Changing from Adobe Muse to Wix & Web Development

In the last few days Ive been trying to develop my blog on Adobe Muse, however Im finding that Adobe Muse doesnt support a blog feed function. I did some research in to how to get around this and found a solution which seemed incredibly complicated for an amateur like me. Ive also been findinf other aspects of Muse to be very challenging and highly frustrating. It is because of both these reasons I have decided to create my website on Wix instead. I think this will save me a lot of stress and valuable time.

♯Initiative & Independent Learning
♯Devise Innovative and Appropriate Solutions to a problem or brief
♯Good working practices

Shoot 5 - Alicia

Because of issues faced I am currently running behind on my scheduled tasks and not where i should be in terms of the progression of the project. In order to help with this I booked time in the studio this week to shoot 4 looks for the blog. Ive been feeling confident with my photography lately, so i decided i would still go ahead with shooting even though my photographer was unavailable the same time as my model. The model, who i have worked with before, is reliable for delivering excellent pictures so I was very excited for this shoot as I knew I would probably get some great results.

Looking at the photos now, I am very pleased with the results. Ive managed to achieve four beautiful looks that embody subtle interpretations of current trends.I also feel that even though ive used the same model, all four images look very different.

♯Devise Innovative and Appropriate Solutions to a problem or brief
♯Good working practices

Shoot 4 - Phoebe

For this shoot I was unable to secure a photographer to assit me with shooting and lighting setup. However I endeavored to manage this aspect of the shoot myself as well as the Make up application. My friend Tina was able to assist me with the hair styling. The image below is what I considered to be the best image from the shoot which I have just finished editting.

Overall Im quite pleased with the outcome of the photography and quite glad I did it myself in the end. From now on I think Ill be more confident in setting up the studio and shooting looks myself rather than limiting myself to doing shoots when my photographer is free. 

Im not crazy about the hair styling in all honesty, I feel that i could have directed my friend Tina with better and more in depth instructions to achieve a look i would have been happier with.

♯Initiative & Independent Learning
♯Devise Innovative and Appropriate Solutions to a problem or brief
♯Good working practices

Shoot 3 - Sorina

Below are images from my third shoot. in this shoot I tried out a different lighting setup with my assisting photographer. I thought a different lighting setup might add further intrigue and possibly make the website look more dynamic. However, looking at the results Im not entirely happy with them and Ive decided not to go forward with editting them or featuring them on the site. for starters, I feel the model looks quite uncomfortable and this translates in to an awkwardly posed photo. I also feel that the lighting effects combined with the high shine look has resulted in too much shine and the model looks a little sweaty. Finally, I feel that the lighting effect just isnt quite right for what Im creating - the site is supposed to be about subtle, simplistic beauty and the lighting effect gives an air of mystery and intrigue and overall will be confusing for the audience. Likewise, if i were to feature this look I think it would make the site look inconsistent and confusing due to its completely different lighting setup.

♯Devise Innovative and Appropriate Solutions to a problem or brief
♯Understanding of trends & styling conventions
♯Good working practices

Change of Direction (Again!) + Final Proposal

Project context 

In a society where social media plays an integral role in our daily lives, it is no wonder the beauty industry has also become heavily reliant upon its relationship with various social media platforms as a method of connecting with its consumers. It has now become the norm for ‘Social Influencers’ such as YouTube personalities and bloggers to collaborate with cosmetic brands in hopes of both boosting following and increasing product exposure. Research has found that the millennial demographic has become increasingly reliant on the internet, particularly using the word of these social media personalities as a source of guidance regarding which beauty products to buy (Liddicote, 2016). Largely due to lower incomes than their parent generation, the millennial consumer is a savvy shopper with keen interest to ascertain a product’s credibility prior to purchasing. Because of this growing relationship between social media and the beauty industry, it can be hard to judge the authenticity of product recommendations made online due to a rise in product endorsements and commissioned collaborations.

Millennials, also known as Generation Z, are vastly more tech savvy then the generations before them. Generation Z’s reliance on social media as a way of life has opened them up to more independent and niche brands than before. As a result they are more willing to try products from these lesser-known brands as opposed to the more traditional big brand names belonging to the likes of Estee Lauder and L’oreal. Because of this, the beauty industry is becoming less dominated by long standing traditional brands and embracing new, innovative and niche cosmetic brands (WGSN, 2017).  

Project outcome & USP

‘UntoldBeauty’ is a blog that seeks to provide inspirational looks and product recommendations without agenda or bias towards only big-name brands. In keeping with the theme of discovery, the blog will champion looks of subtlety and simplicity, which are commonly overlooked and under-rated in the world of beauty.

Target Audience

‘UntoldBeauty’ caters to the millennial demographic of women aged 18-30 by offering interpretations of current trends that are fashion-forward yet still wearable. Alongside these featured looks will be genuine product recommendations based on personal experience rather than endorsement, this seeks to meet the target consumers need to find products that are credible and effective.

Outcome Aesthetic  

UntoldBeauty will be based on a traditional blog layout, with a feed of recent posts featuring the various looks created. However, I aim to incorporate more website based elements to differentiate UntoldBeauty from more traditional and common beauty blogs. 

Typical blog layout

Typical layout conventions of beauty blog can be seen in the diagram above. UntoldBeauty will differ from this layout and form more of a cross over between a gallery website and blog.   

Inspirational Blog Layout

Inspirational Blog Layout

Inspirational Blog Layout

(Something that did occur to me when finalising my redeveloped outcome concept, was whether I'd still be able to make use of the looks I have already shot. However, this will not be an issue because its not as if my target audience or intended outcome have drastically changed. My audience has remained very much the same and in fact become slightly broader. Also, as stated previously throughout the duration of the project Ive been keen to incorporate my love of subtle and minimal make up along side the incorporation of current trends)

♯Initiative & Independent Learning
♯Devise Innovative and Appropriate Solutions to a problem or brief
♯Understanding of trends & styling conventions
♯Good working practices

Midway Formative Feedback

This week I was required to present my progress so far in the project to two members of the creative faculty, Sebastien and Russell.
This is the presentation I presented them with.

The feedback I received was quite eye-opening. Although I was quite disheartened at first, I am thankful i received this feedback as I will be able to build on this and improve my final major project. There were a lot of things I hadn't considered which Russell and Sebastien brought to my attention.

Feedback:

- The purpose of my website is not clear enough. Its unclear who the website is for and what its intention is. Based on heir feedback, I can look at my progress so far and agree that the purpose is quite vague and not clear enough.

- Its possible there isn't much demand for the website at all. Would Make-up artists realistically see a need to visit it? When I think about this possibility it does make sense that make up artists wouldn't necessarily see the need for it. i need to think about how to adapt the website so that it meets more of a demand in the market. 

- The USP isn't clear enough. What makes my website different to any other beauty site? I can see what Sebastien and Russell mean by this, based on what I've shown them so far my website currently looks very stereotypical and not particularly inventive or innovative - nothing so far is setting me apart from any other beauty website. 

Overall the feedback I received highlighted the importance and urgency for me to redefine my USP and to find something that made me passionate about creating the outcome. Sebastien commented that he didn't feel I was very enthusiastic about the project and I would agree that I am am still having trouble with motivation and ambition. I got a bit emotional wheN i received this feedback. It has occurred to me that I have been burying my hand in the sand and ignoring my negative feelings towards my work and motivation.

Going forward...
- I urgently need to redefine my USP and project focus
- Make the intention/purpose of my website clearer to the audience


♯Initiative & Independent Learning
♯Devise Innovative and Appropriate Solutions to a problem or brief

Further Changes to planned outcome

Upon further reflection I have changed the name of my site. When I researched available domain names 'The Beauty Vault' wasn't available with any of the domain origins including .org , .co.uk or .com - I don't really want to resort to using an unusual or uncommon domain ending with the likes of .uk .net etc 

After brainstorming website names I came up with 'The Beauty Muse' - I like this idea because it suggests a source of inspiration regarding beauty which fits well with my website purpose. It will suggest to the target audience authenticity in my product reccomedations. 

I have also begun designing my website on Adobe Muse. 

I am finding Adobe Muse quite hard to get to grips with, its fairly time consuming as well because I am not hugely familiar with using it. I may look in to other methods of creating my website such as Wix and decide on whether to keep using Muse or change approach. 

Moving forward...
- Look in to other methods of creating a professional website
- Prepare presentation for formative Feedback

♯Initiative & Independent Learning
♯Devise Innovative and Appropriate Solutions to a problem or brief
♯Good working practices