What's on the Outside Counts

Liquid eyeliner. It's big, it's bold, it's a statement. But whether this statement is hot or not depends on the container of eyeliner you use.

Liquid eyeliner is sold in two packages. The first version provides you with a brush applicator. You have to dip the thick brush into the liquid eyeliner and then paint it onto your eye lids. Most people I know don't have a painter's hand with steady flow and find this process very difficult. You want a thin, straight, clean line of eyeliner on your lids, not a thick mess. Plus, when the liquid is exposed to air, it dries out quickly.

The second version of eyeliner is similar to a pen. It comes with a pen-like applicator, with the liquid already soaked into the tip. This thin, pointy, and precise tip is very easy to use and doesn't make a mess. If I'm drawing black lines across my eyelids, they better be precise. I find the design of this package to be much more practical and definitely worth the few extra bucks.

Call to Action

I began my morning at the kitchen table, sipping on a cup of coffee and leafing through a Better Homes and Gardens magazine. Each page was filled with bright and colorful images, dynamic layouts, and happy, smiling faces.

Imagine my shock when I turned the page to this sad, little boy. Seeing this picture of him crying almost brought tears to my eyes. The photo is a real close up of his face, focusing on his eyes with tears dripping down his cheeks. I felt so bad for him, and even worse when I read that he's been waiting for surgery for 5 YEARS!! I was heartbroken!

Then, I read the follow up message... in 5 minutes I could save him! My feelings quickly turned from sadness to hopeful. I was ready to donate to SmileTrain. They knew just how to grab my attention, summon my emotions, and then show me what I could do to help. With a donation form printed right on the magazine ad, a website, and a phone number I had no excuse not to. These numerous ways to donate were right at my finger tips.

Design for Change

Cafe Prevention is a non-profit organization that supports healthy lifestyles and community building through their products. They focus on topics such as drug and alcohol prevention, homelessness, education, and violence prevention.

They created this postcard to discourage underage drinking. The front of the postcard really catches my attention. I like that it is a very clean design, with lots of empty space. The simplicity of the postcard makes its message stand out loud and clear. The back of the postcard is nicely organized with bullet pointed facts. The facts are pretty interesting to read, and they don't look like too much text because of the alternating colors.

The designers did a nice job of conveying their message in such a small amount of space. I find that many postcards are overcrowded with words and images, and this turns me off.

I started off this assignment looking for a postcard, but found myself to be really interested in the work that Cafe Prevention does. It's always inspiring to see designers use their creativity to make a difference in the world. If you're interested in this too, check out this video I saw a few months ago on ted.com.
http://www.ted.com/talks/emily_pilloton_teaching_design_for_change.html