21/03. A NEW DIRECTION.

21/03. The day I will forever remember for this Final Major project (FMP). It's the day I changed my view on this project. My Project is titles "Project Care-Package". The aim is to bring the feeling of home to the consumer/audience using these so called 'packages'. From day 1, my initial inspiration, that came from a first aid box, I've been embedded into the idea of developing a care-package as a box that comes set with little tools and trinkets to remind someone of home. The original idea was to design a kit that would have an outside design that reminds someone of home. This outside design would be the first line of attack in inflicting the feeling of nostalgia into my audience. From there, once they open the "kit" there will be equipped tools, trinkets and modules to make someone feel better when their homesick. I wanted to try and implement a homesick candle or a voice recorded message from friends and family into the 'box' when opened. However, that felt too generic and boring. I didn't realise this then, or I did but it didn't hit me hard enough. But, I could create this care-package with everything that says I can make someone feel better when homesick based on online articles and paper but nothing is the same for everyone. Home is specific to each consumers and everyone has a different idea of home. I could attempt to design a care-package for everyone as an individual but that alone would take everyday of the rest of my life. But then I thought, what if, what if I just focused on their home country. But then, different people have different experiences in a country and I can carter for each person. Not only that, HOW am I going to make my own home scented candle, home smells different for everyone. Even if I focused on a country, what does 1 ENTIRE country smell like or how can I assign 1 specific smell for a country where a person could have dozens of different memories. Discussing this with my tutor hit me with a realisation. I am not having fun trying to create this loot crate style box. I am recreating something that could possibly already exist in the market. And a box... its a box... its a square thing you can put your things in for later. A time capsule of sorts but it felt boring. I had more fun doing research, gathering feedback from my target audience and developing that first line of attack. Then it hit me. I want to change what my care-package stands for. I've been so focused on creating just a box. What if it was something different. Then I realised...

I want my care-packages to remind someone of home. Each care-package representative of a different country. Creating the Batik true design for Singapore was one of the most fun aspects of my FMP experience so far and I wanted to continue that journey. What if I continued to explore more countries and designed patterns and palettes for each country. Doing research into a country's identity, people and cultures to come up with a design that instantly takes the target audience back to their home country reminding them of all their past memories there. A nostalgia trip inflicted by the first glance of that design. To solve the problem of individuality and homesickness, the bag kit would be perfect. The box was too limiting and focused. Designing a bag that people can purchase and fill with their own valuables made the bag more unique to them. Even tho the outside is generic to a country, that is the aim, to be the first line in reminding them of home and when they open the bag that they filled with their own things, they'll be taken back to home. Designing a bag would also allow reusability allowing the bag to be carried whenever by the audience. Taking this all into consideration, this is the route I want to take. To develop care-pakcages that are bags that remind someone of home. Each bag printed with a design to take back to home while carrying it.