Publication Design
My ultimate passion when it comes to yearbook is no doubt design. I love turning a blank page into something people stare at and want to read. All of these pages start as a blank layout. There are no templates; I create each page from scratch. I love the creative process; on all of these spreads, I have been the sole person to gather the information, design the layout, write the content, and interview the students. Showstopper pages never get old for me to design!
Click on the individual photo of the design in each gallery to see it full-screen.
Award-Winning
Design Gallery
"Like and Comment" - Social Media Spread, No Matter What
National NFPW Winner in Yearbook Layout, First Place in PA NFPW Yearbook
Layout
"A Divided Nation" - Election Spread,
Phases
National NFPW Honorable Mention in Yearbook Layout, First Place in PA NFPW Yearbook
Layout
"Social Media & Fashion,"
Phases
Second Place in PA NFPW (National Federation of Press Women) Yearbook Layout
"Curse of the Coronavirus," What Now?
Third Place in PA NFPW Yearbook Layout
*All of the information for this page was gathered March 13, 2020, the day of the shutdown. I created this page entirely from home.
"Marching Into A Makeover" - Renovation Spread, Phases
First Place in Quill & Scroll National Yearbook Excellence Competition (Class B) for Graphic Design
"Six Inches Apart" - Pandemic Spread, Phases
First Place in Quill & Scroll National Yearbook Excellence Competition (Class B)for Pandemic Spread
"Closed, Come Back Soon" - Pandemic Spread, Phases
Second Place in Quill & Scroll National Yearbook Excellence Competition (Class B) for Pandemic Spread
Cover, Phases
Second Place in Quill & Scroll National Yearbook Excellence Competition (Class B)for Cover Design
"Spring Current Events," What Now?
In our PSPA Gold Rating Critique, our judge wrote that "the designer of this page should work for Vogue"
"Senior Favorites," What Now?
featured on Walsworth's webinars about showstopper yearbook spreads
No Matter What Theme
2021-2022, my senior year
Coming off of the massive success of Phases in 2021 (see below), I experienced massive designer's block. The design of What Now? was so me that I felt like some of the new designs I was creating looked exactly like what I already created. Besides, I was really growing attached to the editorial aesthetic of Phases that I did not want to let that aspect go. Through the tears came the design and theme for No Matter What. No matter what, I was going to do whatever it took to create fresh designs.
As if the designs of What Now? and Phases had a baby, the design of No Matter What combines the two aesthetics into something that shows my range as a designer. Encompassing my bold style with an editorial twist, the design of No Matter What is uniquely me. Although the awards season has not yet begun for the 2021-2022 season, I am confident that this design for No Matter What is my best work yet.
Click on each of the galleries to see my work in full-screen.
No Matter What
Showstoppers
2021-2022, my senior year
After finally establishing the design for No Matter What that depicts a very school-spirited, fun vibe with a twist on our school colors and fresh fonts, it was finally time for me to do what I love: create showstoppers! Although not all of my showstoppers from this book are created yet, the ones that are created truly encompass the vibe of the senior class: bold, passionate, and ready for whatever comes their way. One of my personal favorites is the Homecoming gatefold where if you look at the bottom left hand corner of the opener, you will find a familiar face as Homecoming Queen.
Phases Theme
2020-2021, my junior year
Coming off of the bold and bright What Now? in 2020 (see below), our editorial team had to decide what the design of our next yearbook would look like, all from the confines of our Zoom screens as we were brainstorming during the shutdown. As it was our editor-in-chief's senior year, she strived to take the book in a clean, classic direction. After the two of us pitched our designs to our fellow editors and our representative, my designs won out, paving the way for the theme of Phases. Whether it be the phases of our front entrance renovation (as shown in our cover) or the Pennsylvania red, yellow, and green phases of the coronavirus (as shown in the "Counting the Covid-19 Numbers" sections in our current events spreads), my designs truly captured the essence of our theme. Additionally, coming off of the primary colors of What Now?, the pastel gradient I created carried a color story across our yearbook, taking our students out of the black and white unknown of the beginning of the year to fully living life in color towards the end of the yearbook.
Phases
Showstoppers
2020-2021, my junior year
As it turns out, all of my Phases showstoppers are award winners. To see them, please visit the "Award-Winning Layouts" section at the top of the page.
What Now? Theme
2019-2020, my sophomore year
A naive sophomore, I stepped into the classroom at Slippery Rock University not knowing to expect at a regional Walsworth design camp. With no prior experience regarding designing in Adobe Photoshop and InDesign under my belt, you could say I was in over my head. However, once I started playing with the programs and learning from the professionals, I quickly advanced in the programs. After three days of learning, designing theme pages, and collaborating with my fellow editors, the designs I created and pitched in the culminating presentation at the end of the camp resulted in our yearbook winning a $500 credit towards the cover of our yearbook. With this new-found confidence, my fellow editors and I headed to Walsworth's Elite Weekend in Orlando, Florida where I absorbed knowledge from journalism and graphic design professionals, including Journalism Specialist Mike Taylor and our representative and Senior Graphic Designer, Stephanie Streicher. With their mentorship, I realized that designing was my favorite part of the yearbook process and still is to this day.
What Now? Showstoppers
2019-2020, my sophomore year
After designing our theme pages for What Now?, I had a solid idea of what my design aesthetic was: bright, bold, and in-your-face. My first showstopper experience was with my TokTok spread, putting my designs on the map. From then on, I let my creativity unleash, always challenging myself to see what I could come up with next. Whether that be taking the risk and designing an all-yellow spread to creating and finishing the Online Learning, Social Media, and Prom spreads from home during the shutdown for our spring supplement, showstoppers have always been a place for me to express my creativity while capturing the essence of our students body.
