Crunch time part 2!! (Cover Story Products!)

Welcome back!!

I am currently in Nashville, but before I left, I took the photos of the products for my cover story. Now I have some free time so I am going to start working on putting together the cover story.

The first step in creating this cover story is gathering all of the information for each of the products. Below I will put the picture for each of the products, along with any sources I am using to write the information. This will make it super easy for me when I am going to write the final copy.


1)COOLA Mineral Liplux Organic Tinted Lip Balm

https://coola.com/products/mineral-liplux-spf-30?variant=10671132246058

https://www.cew.org/about-cew/

2)Juice Beauty Stem Cellular CC Cream

https://juicebeauty.com/pages/why-juice

https://juicebeauty.com/collections/face-makeup/products/stem-cellular-cc-cream

3) Shea Moisture 100% Virgin Coconut Oil Daily Hydration Facial Wipes

https://www.sheamoisture.com/100-virgin-coconut-oil-daily-hydration-facial-wipes.html

http://www.businessdictionary.com/definition/biodegradable.html

4)Ecotools On-The-Go Style Kit

https://ecotools.com/on-the-go-style-kit/p/1613

https://ecotools.com/story

5)Botanics Organic Softening cleanser

https://www.botanicsusa.com/skincare/cleansers-toners/82-organic-softening-cleanser

https://www.botanicsusa.com/ingredients

6)Maui Moisture Fortifying Mask

https://www.mauimoisture.com/?ds_rl=1266496&gclid=Cj0KCQjwyoHlBRCNARIsAFjKJ6BaArvmC-s3K1jjVJqFGggSdeKKESpUojFulnsVtAfu4cKyIV1M_RYaAuPwEALw_wcB&gclsrc=aw.ds

https://www.mauimoisture.com/about-us/

In the end I decided to go with 6 products instead of 10. I felt that this would be better for my layout, and I may even end up doing 5. I have to see how it goes.

Also, I have previously used all of these products before and enjoyed them. I wanted to write about products that I personally knew were good products. So, hopefully I will have time to finish the story on my trip, but if not I will do it as soon as I can. 

So until next time!
XOXO, Sophie

Crunch time part 1!!! (Ad #1 update & Cover page update)

Welcome back!!!

So... this week is my spring break and I am going to be in Nashville for most of it. However, while I am home, I am going to be focused completely on my project. I want to try to complete my magazine this weekend, or at the very latest, the beginning of next week. I have lots of bits and pieces of my project done, but now it is time to bring them all together.

UPDATE TIME:😜

AD #1-
The last time we talked about my first ad was when I showed you guys this "final" picture.

Well that was a while ago, and now we have an updated version. When I photographed my friend for this ad I took a lot of pictures. So, after some thinking and processing, I decided to go with a different picture. This is the picture I chose.

Then, after looking at this I just felt that the perfume was too small and was not the focus of the image. So, my solution to this was to cut out the perfume bottle so that I could make it larger and more overlying on the front of the image. Here is my final image after photoshopping the bottle, playing around with coloring, and adding the words. 

I like this one a lot better and I think it looks a lot more like a perfume ad!!

COVER PAGE- 

A little while ago I wrote a blog post where I talked about two different images that could be possible options for my cover image. Although, knowing my indecisive self, I chose a different photo that I didn't talk about. I put it in place of the stock photo on my cover page and now here it is!!

I am going to try to take all of the pictures of the products that are going to be in my cover story before I leave for Nashville so that I can work on the cover story on my trip. Well, that is where I am at right now!!

So until next time!
XOXO, Sophie

My second ad!

Welcome back!!!

While on my short trip to Dallas, I did some shopping. I went to a bunch of different types of stores ranging from the fancy Louis Vuitton and Prada to the smaller grungy style stores. Throughout all of the stores I visited, the ads I saw all had similar styles. Most of the ads focused mainly on the product. The product was either much larger than the model, or there was no model at all.

So, after seeing many ads over my trip, I decided that for my second ad I am going to do one with no model. I already did an ad for a perfume, so I think this one is going to be something different. I think I want to do one for lipstick or eyeshadow and I think I can make it look really cool.

https://www.cvs.com/shop/beauty/makeup/eyes/eyeshadow-palettes

https://www.ibybeauty.com/products/high-intensity-lipstick

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=w52D6cSDwug

I love the look of the swatch or streak that can be created with lipstick or eyeshadow. I think that I could take a white sheet and sort of create this same look. I am going to buy a couple of cheap lipsticks and eyeshadows and sort of play around with cool techniques. I am on my way home from Dallas and I leave again to Nashville very soon!! I won't be home for good until Saturday the 30th. So, Sunday morning it is go time!! I will continue to keep you guys updated and will definitely record the process of me creating my second ad!


So until next time!
XOXO, Sophie

Welcome back!!

So I’m currently on a flight to Dallas and have about 2 hours and 45 minutes of free time. Why not use this time to work on my project!?!?!?

I already know how to use the basic functions of Photoshop, but since I am going to be using it to enhance and edit my pictures, I thought it would be a good idea to refresh my memory and learn some new cool things about the application.

My mom is an expert in Photoshop and will most likely be able to guide me when I am using the application, but I would still like to learn how to be comfortable with it.

I have been reading some articles and watching from Youtube videos to try to learn as much as I can.

https://helpx.adobe.com/photoshop/how-to/photoshop-for-beginners.html

This trustworthy article ⬆ comes straight from the software company that creates Photoshop, so I thought it would be a good place to start. This site introduces you to the basic functions of Photoshop and how to locate your way around the software. There are lots of images which are very helpful when using a complicated form of technology like Photoshop. 

This certain part of the site talked about something that is specifically useful to my project. For my ad that I created with the perfume, I need to cut out the perfume bottle in the picture and then re paste it on top of the same image just larger and more in the foreground of the image. So, these steps can help me complete that. 

I felt that it would help me if I could watch an actual screen recording of someone moving an object onto an image so I watched a couple Youtube videos to make sure I knew exactly what to do. 

How to Move Object on a Photo Using Photoshop

How to Use the Move Tool - Photoshop CS6

How to Move People & Objects from One Photo to Another

These videos were very helpful and easy to understand. I know exactly how to do what I want to do and won't have to stress about it as I'm trying to do it.

So until next time!
XOXO, Sophie

Taking pictures for my cover page!!

Welcome back!!!

Today was a very exciting day! Today after school, my friend Ashleigh came over so that I could do her makeup and take pictures for my cover page!!

I filmed some of the process of me doing her makeup as well as the picture taking process. I am not going to post that here, but you will get to see it in my CCR, so make sure to check that out. Although, I will post here some of the different pictures here that I am going to be playing around with for my cover page.

I really like this one. I think it is very easy to see the green eye shadow, but it also looks very clean and professional. I still have to edit this picture. I want to fix her eyebrow and smooth out her skin a little more. I feel that all of the cover images from the magazines I have been studying have very edited pictures where the models have super flawless skin. I also think I am going to brighten the image a little more as it looks a little dull. I am not sure if this is going to be the image I use, but it is one of my options.

I also like this image. I would edit this image as well. I am going to crop the image to just above where her shirt starts, much like the previous picture. I will smooth out her skin, brighten the picture, and fix her eyebrow, just like the other one. I really like the way Ashleigh's hair looks in this picture and I think she looks very model-like. 

After I edit both I am going to play around with them and then decide which one I like better. 

I do still plan on using the same cover page outline that I created in the past. ⬇

I will also have to paint the background of my original photo white so that it can match with the background of the cover page. 

I will keep you updated as I work on completing my cover page!!

So until next time!
XOXO, Sophie

Having second thoughts...

Welcome back!!

So I have been thinking about the table of contents for my magazine and I think that I want to change my idea. I decided that instead of having the vibrant green plants as the background, I think I want to keep the background light. Typically magazines try to keep the backgrounds of the pages as light as possible simply because of the fact that light pages are cheaper to print. I think I am going to follow this typical convention and keep my pages lighter. I have been looking at some more designs of cover pages and I have found some that I am going to use as inspiration to create my very own.

https://www.designlisticle.com/magazines-table-of-contents/#jp-carousel-7133

I love the look of this image and that the image itself is the background. I like this because I sometimes feel that when an image is just pasted on top of a background it tends to look messy and not professional. So, I feel that by doing an image as also my background, I can avoid that problem.

Also, because I am doing a beauty magazine, my table of contents will need to be two pages long in order to fit all of my stories. My two pages are going to have different pictures as the background, but the style will still be similar.

https://www.designlisticle.com/magazines-table-of-contents/#jp-carousel-7133

I like the way that this page would look with the other one pasted above. I plan on playing around with different combinations of things to photograph. I think I will use roses or some sort of flowers, as well as some unbranded beauty products. I am so excited to work on it!!


So until next time!
XOXO, Sophie

Planning out my week...

Welcome back!!

Well, I am going to be away most of my spring break, so, I am going to try to get as much done this week as I can. Here is what I plan to do for my project this week.

MONDAY😔
-In class: work on finishing table of contents


TUESDAY😕
-blog post: talk about the finalized table of contents


WEDNESDAY😏
-In class: start working on the layout for the cover story
-Photographing for front cover in afternoon (video the process)


FRIDAY😍
-On the plane: blog post on the layout for cover story


SATURDAY😎
-blog post on the process of photographing for front cover (makeup, lighting, editing etc.)


SUNDAY😁
-blog posting on planning for cover story (writing ideas, pictures, etc.)


I think that planning out my week like this will be very helpful since I have a very busy week and I am also traveling. I know that I will have time to write blog posts while I am away since I am just going to visit family. I will probably spend most of my time just relaxing, so I am not worried about not having time to get a post done. I really want to try to get as much done as I possibly can this week, so that I am not stressed or rushing towards the end. Anyways, I can't wait to see what I get done this week!!!😻💖


So until next time!
XOXO, Sophie

My ad!!!

Welcome back!!

I am soooo excited to talk about what I did today!! So, since I am creating a beauty/makeup magazine, I decided to create an ad, since that is a typical genre convention of beauty magazines. The process was so much fun and I documented almost all of it.

I hadn't planned on creating my ad today, but I'm so happy that I did. My day started off with my best friend coming over because we were going to both work on our homework together. I was having trouble deciding on what to write for my Saturday blog post when the idea just popped into my head. I had so much free time and I had someone to photograph, it was meant to be!

The first thing I did was figure out what my ad was going to be for. I went through my makeup and beauty products collection to see if anything could be used that wasn't branded. After looking everywhere, I found a perfume bottle that I had previously torn the label off of, it was perfect!!

Next I had to figure out what my best friend, Hannah, was going to wear. I wanted her to look elegant, yet effortless. I soon found this forest green velvet blazer and it looked amazing!!

I decided that it would look cool if the pictures were taken on a bed with a lot of natural lighting. So, this is the little scene that I set up. I used my mom's studio lights and took off the umbrellas because they blocked too much of the natural sunlight from the windows.

I took many different photos of many different poses and angles. After about an hour of photographing Hannah, I finally thought I had enough good ones to choose from. I narrowed down all of the pictures that I took to 6 ones that I loved. I then sat back and Hannah and I decided which one looked the best. Finally, we decided on this one.

After choosing this photo, it was time to edit it. I was thinking about editing on Photoshop and Lightroom, but I then changed my mind and decided to just edit on my phone. I decided to do this since I am more comfortable with the apps on my phone and I think the editing still looks great. 

I first edited Hannah's face on an app called Airbrush which has all of the functions you would need to edit a picture. After I used that app, I then edited the color of the image with an app called VSCO. Once I was done editing the picture, I opened it up in Canva so that I could write on the picture. I decided to call the perfume Soleil which means sun in French. So, I typed that on the image, and I was done! Here is the final product!!  

I love it so much and I think it is going to look great in my magazine!

So until next time!
XOXO, Sophie

Group meetings pt. 2!!

Welcome back!!

So today in class we had another group meeting. I love group meetings!!!! They are soooo helpful!! During this group meeting I got some feedback from some of my classmates on what they thought about some of the pieces I have created so far. Most of the feedback from each group member was similar, so I got a pretty solid idea on what I should be fixing throughout my cover page and table of contents.

The cover page:

My group decided that they liked this cover page more than the one with the light green under the masthead. I was a little hesitant to agree with them at first because I think that this cover is just too boring. My group then suggested that I should make the picture and masthead larger, so I started to play around with that suggestion.

So, in this version I made the image larger and the masthead font a little larger and denser. I also added a bar code. I think that this definitely filled up the page more and made it less plain. Now I just can't wait to insert my real picture!

Also, one of the members in my group was also doing a magazine. So, when I went on her blog to see what she had been working on, she had some great layout ideas for the type of cover story I was doing that I would love to try to use.


Overall, I really love the group meetings that we do. The feedback is extremely helpful, especially because I am working by myself. I also really love helping other classmates and getting to see what they are working on.  I can't wait for my next one!!


So until next time!
XOXO, Sophie

Table of contents time!!!

Welcome back!!

Today in class I decided to start playing around with different table of contents layouts. A lot of my inspiration is coming from magazines with very simplistic layouts as I don't want anything that is too crowded. Within my TOC I am also going to continue with my green, earthy type theme.

Also, because I am doing a beauty magazine, I am going to have a lot of titles that I am going to put in my TOC, since beauty magazines are typically longer publications.

This is the layout that I started to play around with. I put the background in place until I take my own picture, but I think that I am going to want to take a picture that looks very similar to this. I like this simplistic look of the large page number with the title and description of the story. I also made the number 20 in black and put a little clover next to it to help identify that it is the cover story of the issue. I think I am going to continue with a couple more stories on this page and I am also going to make a TOC page two with the rest of the stories. 

So far, I really like how this TOC looks. It matches the earthy theme that I have going on throughout my magazine, as well as the simplicity. I really just have to make sure that I can get a picture that looks amazing since it is very showing throughout the page. 

I think that I am going to go to Home Depot and ask if I can take some pictures of some of the plants that they have there. I feel that if I take them there they will be clean and nice, and there are more options of different plants that I can take pictures of. 

So, I think I am moving in the right direction with the TOC and I can't wait to finish it!

So until next time!
XOXO, Sophie

Cover page progress!!!

Welcome back!

So... this week I decided to spend my class time working on designing some potential covers for my magazine. My goal for the cover is to keep it simple yet very appealing to the eye.

This is the first cover that I created. I put a stock photo in place of where my original picture will go until I photograph my models. With this cover I was going for a green theme, which will also be reoccurring throughout my entire magazine. I also like how this photo includes a plant, which I also plan on using within my photo. I think that the plant really helps bring out the whole "Go Green" vibe. After looking at the cover idea for a while, I went ahead and changed to masthead to one line instead of two. This is what I came up with.

Once I changed the masthead to one line, I also bolded it. I think that this makes the masthead stand out much more and is way more eye catching. I also went ahead and changed the font of the cover lines to make them a little more simplistic and clean looking. I think I like this font much better than the previous one. After those changes I sat back and looked at the cover again for a while and I still felt like it was missing something. I felt like maybe it was too plain so I decided to do this. 

I think that adding the green under the masthead helps it stand out and also adds more color to the overall cover. I also plan on adding a bar code to the bottom left hand corner. I really like this layout for my cover. I will most likely play around with a couple more layouts, but I really like this one. 

So until next time!
XOXO, Sophie

Some product decisions!

Welcome back!

So for my cover story I am going to talk about 10 different eco-friendly beauty products. After I did my blog post about what makes a product a green product, I started brainstorming ideas about different products I would be interested in writing about. I want the products that I talk about to be both truly an eco-friendly products, as well as an effective products. I am pretty sure that I will be talking about these 3 products within my story. I also want to try to talk about products that are more familiar or from familiar companies. I am going to continue to do tons of research, but I know I am going to talk about these products that I personally use in my everyday life.

1) Coconut Oil!

Coconut oil is an amazing skin moisturizer and it's only 1 ingredient!! Even though this may not really be thought of as a beauty product, it is becoming extremely popular within the beauty world. Coconut oil is also extremely cheap and will last you a long time. I think that this is a very universal product that can be used by many so I think it is very appropriate to talk about.

https://shop.drbronner.com/whole-kernel-organic-virgin-coconut-oil-14-oz

2) Ecotools makeup brushes

These makeup brushes happen to be some of my personal favorite. They are vegan brushes that are made from recycled bamboo, recycled aluminum, and some recycled plastic. That sounds good to me! These brushes are so soft and come in tons of different shapes and sizes, so you can use these for your whole makeup routine!! These brushes are also pretty affordable as well, which is always a plus. 

https://www.amazon.com/EcoTools-Piece-Starter-Set-Concealer/dp/B003ZX32ZO

3) Aveda mosscara

Aveda is a brand that is all about the environment. The company uses all naturally derived ingredients, it is cruelty free, their manufacturing is all wind powered, and all scents are from essential oils and plants. Overall, this is a great company to purchase hair care products and makeup from. But, more specifically, the "mosscara" is amazing! I've been through like 3 tubes! This mascara is super thickening and is made from Iceland moss and other plants. It is also pretty affordable.

https://www.lookfantastic.com/aveda-mosscara-conditioning-formula-black-forest-8g/10550922.html

Makeup time!

Welcome back!

Well, after a long day of taking the SAT, I'm so excited to sit down and talk to you guys. When I got home from school today, I decided that I was going to play around with a makeup look for my front cover, since the palette I ordered came in the mail yesterday. I had watched a couple Youtube videos prior to doing the look.

GRWM - Neon Green Glittery Smokey Eye
MORPHE X JAMES CHARLES PALETTE TUTORIAL! | First Impressions + Review!
Green & Gold Halo Eye | Christmas Inspired Makeup Tutorial

After looking at some videos for inspiration, I went ahead and pulled out my palette and brushes and got to work! I didn't really have a set plan of exactly what I was going to do, I sort of just played around with colors, and this is what I came up with.

I think that the greens I used towards the top of my eye are a little lighter than I would want for my cover page. I think I am going to lean towards a more forest green. I am also having trouble deciding I want to do glitter on the lid of my eye, or keep the whole look matte. I am definitely going to keep playing around with looks until I get the perfect one! I am also a good face to practice on because the model that I believe I am going to be using for my cover has a similar skin tone and hair color to me. This is her.

I have plans to do her makeup and take her pictures very soon and I am so excited to share that process with you! I will most likely take videos of a lot of the process so that I can share it on here!!!

So until next time!
XOXO, Sophie

Green, green, and more green!

Welcome back!

Before I decide to go ahead and make my magazine have some sort of green theme, I want to make sure that this color is appealing to the eye and won't turn my audience away. So, I am doing research specifically on the color green and how it affects people.

The first article I read was Psychology of the Color Green and What it Means for Your Business. Basically what this article is saying is green is eye catching. There are a number of popular brands that contain green as the main or only color within their logo. Green is a very identifiable color and easily stands out in a crowd. This is something that I definitely would want if my magazine was in a display competing against many other magazines.

https://thedesignlove.com/top-20-famous-logos-designed-in-green/

The next article I looked at was These are the colors women love the most. I looked at this article since my target audience is mainly women. Because of this, I thought it would be helpful to focus on an article that talked mainly about women. Within the article, it said that women are really attracted to the color green. Green brings about a cool and restful feeling, which is definitely something every women wants. Green also signifies growth, renewal, health, and the environment. 

Overall, since I am going to be talking about eco-friendly products, which has to do with the environment, I think that it is very appropriate for my magazine to have a green theme. The color stands out and is very attractive to women.

Well, now that I've got the research out of the way, I am going to start working on my cover!!!!!

So until next time!
XOXO, Sophie

What makes a beauty product a "Go Green" product?

Welcome back!

If I am going to be writing a story on "Go Green" beauty products, then I probably have to research about them a little bit. I have to actually figure out what defines a product as "Go Green".

Also, as I am writing my story on these products, I would be much happier and more comfortable writing about products or brands that I have at least a little familiarity with, so that I know what I am writing is true. Although, I don't really think that will be an issue, considering I have tried A LOT of different products.

As I was researching about different green products and what makes them green, I came across this article that was very helpful.
https://www.bustle.com/p/what-qualifies-beauty-products-to-be-green-heres-what-you-need-to-know-about-clean-beauty-53477

Basically what the article is saying is that, green beauty products contain mostly natural products and barely any synthetic ingredients. These products are not only better for your skin and body, but also for the environment. Some of these products tend to be a little bit more pricey, but that is because of the higher quality ingredients. The packaging within the products also tends to be more eco friendly as they are usually decomposable or made from primarily recycled materials.

Although most green products contain little to no synthetic ingredients, a products does not have to be approved by any official to be able to be officially "green". So, when choosing products for my story, I am going to check the ingredients within the products to make sure that they are actually green.

So, overall, I am going to be focusing on products with natural and clean ingredients; so basically the ones where I can actually pronounce the name of the ingredient.

Here are some of the products I am thinking about talking about.

So until next time!
XOXO, Sophie

Lightroom

Welcome back!

So one of the pieces of software that I learned about while in my group meeting was Lightroom. Lightroom is an Adobe software that is great for editing photos. The student in my group who showed Lightroom to me, showed me some of the photos he has taken and edited and they are amazing!

When I got home from school I told my mom about Lightroom and it turns out she already has it on her computer so I don't even have to pay for it! I was so excited to learn all about the software so I watched some Youtube tutorials and they were so helpful!

Lightroom Tutorial for Beginners- Overview of EVERYTHING in 15 min

How To Edit Photos Like A PRO | Lightroom Tutorial

One of the things that I learned from the group meeting about Lightroom is the use of presets. There are packages of presets that you can buy online to use on photos that you edit in Lightroom. Presets are like pre made filters. I thought that it would be a good idea to buy a preset to use throughout the photos in my magazine so that all of my photos have a sort of theme. 

I also learned about the use of raw photos and how it is important to always shoot in raw form. This way, they come out better and the editing is easier. I learned how to shoot raw photos and I am so excited to start playing around with them. 

https://www.picturecorrect.com/tips/how-to-do-intelligent-raw-photo-landscape-editing-in-lightroom/

Look how amazing this raw photo looks from before to after it was edited in Lightroom! 

So, this week I plan on taking some pictures in raw form so that I can practice editing, and maybe I will even buy some presets!!

So until next time!
XOXO, Sophie