Still Life Inspiration

Still life photography is an important element when constructing the blog. The style and appearance of the site will be clean and minimal reflecting the project ethos as said in my proposal, which translates to the image making.

The images that inspired the most are images with clean white backgrounds, I found when searching for inspiration images seemed much to busy with a background colour and a few too many props.  

I also found I was most inspired by images taken from a birds eye view, I appreciate uniformity and having items laid out with precision, which may be influenced by my military background.

Image Sources:
1. https://www.instagram.com/structure_minerals/
2. http://www.apoterraskincare.com/
3. https://www.instagram.com/structure_minerals/
4. https://www.pinterest.com/
5. https://www.instagram.com/structure_minerals/
6. http://iphonephotographyschool.com/cristina-colli/

Image sources

1.https://www.instagram.com/structure_minerals/
2.https://www.pinterest.com/
3.https://www.instagram.com/structure_minerals/

The use of handmade paper is something I’d like to look into, as I do not want background colours I feel I need an element of colour/texture to keep the images interesting. I could use small pieces to place products or crystals on top, although I will need to test this idea.

Images sources:
1.http://aquariansouldesigns.com/
2.http://depositphotos.com/6037649/stock-photo-handmade-paper.html

Smart Girls Go Green 2k16

#smartgirlsgogreen is a hashtag used by Content Beauty one of the competitors mentioned in my proposal. I have learnt much more about the shop since my proposal and has become my favourite online beauty and wellbeing stores.  What attracts me most to the London based shop/website is the completely transparency with customers, ingredients are clearly listed and explained with a list of ingredients that it doesn’t contain, so you can be really sure of what you are purchasing. The products are all free from ‘bad mojo’ which is light hearted and fun, as at times the subject can be really serious when talking about contaminants of emerging concern.  

 The communication between the company and customers is also impressive, most questions are answered via their Instagram page and it feels as though they truly value their customers, which I can’t say for many normative corporations (which only seem to respond to negative comments-I'm talking about you Lime Crime!) This is something I have to be very aware of, I want to produce informative and helpful posts that are unbiased and transparent with my readers. I feel my passion and dedication is important for this project to be a success.


Some other brands I've discovered through Content Beauty are:

W3LL PEOPLE is an uncommon beauty dream team founded by an elite makeup artist, cosmetic dermatologist and treehugging entrepreneur. We're passionate about making positive choices in life, particularly when it comes to self care. Skin, our largest organ, absorbs about 80% of what we put on it. This crucial fact drives our mission to create super premium quality cosmetics without using the potentially harmful artificial chemicals found in most conventional makeup. 

- w3llpeople.com/index.php/our-story/

Our skin is our largest organ, and can absorb just about anything we put to its surface. ILIA is formulated with this in mind, and dedicated to creating the purest products possible. The ethical-sustainable approach embodied in each piece is filled with certified organic bio-active botanicals that nourish and rejuvenate the skin.

- iliabeauty.com/pages/about

Founded by veteran makeup artist Kirsten Kjær Weis, Kjær Weis cosmetics was created to fulfill a need for natural and organic color makeup that doesn’t compromise luxury or performance. Years of research and development have gone into what you see here: a high-performance makeup, created from the most luxurious organic ingredients in the world. And did we mention it all comes in a gorgeous silver signature “KW” compact?

 - kjaerweis.com/philosophy/

Project Brief

The brief I have set involves creating an online blog that blends spirituality and environmentalism in regards to cosmetics and personal care products, which intends to offer alternative solutions to regular beauty products. The blog focuses is beauty and wellbeing, emphasising going green does not mean sacrificing individual style, but rather enhancing it. I read Starre Vartan’s book The Eco Chick Guide to Life: How to be Fabulously Green and Christie Matheson’s book Green Chic: Saving the Earth in Style. Both in which argue that going green is timeless and doesn’t mean throwing out all possessions and starting again, but gradually replacing items. Making more conscious decisions when purchasing new items.

What to expect:

•          Certified organic product reviews  
•          Simple skincare and haircare routines
•          A crystal of the week feature
•          Articles that aim to address social issues (I.e. the availability of make-up for deeper skin tones)
•          Ingredients to avoid
•          Focusing on mental wellbeing as well as physical
•          Indulgent, sustainable luxuries (I.e. bathing in sustainable oils)

The project will be presented in blog format, at the proposal stage I was unsure on whether to create a website, blog, or both. So far, the discussions I have had with i.t technicians, peers and tutors it would seem the best route to explore is a blog.

With a blog, it enables for on the go readership with the use of smart phones, speaking to my peers, this is the method the majority of them use. It makes sense for my target market, as the age range is that of my peers.

I want to keep my blog layout as simple as possible, with two main tabs beauty and lifestyle. I want to have a timeline of posts like a conventional blog, but also have the categories within each tab to be clickable. So not only will the content be read as it is posted, but it will be easy to search for a past post for reference.

Introduction to Major Project Production & Evaluation (MFS124)

This is it! The final major project brief has been introduced and the learning has commenced. I have been anticipating this particular project from the moment I became a student here at Solent, and in the past two years I have been certain that I would be creating a project solely based around spirituality in fashion, this preference is very much inspired by my personal experiences throughout the past few years and has become a major factor in my lifestyle.

   However, the second half of my project was established after attending a guest lecture with organic and natural make-up artist Nat Van Zee, her message was clear and simple. After introducing her successful career in the beauty and fashion industry the lecture took an unexpected turn. I was shocked to hear that make-up and personal care products are considered by many to be potentially harmful to human health, not only women and young girls –but even new-born babies.  This was information I had not been aware of and hearing it in a university lecture hall meant it was something I couldn’t forget. Below is one of the clips Nat showed during the lecture.

  Returning home that evening I looked through my product shelf, I wondered if the chemicals in the ingredients list could be causing my skin condition to worsen. I have suffered from eczema for as long as I can remember, a condition which prevented me from perusing a career in hairdressing. I had tried everything the doctors suggested from steroids to sun therapy with no luck, only managing the condition. So I decided to do some research of my own into cosmetic ingredients, I found there were a lot of people asking the same questions as me in relation to skin conditions. After briefly researching it was decided my New Year’s resolution would be to give up regular beauty and personal care products, replacing them with certified organic and natural ingredients. With the hope I would see and feel improvement in my skin.

This personal quest shaped the direction of my final major project, through researching into organic beauty I realised there was a link forming between ethical beauty and spiritual wellbeing, two very personal interests of mine that could be combined to produce a lifestyle that puts human health, the environment and wellbeing first. 

#displayinitiative #responsibilityforindependentlearning

Image sources: http://www.natvanzee.com/organic-beauty-1/

Film source: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pfq000AF1i8