The Snow Storm May Have Shut Down Europe, but it Didn't Stop My Capstone Progress

Although my flight home from Holland was scheduled for 17 December 2010, I was not able to board the plane until 27 December 2010. Unlike in the States, Europe is unaccustomed to inches upon inches of snow covering its streets, houses, trees and so on. Luckily for me, I had befriended a lovely Dutch family that was glad to share their Christmas with me. And even though I did not have my usual design resources, I was not about to let a little snow stop me - after all I am from Ohio!

 I will detail my winter break in two parts:

• Capstone Goals
• Dealing with the Snow

Part I: Capstone Goals

1. Bakery Identity
 Why do people visit bakeries when supermarkets have so much variety? Bakeries offer extra quality and customer service that sets them apart. I want my bakery to be known for hard work, fresh ingredients, and good quality food. Everything is handmade and any left overs are used for the greater good (i.e. as food for livestock) rather than thrown out. 

 
2. Materials for Presentation
Lucky for me, my dad works for a bakery and my cousin is a baker! I spoke to both of them over break and found some great websites from which I can begin ordering packaging:

• Innovative package design from Fabri-Kal
• Moresco for biodegradable and compostable packaging
• Aleece also told me about Nashville Wraps, which has tons and tons of packaging products - I really like the idea of having little windows in the bags to display the product

3. List of Bakery Items to Design
In addition to various types of packaging, I would also like to design the bakery's

•  logo (I would like to use a wordmark)
• serving/sample plate(s)
• labels
• order form
• store layout
• wall menu
• award (the greatest way for a bakery to advertise is by entering contests and winning awards)
• apron
• signage (store, "road")

4. Test Run of Fake Bread (If I just leave a bunch of loaves in the gallery they will get moldy/stolen!)
My mom actually found an alternative recipe to preserve bread instead of make fake bread. We tested it and it really works. I will try this on other pastries, and I may also purchase some fake pies.

Considering the unpredictable circumstances, I am proud that I was still able to accomplish all of my winter break goals! Now, just for fun....

Part II: Lauren in de Sneuw/Lauren in the Snow

The snowman I built with my Dutch family!

Christmas Market in Aachen, Germany

Beginnings of the Christmas Tree Hunt

One of the Famous Dutch Windmills

I Chose the Christmas Tree!

Bakkerij De Renet Decorated for Christmas

Even the Rooster Liked the Snow!

Snowball Fight with the Neighbors

The Tree Decorated with Lights and Candies

Me on Christmas Day

Bakkerij De Renet

I could think of no better time to be researching bakeries than during the holiday season -warm hearts, sweet treats, twinkling lights, and more importantly (at least for the Dutch), Sinterklaas.

Sinterklaas is celebrated on the eve of December 5 as Dutch children place their wooden shoes near the fireplace in the hopes of waking to find small gifts, candies and even a humorous poem waiting for them. This holiday is filled with songs and all sorts of delicious treats. This being said, I found it quite the privilege to be invited to the Bakkerij De Renet, perhaps the most favored bakery in the entire province of Limburg, as they finished up their Sinterklaas festivities and prepared the store for Christmas.

Besides the obvious - breads, pies, and cookies, - one of my favorite aspects of Bakkerij De Renet is their core value of customer satisfaction. Every product in the bakery is fresh and made by hand. What's more: every design aspect that has gone into the bakery's identity since day one has been crafted by the store owner!

Visiting Bakkerij De Renet was a fantastic way to begin formulating ideas for my package design (which will be a huge part of this project) and see what goes on behind the display cases.

Seals give a professional and personal feel

So typically Dutch!

I love bread baskets - especially those that are woven

The height of the display cases is an important factor to take into consideration

My Immense Dislike for Mondrian Helped Me Find Peace

 After today I will no longer despise the childlike line drawings that I associated with Piet Mondrian. Truly, it was his not-so-simple simplicity that saved me.

Composition with yellow, blue and red; 1942

As the above slide clicked into place on the projector during my late afternoon art history class, I had to refrain from letting out a sigh of disappointment. I have never really been the biggest fan of Piet Mondrian. In fact, I didn't even consider his work real art - until today.

In short, I learned that Mondrian's work is virtually impossible to re-create and have it be believable. His paintings are comprised of hours of building grids and finding balance; yet his complex ideas appear so simple.  
That's it! I thought, as I sat in class. I really needed to stop making things so hard on myself. During my bike home that evening, I again returned to the drawing board. My top three ideas were laundry detergent, voting ballots/government documents and food. Well, the laundry detergent wasn't working. Maybe I could change it to something else dealing with scientific facts? No, no, that was all wrong because I would be making more work for my self. Not only would I have to research the design, but I would have to research the science behind the product as well. The same applied to government documents. I just don't know enough about politics. I was left with food. I didn't really want to do a single food product, so I thought perhaps cooking items would work. Spices, spatulas, the works. But what would I really do with that? Design labels?

So, I thought about how I grew up in a food culture. Huge family meals have always been a large part of our gatherings. We even dance with bread at our weddings (yes, Yanko is Macedonian)! To me, food is one of the greatest aspects of life. And it brings people together; after 5 hour hikes when everyone is exhausted, following an unexpected family death, even when you have been sitting at your computer working for hours on end - out comes the food and suddenly everyone is energized and laughing!

I thought about the value of food and I thought about the activities I have enjoyed in Holland since I have been here. I even tried to remember that this is my project, and I shouldn't worry about if others will like it, but rather if I like it, or rather love it since I will be working on it for a couple months. And then it came to me.

I am going to brand a bakery! Suddenly, a huge weight was lifted off of my shoulders. The nightmare in the back of my head disappeared, and a huge smile appeared on my face. Why had I not thought of this before? What a perfect way to hone up on my corporate identity and packaging skills!


And so the idea was born. I finally have a capstone, and it is one that I will truly enjoy. Thank you, Piet Mondrian - I salute you. Victory, victory - let's dance!

Victory Boogie Woogie, 1944

Learning from Failure

Over the past two weeks, I researched, documented and collected loads of laundry detergent bottles. I talked to biology professors and students about the effects of the detergent chemicals on the environment. I even talked to my advertising professor about designing for other cultures. It wasn't working out.

I had a great idea, but in reality, there wasn't a great way to execute it. After my advertising class on Monday, my professor and I sat down and talked about why designing for cultures no longer works as it used to. He said that as the world becomes flatter and flatter, the more this concept of cultural awareness in marketing diminishes. Of course, there are still minor differences. There are images that aren't culturally acceptable, and certain product attributes that some cultures like more than others, but when it comes down to it, if a business wants to sell its products in multiple countries, they are probably already a global company, and don't really need to change much about their brand.

So, I asked if I should lean more toward marketing a sustainability project. And then he explained and we agreed that you don't really want to market sustainability, but rather it should be a value that a company has for itself.

After our discussion, I raced home on my bike in the freezing cold and snow flurries, ran up the stairs of my dormitory, threw open the door to my room and sat at my desk in a crumpled ball with my head flat on my laptop. This can't be happening, I thought. This is capstone. How can I be in such a horrible lost mess at the end of November? What am I going to do?

I brainstormed for the next hour, went back to my sketchbook with my original list of product ideas and thought how I might be able to make something else work. By midnight I was still searching for a solution, but I thought it was best to rest my brain and sleep.

You might think it's odd that I am sharing my struggles with capstone, but I find it very fitting. This blog was created to show my process throughout my capstone. That includes the stress points. Great designs, like most things in life, don't always work out. And by George, sometimes you have to fail in order to learn and grow. Yes, my proposal turned out to be a total drop in the bucket, but I am glad I realized it now instead of next semester.

We are given such a huge amount of time to do capstone because good design takes time. Our professors know we are going to face many challenges (and that is partially why you should pick a capstone you love), and that in the end, our projects may be entirely different than we thought they would. And my capstone will be entirely different, because I am going to start fresh.

And you know what, I think it's a good thing.

Laundry-list

Lately I have been making "laundry-lists" rather than shopping-lists. Every time I make a run for errands, I bring my camera with me and document the packaging for every laundry detergent I can find.

I have come across some brands that we see in the United States, but also some container shapes that I haven't seen before. An interesting fact about doing laundry in Europe compared to the US is that Europe has many more setting options for washing clothes. You can choose from 4-5 different temperatures, and several types of wash cycles as well. You also have about 6 different dyer settings. Europeans think very highly in regards to saving energy and going green.

Of course, the packing is in Dutch, but I am not so bad at reading labels any more!

Robijn detergent in liquid form as opposed to powder

Generic brand detergent - quite simple

Again, generic, but this time for colors. The color choices are rather odd for the generic brands considering what the detergents are used for.

All sorts of different packaging. This is the type I have in my dorm. A lid on the top is used to measure the detergent. I got it for free but I hate the mess it makes!

This one looks familiar...

Another familiar face!

Crystals: an interesting concept. Kind of reminds me of dishwasher detergent.

Help, I Need Somebody!

One biology professor. One toxicology professor [who will be traveling to Central America this December]. One advertising professor [from Canada]. Two design professors [from the United States and Holland].

I am building my network of resources for my capstone. It think that I will have a nice variety of opinions as I begin to develop my brand, and that is reassuring.

Take Two

Finally, a decision has been made!

The Product: Laundry detergent

My choice for my project may not be the most interesting at face value, but I think that the idea behind it is interesting. I want to focus on laundry detergent, and considering cultures and sustainability, laundry detergent could pose many environmental questions. People need to wash their clothes (or maintain decent hygiene in general),but they use different methods of doing so based on where they are in the
world and even how their country views caring for the planet.

I would be interested in portraying how types of laundry detergent could be marketed in different cultures, and maybe also launching a plan for conservation. This would not only show my interests in culture, informational graphics and packaging, but it would also give me a chance to implement another interest, science, as I would have a small focus with the packing on the concern for phosphorous levels in detergents (these get into water systems and cause eutrophication; an overgrowth of algae).

The Next Step: More research

My professor in Leiden wants me to conduct a week or so of intensive research to make certain that this product will work as I try to portray difference in marketing for cultures. I think it will be fun to sneak through stores in Holland with my camera, but I am also anxious to begin the actual design work.

Critique #1

 "The secret of getting ahead is getting started..." Check.
"...The secret of getting started is breaking your complex, overwhelming tasks into small manageable tasks, and then starting on the first one." Oops.

Lately, my focus has been more on what countries I wanted to compare and what I could design than what I will actually be designing. I didn't even realize this until my critique.

I have been considering items that are practical and of value (based on need) in each culture. I have also been thinking of things I would be interested in designing labels, packaging, etc. for. My thoughts so far are shampoo, soap, laundry detergent, underwear, socks, paper, cooking utensils/plates and cups, lotion, towels/face wash, blankets, and hats. I really like the idea of soap or laundry detergent when we are talking about necessities - especially because they can be quite different for different cultures. I also like the idea of using something that has to do with food, like cooking utensils or plates, because it is something that everyone uses and something I am interested in (food). I have also considered working a sustainability component.

Starting now I must put my research on hold and focus on exactly what I am going to make!

Dutch Design Week

I came staggering home late this evening with a massive pile of portfolio pieces, pamphlets and business cards. 9 days. 300 events. Sponsorship from one of the most respected industrial design companies in the business.

My entire day was spent in the city of Eindhoven at Dutch Design Week. I saw senior projects and exhibits from famous designers in Holland. I networked and took photos. I saw work that I loved, and work that I did not care for at all. Perhaps even more important, I began to really think about what type of company I might like to work for.

In regards to capstone, I paid special attention to how the work was displayed. One neat idea at a student exhibition was how the artists' statements were displayed. Rather than hanging them on the wall, they had a thick pad of paper at each exhibit so viewers could tear off a page and either read it off to the side and then return it to the stack before viewing the work (probably a preventative measure for traffic), or keep it to take home and remember about later on. Each page contained the artist's statement, their contact information, the category of design they studied, and also any awards they had received for design. I thought it was a great idea, only the downside of it could result in a messy gallery and lots of littering.


A few other thoughts:

interactive exhibits

artist and title of work at the base of the exhibit

I am starting to see how much of a focus Holland has on its design community, and that is extremely encouraging.

Culture Differences

Right now, I am working to build connections that may help me in this research process - and I am already experiencing culture shock!

My design professor is a very talented man, but I am having trouble explaining the capstone process to him. After our first meeting, he still has not grasped the concept. In Holland, design students often write a thesis rather than show their work. Exhibitions are a separate component of a student's final year, and not necessarily the main project. Therefore, the idea that I will have two whole semesters to complete one project is confusing to him, and he cannot figure out how I will compile such a vast amount of research and design into one final project. Nevertheless, he is working with me to develop a plan to connect with other designers in the area.

In the meantime, I am conducting research by taking notice of advertisements as I explore the city of Leiden. For example, in Holland, packaging often involves less color and titles that are lower case with punctuation. On the other hand, packaging in the United States typically utilizes more color and the product titles and slogans begin with a capital letter and often lack punctuation. Another major difference is that it is much more culturally acceptable in Holland (and Europe in general) to have partial nudity or very suggestive advertisements. In an advertisement for Chanel that you may have seen in America, Keira Knightley holds a hat to cover her chest, whereas in Europe, a pair of suspenders only partially cover her up.

I have a folder that I have begun to fill with brochures, wrappers, and other advertisements from each of the places I visit. Each week I bring the folder to class and discuss some of the items with my classmates. Getting feedback is somewhat difficult because the class is much smaller than I anticipated (There are only two other design students in my class and two drawing students in the classroom next to mine!). Although one of the other design students is a senior, she does not have a required project like mine for capstone, so she can only help so much with feedback.

Sometimes I feel very isolated in my work. I try to ask advice of other friends in Holland, which can be helpful, but it is also nice to receive feedback from other designers. I am doing my best to stay positive and find as many learning opportunities as I can. The good news is that I will be starting an advertising class soon, and that might give me some more inspiration!

OK, Go!

I received feedback on my capstone today! Out of all of my proposals, my classmates thought that my "Design Culture Shock" idea was the best choice. This is the overview:


Proposal: Design Culture Shock

Every day, international businesses face the challenge of selling their products in multiple cultures, all with different values, languages and needs. Where one slogan may have a positive message in the United States, it may be translated negatively when used in China if a company is not careful.

Throughout my travels, I have noticed even the slightest changes in advertising the same product, but in different cultures. This capstone project will focus on the different measures taken to advertise a product in many cultures. It represents my interests in both marketing/packaging and cultural awareness. It is a study I can conduct and develop being abroad in the Netherlands, and one I can discuss with my foreign professors.

For the exhibition, I would like to compare two to three cultures side-by-side. One product, or a small product line would be advertised recognizing cultural differences for different parts of the globe. Universal symbols that are easily understood by most cultures would also be shown. The display would feel as though one was walking down a street or store isle in two to three difference parts of the world. This project would allow me to show viewers the importance of being globally aware, even through design. It would also provide for an opportunity to educate viewers on different cultures in a fun manner.

This project is different than what I have seen before in the senior exhibition, and I think it could turn out to be extremely intriguing. The problem I am having now is deciding on how many countries I want to represent (I am not sure how much time each will take in comparison to a project that is meant for a year), and where to even begin.

I feel that a lot of my research  and my early development on the project will take place during this semester, as it will be easier for me to travel and talk to different types of people. The only research I have done so far is building my own personal collection of advertisements and packages from different products and cultures over the years.

Now that I have a direction, it's time to get started!

Letter to Myself

7 April 2010: a time of new life, fresh air, sunshine...and stress? I don't think so! Today I wrote a letter to my future self - a letter that will arrive just before my capstone presentation.

Since freshmen year I have watched the seniors as they map out, design, set up and stress about capstone. This year, I would like to replace the words "stress about" with the word "celebrate". Of course, I will have to ensure that I stay on track in order for this to happen. My letter to my future self serves as that final, swift kick in the pants that will send me sprinting to the finish line.

Sitting, Waiting, Wishing

"Good things come to those who wait." Although it is a simple (and often true) philosophy, the patience one must have to achieve greatness is sometimes difficult to find. 

I sit at my desk in Leiden, smiling at the thought of today's memories, and at the adventure that tomorrow promises. My capstone proposals have been turned in, and now I must wait for feedback from my peers and professors. This is the difficult part, not because I am dreading the long and meticulous process ahead, but because I am so greatly looking forward to starting such a special project.

Until that time comes, I am sitting, waiting, wishing for patience.

Designing Below Sea Level - if not for the Dykes

I am a kid in a candy store: always curious, wide-eyed, inspired. I can't get enough of the life that surrounds me. My many interests keep me full of energy, and constantly wanting to learn more.

As I sit at my desk drafting capstone ideas, I not only face the challenge of designing something beyond what I may currently feel I am capable of, but I am also confronted with a foreign place in which I must learn to survive for the next four months. 

I take on these challenges knowing that I will encounter many more roadblocks throughout my journey. It is my passion that reassures me that I will find strength in trying times, and the newness around me that inspires me. It is my support system that never ceases to believe in me.

A capstone paired with life in the Netherlands. To me, this semester means adventure, discovery, failure, and growth. I will neither be afraid to push myself, nor to make mistakes. 

I will live, laugh and learn. The result will be one that I am truly proud of.