Revised Blueprint

Posted: October 27th, 2009 | Author: Marcelo | Filed under: Barber shops, Books, Design, Term project | 1 Comment »

This is the revised version of the book blueprint previously presented.

Overview

My book will be about interesting stories and talks that takes place at Toronto barber shops. How i came to this idea? I went around Toronto looking for barber shops and started taking pictures and talking about my project. The first idea was to create a book that would serve as a visual directory or catalog of some of the most famous shops in the city. I quickly abandoned this idea, because it seemed a bit too simple or too ‘linear.’

After discussing with few people and looking at some of my pictures, I came to the conclusion that barber shops are a place that serves not only for men’s hair cuts, but rather as a social space where men can actually talk and bond during that short period of time. So my book will be about a series of very short stories told by barbers in Toronto. These stories will be complemented by images that evoke the feel of those places. The objective of the book is to convey that same experience in a book format, trying to make connections to the physical space, whether it is through images or by the way stories are arranged.

I’d also like to play on the conventions of a book, especially using the folio in a way that can somehow represent a very well-known aspect of a barber shop.

Things I’ve decided

• Typeface
• General style/creative direction
• photo editing style
• page/folio transitions

Things to decide

• Book dimensions
• Paper selection
• End papers
• folding method (I’m considering doing a french fold)
• chapters/book flow

Inspiration Sources

I’ve been looking at some old photos of both barber shops and places in general, watching any movie related to the subject and trying to get a hold of any book that could be related to my project. As mentioned on my previous blueprint, there are not that many books that deal specifically with this subject matter.

Another source of inspiration has been just to visit some used books store. Although I coulnd’t find a book specific to my subject matter, it helps me to get purely inspired by some old-school designs!

Layout experiments

Here are some of the spreads and layouts I’ve been trying.

Some early type treatments and photo editing. Didn’t like this that much.

I like this photo a lot, but the type is not working for what I’d like to achieve. It seems a bit too classic and formal.

This typeface seems to be working better. It has a nice feel and adds personality to it.

I’m also trying to use a bit of the collage style. The placement of images out of context give a nice feel to the layout when combined with low saturated colours.

Some type treatments and an option for cover. I’m using this blue based on those barbicide products that can be found in every single shop!

A possible idea for folios running along the side of the pages. This idea/inspiration was drawn from the pole signs that are used to indicate a shop.

I am also thinking of using black & white photography. This helps to break down a bit the pacing and adds a bit of a nostalgic element, but in a different way from a collage style.

Another idea is to put some small elements to mix with the text. I really like this idea and think it adds a lot of fun and personality to the layout.

Lastly here are some quick collages I did. They seem to be working well and add more depth to the stories. The idea of collage also came from the fact that a barber is always “cutting.” The collages can also connect to the fact that a shop is a place that has accumulated stories along time.

Title of the book

I was also thinking of the title of the book to be “Tonsorial Stories.” Tonsor comes from the latin word tonsorius, which means barber. Since this might not be a very well known word, I thought it might be interesting to use it to draw some attention. If anyone has a suggestion or comments about a possible title, please let me know!

Timeline (tentative)

November 4: Continue working on layouts and text styling

November 11: Have all interviews done and continue transcribing them. Have some paper selections and think about binding methods

November 18: Continue to work on layouts and work on cover, back cover and spine.

November 25: Have all pages and table of content designed. Prepare for printing and binding

December 2: Book done!

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