such icky quality. :/

morning world.

Times like this I wish I had my own line of cosmetic products that I could build an identity for; or some posters advertising a personal pharmacopeia, or something a little gritty and 19th century inspired. Even Steampunk-eque! (So if anyone feels like throwing a project my way that would entail the purchase of $200 work of gorgeous fonts, please, feel free...) my heart's bleeding for Olduvai and Phaeton right now [...]

Originally published at Cabinet of Curiosities. » Click here « to leave any comments.

It was a considerable surprise to me to find, after several months of waiting, the Soap Box Co. finally released their Tub Tonic product. The design for the label was done a while ago, so its appearance gets a few exclamation points, having found it today by a fluke chance that I was visiting the site:



I ordered three different scents (Masala by Villainess, Canoodle by Wiggle, and Kill Switch, also by Villainess), which I intend to photograph and stick into the portfolio asap. For now, the best I can offer is the product shot from the web page, so you can see what the label looks like on the bottle:



Having to pay for shipping on those three items is giving me the chance to restock some Whipped, Smooch and Soap too. (I've been long-deprived of my Villainess stash. With the Canadian winter sopping my skin of its moisture, I've been feeling decidedly sandpaper-like lately. So hey, if you need a person to exfoliate you, just ask me for a massage...) :/

“Go, you must.”

Over time, a lot of time, I’ve learnt that it’s not so difficult to trace patterns in the way by which my interests arrange themselves in a spoked loop, of sorts, where each driving, dominant aspect of my creative interests situate themselves on one arm of the wheel. Life carries on, the wheel rolls, and somehow I find myself snagged on the idea of something I’d left behind months ago.

The problem, as I see it, is that the focus on said interest tends to blot out any interest in anything else.

(Its a prickly wheel; lobster-trap style, and I’m clacking my claws from the inside with moderate amounts of equal parts frustration and obsessivene abandon.)

Lightly put: I’m burnt on work and looking forward to not doing anything remotely design-related to turn a profit for a litte while. (Not long, given that this is my choice of career, and I haven’t spent a decade in school trying to perfect myself enough to edge myself into the industry, but I’ll be happy to take a month-long vacation from it and the responsibilities of being my own boss. Gladly.)

In the interim, I’ll be focusing on myself: the portfolio and my writing, because both have been suffering at the hands of an active social calendar and Too Much Work; work that spills into my weekends, and work that stresses me out to the point of tearing off my fingernails, and work that doesn’t put food in the fridge because of late payments.

Done with that.

Finito.

I can’t handle the pressure of trying to make twenty dollars stretch for two weeks anymore.

So, back to the grind we go; back to regular paychecks and the sort of menial cubical-centered drudgery that will remind me why I studied so long in this profession to begin with. I see it as a refresher course, as self-motivation of the best sort. (You realize shortly after a few days why you need to get the portfolio done and the curriculum vitae re-written, you realize how very much a misanthrope you are, wheedling away your time on the phone, trying to be polite while listening to people spout inanities; you remember distinctly why you chose to work behind a computer rather than with people, and that refreshes the love and the joy of the thing that was driving you mad to begin with.)

Like I said: onward the wheel rolls, until you get caught up again on something else.

These hit the online store last week(ish) along with a few more Black Label items. Since is a new addition to the catalogue, perhaps temporary (perhaps not, though I can neither confirm or deny that), its worth a mention.

These, like the Pro-Labels, were printed in-house. There's something to be said about have a good quality printer on hand if you're a small business, handling your own packaging design. Absolutely invaluable.

( Graphic Design: Villainess Soaps - Burn! )

I should note that the rest of the labels that require plasticizing (especially in the case of bath-products that hit the water the first time you use them) are printed by Lightning Labels. (The Soap labels go out to Imagers. They're not water-proofed, per se... but kind of waxy, semi-gloss with a bit of "squeak" when you run a thumb across them.) Both companies provide great service and great quality prints, if you're in the market to switch up your quality from the home-grown to the uber professional.

Ginormous labels for ginormous pro-sized bottles.

(This is, incidentally, the size of Whipped! I'd like to keep on hand to slather with personally. Won't happen, but still... I can oogle... 32 ounces. Holy crow.)

( Graphic Design: Scintillating Smooch/Whipped in Pro Sizes )

These were handled in-house on the Official Villainess Printer (a.k.a. the night-before-the-product-is-supposed-to-ship emergency printer). That's a pretty damn good quality print, if you ask me.

While I've over-compensating for not updating this blog for some time, I might as well name-drop: I've been working freelance for Villainess since 2008, and while I don't often talk about it (since anything done for Brooke tends to come with a lot of gushing; she is one of the best clients I have on my roster - affords me tons of creative liberty, listens well, has great ideas, is constantly expanding her product line and she works tirelessly for her clients... so it follows that I dole out a lot of affection and respect for both her company and what she does for her company.)

Once upon a time, when the redesign was still an inkling of an idea and we were still debating where to go with the whole look, she mentioned that she liked the idea of a "Victorian Catalogue". A year later, we've come full-circle (outlink):

( Villainess Soaps: Wholesaler Scent List )

This is part of the Wholesaler PDF she's using for distribution and her resalers. How to get that layout everywhere else without breaking a sweat over the typography is what I'm going to chew on for a few weeks.

(And yes, those are the little bits of Victoriana that you can find on the wrappings Brooke uses for her bars of Soap.)

I'm nothing if not ambitious.

Realistically, the website for Jessica Verday's The Hollow ought to have taken a solid two weeks to put together. Given more time, I likely would have spent a few more hours on the flash components of the site, and I would have skinned the blog for her too - but barring that, I somehow managed (still not entirely sure of the mechanics since the week was a bit of a blur and I didn't sleep an awful lot from stress), to spit out eight layouts within the framework.

Eight. Eight!

Item a: That's redonkulous.
Item b: When the publisher, the editor and the author herself are all pleased with the fact that not only did I stick to the design brief I drew up for graphics, but I managed to somehow mash together two different requests for the aesthetic, I call it a success.

Pretty damned pleased with myself for this one, but lordy... I am not going to attempt to do something this big in that timeframe for a very long time.

*sweatdrop*

Check it out, live and large: http://www.jessicaverday.com

On a side note, having a chance to devour the book days before starting the build is single-handedly the best thing I could have ever done to get inspired.

You'll have the chance to get your hands on it in September 2009 (so I've been totally spoiled. Ha ha!)

( Web Design: JessicaVerday.com )

(Big thanks to Jessica, on this one.)

I realize that to some degree, when it comes to graphic design, I fit into a very specific niche stylistically. It's gotten to the point where the work I produced can be categorized as something recognizably "Elixireleven" and that's not a bad thing at all. I quite like it.

Despite working within that niche for some time, I still find myself consistently challenged to approach the work from different angles, and that keeps it new and interesting. Once thing that frequently crops up among my clients, especially the new folk wanting to evoke a particular era's ethos in terms of their branding, is the desire to not look too new, too clean or too "perfect"when it comes to post-modern design sensibility. (Part of the challenge there becomes the war within to not follow prescribed rules... and one thing I was taught early off is that if you want to break said rules, you better know them in and out before you go ahead and discredit yourself by doing the exact opposite of what you've been told to do in the first place... This is typically where I cram a fist and my mouth and try not to choke. I'm sure if I was trained in Europe or the States, I'd get my knuckles rapped with a ruler for kern and lead abuse. Concordia University, as it is, doesn't seem to put such strident emphasis on walking the straight and narrow.)

Anyway, I digress: I'm talking about pseudo-post-Victorian design, here: the glam and the kitsch and the hardcore water-stained, sepia-soaked sort of crazy that tends to evoke a sense of high elegance despite how perfectly dirty it can be on a technical level.

Simply put: I love this sh*t.

Soap Box Co. loves this sh*t.

(I love that Soap Box Co. loves this sh*t.)

( Graphic Design: Tub Tonic Label for the Soap Box Co. )

Since the Villainess contract is actually a little more extensive than just the packaging, I've been a little too swamped to post these sooner. If you don't want to be bothered with the screencaps, feel free to head straight over to the Villainess Soaps site itself and browse around.

Inasmuch as a photographic record is concerned, these, at least, fulfill the purpose of documentation (until I can find a few hours to update my portfolio, that is.)

By the by, there is much more coming. In the last couple of weeks, the Limited Edition products received a facelift, the bath bombs were re-christened to "Kaboom!" and got new treatment on their packaging, and a new product is gradually being entered into the general catalogue (which, again, takes a new label and a new-ish identity.)

I'm holding off posting shots any of the "super new" stuff until the next update hits, just in case a straggler from the BPAL boards or the Lush forum or the Villainess forum stumbles over.

My opinions regarding "spoilers" are fairly strong - be that with soaps and Smooches, or with books. It's all the same to me. The surprise is usually more fun when experienced collectively... so if you're from those parts, please amuse yourself with the following for now:

( Web Design: Villainess Store )

( Web Design: Villainess Newsletter )

( Web Design: Villainess Blog )

( Web Design: Villainess Forum )

( Web Design: Villainess Gift Certificate )

( Web Design: Villainess Sales Receipt )

Once in a while, you get really lucky, and get a great client, with great vision, and a great product that you yourself are happy to use because it happens to kick ass on several levels, and that client just happens to dig what you do for yourself when you're expressing your methodology and your manifesto through design, and they let you do your thing so you can totally cut loose with the work.

That's an ideal situation. This was my ideal job. I got very lucky. (I'm still very lucky, as the work for Villainess is ongoing for the moment, and the opportunity to continue producing variations on the theme we've established is really exciting.)

The theme in question was dubbed about a year ago when (Brooke and I) first started discussing her concept:

"Victorian with teeth."

Well, the teeth didn't exactly work out with the aesthetic, given that a toilette rarely falls in line with dentistry... But thorns and leather sure did. (That recurring floral motif? Yeah, that's tooled leather.)

( Rebrand: The Villainess Logo )

( Rebrand: Product Labels - 01 )

( Rebrand: Product Labels - 01 )

( Rebrand: Product Labels - 01 )

( Rebrand: Product Labels - 01 )

TITLE: Come and See
SUBTITLE: The End of the World Tarot
CREATED: November 12, 2007
COMPLETED: November 24, 2007
MATERIALS: Cardstock
FORMAT: Printed Cards
DIMENSIONS: 5 x 3 inches

DESCRIPTION: A series of twenty two “tarot” cards from the Major Arcana, organized with references to the myth of the apocalypse. Each family of cards is colour-coded according to subject and packaged with a slip-cover bearing the title, “Come and See.” The work invites the viewer to engage closely with images from the last century, drawn from news clippings documenting the atrocities of war, pestilence, famine and death.

( Graphic Design: Come and See - Package )

( Graphic Design: Come and See - Card Assortment )

( Graphic Design: Come and See - Cards Front )

( Graphic Design: Come and See - Cards Back )

( Graphic Design: Come and See - Typography )

( Graphic Design: Come and See - The Fool Card )

( Graphic Design: Come and See - The Hanged Man, Judgment and Death Cards )

( Graphic Design: Come and See - The Tower Card )

"...I saw that the Lamb opened one of the seven seals, and I heard one of the four living creatures saying, as with a voice of thunder, "Come and see!"
And behold, a white horse, and he who sat on it had a bow. A crown was given to him, and he came forth conquering, and to conquer.
When he opened the second seal, I heard the second living creature saying, "Come!"
Another came forth, a red horse. To him who sat on it was given power to take peace from the earth, and that they should kill one another. There was given to him a great sword.
When he opened the third seal, I heard the third living creature saying, "Come and see!" And behold, a black horse, and he who sat on it had a balance in his hand.
I heard a voice in the midst of the four living creatures saying, "A choenix of wheat for a denarius, and three choenix of barley for a denarius! Don't damage the oil and the wine!"
When he opened the fourth seal, I heard the fourth living creature saying, "Come and see!"
And behold, a pale horse, and he who sat on it, his name was Death. Hades followed with him. Authority over one fourth of the earth, to kill with the sword, with famine, with death, and by the wild animals of the earth was given to him.
When he opened the fifth seal, I saw underneath the altar the souls of those who had been killed for the Word of God, and for the testimony of the Lamb which they had.
They cried with a loud voice, saying, "How long, Master, the holy and true, until you judge and avenge our blood on those who dwell on the earth?"
A long white robe was given to each of them. They were told that they should rest yet for a while, until their fellow servants and their brothers, who would also be killed even as they were, should complete their course.
I saw when he opened the sixth seal, and there was a great earthquake. The sun became black as sackcloth made of hair, and the whole moon became as blood.
The stars of the sky fell to the earth, like a fig tree dropping its unripe figs when it is shaken by a great wind.
The sky was removed like a scroll when it is rolled up. Every mountain and island were moved out of their places.
The kings of the earth, the princes, the commanding officers, the rich, the strong, and every slave and free person, hid themselves in the caves and in the rocks of the mountains.
They told the mountains and the rocks, "Fall on us, and hide us from the face of him who sits on the throne, and from the wrath of the Lamb, for the great day of his wrath has come; and who is able to stand?"

- Revelations 6:1-6:17

Goodbye busted old style, hello new hotness...

( Graphic Design: Elixireleven Portfolio 2008 - Case, Book and CD )

( Graphic Design: Elixireleven Portfolio 2008 - Inside )

( Graphic Design: Elixireleven Portfolio 2008 - Case Spine )

You can check out the new layout, additional pages, commentary and works at http://portfolio.elixireleven.org. The new flipbook is up too, working demo included.

Another batch for the portfolio. This one's a collaborative work, created between Julie M-Dumont, Tina Ng, Dora Rodriguez, and myself.

TITLE: Urban Nature Walk
CREATED: October 9, 2007
COMPLETED: October 31, 2007
MATERIALS: Paper and Cardstock
FORMAT: Press Kit
DIMENSIONS: 5 x 6 inches

DESCRIPTION: In response to deforestation and wildlife endangerment due to the expansion of urban areas, “Urban Nature Walk” is a proposal to create an exploration of urban Montreal through the investigation of several of its endangered bird species. Included within the “Urban Nature Walk” press kit are an editorial booklet, a three-dimensional diorama, and map for potential sponsors. Also realized within this work is a brand identity for the project.

( Graphic Design: Urban Nature Walk - Logo )

( Graphic Design: Urban Nature Walk - Press Kit )

( Graphic Design: Urban Nature Walk - Box and Book )

( Graphic Design: Urban Nature Walk - Book Layout )

( Graphic Design: Urban Nature Walk - Pop-Up Insert )

Since I just got back from doing documentation, I come bearing photos. (Unedited, not yet retouched photos, but photos nonetheless.)

TITLE: 73
SUBTITLE: A Meditation on Transience
CREATED: September 28, 2007
COMPLETED: October 3, 2007
MATERIALS: Paper, acetate, cardstock
FORMAT: Bound Codex
DIMENSIONS: 2.50 x 2.50 inches
DISCIPLINE: Editorial Design

DESCRIPTION: With inspiration from William Shakespeare's Sonnet 73, the 73 Codex reflects on the parallel between organic beings and the process of decay that occurs on biological and psychological levels. The attempt to stop or slow the process of aging, thereby creating a sense of suspended time, occurs with immortalization in slide photographs. Each image documents the gradual passing of time, and abstracts the degeneration of memory by using leaves as a metaphor for human beings.

( Editorial Design: Codex 73 - Cover )

( Editorial Design: Codex 73 - Pages 01 )

( Editorial Design: Codex 73 - Pages 02 )

To my utter, abject horror, I only realized that Valfieris Aged and the Valfieris Family have different descenders after have purchased the whole blasted font pack.

Look at the "G" and tell me in my anal-retentive, sleep-deprived, overworked-midst-of-hellmonth mindset that it's not completely freaking obvious that these are two different fonts.

On the bright side, it's only noticeable if you flip the card around super fast.

( Graphic Design: Elixireleven Business Card 2008 - Front )

( Graphic Design: Elixireleven Business Card 2008 - Back )

Obviously, the colours have been munched from CMYK to RBG, hence the strange orange cast to the images.

I was planning on posting the first wave of photographic documentation to go with this, as I've just finished binding the book to go with the work, but I've been struck by a fit of laziness, so that's not going to happen right at this moment.

Urban Nature Walk is a collaborative piece involving packaging design, editorial design, graphic design and an overarching brand "identity" - designed between Tina Ng, Julie Dumont, Dora Rodriguez and myself, for DART 443 at Concordia University.

The brand is featured below the cut. Typographical credits are extended to Emigre for Solex Bold and Vendetta. (Fonts are sexy.)

( Editorial Design: Urban Nature Walk Brand Identity )

Photos of the entire completed project forthcoming, and I will list this under Editorial in the future, since my major contribution to the collaboration involves the creation, layout and binding of the (you guessed it) editorial component.

When anyone says "still life" I have a tendency to take things in the same direction. I figure that eventually, after having reworked the same theme enough times, I'll eventually get bored with it and move on.

Far as I can tell, it hasn't happened yet.

The idea was to play with both photography and the digital medium, and if this indicates the boundaries of my comfort zones, all that allegory would be shrieking anyway - banshee-like and complaining of convention.

(No such thing. Nuh uh.)

( Graphic Design: Memento Mori 2007 )

Term's starting up again slowly, and I'm trying to work out the kinks. Moving from design back into Design, as such. (I feel all creaky, like my mental hinges have gotten rusty over the summer.)

The first incarnation of a Tennyson-inspired poster, with emphasis placed on In Memoriam A.H.H. as a significant work. Stanza XXII is in prominence, and you can read the whole of the poem here.

( Stanza XXII of In Memoriam A.H.H. by Lord Alfred Tennyson )

( Graphic Design: Tennyson v. 1.0 )

( Text Link: Tennyson v.1.0 )