Beliefs and Messages

Gran and Granddad came as a pair

Sadly yesterday my gran passed away after battling with cancer for 7 months as most people say that 'they lost the battle' I would rather think that they both drew and after all that fighting they were both tired. As I am currently away from home I never got to hold her hand or say a proper goodbye so I have wrote a letter on what I want to say to her. As like others I have grieved before and feel that this will help me personally cope with the lost of a loved one.

Dear Gran

Where ever you are I hope you are with friends, family and your beloved cat Jess who have all passed before you. I know you suffered like me from heights and wasn't keen on flying so I hope that the journey and the view is to your tasting. I have had the privilege of knowing you for a nearly a whole 20 years. When I look back at the time we spent together I normally think about the summer holidays when you were looking after me and we would spend the whole morning baking a chocolate cake, which was you specialty. It is going to be weird not having you around to keep grampy in check with the quick nudge and 'Oh Reg'. You both come in a pair as without one another you look lost which grampy looks like now. He has always said that 'you were lucky to marry him if not you would had been a spinster' well I think the truth be told that you were both lucky to have long loving marriage. Whilst you brought beauty and brains, Granddad brought the alcohol. Talking about the beauty and brains you had them both with you looking like you could be a model and the endless knowledge that you proved to me by completing crossword puzzles in record time or answering on The Chase. In your life you were blessed with having two beautiful children and one not so beautiful child (I leave you to figure who's who). Over the last few months you have taught me 'don't give up until the last breath'. You have put up such as battle and after calling it a draw you deserve a G&T as you bloody deserve it. I will try to look after grampy but something telling me you made the job look easy.

Love you always

The Quiet One

P.S The first crossword puzzle I will complete I will dedicate to you. 


After writing my letter it got me thinking about how certain people change your life. Along the way each special someone has told me or their actions have showed on what they believe is an important to them. I am always interested on where there beliefs originate from; this is normally from someone they look up to such as a family member.

Granny J

Zibby

"Care for any creature no matter how big or small"

This is my housemate and she said this the other day whilst rescuing a slug. Her mother taught this to her from an early age. What she said had made me today save an ant that was in our kitchen as I believe in the butterfly effect that if you change on thing it will effect other. Now I know that saving one measly ant will not change the world but it might have had an important role in the community therefore saving an important member or it might have been lazy either way it lived another day.

Carys

"Think outside the box, the more unique the better"

This is my best friend from primary school so I have known her most of my life. Now she never said any of this, she didn't have too. She is never afraid to try something new either with fashion or actual work, she is always ahead of the crowd doing things that the other haven't even thought of yet. I remember we were being taught HTML and we had to build a website for a project. Now everyone in the class built theirs on HTML whilst she went ahead and done her using Action Script 3.0, the effort she put in defiantly showed and earned her the highest grade.

Dad

"Care for others as you don't know when you might need help. It is best to put others first"

My dad has always said and done this. An example is he always made sure that my gran and granddad were ok such as doing a bit of gardening.

Mum

"Always smile, even when times are tough"

My mum was known for being a smiley person even when in the past she has dealt with some tough situations. She never let people see how sad or angry she was because she was always smiling and helping other people. When she passed away people wrote in the cards how she was a happy person and it was a joy to see her as she was always smiling.

Grampy B

"Don't touch what is not yours"

My granddad always hated people touching things that weren't theirs, such as in a shop a cousin of mine who would always pick stuff up even if he had no interest in it. I feel this saying can relate to a lot of things in life.

Granny B

"Don't let things make you bitter it is best to forgive and forget"

My gran said this to me when I was having a hard time a couple of years ago and this has always stuck in my head. Even though it is hard to let things go it is better in the long run. I have now learnt to forgive people and situations from past which has helped me get where I am today.

Granny J

"Don't give up the fight until your last breath"

When my gran found out she had incurable cancer she was give 3 months to live which led to everyone expecting the worst so we threw a big family party to celebrate her life. She actual made it to 7 months, which was very impressive given her age.

Katy

"Work hard and rewards will come"

My friend has always been hard working with both education and actual work. She currently has two jobs which means she works 6 days a week with the occasional babysitting at night. She was recently nominated and came fourth on the best nanny in Great Britain where she only started full time working as a nanny two years ago. She is incredibly talented at her job and puts so much effort that every around can see what a truly great person she is.

Granddad J

"Always have a laugh. Don't take life to seriously"

My granddad has always been a funny man and still is. He has always said stuff out load before he had time to think about what he has just said. He also has very funny moments that make the whole family laugh such as when my gran was in hospital he had to do some clothes washing for the first time. He put all the clothes in the machine with the right soap but when he had to turn it on and set the heat he was looking at the oven dials, which were next to the washing machine.

Me

"You only know how strong you are when the going gets tough"

I believe in this saying, as you don't realise your actual strength until you need both physically and emotionally. Of course my friends have been through different experiences than I, which you cannot compare but each has tested out their personal strength. I find it amazing that it is hidden away until you really need it.

Gran and Granddad

Infographic Resume

Below is my infographic resume. I first got the idea to create my own when I was on Pinterest looking at infographics. Since then I have loved the look of infographic and have even brought a couple of books that just feature infographic. Infographic makes data visually pleasing, instantly beautiful and more understandable. They were first created for maps, scientific charts and used as a learning tool for children. 

To help create my own infographic resume I got inspiration from Pinterest and created a mood board. I then looked at each individually infographic and choose what was the best feature to help design my own. I then did some rough sketches on some paper of the layout and the each individual section that made my resume. After I started to create each part in Adobe Illustrator. When each section was made I then constructed it in Adobe Photoshop.

Overall I am thrilled with the end result and would happy send this off to design companies when I start applying for jobs. One thing I hope to improve over the summer is my knowledge in the design software Adobe InDesign as at the moment I feel it is quite low compared to the other software. Also if I am lucky enough to get some work experience in the industry I hope to add this section on the top of my resume between education and bio.

Draft Layout 

Draft Qualifications and Bio

Draft Tools

Draft Attributes 1

Draft Attributes 2

Draft Interests

Final Infographic Resume

4 Occasions, 4 Cards

During my first semester in my second year at university I got the opportunity to do a project of my own choosing. I chose to create four greeting cards for four different occasions. The occasions I chose where thank you, birthday, christmas and wedding. I also chose to create two e-cards to make my project digital, I made these cards in Adobe Flash using some Action Script 3.0 to control the actions. I had fun creating the cards however I feel that one of the cards is not to the best of my ability.

Thank You

Below is my thank you card that I designed. Overall I feel that I need to improve this card as I think it doesn't look as professional as the others. With this card I chose to limit the use of colour by only using three colours. This card is in the style of a dictionary entry which I created my own definition. I want to change the colour that I have used as I feel this makes the card look bland and boring compared to other cards being sold in card shops.

Thank You card

Birthday Card

Here is my birthday card that I created using a technique of line art from a magazine tutorial. I began by using my own photo that I took last May at West Wittering beach of the colour beach huts. I then used some filters to make image 2D with the lines being flatten and changing the outline to the colour black. After I coloured in each part of the photo, I did this by selecting individual parts then filling it with the similar colours of the original image. I chose this as a birthday card as I was passionate at aiming this card at males as I believe that cards that are on offer in the shops had similar themes of golf, cars or beer as the main image, I didn't feel this was appropriate as not all males have thess interest so I felt my card was acceptable as it didn't stereotype.

Birthday card

Wedding Card

I chose to design a wedding card as one of my family members is getting married this year which is going to be in Cornwall with the reception being held on the beach. The dress code is beach themed so this inspired me to create a beach themed card. I wanted the card to have subtle hints of love and marriage so when I send the card to them it will be personal. I created this card by sketching out the camper van then creating it in Adobe Illustrator with my Wacom tablet. This was the first time I used the tablet to create anything and was surprised how easy it was to use. Seeing as I am pleased with the card graphic I am not only going to send them the card but also have it printed on a canvas.

Wedding Card

Christmas Card

During my first year at university we had a project where we had to design a christmas card. On my Christmas card last year I designed a penguin in Adobe Illustrator, one of the first things I designed in that program. As I had fun using that software I wanted to create another card that featured another character. I am pleased with how the robin turned out although I did want some other characters featured on the card. I have previously designed a reindeer, penguin and snowman that could have gone on this card.

Christmas Card

My Best Photo's of 2012

I have decided to look back at last year and choose my best ten* pictures of 2012. On each photo I have wrote why I chose them and why I took them.

1. Moon

One day last summer when I was back home, I used my dad's new telescope to test it out and get a chance to look at the moon. When we finally got the moon into the viewfinder I decided to try and capture it with my camera phone. I didn't expect much as I didn't think my phone would focus but after a couple of tries this was the result. I could have changed the composition of the moon but after much hassle finding it I didn't want to move the telescope. I am very pleased with this photo as my hopes weren't high.

2. Painting of a Flower

On a sunny May day I met up with my Dad and decided to go to some local gardens. After a while the heat got to me so I was just pointing my camera and shooting blind. It didn't help with the sun blinding my camera screen so I couldn't see what I was taking until I was home. When I came across this photo it struck me on how much the flower head looks like a painting. I am also pleased on how the pink flower contrasts the dark background giving the photo more depth.

 3. Wax Iris 

This was taken on the same day as the above photo. I choose this photo as you can see the waxiness of the petals on the iris head. I also loved the yellow and dark purple colours as I would have never put them together in any of my design work but after seeing this flower I started to experiment more with colours.

4. Metallic Mallard

I choose this picture purely as I like how the Mallard duck head looks as if it was metallic showing lovely green colours. I took this photo on the same day as photos 2 and 3. However I took this at the start when there was some shade so I could see what I was taking. I tried to align the head more to the left however as it kept moving it seemed that it was always centre.

5. St Michael's Sunset

This photo was taken on one of my favourite evenings of last year. I stayed with my Dad and Grandparents at the start of October for a week in Cornwall, I decided to go on a walk by myself to the beach when the sun was setting. I can literally say it blew my mind and I got some clarity. I wish I could go back to that evening when I was sitting on the wall watching the sea go in and out, the wind surfers reflecting the last sun rays of the day and the sun slowly disappearing behind the headland. This photo instantly brings back the memories of that night. I love the darkness of the mount and the sun hitting the harbour with the gradient blue sky behind.

6. Jersey Cow

This photo was taken on the first day of my holiday in Cornwall. After staying up 27 hours I was quite tired and got bored as my Dad kept making me wait whilst he took photos. During one of these times I was waiting, I decided to try my macro setting on my camera. I like this photo as it is natural and as the cow was sitting down it gave me time to set up the shot.

7. Sea King

Again this photo was captured on the first day of my holiday in Cornwall. I was purely testing out my cameras zoom and didn't expect to capture such as clear shot of a Sea King. I love the stillness of the helicopter as it really does capture a minute in time. I am pleased that the sky was blue that day as it makes the red stand out better than if it was a grey day.

8. Shapes

This photo was taken when I was on a bus tour around Barcelona. I chose this photo as it was simple yet eye catching due to the different shape in the image. I also like the sphere balancing on the edge of this building.

9. 'Love Will Tear Us Apart'

I saw this when I was visiting a cornish mine on a bleak grey day. Not only was the position of the quote perfect (on a wall that was half demolished) but it got me thinking wether it was true or not. I came to the conclusion that it was partly true. Sometimes when you love something so much it can overshadow your instincts and make little things 10x more worse than they really are.

10. Behind Enemy Lines

I took this photo on the last day of my holiday in Cornwall. This photo was taken at RNAS Culdrose in the afternoon where I got to see a lot of flying action. I like this photo as the colours are bleak just like a war zone and the barbed wire in the foreground to show the harshness. Seeing as I was in competition with my dad for the best photo of the helicopter I think I won hands done as this photo has emotion of a war.

11. Casa Soldiers 

This photo was taken when I went to Barcelona with my Gran last year. I chose this photo as it is one of the best memories of last year. I enjoyed it so much that I keep thinking back to it and I am tempted to book another weekend break away with my Gran this year. I love these soldiers head sculptures by Gaudi as I felt that they look abstract but you can still tell what they are meant to be. As well the view from Casa Mila overlooking Barcelona was amazing. 

*have added an extra photo that was featured in a previous blog about my time in Barcelona.

2013 Goals

Resolution is a term that I am not keen on. In previous years I have had new years resolutions, that I had hoped that I would stick to, however I always seemed to lose interest. I feel that is partly due to the fact of the pressure and that in the middle of January there is always a new report saying that most people have given up on their own resolutions, so I start to think what is the point. Instead this year I have changed the word to goals as I feel this sounds more achievable and not so scary. I have tried not to have goals that I knew that I wouldn't achieve. I have made my personal goals quite easy to help improve my design work and my life. I have chosen ten goals although I feel that I won't complete all of them but if I have at least accomplished three of them, then I will know that 2013 will have been a success.

1. Life after University

As I start my final year of my course this year I feel that it is time to start thinking about what I want to do after university. There are already two ideas of what I could do, these are either stay on and complete a MA in Digital Design or go into the industry. If I was going to go into the industry I feel that I should start brainstorming ideas of what area I want to go in. I feel that I have been putting off my decision as I felt it was still too early, however the rest of my housemates already know what job they want and how they will get there.

2. Take a photo everyday

Last year I created a bucket list of 100 things I want to do before I die. All of these tasks were to make sure I live a full life. One of the tasks on the list is to take a photo everyday for a year, I felt this would challenge me with a chance of some photo's to go into my portfolio. The photo's will be random with one day it featuring a landscape image and the next something that I had done during the day. This is a chance for me to take more photo's and show off my skills. If you want to follow my progress I have set up a Flickr account Photo of the Day 2013.

New Dawn, New Start- Day 1

3. Get a work placement

For the final year of my course it is advised that I get a work placement from a local firm. I feel that loads of students will start applying March time so I need to start now if I want a place. I feel that I will get many benefits from the placement, not only will it look good on my CV but I will get experience on how a design company runs. I have learnt at university how the design process works and was able to put it into practice last semester with a live client however I feel that seeing it done in real life will be different. I feel that a placement might help me decide where I want to work in a design company.

4. Achieve grade 2:1 in Year 2

I want to graduate my course with a First degree however at the end of this year my aim is to get a 2:1. Last semester I spent most my time doing university work and making sure I was ahead of my classmates as if I had down anything wrong I could go back and redo it. I want nothing less than a 2:1 as I feel it will show me it was worth the time spent and that I could go on and get a First.

5. Maintain my fitness

At the end of summer last year I suddenly became very health conscious resulting in some changes in my life. After a while the effects began to show which made me feel brilliant. During the christmas period I have still tried to be healthy but allowed myself some slack as it was the holidays. I am now ready to get back into the lifestyle I had at the end of last year.

6. Do a 5K charity race in less than 45 mins

This year I want to do the 5k run Race for Life as it is a charity close to home. I previously did it in 2010 with my finishing time of 58 minutes with no truing before hand, I also applied to do it last year but sprained my ankle the day before the race meaning I had to pull out whilst my friend ran by herself. This year I want to do it again but beat my previous time by 13 minutes. I shall start training early February for the race which is normally in July. The training will also help me with number 5 of my goals.

7. Learn to drive

I started to learn to drive when I just turned 17 but that was over 2 years ago now and I wished that I stuck with it. I have some money saved up so I can learn to drive over the summer and hopefully be ready for a driving test near the time I go back to uni. Seeing as when I am home I live in the middle of nowhere relying on my dad and friends for lifts I feel that I should become independent.

8. Do more designs

I want to create at least one design a month with some mock designs each week. I wanted this on my goals as I feel it will benefit me as I can add all the work into my portfolio and will help showcase my work at the End of Year show in March.

9. At least one blog post a month

Last semester I was very lazy with my blog. Seeing as I had a lot of work given to me I kept putting of posting on my blog with the excuse that I would do it next week. I felt that if I had this as one of my goals I would make my blog look relevant and up-to-date not abandoned like it has done.

10. Go on holiday

When I went to Barcelona last year I seemed to realise what I was missing. This was going abroad, I loved the different culture around me from the trip last year I was left motivated to do more design work and take photographs where as before I had to force myself.

48 Hours in Barcelona part 3

42-48 Hours

Back Street

After another peaceful night sleep gran and I decided to go on the other bus route which took us to the to the west side of Barcelona. We choose to spend our last morning in Barcelona going around the back streets of the city followed by having lunch back at Attic with the afternoon set for the sightseeing tour.

Balconies

As the restaurant doesn't open until 1pm we had four hours to explore the centre of the city. After we followed one of the back streets we found ourselves outside the cathedral. On a whim we went inside and found not only was it nice to be shaded from the sun but the interior was breath taking with displays made out of gold.

Cathedral

 Seeing as it was free entry we decided to go up in the lift to the roof for a couple of euros. When we got out of the lift you could see Barcelona around you with great photo opportunities to take close ups of the spirals.

Spiral

After the cathedral we went to a little cafe to have an ice cold drink. When we were refreshed we set off some other streets that would lead us back to the Rambla in time of our lunch.

Street Sign

After lunch we headed back up the Rambla to Catalunya square were we caught the orange bus route. The tour soon took us to the harbour again however this time we were heading west where we got to see the Columbus Monument which was erected in 1888 for the world exhibition. 

Cable Cart- Port Veil

 Near the monument was one of the many sculptures on this route. This sculpture was metal arches in different positions which was said to look like waves. Another sculpture along this route that has stuck in my mind was by the Olympic stadium which was suppose to look like a olympian bending forward to collect his medal.

Waves

After the harbour we started to climb the mountain of Montjuïc. Here we got to see all of Barcelona though this time from a different perspective. When we were climbing the mountain we passed the first set of cable carts that went from the mountain to Port Veil.

Cable Cart

Down the road there is another lot of cable carts that took you to the top of the mountain. Me and gran decided to go up there to see the views. However when we got to the top we choose to come right back down again as we didn't have much time left.

View of Barcelona

Whilst waiting for the bus there was a little cafe that was shaded from the trees though you could see parts of Barcelona through the branches.

Through the trees

When we got back on the bus we agreed that, that would be our last stop. Whilst still in mountains the tour took us outside the Olympic Arena where you could see the torch for the Barcelona 1992 games were held. After this we saw the magic fountains of montjuïc, old bull ring now turned shopping centre and the Barcelona football ground. Soon after the ground we headed to Avinguda Diagonal to take us back to Catalunya square.

When we were back in the square we went back to the hotel to pick up our luggage and then headed to the airport.

Apartments

After all that we were both very tired though next time I hope to stay for week even though the 48 hours felt like a long time. I would also like to learn some local language so I didn't feel too much of a tourist. I know it is corny but I fell in love and hope to be back very soon.

48 Hours in Barcelona Part 2

18-32 Hours

Hotel Arts

After being woken up by the sun entering our room, Gran and I went to get a two day pass with the Barcelona City Tour seeing as we wanted to cover most of Barcelona in our day and half left. With the tickets we got a map and a pair of headphones each which we got to keep. After looking at the map we could see that east/green route had more to offer in a day. This bus route takes 2 hours and 15 mins however if you manage to get off the bus at certain stops you can easily make the journey last 5 hours. The bus starts and ends at Catalunya square. Gran and I were lucky as we were the first people on the bus meaning we got a pick of seats on the upper deck. This route starts by taking you along the four beaches of Barcelona. If we had more time I would have defiantly had gone on the beach with an hour for sunbathing. After viewing the beaches from the road we then saw some of the buildings that we had seen yesterday with the tour giving us information about them. The two buildings that have stuck in my mind was the Hotel Arts and Barcelona Biomedical Research Park which looked like a curved building however when you got to the middle you could see that part of it was hollowed out. Near these two buildings are two sculptures one that represents a fish that is made out of stone, steel and glass which was created by Frank O. Gehry in 1992 for the Olympics. The other sculpture is a building that has a stone ball balancing on the edge with a glass pyramid behind it.

Geometry

After we left the seafront and started to head more inland by using Avinguda Diagonal which a road that goes from the west to centre to the east of barcelona. It is one of Barcelona biggest roads that cuts the city into two. On this road there is lots of shops from high street to designer. There is also a tram service that covers most of the street. Along Avinguda Diagonal is the Torre Agbar which is 38 story skyscraper which is cigar shaped with it being lit up at night by 4,500 LED lights.

Torre Agbar

After a short journey we were at the Sagrada Familia, which is a church that is still being built and is predicted to take 30 years to finish. Work started in 1882 and was designed by Antoni Gaudi who has other buildings in the city. His style stands out from other buildings with it being said he was inspired from ordinary objects such as fruit which you can see on the outside of the Sagrada. Although I wanted to go in and see what it was like on the inside, the queue was too long with it taking up to 2 hours before we got through the doors. We felt we wanted to see the rest of the city with the time remaining.

Sagrada Familia

Sagrada Familia

When we got back on the bus we choose to get off at stop 13 which was Park Guell which was another work by Gaudi. This park is a photographers paradise with the different types of stone used throughout, a mosaic dragon and seats, it has a lot to offer. At the top you can see a panoramic view of Barcelona.

Park Guell

The next place of interest was Casa Mila or La Pedrera as it is commonly known was also created by Gaudi. This is the most famous house that he created. The balconies on the outside of the building we said to be inspired by seaweed and the sculptures on the roof to look like helmeted soldiers. In Casa Mila you got to go on the roof were you could see Barcelona all around you as well as this you got to see his work in miniature in the attic of the building and an apartment that was built for Roser Segimon and Pere Mila.

Helmeted Solider- Casa Mila

Seaweed Balconies- Casa Mila

When the tour finished we decided to go on the Rambla again but this time visit the Mercat De Sant Josep which sold fresh meat, fish, fruit, vegetables, smoothies, nut, spices and much more. Everything the market sold looked so appealing that you wanted to buy everything that they had to offer. It has been said that not only do housewives shop there but the city's top chefs do too.

Mercat De Sant Josep

For dinner both Gran and I agreed that we didn't want to eat on the Rambla after a disappointing meal the day before. However after walking down one side of the Rambla we both saw a restaurant called the Attic which you had the choose to eat indoors or on the terrace overlooking the Rambla. After looking at the menu we both decided to give it a try. It was one of the best restaurants I ever been to with tasteful meals and creative deserts such as red fruit foam. When we finished the meal we went back to our hotel via the metro to go on the Terrace Bar again as this would be our last night up there.

Attic