1) EDITING IMAGES

For the images, I wanted to give the idea of collaboration, partnership and coming together. So in my head, what's the best to express that than two hands shaking? When you shake some else's hand you agree with them, you talk to them and you create a bond. You don't shake hands to fight with someone. So I developed a theme that two hands shaking, one represents the fashion hand wearing gold rings and a bracelet (one or more) and a technology hand wearing silver rings and a Jawbone. They shake and hold each other. 

I used Lightroom and Photoshop to edit the images. With Lightroom I edited the Exposure, highlights and blacks. I tried not to but loads of contrast and took the saturation down a little bit. I like to use Lightroom to work on the single image and then put into Photoshop to clean the rest. I cleaned all the images I did and picked the best ones, some of them were very dark or after I edited it looked edited. I like to have the images to look natural even though they are not.

I started with this one because I thought it truly meant union and coming together, collaboration. I liked that the background was already white, so cleaning would not be a problem. My first step was cleaning every disturbance around the hands, cleaning some paper marks or shadow caused by them. Being really careful not to cut anything that I shouldn't. 

This one in particular I liked how the hands are and that you can see every single detail of the hand and the jewellery. I wanted to use this image as the main image of the social media profiles. Until I worked a better picture, that is. But I thought this expressed everything that my website is about. Two hands coming together and making the difference. I'm not so sure if people will understand that one hand is fashion and the other is technology, but even though they don't get it, it's an image that relates to the concept of the website. 




This image was different, even though it's a handshake and it expresses quite the same thing, it's not as strong as the first one. I did the same thing with this one, I cleaned the background and cleaned everything around the hands. But this picture was a bit harder then the first one because there was a shadow around the hands, so I was really careful not to cut part of the hand that I shouldn't. The image was crisp and you can see the details but the concept was not effective I think. 



After deciding the image I wanted to use, it was time for me to do some collages and retouching. I started by putting the hands in sequence together and then multiplying them and putting them face to face. So it could create a form, a form of a seam. As if the hands were coming out of each other again and again. The pink background wasn't a first option, but it happened during the experiment. I was initially thinking about having a white background,but it looked a bit boring and simple. So I added pink and I instantly liked. It was a colour that matched the orange of the Jawbone as well as the blue of the other bracelet. 




I've decided to use them as images for my features on the website and as profile pictures for the social media links.

WEEK 8

I've done my videos, images and decided which prototype I'm going to use. So week 8 is all about editing, writing my features and putting everything together into my website so everything can be organised nicely. Now it's time to finalise the website, create the pages and get the events happening in the near future. Creating the social media links and using it, following the right people and sharing the main information. 


1) Features

2) Images 

3) Website

2) FEATURES

I'll have 2 features on my website (at least for now) and one of them is going to be the "welcome" feature, talking about wearables, my website and the point of view of the website. I want this feature to be big and have an impact. It's the first feature, so it should be big and bold, with important words and valuable point of view of SEAMDE. Nothing should left out. It's more of a "reflection" of everything I've read during this project and the conclusions I've come up with. I read loads from fashion and technology and "neutral" publications to have my own opinion and point of view. That is what this first post is all about. 

The second feature is about how we do things there, how we plan to talk about wearables, introduce the website in more depth, tell our plans for the future and what we expect. I think it's important to show what makes our website different then the others and tell how we are handling things there. Otherwise it looks like just another website about technology or wearable technology, and this is not what it is planned to be. 

I've decided to start my website with this two features just to present the website to the world and see how the public responds to the content and then develop a strategy with the writing. Specially so they can go to the twitter and Facebook expecting to find the content that we stated and know exactly what to do. Both posts are going to be featured inside all categories (except events page), so if you go to the page is there and you won't have any doubts about anything. 







WEEK 7

Even though I'm still learning the softwares, I've decided to write my features, plan my images, so I won't be late on the process. My initial plan was to have more but I'll have three features, two videos and 4 images to be used with the features. I've decided not to have videos at this point because I think I wouldn't have time to produce quality video in time, as I'm learning softwares and keeping track of everything I'm doing. I really wanted to do it, but I rather not do it now than have a crappy video. 

So this week, my goal is to plan and organise everything for: 



1) Features 

3) Images 

WEEK 6

Week 6 is more focused on learning the softwares I need to create my website, I'm currently learning html, css and java via lynda.com and practicing so it can go faster. I also downloaded wordpress.org package in case I need a second option. I already have my safe option, but I don't intent to use it until I extremely need it. 

It is harder then I thought and it's easier as well. The structure of the code is quite simple, but when you mix the 3 together it's confusing and if you don't know what you're doing, it can go wrong as well. 

So far is going good, I'm still on schedule and I'm still working on my layout and how to make things work. Also, I'm writing my features and organising the type of articles I want to write. 

- note on the web designer

Initially, I was planning to pay a web designer to create my website. I don't have strong skills when it come to web design softwares, such as Dreamweaver. What I do know is to create a blog with Wordpress. I know how to get a ready template and change it the way I want it to look like, but for my website I was planning to do a bit more. So I've contacted a couple of web designers to research some prices and they were more expensive than I was planning and could afford. So, for financial reasons, I was forced to leave this idea  behind and now I'm creating my own website. I have a problem and I need to break it down, to make it more manageable.


The problem?
I need a website in 3 weeks but I can't afford to pay someone to do it and I know how to change templates online but not how to create a brand new website from scratch. 


Solution? 
Use lynda.com to learn the basics of web design (html, css, java) and use it as well to finish learning Dreamweaver. I started learning a couple of months ago but didn't finish. I can still have 3 weeks to do it. If I focus my first week on learning everything I can use my two weeks left to work on it. So first I should learn the language - html, css, java - there are loads of videos at lynda.com, then I go to Dreamweaver, learn how to do everything there. Create my layout with Photoshop and transfer to Dreamweaver and add the functions I need.


What if it doesn't work? 
I go to wordpress.com and create a website, using their Premium themes, buying a domain and changing everything that I need to make a website look good. I need to find a theme that is adaptable to a full-width so I can have a slideshow or similar, I need a good navigation bar (no menu that you need to click on anything). Everything must the there to easy click. A sidebar with all the content that is secondary and a footer. 

2) USER EXPERIENCE

The user is very important for me, so a design that is really cool for me, might be a total nightmare to someone else out there, so that's why I really need to pay attention to how I design my pages. I want them to be: 

1) Easy to use so you can do everything you intend to do.
2) Clean, so all the informations are organised.
3) Every page should have a clear message, so you know what you're doing at that particular page.
4) Clean images with clean text 
5) With every button leading to where it suppose to. 

With that in mind, I'm adapting my layout to a more "square" theme. In my head I was going a bit nuts and I was using the layout in a way that I thought it could make my pages polluted and confusing. I increased the white space and add a sidebar, something I wasn't planning at all at any point. But it's important to have the main information that needs to be there on every page. Maybe having the calendar there with a twitter feed and maybe a widget with a link to Amazon store. 

I want my website to be a main source for wearables and not only because of the content but because of the amount of information about it. If you ever need anything about wearable you would go first to my site, so my informations need to be put in a way that is unclear. 

With that being said, I'm playing with a 2 column styles or 3 columns and a footer. Every part is important on their on way. The sidebar contains informations such as calendars, twitter/facebook feed or any good and useful content. The footer must contain the icons of social media links or maybe some "feed" links and contact as well. The main area would be where the features are in order or post. So the main ones are first (or inside a slideshow). 

1) PROTOTYPE

Today I did more prototypes for the page, playing with the design and how features are organised on the page. Initially, I was planning to have a slideshow, now I have only features. I took the same approach with the layout, I went and checked seam design and based the design on it. 

I created the design for 3 pages: the homepage, the feature page and events page. The homapage would have have features organised chronologically and a Twitter feed from seamde twitter page with tweets from all over the web about wearable technology, fashion and technology.This twitter feed is suppose to be the magnet of everything on the web about wearable technology from all sorts of sources. It's a less edited content. The feature page would have the articles and a sidebar with possibly: the twitter feed, useful links related to the theme of the article or other older articles. I haven't made my mind yet either if I want the sidebar or not, I don't want the page to be polluted, so I will try it later. White background and simple layout. The events page would have  a calendar with the main events happening in London (initially) with: date+ name and link + where. So a person could click on the link and go straight to the event's webpage with no problem. The events page is where every event is, so if a person wants to know about what is going on around London and the world, they will go straight to it.

All pages would have access to the main page and also links to social media profiles. Which are initially: Facebook, Twitter and Pinterest. Instagram would come later, but it's not the top of priorities. In every page, the archive is also available and the categories are also available in case the person whats to switch to another category. 

To create the layouts I used mainly illustrator and Photoshop, because they allow me to play around more with the images and fonts. The problem I have sometimes is  that when I want to add a different form (like a square for example) I think about the coding part and if it would be good for the user. 

WEEK 5

I have a name, my logo and my layout are on track, so now it's time to find a web designer and do more prototypes for the design. I also need to plan my user experience and how the readers are going to travel around my page and how to make it better for them. It's all about creating the visuals of the pages. So I should do more research on graphic design and visual identity and how to display my images and my typography. 

And combine that research with thinking about the user and how they are going to use my website and what they will get out of it, how they are going to get it and what it would be the best design. 

1) Prototype 

2) User Experience 


- one note for categories

Before, I realised I had one category for fashion but not for technology. That would make my website one-sided. Because I have a Fashion category. So now, instead of having a "News" category I'll have technology. Why "news"? because every feature is a news and they are divided by the other categories on top, so there is no need for it. My goal is to work the news in a way that I can show fashion/technology or design that they need each other. 


3) LAYOUT

Today I did more research on layout designs, but I went offline this time. I head to the library and got every book about layout, graphic design and web design. I checked them, photocopied them and studied them. I learned to be a bit bolder and try different structures than the usual old frameworks online. The challenge now is to find a good web designer to do the website for me. I went to illustrator and photoshop and created loads of different layouts. 

I knew what I wanted, a simple design but with a twist. Something interesting that could pop up the attention of the reader. I checked different fonts and colours, because I'm a big Helvetica fan so it was good for me to try and check other fonts and how they would work with my layout. I changed the initial big slideshow and put more articles instead. My main inspiration was the Dazed website, so I went to others, like Purple Magazine, 032c and made my main colours: black, red and white. 

It made my research more interesting I think and my work in creating the website more enjoyable because I was playing with different things and creating more. It was a good piece of advice. My design now is going to be better. I still struggle with finding the perfect design, but I know this is more me being picky then the actual work. I think I need to focus on the user experience and how they are going to use my website more than following my own creative objectives. It's important to keep in mind the user. 

So, to go a bit deeper in to the user, I got books about UX design and user experience and how to create a website that is good for them to use. I wanted my website to be good and easy to access, so people would know what to do before I even tell them. That's my goal. 

2) LOGO

Now that I have my name I can create my logo. For the logo I planned to use the design of a seam. So first thing I had to do was to research the different types of seams. I went online and start to look online for seams in technology and textiles. So I came across these: 


I didn't know what to expect when I start researching the seams, I won't lie. But once I found these I realised I had loads of room to play around. The styles are quite different, so I went straight to Illustrator and started to apply the lines on different designs. None of them were instantly good of course but at least I felt in the right track. I did that because by playing with the lines, I could create something unique, innovative and interesting. 

This is the first logo design I came up with: 


I particularly liked this design because it was an accident. The original plan was the have a sequence of "xxxxxx" and that was a seam, but after using the "twirl tool" this came to life and I truly liked it so I left it like that. An accident that was good in the end. But that is not going to be the only one, I'll still keep playing with it.