Blog

I think there are a lot of trends going on in the design community right now. AI, of course, is huge, and you can see a lot of people trying their hand at making AI images. Researching and looking at pictures closely to see if AI has been used is essential. I saw a news segment trying to explain how to spot AI images, and it showed how, after the recent hurricanes, people were using AI images of things that did not actually happen. It can be scary to think about AI’s powerful influence and how it can be used badly when people do not pay close enough attention. In my magazine interview with Carly Schultz, I asked her about her thoughts on AI. She said she thinks it can be used as a great tool and starting point to gather ideas, but overall, she does not believe it will replace designers and that handmade traditional art will become more popular again in the next couple of years.
Another popular trend right now is 3D images. I think 3D has grown a lot in popularity, especially due to visual media like movies and television shows. Disney moved away from 2D movies and now mostly makes 3D media. I think that also influences children away from 2D animation because most of the content they watch is 3D now.
A trend I like right now is vintage and nostalgia. Some popular designs pay homage to the ’60s and ’70s and go with a more retro look. I am partial to this style because I love retro and vintage looks (that was the theme of my wedding and my apartment right now). It is interesting to see designs cycle back and think about what will become popular next.

When we are creating designs for classes, I most often use DaFont.com to search for different fonts. I also use Adobe fonts, especially when making something for a web class, because it translates easier. I like looking at DaFont.com because there are so many different styles to match what aesthetic you are going for in a design. You do need to be careful using that website, though, because some fonts are only available for personal use. Since we are just making designs for a class, we can use those personal use fonts, but if I were making a design for a client, I would want to make sure that the font I was using is 100% free. Adobe Fonts are free for commercial use with a Creative Cloud subscription. It is also essential to save the fonts you downloaded so that you will always have those fonts and do not have to search for them again when opening a past project. When our computers were reimaged at the beginning of this semester, I opened a past project from last year and realized I was missing a font. Luckily, it was a very recognizable font, and I was able to download it again. It was fixed in my project after I downloaded it.

On October 12, 2024, Tucker and I officially got married! It was such a crazy and fun day! We got married at Grace Lutheran Church in Luverne, MN. We were able to go out to Blue Mound State Park and take pictures with our wedding party, and we received some sneak peeks already! I am in love with them! Tucker and I wrote our own vows, and they were absolutely beautiful. Our unity candles did not light correctly during the ceremony, but before I could get embarrassed, Tucker used a lighter and saved the day using comedy. That is one of the things I love about him because I know he has always got me and keeps me grounded. We had our reception at The Country Club of Sioux Falls, which was so beautiful and fun! A table may or may not have been knocked over at the head table, but we laughed about it and still had a great time. It was the best day ever, and I am so happy to say I am now Kaylen Wieneke (I still have to change my name officially).

I follow a lot of different artists on Instagram. I save posts that inspire me and follow accounts that show tips and tricks on how to better use my software. One account that shows many shortcuts to make designing easier is @ollies_doodles. He has a specific style that is pretty trendy right now, but I like how he shows all the steps of making designs better. I also follow a lot of illustrator accounts because I would like to illustrate children’s books in the future. Some accounts I look up to are @anooshadraws, @sibylline_m, @lfcreative, @anneliedraws, @sannyvanloon, and @mattkaufenberg. They all have very distinct and different styles of illustration. I have gotten a couple of their books to study their designs. I like @lfcreative because he has illustrated many books for Little Golden Book, which is one of my goals as a designer, too. @sibylline_m has a book called Rêverie, where she shows many of her design processes, and the title of that book inspired me to name my magazine Reverie.

My fiance Tucker and I traveled to the Black Hills for a wedding and a quick vacation this weekend. On the 6-hour car trip there, I kept looking at all the billboards we were passing. I would point them out to Tucker and discuss the different designs, some good, some not. I asked his opinion of them to see how someone not in design would view them. He had a hard time reading some as he was driving past. Readability is essential since the primary audience of billboards is drivers. Sometimes, I would point out how I would create the design differently, just as the Sturgis Buffalo Chip sign with Kid Rock and Jelly Roll. The billboard only had the pictures and names of the performers on it. Come on, “Rock and Roll”? It’s right there! Expand and utilize that! Add some pizzazz with a related headline and graphics! Overall, talking to Tucker about what I have learned in classes and how that applies to everyday things such as billboards was fun.

On Thursday morning, I was able to interview my subject for the media industry article for my magazine. I chose to interview Carly Schultz, who is a senior visual designer at Lemonly. It was a wonderful experience, and I learned a lot! First, Carly took me on a Lemonly/Click Rain building tour. It used to be a spark plug factory, and the new layout has elements that still play to the old design, such as an old elevator shaft, which is now converted into a small conference space. I love how the building is set up to allow different workspaces for employees and clients. They keep elements of fun with neon signs of their logos and flags of their core values.

After the tour, Carly and I sat down and started the interview process. I was able to ask her all my questions about the article I would write, and she answered and elaborated on all of them. I was able to record the interview to make sure I did not miss any important information. It was so interesting to talk to someone in the media industry and learn from them. I was able to learn more about Lemonly as a company and how they work with clients. I like how Lemonly operates and implements their core values into their work. After the interview, I was able to snag some photos of Carly and the building. I can’t wait to work on the magazine’s layout and put in all the great images I was able to get! I really enjoyed getting to meet Carly and learn about Lemonly!

It is another busy week for me, but what else is new? Last Wednesday through Sunday I worked everyday. Yesterday, my fiance Tucker and I finally met with our wedding DJ after he had to reschedule our original appointment. Today, I have to try on my wedding dress after alterations. I work right after class until 9 PM on Wednesday, so I only have a little time to work on things. On Thursday, I have an interview with a media industry designer in the morning. After afternoon class, Tucker and I are driving to Spearfish, SD, for a wedding on Friday. We are going out with my aunt and her husband so we will make a weekend of it. We will be coming home on Sunday, so the cycle will start again. I still have a lot to do for the wedding, and it is coming up way too fast! I still need to order the cake! To be fair, it will just be a small cake for Tucker and me, so I will order it from Hy-Vee after class today.
I am still using design as I work on the final wedding touches. I am making our wedding programs and thank you cards. If people ask at the wedding, it will be fun to say I made them. There are so many little things to do yet, and it feels hard to balance it while doing school assignments and trying to work ahead on deadlines while I am gone. I just have to keep powering through, I guess.

This week, I am interviewing with someone who works in the media industry. This interview is for an article in the magazine we will be creating. I am nervous about interviewing someone in the industry because I want to make a good impression and possibly make connections in the future. A lot of the media design industry is making those connections. Since I don’t have a lot of family close by who are in the media industry, I feel like I am starting from scratch and will have to make my own connections.
When I was in pharmacy school, I had a lot of connections. My mother is a pharmacist, my aunt is a pharmacy technician, my grandma is a nurse, and my fiance was also in pharmacy school. I have worked in pharmacy since 2017, so I have built many connections through work. I also went to pharmacy school, where my mother studied, so I also had connections there. As a child, I even attended pharmacy classes with her sometimes. I could say, “Hey, do you know Jaccii Hoffbeck?” people would automatically know who I was talking about.
It feels so different now. I don’t know anyone in the industry, and it feels like a giant leap. As my fiance would say, “You need a push down the waterslide.” I must put myself out there and make connections to become a successful designer.

We have an assignment to make a sort of essential kit for the magazines we will create for class. It is a full spread of items that are cohesive and connected. The best way I can describe it at the moment is if you took a picture of the items in an emergency survival kit for your car. You list the items and their relevance. You also have to take a photo of them yourself. This assignment hasn’t been introduced to the students yet. Still, I have been looking at last year’s student magazines for inspiration. Students have made kits for cars, recipes, gaming, movie nights, and more. I am super excited about this magazine project, so I have been thinking about ideas for all the aspects of the magazine. For the kit, I was thinking of doing a get-well package. I feel like that would work well with my cozy magazine feel. I started brainstorming ideas for the items such as tea, honey, a mug, tissues, etc. I should wait until we learn more about the project, but I am too excited!

This semester, Media Design students are creating their own magazines. The magazine is 16 pages long, and we create EVERYTHING! It is all our work, from articles and interviews to advertisements and photography. It is both exciting and nerve-racking! I have yet to decide on the name of my magazine, partly because I haven’t decided on the exact mood I want to portray. For the major article, we will be interviewing someone from the design industry. There is also a smaller article where we will interview a small, local business as well. We just began working on ideas for our advertisements, which should also connect with our overall magazine mood. It is a lot to think about!
I am leaning more into doing a magazine published in autumn. I want it to feel kind of cozy with the small business article, possibly being a coffee company from my hometown. I have an idea for a cute candle advertisement based on a photo I took last year for a photography class. Since it would also be in autumn, I thought I could use a senior class photo I took of my cousin in her cheerleading outfit because it is football season.