Door Decor – Final Collage

For this assignment, I used my personal business Haute Home Alaska.  I knew I wanted to hit the Pinterest and DIY audience. I envisioned a collage that engages the audience within three seconds, so they would be inspired to ‘pin’ the photo and/or come back to visit the Haute Home Alaska blog for additional tutorials and instructions.
 

It was suggested to make the collage vertical as to utilize the space better on Pinterest.  From here I used a chalkboard photo and rotated it to a vertical position.  To offset the dark background I decided a white chalkboard-esque font would contrast the best.  The rustic vintage look is very popular on Pinterest right now.  I made the title, or catchphrase, in all capitalization and used a lower case chalk font for the bottom subtitle, which explains more detail of the overall concept and purpose of the collage.

I decided to embed a variety of photos to showcase a few select sample wreaths.  I introduced two different photos in the final collage that was not in the draft collage. I wanted to use just three photos in the collage but in order to see the pictures on a vertical background, it made more sense and looked better to center four photos similar in size. The photos were my own to avoid any copyright issues.
 

I adjusted the photos’ size, hue, saturation, vibrancy, etc.  I cropped and sized them similar to each other and created a 5pt white stroke layer for a finished look. As per feedback, I also wanted the photos large enough to fit the space but show more detail than in the original. I also wanted them to make their own statement on the off chance the pinner was too lazy to read the titles (I am very guilty of this).

 

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Haute Home Alaska v2.0 – Final Logo Design

Haute Home Alaska (HHA) started as a side business staging and decorating homes and has blossomed into different home decor niches than originally anticipated.  To compete with the different markets that Haute Home Alaska is projected to be involved with the company needed a brand redesign and the first step was the logo.

The initial logo, a graphic artist high school friend created for me made 2+ years ago, looked like this

 

Looking at the current logo there isn’t anything other than the name to distinguish this as a home decor business.  While I love that peacock, I do not think it is providing a cohesive message with what the business provides and the other areas the company wants to explore.  I wanted something the exudes a timeless and chic look where one would be able to look at the logo and know it is related to Interior Design.

My first step was starting with a chandelier. I found this chandelier tutorial online and followed it but towards the end of the video, I decided on adding an extra set of candles and pearls to increase the fullness of the chandelier. I made the Chandelier smaller in size to focus more on the HHA text. At this point, I downloaded the ‘Chopin Script’ and centered it under the Chandelier. I used this font because the cursive script hangs down a little lower than the rest of the text and allows for me to place a line under it to mimic the photo.

From here I create a line from the end of H in Haute to extend to the E. I increased the stroke and changed the color. I copied the line and without changing it placed it under the H in Home so the line was a mirror image. The extra overlap of the line allows me to place ALASKA underneath it. I put a space in between each letter in Alaska to space it out underneath the line correct.

 

Puppy Proof Audio Final

How do you tell an audio story when your subject is your side home décor/designing business? Home décor is so visually concentrated it’s hard to break away from pictures or art of some sort. I started going back and forth between making a radio advertisement and telling a story.

I came up with a script explaining details of comfortable furniture. Buttery leather, rose-scented candles, colorful geometric prints, etc…but it didn’t flow right. I couldn’t just sit there and describe a room for a couple of minutes with no pull into the story and try and advertise from that. Boring! So I decided to do a little bit of both.

I came up with telling a story about bringing a new dog into the family (I don’t have any children at this juncture in my life but my children have paws). I’m sure most people have issues decorating their space or keeping their furniture nice while having a teething puppy running around gnawing on wood stools or shedding all over the place. I decided to explain a little bit about why someone would want to have a new pup. What could happen when you don’t put things up/out of reach of an unattended dog? Finally, what are some steps you can take to make sure all the rooms in your house are “puppy-proofed” and a link to my website for more information?

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DIY Wood Pallet Sign Video Tutorial

I started this Final Video Project off with the idea that Haute Home Alaska wants to expand into the DIY/Blog/YouTube Universe.  The company has gotten many requests and questions regarding DIY projects around the home.  We felt the need to address these DIY questions head-on by starting a video tutorial series that allows crafters to watch the video and work at their own pace.  Recently, an old coworker of mine asked me to make a shabby chic wood door sign for their Revive Hair and Skin Boutique so that customers could locate their door easier in an office building layout.

 I added the happy whistling music I found on Soundcloud (cited in credits) into the background of the video. It is peppy and I think it conveys a happy ‘whistle while you work’ aura.  Since the initial music wasn’t long enough I had to add it a few times and adjust the audio so there were not abrupt stops between the song repeating/replaying itself.

I thought seeing a tangible list of materials needed for the project and photos of the actual materials I used would be beneficial for the viewer. It also breaks up the monotony of the video. In between the photos, I added video transitions and I used the rate stretch tool for a segment of the video that is pretty redundant. I think the different levels of pace help keep the viewer entertained/involved. I followed the video with a shot of the completed REVIVE sign I created and added rolling credits.

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