we were still needing to get hold of a teal and coral colour paint, this is where myself and Chloe. M took to the challenge in making the coral colour first where we gathered some yellow, red and baby pink so we could start mixing to the correct shade needed. Finally after an hour mixing and testing the shade onto paper we had finally found the right shade ready for the set where we were over the moon with. This then led us to try make a teal however, as another group had a royal blue and needed the paint for there own set and there was no other way of mixing paint to get the right shade of teal we decided to all chip in and buy a small pot of teal. Although this defeats the objective of being circular economy there was no other way of getting hold of the paint.

After finally getting hold of all the paint for our colour palette we produced a final swatch of the colours we would use, I decided to take into my own hands and produce a drawing using rough colours to represent the palette to see how it would look as a final outcome with the shapes attached to the white part of the wall too as shown below:

We soon then decided as a group to come in on our self directed days to get the back wall painted and finished so when Thursday came we could start thinking about the props. We started this off, by as group we laid down the boards flat on the floor where we then began to mark out in pencil to scale the size of the shapes we have used. Once this was complete we then started to masking tape the small shapes such as the yellow, coral and red to give them three coats of paint so that they were very vibrant and bold for the theme. Once these had dryed we then moved on to getting two coats of the mains colours which were the teal and white, however this was done where we masking taped the small shapes where we were then able to paint the teal and white on the set allowing us to have the back wall nearly finished.

Once the back wall was painted and the masking tape was taken off we then moved onto doing touch ups making the shapes look as sharp and clean as possible. Once all the paint had dried from all the touch ups myself, Grace and Chloe. M moved onto marking the correct distance for the desk supports so that they could then be drilled onto the wall making sure that they were level and stable allowing the desk to evenly rest on top. Whilst also using double sided sticky tape to attach the shapes onto the white section of the set.

 

Moving onto the second week of interior styling, by creating our group mood board last week it allowed us to gather many ideas for the start of this week giving us time to make sure it fits into our Miami Blocking trend correctly. This was because our main focus for this week was to finalise the background wall of the set whilst also thinking about the layout of props in the space. This firstly led me to produce my own back wall designs to gather my own thoughts before giving my own opinion when discussing as a group. By doing this it also allowed myself to see how our colour palette would look like if we used all the colours for the set wall.

Following the experimenting, we then decided as a group to throw ideas out together this had led Yasmin who was in my group to use her Ipad to start drawing them out digitally as it would be a lot quicker. After a long discussion we decided on our first design where I took myself to use Photoshop to get a rough idea on how it would look like with the props we have decided to use. Due to Magda creating the pattern on the wall and emailing me them over I could create the final image.

However, once finishing the first design we gathered as a group with Sian where we gathered our own opinions on what we thought. This is where by listening to Sian’s opinion we decided to change the back wall again as it wasn’t quite fitting to our theme of Miami Blocking. Moving on to producing the second back wall design we decided to remove the stripes that we originally had and kept to the idea of colour blocking and see if we wanted black or white flooring, but this soon quickly got changed as it still didn’t fit to the theme design but also that there were too many props in the image which we also didn’t need as it was crowding the space.

By changing the back wall and coming up with the third design, we decided that the main colour which was white needed to be changed with another colour this was when we decided as a group to get many colour themes together which Magda had produced. It was all down to two types that we then liked which was either the teal as the main colour or yellow, overall we decided that the teal would be the best fit for the situation we were in.

Due to a lot of changes to the back wall design, one of the discussion mentioned by Sian was to produce a group board of work stations layouts to give a better idea on how we would like our own set to look. I feel by doing this as a group it helped out massively as we circled different areas on images that we liked and what would work out in our set, this then gave us all a rough view on how we would like our set to look like but also by not including so many props as the more simple the desk area is the better the overall set will look like as a final outcome.

Finally from all the editing to the first two back wall designs. As a group we listened to what we wanted in the space and what we didn’t want, this led me to go straight back onto Photoshop where we hopefully had our final design. However, by finishing the design we decided that it would be a good idea to speak to Sian and Anwen Peagrum (Interior Stylist) and get there feedback. After a few minutes of talking and making changes there and then with them we removed some of the props to make it clearer but we had also changed the formation of the colours around making on the back wall the teal the main colour instead of white. We also discussed that to make the theme more Miami Blocking style we would paint the floor yellow, to make the set more eye-catching.

During the second week we also decided to move straight onto the prop making, this is when a small group went to woodwork to cut out the support beams for the desk to rest on in our set so that it was stable enough when more props were put on top. To make the beams we had to use the band-saw but also gorilla glue to attach the three pieces together, once the attachments were all dry we then painted them red ready for when they could be drilled onto the back wall. During this week we gathered a range of recycled fabrics from Orangebox which fitted into our colour theme, this was where we then cut a massive amounts of fabric together out in strips ready for when it gets attached to the stool and light to create the fringing effect.

Today we started our first term of field, which I had been given the module ‘Interior Styling’ where I would be able to expand my knowledge on how to style an interior space. But also how I can build and create a set for either an editorial or marketing content. Throughout this project we have to design a set by using recycled/upcycled materials for the life-size set for our props in our group of eight. When creating our set we will have to take into consideration the use of colour, pattern, texture, material and form where when the set is complete a professional photograph taken by Keith Davies will transform our set into a studio environment.

Throughout this project it will also be based on circular economy to eliminate waste and continual uses of resources. This of which we were lucky enough to work along the side of John Lewis & Partners, Sigma 3 and Orangebox where they have been able to provide a range of materials that they no longer need. We were also lucky enough to get a range of paints that one student had brought in for us to use.

After being introduced to our groups, we had been told by Sian that our set will be based on  a theme linked to Empower Up which would be focusing on a Work space. Following on from this Sian the began her lecture talking about Seasonal trends and there influences, where Sian talked about a useful website known as ‘WGSN’ that is based for designers to help them with which trend to use when they are designing a space etc. due to basing our set on Empower Up in the season S/S20 it was clear that the main colour trends used would be pastel colours which are vibrant or dark colours other than black.

By understanding the type of trends Empower Up uses, as a group we sat down around a table and started to do a small discussion on what we thought about the trend we had be given, this then led us to look at the type of themes that use this trend where we individually gathered images we were drawn too. This then led us to print our images out to produce a mood board where we soon discovered that we were all drawn to the theme Miami Blocking. Due to its use of high contrast in pattern, thick outlines, simple, solid geometric constructions. From this as a group we also consisted of another theme to include Abstract Expressionism due to it linking in with the Miami Blocking of bold colours.

By including this as a group we swiftly moved to producing three colour palettes, however out of the three palettes we stuck to the first palette we had produced which consisted of the colours yellow, coral, cherry red, teal, black and white this was because we had all agreed as a group that they all went really well but that they also link into the theme of Miami Blocking and the use of colours that they use.

During the first week of this project we had a very important lecture about colour due to its vital role it has when designing an interior space. Due to colour having a range of combinations together they can consist of being either warm or cold colours, contrasting, even or tonal colours. This then led us all individually to produce our own mood boards to get a better understanding on how the colours are used in a space, as shown below.

   

 

This soon led us to look more into colour proportions and how they are split into Hero, Secondary, accent and even these of which are known as:

Hero – the main colour represented in the space

Secondary – the second main colour represented in the space

Accent – the least amount of colour represented in the space

Even – the colours used evenly in the space

This had led us to do our own colour proportion based on an image that we had been given by Sian. By producing my own proportion I had found it very useful and interesting as studying interior design I had never really thought about colour proportions when producing my previous projects, but this will now change with future projects to come.

While becoming an interior designer there is a main role when designing a space for a client, this of which would be the customers persona and what their own interests are and what ideas they would have for their room etc to be decorated. But the main part would be the functions of the space and how the client uses it so that it is suitable for their needs.

Looking at our persona we wanted to create a space that was colourful and bright due to our client having a serious career as a lawyer, as a group we wanted to show that there can be two sides to a persons life that is seen in the public eye to there private place.

Throughout getting a better understanding on what we need to focus on for our set, this allowed us to narrow our ideas as a group even more by making a chart based on Pattern, Colour and Texture. This allowed us individually in our groups to produce a palette on the colours we are using based on the patterns and textures that have been listed in our group chart above. Furthermore into our colour scheme I decided to produce another two palettes using Dulux and Pantone paints, but not including the black or white just to show that there can be many colours shades before you have found the colour shade needed for our set.

To complete the first week off with this project, we decided as a group it would be a good idea to produce a mind map of ideas for the set based on what we thought we could possibly need so that we could start gathering props and making objects in enough time before the deadline. Whilst also including a rough fabric board including fabrics, patterns, textures and colours.