groundhog day (the bill murray kind) came early
[note: i'm writing this post having had approximately 3.25 hours of sleep, at work (got here at 6 am), pre-coffee.]
well, this past week has been finals helldom, starting with one on monday and culminating with one yesterday. but i can't say that everything is Finally Over yet. the good news: both my Package Design 2 Projects made it into the Winter Show!!! (it's one night only, tonight, from 6-8:30) yipeeeeeeeee!
the bad news: read on...
the second/last project i had this semester was to build a recycled or sustainable birdhouse (an interesting choice for a packaging class, might i add). it was good to be away from the computer and be able to work with my hands, which is what i love to do.
for my company (to ground the project and give it credibility) i chose Apple Computer... and for my materials, i chose empty CD jewel cases. my marketing angle was a musical one: trade in your old CD cases for free iTunes, and Apple will build a birdhouse for the community.
well, this project has been ongoing for about 7 weeks or so... it's been one long rollercoaster ride riddled with tons of learning curves. after much back-and-forth with my design in class, i settled on a cube shape for my birdhouse and thought i could do most (if not all) of the construction myself. of course, that would be too easy.
all semester, my instructor "T" (who shall remain nameless, since i mentioned a teacher's name on here before and he would periodically google himself and find my blog), has sort of been steering us toward a service bureau here in town that provides modeling services. they do scale models of just about anything, from toys to buildings to signage to you name it, they probably can do it.
[aside: i'm sure i've mentioned how expensive art school is. moreover, the Packaging track of Graphic Design is arguably the most expensive branch of that. so... with this in mind, read on.]
well, for weeks now i've been laboring under the assumption that i could complete my project by myself for the least amount of money as possible. after all, i was able to get the main materials (CD jewel cases and a USB cord from a palm pilot charger) free (or very close to free) from SCRAP. well, that all changed about two weeks ago.
as my design took shape (a trio of three cube birdhouses strung on USB cable), it was apparent that i would have to have some help with the construction: drilling holes in the tops, bottoms and sides of the cubes, for the cable to run through, the perch to insert, and the bird to crawl through. this is something for which i sought help at the modeling company. (of all the tools i own, a drill is not one of them... especially not one with circular bits.) so, i sought out the help of "R" who runs the modeling company. i met with him two Fridays ago and he agreed to help me--free of charge.
however, with further suggestions in critique, it was apparent that i would have to have my birdhouse spray painted (either frosted or translucent colors) with the Apple logo masked out on the backs of the cubes. also, and i'm not sure where this idea came from, but i wanted to have an acrylic Apple "charm" hanging from the bottom of the houses. R also agreed to help me with this, as he has access to laser cutting.*
all fine and dandy. not really.
after much trial and error, i finally got the cubes wired together and ready to be painted by Tuesday. i thought that i'd get it sprayed three colors (pink, blue and green like the new iPod Nanos), attach my birds (ornaments from Cost Plus) and insert my nesting material and be done with it.
well... of course Murphy reared his head again, and i found out tuesday that i wouldn't be able to have the cubes painted until TODAY, and it was due YESTERDAY. no problem, i'm adaptable, there's always more that one solution... so i had R frost them a translucent/clear, and put colored paper i hand-shredded in them. i attached the birds in whimsical ways and hand-made a box very similar to the ones the new iPods come in, only made of cardboard. after that, i thought i was Finally Done.
but no.
pretty much when i got to my final class yesterday (to which K brought me; he specifically took yesterday off to help me transport everything), T told me that my birdhouse, which he wanted in the Winter Show, needed to be sprayed colors, i needed to shorten the length of the USB cord between each, my perches needed to be shorter, i needed to change out the nesting material, and he wanted birds that were "silkier."
in other words, my hell was Not Over.
so, after class yesterday, i had to call work to see if i could leave early, went to see R again so he could spray birdhouse AGAIN, and called about a million craft stores to find new birds. K was with me the whole time, shuttling us to and fro getting it all done.
so today, after i leave work, i will be going back up to Potrero Hill to collect my birdhouse and re-work it to T's specifications. i'm going to try one last-ditch effort to find different birds, and after assembling it all, i'm going to bring it to school to be hung for the show tonight.
and then, after K and i see the show, hopefully have dinner and buy groceries for our Christmas Eve dinner on Sunday, i will Finally Be Done.
the thing is, i LOVE what i do, and though it's going to get even harder and more expensive as the semesters roll on... i can't imagine doing anything else. hopefully, that old adage is still true: Do what you love, and the money will follow.
because right now, i'm definitely paying my dues.
***
anyway... if i don't get to post before Monday, i hope everyone has a lovely, safe and warm Christmas, hopefully spent with someone you love.
i know mine will be.
* R charged me $135 for the laser cutting... which was more than half of my last paycheck. he was also VERY condescending to me and treated me like crap... i am cringing at how much it will cost for the translucent color spraying.
well, this past week has been finals helldom, starting with one on monday and culminating with one yesterday. but i can't say that everything is Finally Over yet. the good news: both my Package Design 2 Projects made it into the Winter Show!!! (it's one night only, tonight, from 6-8:30) yipeeeeeeeee!
the bad news: read on...
the second/last project i had this semester was to build a recycled or sustainable birdhouse (an interesting choice for a packaging class, might i add). it was good to be away from the computer and be able to work with my hands, which is what i love to do.
for my company (to ground the project and give it credibility) i chose Apple Computer... and for my materials, i chose empty CD jewel cases. my marketing angle was a musical one: trade in your old CD cases for free iTunes, and Apple will build a birdhouse for the community.
well, this project has been ongoing for about 7 weeks or so... it's been one long rollercoaster ride riddled with tons of learning curves. after much back-and-forth with my design in class, i settled on a cube shape for my birdhouse and thought i could do most (if not all) of the construction myself. of course, that would be too easy.
all semester, my instructor "T" (who shall remain nameless, since i mentioned a teacher's name on here before and he would periodically google himself and find my blog), has sort of been steering us toward a service bureau here in town that provides modeling services. they do scale models of just about anything, from toys to buildings to signage to you name it, they probably can do it.
[aside: i'm sure i've mentioned how expensive art school is. moreover, the Packaging track of Graphic Design is arguably the most expensive branch of that. so... with this in mind, read on.]
well, for weeks now i've been laboring under the assumption that i could complete my project by myself for the least amount of money as possible. after all, i was able to get the main materials (CD jewel cases and a USB cord from a palm pilot charger) free (or very close to free) from SCRAP. well, that all changed about two weeks ago.
as my design took shape (a trio of three cube birdhouses strung on USB cable), it was apparent that i would have to have some help with the construction: drilling holes in the tops, bottoms and sides of the cubes, for the cable to run through, the perch to insert, and the bird to crawl through. this is something for which i sought help at the modeling company. (of all the tools i own, a drill is not one of them... especially not one with circular bits.) so, i sought out the help of "R" who runs the modeling company. i met with him two Fridays ago and he agreed to help me--free of charge.
however, with further suggestions in critique, it was apparent that i would have to have my birdhouse spray painted (either frosted or translucent colors) with the Apple logo masked out on the backs of the cubes. also, and i'm not sure where this idea came from, but i wanted to have an acrylic Apple "charm" hanging from the bottom of the houses. R also agreed to help me with this, as he has access to laser cutting.*
all fine and dandy. not really.
after much trial and error, i finally got the cubes wired together and ready to be painted by Tuesday. i thought that i'd get it sprayed three colors (pink, blue and green like the new iPod Nanos), attach my birds (ornaments from Cost Plus) and insert my nesting material and be done with it.
well... of course Murphy reared his head again, and i found out tuesday that i wouldn't be able to have the cubes painted until TODAY, and it was due YESTERDAY. no problem, i'm adaptable, there's always more that one solution... so i had R frost them a translucent/clear, and put colored paper i hand-shredded in them. i attached the birds in whimsical ways and hand-made a box very similar to the ones the new iPods come in, only made of cardboard. after that, i thought i was Finally Done.
but no.
pretty much when i got to my final class yesterday (to which K brought me; he specifically took yesterday off to help me transport everything), T told me that my birdhouse, which he wanted in the Winter Show, needed to be sprayed colors, i needed to shorten the length of the USB cord between each, my perches needed to be shorter, i needed to change out the nesting material, and he wanted birds that were "silkier."
in other words, my hell was Not Over.
so, after class yesterday, i had to call work to see if i could leave early, went to see R again so he could spray birdhouse AGAIN, and called about a million craft stores to find new birds. K was with me the whole time, shuttling us to and fro getting it all done.
so today, after i leave work, i will be going back up to Potrero Hill to collect my birdhouse and re-work it to T's specifications. i'm going to try one last-ditch effort to find different birds, and after assembling it all, i'm going to bring it to school to be hung for the show tonight.
and then, after K and i see the show, hopefully have dinner and buy groceries for our Christmas Eve dinner on Sunday, i will Finally Be Done.
the thing is, i LOVE what i do, and though it's going to get even harder and more expensive as the semesters roll on... i can't imagine doing anything else. hopefully, that old adage is still true: Do what you love, and the money will follow.
because right now, i'm definitely paying my dues.
***
anyway... if i don't get to post before Monday, i hope everyone has a lovely, safe and warm Christmas, hopefully spent with someone you love.
i know mine will be.
* R charged me $135 for the laser cutting... which was more than half of my last paycheck. he was also VERY condescending to me and treated me like crap... i am cringing at how much it will cost for the translucent color spraying.
posted by sightofstars | 9:34 AM
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