What is Good // Bunting // Packaging

In order for people to buy the product, it has to look good on the outside as well as the inside. 

For the packaging I have gone for a hand-crafted style which works for the brand and the product.  To keep the costs to a minimum I have avoided printing large amounts, so the information will come printed on a tag.

The packaging is prepared and ready to wrap the bunting.

My progress so far:  3 down, hundreds to go!

The packages so far:

Stamp It// Revisited

The re-designed stamps are less scary however I don't think they have as much impact as the previous design.  

Revisting the Stamp Brief

Below is the start of my re-design of the stamp brief.  I don't particularly like them like this.  I intend to add text and play around with colours and scale more to achieve a better overall outcome.

RSA// Stamp it - Crit Feedback

The images are a bit too severe and sinister, something softer and more playful is needed to lighten the overall mood.  The language is also severe.

I intend to draw up some more toys and hopefully make them less eerie/scary, also I shall soften the colours, perhaps use pastel colours and see if I can find a more suitable typeface.

RSA// Stamp it - Design Boards

RSA// Stamp it - Images of Designs

Final Images of the stamp and first day cover design.  Hopefully before module submission I will have them printed off from the good printers in the digital print studio.

RSA// Stamp it - Development of Yellow Stamp

When it came to printing the final designs, I realised that the white text saying 'Donate unwanted toys to Charities' was small and hard to read.  I've been playing around with the layout and point size however I still find it slightly illegible so I intend to darken the colour.

Queen with Troll Hair.

I designed this image to feature on the stamps as I thought it would make them more playful, I then became worried that it was not suitable and perhaps was an 'offence' to the Queen.

First Day Cover

Outside of Cover:

Inside of Cover:

RSA// Stamp brief - Basic Design Idea

This is not the final outcome, more of a visual brainstorm.

I've used muted darker versions of the primary colours// childish colours which gives the stamps an eerie look and they're almost uncomfortable to look at, especially the rag doll.  I think these designs are almost war-like (because of the structured text) and give off the wrong impression.  

I decided to change the format of the stamp and picked the 37x35 size as it is easier to fit the text into it.  I hope that the white lettering on bright backgrounds enforces impact.  I still want to create the images of toys myself instead of using the live-traced ones I have used so far.

RSA// Stamp It Brief... Further Development

RSA// STAMP IT - Design Sheets

Feedback from Critique:

Theme:  Wide Range of idea's that are quite varied.

Clear:  Not completely sure which way it is going yet but plenty of things thought about.  Like the plastic bag idea, Wide range target audience, just need to focus.

Visuals:  Lots of illustrations, like the idea of the stamp templates.

A lot of research and idea's

Makes sense visually

How will the information/message fit into the small space with text?

Great concept - explore primary colours to highlight child aspect further.

Explore hand drawn british illustrators to connect the children's toy with the illustrations on the stamps.

There is no set theme, there are a couple of concepts.

The only thing that stands out as clear is the re-using things.

Very visual and detailed

Theme:  Unclear set idea, however strong initial idea's

Produce more visuals, then develop one idea and concept

Illustration theme could work well, needs developing

Donate unwanted toys? Interesting concept - unique and original

Re-use toys idea is quite cool and unique

Save the tree's is a cool idea.  Tree's would be good visually as you can recognize them straight away.

RSA// Carbon Footprint Issues

Step 1: How Big Is Your Carbon Footprint?

Before you can reduce it, you need to know how big it is. The average person in the UK causes the emission of 13,000kg of carbon dioxide equivalent gases per year. The global average is 5,800kg, in India it’s around 1,300kg. There are various ways of measuring your carbon footprint. Usually they’re made up of a series of scores, such as Transport score, Energy score, Food score, and Waste score. Try this carbon footprint calculator, or this one, this one, or finally this one.

Step 2: Reduce Your Carbon Footprint

1. Turn down your thermostat. Turning your thermostat down by one degree centigrade could save a typical home £49 a year.
2. Close and/or line your curtains to keep in warmth. Setting your heating to turn off one hour before you leave the house and come on half an hour before you get home could save you £51 a year.
3. Turn off lights. Switching off four unnecessary lightbulbs and you could save £32 a year.
4. Turn off standby. Leaving your TV and all accessories attached to it on standby all the time could cost you £46 a year.
5. Turn down and use the half load setting on washing machines and tumble dryers. Washing laundry at 40 to 60 degrees centigrade in your washing machine could save you £12 a year.
6. Don’t boil more water in the kettle than you need to. If you always boil the amount of water needed for one cup rather than boiling a full kettle, you could save £30 a year.
7. Fix leaks as these are not only wasting water but also energy if they’re from a hot water source.
8. Use energy saving lightbulbs to save even more money and energy.
9. Recycle more!
10. Fly less. Train travel is up to 10 x more energy efficient than plane travel. Of course, not travelling at all is even more effective…

Step 3: Save Money and Feel Smug

 Other ideas welcome. If you want some other great suggestions, try our free 100 quick and easy ways to save the planet. If you have less time, try our top 10 tips to reduce your carbon footprint.

Sources: The Independent and Daily Telegraph