Water and colour

There's always something everyone is just the best at when it comes to the types of media to work with in art. I personally think that my best type of media to work with is acrylic paint or pencil. But, never watercolour. I tried to work with watercolour so many times that I finally decided it is just not meant to be for me. Check out this person's portfolio website that includes their work with watercolour which also ties in with my earlier post on colour. It looks like watercolour but so nicely done that it could also be Photoshopped.

Oil Paint

If you like surrealism in art, then this post is for you! This Italian painter made me say "wow" when I took a look at his paintings online. I love surrealism and abstract art. I just never saw surrealism look so real in a painting but still is an imaginary painting... you will see what I mean. 

Check out the link posted above for more images of these really cool paintings!

Advertisements

I think photography would be the strongest element in advertisements these days. We don't tend to see more illustrative advertisements as technology gets better. Michael Muller's works for advertisements are very impressive with underwater shots he has taken. I put up the link above to his portfolio website. He has other photography work done underwater with sharks as well which I find very fascinating because not many people try underwater photography, especially with sharks.

Hands

This is a very quick post about a cool way to draw hands. You basically put your hand on a page and trace around it. Then you will start drawing horizontal lines with curves to where your hand would look like its 3D. well this picture will help you understand obviously than me trying to explain. Such an easy way to create any type of design. I think you can do this with other things like objects and not just hands.

Andre De Freitas

As I research for some project ideas, I come across many interesting art works that are posted on the internet. I cam across this persons website with their art in different sections. The page that got my attention the most is called "Double Exposures". I really like how unique these photo's look and its something that I would probably want hanging on a wall in my living room.

The first one is definitely my favourite. I'm guessing that they used blending modes in Photoshop for this. But I find this very unique that it's art I would want to pay for to have a copy of it.

Colour

In business, first impressions, how you look and how you present yourself are the most important things in the professional world. The same thing is applied to the design work we create. Figuring out which colors work well with others is also a thing that stands out the most in a design. There is actually a science behind which colors work well together. Different color combinations fit into different categories, and can be broken down easily. This post is very simple yet helpful for anyone who is doing freelance work that they could also educate their client and makes things easier with the job that is given to them.

There are a few things that I even just learned about colour even though I have been involved with art since grade school. I hope it also helps designers teach their clients a few things as well while working together to complete a project.

The Magic with Corks

These days, we are all trying to recycle everything to have a better environment and make use of some products we buy and use. This post is all about corks. How many different things can you make out of corks?

These images are just a few from the link I posted above. They get your mind going to think about what you could really re-use by transforming it into something new. I really like the idea of putting plants in the cork and making a small rug out of them. I know that my one friend also has a USB that is placed in a cork. Honestly, you could even easily do that at home and save money on buying any cool looking thing you see in the store. I like that these types of posts online help me be more open-minded to new ideas. Hope it helps others too!

Unique Packaging

There are many good packages and many bizarre packages out there that some companies love it themselves. Well, this website really showcases some very unique designed packages.

 This bottle as first seems kind of odd shaped but we all know that people are more attracted to cool looking packages rather than what is in it usually. But, it is convenient how it comes with a cup that's part of the package.

 This cracker box is so convenient when you are hosting any parties. I love how it opens up to be a bowl and then you could probably easily recycle it which is very eco-freiendly and unique at the same time.

This package just tells you right off the bat with a very cute looking design. you could probably use the packaging as a cookie jar at some point later on too. If anyone is looking for ideas, be sure to visit the link I provided above.

RGB

As designers know, there is the RGB part of colours for computers and the CMYK part of colours. This page you're about to see just focuses on RGB colours and what kind of art/designs you can do with just three colours (red, blue, green). 

I thought these designs were the ones that stood out to me the most. They're incredibly unique. There are so many more on the website that I linked above. After seeing this, I really want to make a wall painting based on three colours. Who needs 10 other colours to make some sort of a painting.. 

Shiny Photography

I am also new to Pinterest but its cool how you can find anything you need right away. I have been doing some research for a photography project on shiny metals and accessories and so on. I came across this one persons board.

They don't have many pictures pinned there but I thought they were very clean and simple to get an idea of how to start photographing accessories. You will see that it doesn't only have to be shot in a studio but can be also shot when a person is wearing. Thought this may help some people if they are looking to find ideas to shoot jewelry.

Realistic Body Paint

Who said you could only paint on a canvas and make it look outstanding? Well this page I came across shows a person being painted as if they're a canvas. The way they paint the body of the person is incredible. It looks like its just on a canvas but its a living painting. Wish I could see this in person.

Photo cube

I came across this while I was doing some research for a project. This photo cube keeps folding over and over to view new pictures. Also, here's a video on it from youtube.

Less is more

In my frist blog post, I complained about space in apartments. But then I came across this page that had different designed furniture that could be used for studio apartments which is basically a room that has a kitchen bathroom and some living space. I know I saw some furniture that is best suitable for these apartments on TV before. It's a great example of less is more for those people who need their huge space for themselves.

 This would save so much space for your studio apartment. I love how its spacey but doesn't take up much space and you would probably have room for other things like couches, TV, table, and whatever you need. I love how the beds slide under too to have more space during the day. It's perfect for students as well to save more money also.

 I think this is my favourite because of the closet space there is under the bed. Well, I think its a closet anyway.

Even this one is perfect with a double bed. 

Again, this could be used by students if they don't really mind the privacy issues.

These furniture designs are amazing in my opinion. And so many things you can do with the space that is left for you. But I'm sure it comes with a big price as well. In the end, it would be worth to buy for a studio apartment though.

Painting with Shadows and Light

Now a days, there are many ways that we art and design. Well, this page I came across shows pictures of a man painting with shadows and light. This artist's name is Rashad Alakbarov. Not literally paint on the wall, but you will see what I mean.

 I think they are little pieces of coloured glass and he arranged them in a way to create the image on the wall. That is the coolest thing I've ever seen in art actually.

 I didn't know you could really make art with plastic bottles either. On the wall, it looks like it has been drawn with charcoal or graphite.

This reminds me of New York City when I'm looking at it. After he arranges all the objects and shines light to cast the shadows, he could also go around the shapes on the wall quickly with pencil to start a wall painting as well, or just for decoration. Now that's one of the things I would like to do.

Bizarre packages

As I look through stumble upon, I see lots packaging posts as well. In this page, there are the good and the bad packages. 

With this egg package, I think that it's very inconvenient. I mean it looks cool, but who is really going to buy eggs one by one in a package like that and it probably will cost a lot just because of the packaging. 

 This one is apparently a wine can. I feel like it doesn't really suit the product well. It looks like you would be using that for your barbecue or something. The package feels like its too bold for the product.

I see Doritos always come up with new flavours and packages, but never seen a huge package like this for the amount of chips they actually put in there. It takes up so much space on the shelf and who really wants to carry around a big box to eat chips?

So those three packages are the ones that really stood out to me in bizarre packaging way when I was just looking through this page, which you can also find the links for.

Ceilings

I really like having nice decorations in a home. I don't like it plain but with a twist to it. This post is all bout ceiling decors. Sometimes they can get very crazy looking but there are very nice, modern and classic ones too. Here are some of the ones I really liked and spoke to me the most.

I really like the one different colour black right in the middle where the chandelier is hanging from. It adds a very contemporary touch to the whole design.

 For some reason, I like the wood panels for the ceilings the most I think. They look so classic but yet modern. and Especially if you have a bit taller ceilings than usual, they look fantastic.

As interior design is improving every year, I think the designs might get more classic to give people the feel of the older times maybe. Even, though everything gets more of a modern touch all the time, the classic looks will be more demanding.

Print?

So, I have been doing some research on death of print lately. There are so many different views on it as people who are into design know. I feel like even if print is coming to an end, it will come back again in the future and will be a repeat of the past. Internet is just what everyone is all about right now.. but eventually people are going to be uninterested in it and would want to see print more again. What is going to happen when technology can't get any better than it already will be in the future? Just because internet is the new cool thing that gets better and better everyday, I feel that its the consumers that are also making "the end of print" happen. Yes its great for new technology to be created and everything, but why everything be digitalized? Do we need it? I don't think so. Everything is based on wants. People are going to realize when it is literally the end of print in the future and maybe have more control over printed goods like books, magazines, newspapers, etc. I know I still like to read the actual newspaper than just look at the computer screen and read it, especially magazines. I know you could talk about death of print on and on, but this is just my view on the things I've read so far. 

Book carvings!

Who thought you could do such nice carvings on books.. Well I came across a page that has photos of some awesome book carvings. http://www.stumbleupon.com/su/2OceD5/:LsjYPBxu:bkFEKavs/www.thisiscolossal.com/2011/12/carved-book-landscapes-by-guy-laramee/
I really think that this is pretty cool and unique. Its amazing what you could do your designs on whether its carving on book or with clay or just on paper.

Pizza Vending Machine

This has got to be the most interesting thing I have seen before. Too bad it isn't available all over the works , but only in the UK so far. It's called "Let's Pizza". I saw this on a TV show called "How It's Made" and I couldn't believe that there is such a thing. It' basically a vending machine that makes a pizza in less than 3 minutes. It even has the options for having different pizza toppings.
Here's the website : http://www.letspizza.co.uk/
Or Youtube: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=B4_C1BmT-R8&feature=related
I don't know if this is healthy even though it says "fresh ingredients" but it is a very interesting idea that has been actually put out there. I guess you can never guess what else could be invented with growing technology and design in the future.

Food Photography

I got introduced to a new project to work on with photography, its food photography. As usual, doing some research to see how I could shoot such nice photos. Here's a video from youtube that was actually interesting enough to watch and not boring about food photography that might be helpful for other people as well. http://youtu.be/xpS10LFmilc It's insane how much prep work goes into this. But then its exciting to see what you can learn from a simple video on photography and try it yourself to take professional photos. And here's a page of delicious looking food photography! http://www.stumbleupon.com/su/7iqmiY/:17CMT!l$a:aJvW93qf/punchfork.com/top/vegetarian/

Apple Vending Machine?

Ok so this is very weird video I found on Youtube.. Its a vending machine that carry's Apple products. I feel like its a cool idea, but makes people so lazy to go to the store. And how do you even know this is a safe vending machine that people won't just break the glass and steal instead? Or what if your card gets stuck in it and doesn't come back out when you need it... I feel like this is kind of silly... but never know, some people may like this idea. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=p_V5UPqX-Cc&feature=endscreen

Logos!

We see logos everywhere, wherever we look. But do they all look nice and look like they are really "working out" for whatever the logo is for. Some people think of making logos that have to be crazy busy looking to get peoples attentions. But instead the logo should be:
- kept simple
- engaging the audience with a simple message
- able to carry this logo on for the future too
- vector based
- adaptable to anything
- memorable
- working well with colours
- unique.
These are some tips I follow myself for making logos, so hope it helps out others who are in the graphic design business too!

Stumble Upon

So I recently decided to just sign up for Stumble Upon. I've seen my best friend have it but never really got interested until I started school again this year. Its interesting and you get spend hours on it unfortunately. I came across this one page as I kept stumbling, http://www.stumbleupon.com/su/16yexA/:1JtbMJhXm:aORm-Xg_/koalastothemax.com/?aHR0cDovL3d3dy5hbWlyaWdodC5jb20vYWxidW0tY292ZXItdGhlbWVzL2ltYWdlcy9hbGJ1bS1CcmFuZC1OZXctRGVqYS1FbnRlbmR1LmpwZw==/ click or copy the link and I hope it shows the website. Its designed pretty cool, anyhow its interactive but you don't have to click anything. Its an image that stores off with one brown dot and it breaks up into more smaller dots and different colours. I wish I knew how todo something like that. I thought this was very unique. Hope you like it too!

phone design

So as many people have already seen on Apple's website recently, there's the new iPhone 5. It has changes on its size when you compare it to the previous iPhone 4 models on the website. When you look at how long this phone is now, would you still buy it? With phone designs, companies tend to go with bigger screen, and thinner body. What about the phones that used to fit in the hand perfectly and in your pocket perfectly with the flip up screens and all? As the new models keep coming out, people are designing them bigger and bigger. Why do we need them with so many features when all you do is talk and text on it. I feel sometimes that the cell phones that are designed these days are taking over the purpose of computers and laptops. In my opinion, I don't hate the new iPhone but I don't know if I like it either, I guess we have to see when you actually hold it in hand. What do you guys think?

http://technorati.com/technology/gadgets/article/iphone-5-apple-reveals-unlocked-phones/

website design

There are thousands of websites out on the internet but not all of them look like they are ready for people to navigate through. Some websites, you can’t even click on anything to go to another page, and some just have things flashing in your face. So, here are some tips I find helpful to make a website:

- include a menu on every page, no one really likes to click the back button 10 times to go to the original page

- don’t put pop ups in your website, we all know how much people hate this, including myself

- don’t put too much information on the website, this is not a novel or an essay, so keep it simple

- put some thought into organizing the pages, the colours, the places of text and maybe pictures

- don’t make your pages very long, no one wants to scroll down forever to get to the bottom of the page

- if you want to put pictures on the website, please don’t put some flashy pictures that are just distracting and makes you not want to visit this website ever again

- have spell check, websites should look professional if you want to keep your business running of course

These are just a few basic points to start building up a website. In the end you should just keep it simple and clean. :)

architectural

When moving from a townhouse to an apartment, there are a lot of adjustments to do, space wise. I feel like the designs made for apartments are not worth the price we pay to rent them. I have lived in apartments way before I came to Canada anyway but I just find them very poorly designed. The one I just moved into recently has closets only in the rooms, which is only 2 closets, in a whole apartment! They don’t have enough storage space, the way the floor plan is done, oh especially the interior design aspects of it too. What also sucks is that you can’t really change the colours for the walls, which makes me feel like I just live in a white carton box. I would like to give the apartment my own touch with my creativity and maybe do a design on the wall. The bad part besides the designs of these places are that the price we pay for it. Maybe for some apartments its great, but for some small apartments, I don’t understand why they ask for such high price.. anyone else agree with me?