Charity Posters.

The new year has started with some new posters for the charity I volunteer for, Action for Family Carers. These posters are similar to the designs for the same event last year, with a few amendments.

It has been quite tricky to finalise these, as due to my and their office hours we are not able to communicate in person so we keep going back and forth by email. But it's worth it when we have a finished design :)

Charity Posters.

It's been a while since I was asked to do some work for Action for Family Carers, a local charity that I volunteer for. However, they have asked me to design some posters for a club night, and here are the three initial ideas I sent over to them:

They're nothing too out there, it's only a small charity so simple works best. The wording was all provided so unfortunately I can't cut it down because it seems like quite a lot for a poster.

I've enjoyed doing design work again, I've kind of lost the drive to keep designing in my spare time. I'm constantly looking for jobs in design but I'm also lacking confidence in my ability and they don't make a good combination! I still have faith that I'll find the right role for me though, and that's what's important.

Feeling Lucky?

Well apparently I didn't blog about the previous lucky dip posters I designed for Action for Family Carers, but oh well. I've redesigned them anyway for the next fundraising event they have in December, hence the Christmas theme.

As well as the twelve week Christmas countdown I've started on my photography blog, 27 Kodak Moments, I'm feeling particularly festive right now...and there's still 12 weeks to go! I'm also determined to make my own decorations this year. I did a few last year and I've bought the materials for a few ideas I have, so watch this space for posts about that! I don't want to start too early though and be fed up of christmas before we even get to December!

Anyway, what do you think of the posters? It was a bit of a struggle to get the logo to fit in!

FUNdraising.

You might have seen my previous fundraising posters I designed for Action for Family Carers, well they've decided they want something a little more fun and lighthearted so I've sent them over this idea:

Quiz Time.

On this blog I've talked quite a bit about Action for Family Carers, the charity I volunteer my design services for. Well they've now given me something else to work on - a poster for a quiz night.

Below are some ideas.

Idea 1

Kinda expected I suppose to incorporate a question mark into a poster about a quiz night, but this uses the colours of the charity's logo and keeps it quite simple - something I think is important to a small charity.

Idea 2

This idea also uses the same colour scheme, which I also previously used in the posters looking for fundraising volunteers.

Idea 3

This is just a different colour scheme to the idea above; it uses the same colours and circle motif as previous posters I designed for the jumble sale.

(On a side note about the jumble sale, posters for this are now up in various supermarkets and other locations around Essex. Exciting!)

Idea 4

This was was just a bit wacky! Thought I'd try something different but I don't think I like it very much.

I don't know which is currently my favourite, but definitely not idea 4! Any thoughts?

Fundraising.

I've been designing for the charity I volunteer for again, Action for Family Carers.

They loved the posters I did last week for the Jumble Sale, so this time they wanted some to attract people to fundraise for the charity. Here's my initial ideas:

All pretty similar, but they stick with the colour theme from the logo, as well as the bright bold, colours and simple shapes similar to the Jumble Sale posters and other posters I've designed for them in the past.

I'm going on holiday on tuesday so these were just a quick thing before I go, but I'm still going to send them off for feedback and make the necessary amendments (I made up the wording, and even though I write for a living I don't think it's very good!)

Unjumbled.

I did a post last week on some posters I was designing for a local charity, well now they've come back to me with feedback and here's the updated versions:

They liked all three of these, so I've tweaked them with the extra details they needed and added the charity's logo. Very pleased with the outcome of these, they'll be going in my portfolio and I hope they bring in more interest for the charity!

My Mind's a Jumble.

It feels like forever since I've done a full post relating to graphic design, and it probably is, so here's one now!

The charity I volunteer for, Action for Family Carers, is having a jumble sale and have asked me to design some posters to advertise it. I don't have all the information going on them yet, so they're a bit sparse, and they want three - 1 as a general advertisement for the sale, 1 recruiting volunteers and 1 asking for donations for things to sell. I don't know if I should have just one poster and change the wording or have three variations on one theme. I'll send them off to the charity first though and see what they think.

So here's my initial ideas:

I did a google search for 'jumble sale' and it came back with a lot of ideas incorporating bunting, so I've tried to use that in my designs as well. This one is a combination of bunting and string lights, but I'm not sure how much I like it yet.

This one was based off a similar idea I found during a google search.  l like bright, bold colours, and hopefully that means it'll draw the eye and get more volunteers and donations.

I don't really like this one very much, it was based off a similar idea on a t shirt, but doesn't work so well on the triangle (which was meant to be like an individual piece of bunting) and I think it would need a lot more text to look good. I therefore don't think I'll send this one off to them for consideration.

This one is a bit more simple, which I think they'll appreciate. It's only a small charity after all!

This one took me ages but I don't like it especially much. I think the idea comes across well (a jumble of the letters in the words 'jumble sale' at the bottom) but it still feels like there's something missing.

Any thoughts?

Charity Ball.

I probably mentioned somewhere on here before that I do some volunteer graphic design for a charity, Action for Family Carers. Anyway, they have an upcoming ball that I designed a poster and some tickets before :) quite simple design, but I think also quite elegant, considering they're for a ball!

Crafts and Christmas Shopping.

Busy weekend so far! I met with Tom from Action for Family Carers this morning, went through my poster ideas. He really liked the designs, just a few little tweaks now before handing them over :)

My grandparents are here to stay for the weekend, the boys went the football (loyal Norwich supporters!) while me, mum, my sister Sophie and my gran, who we call Gar, went to Altons Garden Centre. After a yummy, yummy lunch we went for a look round the christmas shop, and ended up spending over an hour there! Oops. We go every year though and it just gets better and better (and bigger and bigger!) I took a load of photos there on my SuperHeadz Blue Ribbon Camera, so I don't have much to show now.

This little display was so, so beautiful though that I had to share it (excuse the rubbish quality of my phone camera :S it really doesn't do it justice) I'm going to recreate the tree idea below for our front porch; a branch spray painted white, but with lights wrapped round it and a little owl decoration I have hanging off it. We have a strict gold colour scheme for the main tree and decorations, so it's hard to be creative with, but we're going to hand make some decorations out of fir cones and cinnamon sticks and the like, so it'll have more of an earthy feel. We're also getting a real tree for the first time in well over 10 years, so I'm really excited for that!

Of course I had to buy something!

I have a bit of a key obsession, so this little decoration was perfect!

I also got this ice cream shaped decoration. I think it's so amazing, but it's made completely of glass so I'm really scared to do anything with it! Haha plus I don't exactly have anywhere to put it anyway :S The crafty things I keep making are taking up all remaining space in my room!

So, moving onto what I've made today:

 This was meant to look like a russian doll, but it didn't really work too well :S still kinda cute though, but I need to work on getting the shape right and mix up the pattern a bit.

I also made this super cute gingerbread man decoration, out of card and cross stitching. Definitely going to have to find somewhere to put it this christmas!

Another project that's in development, from an idea in the Christmas Craft book my mum got. Just need to dig out some string to finish it off.

Finally, I have so many films building up now :s really need to get into town to get them developed. My SuperHeadz camera (after today) only has about 2 photos left on the film so that'll be done soon (the ones with 'B' on the lid are also from this camera, it's been used a lot recently!) my Juicebox Camera also only has a couple of photos left, and that'll be the first print since I got the camera, so I'm really excited to see how that turns out!

I'm going to a car boot sale tomorrow for like the first time ever, so no doubt I'll use up the films there!

Tombola, Face Painting, Balloon Modelling!

I'm meeting with the head fundraising volunteer from Action for Family Carers (who I volunteer for) today. He lives in the same village as me, so that works out rather well! I'm going to present to him my ideas for the three posters for the 'Make Maldon Magical' christmas fair.

Here are my three posters:

I'm not doing my usual take-more-than-one-design thing, I don't think it's really necessary for this situation. Plus there's still another week before the fair so there's time to make amendments if necessary :)

Designing for Charity.

I spent today at Action for Family Carers, a local charity providing support and information to unpaid carers. I've signed up as an admin volunteer, but I will mainly be designing posters and such for events and advertising.

On December 3rd is the 'Make Maldon Magical' christmas fair, and AfFC have a stall there. They asked me to design three posters, one for each of the fundraising activities; a tombola, face painting and balloon modelling. I took my macbook along to their offices; they only have PCs with no design software and I couldn't cope with that! Haha anything I did had to be able to be transferred to Microsoft Word though, so I used Adobe Illustrator to design the graphics, then laid it out in Word (I'd have preferred to use InDesign, but say if they want to use the same design next year but just update a few things, they wouldn't be able to do that if I'd only done it in InDesign, and I like to cater to their needs :) )

So I had this idea to use stars, in the shape of a christmas tree (well half a christmas tree anyway!) so as well as being unique to each activity, there would be a recurring theme throughout and it would be slightly christmassy. These are the first couple of ideas:

The three posters will be displayed all in a row so I was thinking they could be designed so that when they're next to each other they'll make a whole christmas tree between two of the posters, but I have no way to guarantee which order they'll be put on the display boards, and the stars probably wouldn't line up too well either. 

Another idea in development for the ballon modelling poster, a christmas tree made from balloons:

(I'm very proud of this! Designed in Illustrator)

Everything in this post is in development, so please excuse the unfinished designs!

Charity Christmas Cards.

The christmas cards I designed for the NET Patient Foundation are available to buy here :)

My mum ordered a load and they arrived today! They're a lot bigger than we were expecting, but still normal delivery size so that's good. And something clearly went wrong before they got to print because the quality's not great, and it definitely wasn't my design that was LQ, but never mind, they still look good :)

It may be in tiny letters on the back of the card, but my name is on there! That's what I was hoping for :)

Now let the commissions roll in.......haha!

~

The other design that was available along with mine that was by Baudine (see it in this post) has now sold out. I guess people favour the more traditional when it comes to Christmas, which is completely understandable, but I'd like mine to sell out too! Haha but seriously, it's really good fundraising for the charity if more can be sold. I think some of my friends will be buying some, all my family will be getting them from us and I know my brother's girlfriend has ordered a pack, so it's all really good awareness for the great work the charity does :)

Now Available!

The christmas cards I designed for the NET Patient Foundation have gone into print!

I feel so privileged that all three of the designs I sent it have been chosen to be printed, and offer a modern alternative to the more traditional scene available by another artist.

This charity means so much to my family. This rare form of cancer needs more recognition. It is the form of cancer that Steve Jobs just lost his battle with so hopefully it'll be getting the support it deserves very soon.

Anyone in the UK can order the cards from the NET Patient Foundation website.

(I'll be buying them, but will probably end up keeping them for my portfolio rather than sending them out! Haha)