The Nail Design Magazine Project was a collaborative effort between Louis Riel Arts & Technology New Media Design and Esthetics students and Winnipeg School Division Technical Vocational Photography students. This unique project allowed students from all three disciplines to combine their skills and creativity to produce visually appealing magazine covers that highlighted nail art.  

Collaborators

• Esthetics Students: Provided the nail art concepts and tips, brought their vision to life focusing on the artistic and practical aspects of nail design. 

• Photography Students: Set up the photoshoot and worked with the nail artists to achieve their desired poses. Provided raw camera files.
• New Media Design Students: Focused on the graphic design aspects, using Canva to create the magazine cover.

Process

Initial Meetings and Collaboration

New Media Design (NMD) students met their Esthetician partners to discuss the project and exchange contact information. Once the estheticians created their vision boards, they met with the designers again to explain their ideas, share images, and discuss article headlines. This collaboration allowed the NMD students to start drafting prototypes that captured the themes and ideas from their clients.

Photoshoot Day

May 16th was the big photoshoot day. Estheticians completed their nail art on their models, and the photographers set up in the gym. Each nail artist and model was paired with a photography student to capture the perfect poses.

Photo Selection and Design Refinement:

After receiving the photos, the ATC students selected their favorite poses. The NMD students then used these poses to refine their magazine cover designs. Some poses didn’t work out, requiring NMD students to communicate with their partners to select alternatives that achieved the desired results.

Final Meeting and Approval:

The teams had one final meeting to ensure the designs met the clients’ approval, resulting in magazine covers that both the NMD and Esthetics students were happy with.

Requirements

New Media Design students were required to create visually appealing magazine covers using Canva, incorporating elements such as logos, barcodes, quotes, and headlines. They collaborated with estheticians to align the design with their vision, participated in scheduled meetings, and maintained professional communication throughout the project. Their tasks included drafting prototypes, selecting and enhancing photos from the photoshoot, ensuring balanced layouts, readable text, appropriate color usage, and meeting all deadlines. Finally, they had to present their designs for client approval, making necessary adjustments based on feedback.  Once finalized, they provided their client with the design files in both PDF and PNG formats.  They were required to send these files in a professional email and explain the purpose of them.

NMD students learned that part of professionalism and communication  when working on a client project is to reflect on how it is going and to keep track of the information exchanged and learned. Throughout this project, NMD students recorded their reflections in their learning journals and documented information gathered from their clients.

Student Responses

Students enjoyed the project, highlighting the creative freedom and practical experience gained. They learned valuable lessons in client communication, problem-solving, and design execution.

Student remarks from their reflections included:

I am happy that what once gave me trouble is now a challenge that I am proud to say I overcame. I enjoyed the fact that I learnt new things. I know we have been taught how to work with clients but carrying the action out was a whole new experience. I really liked the fact that we were practical.

Overall, my favourite project of the year!

I loved designing with creative freedom and working with a client to bring their vision to life

I loved the fact that I could design something with my own freedom and creativity and with my first client who communicated well with me and expressed their ideas to me and I executed them with the best of my ability

It helped me explore my creative side, practice client service and practice using Canva. I learnt that good customer service starts with good communication and clear questions and answers.

I enjoyed, really the joy I got when I finally pieced two things together and a design worked out, or when I found the perfect or ideal edit for one of the elements.

Final Magazine Covers

The project concluded with the creation of stunning magazine covers, showcasing the combined talents of the students.

Conclusion

The Nail Design Magazine Project was a successful blend of creativity and professional experience, allowing students to showcase their skills in a real-world context. The collaboration between New Media Design and Esthetics students resulted in beautifully crafted magazine covers that reflect their combined expertise and creativity.