OVERVIEW
It was a frigid December evening in Chicago, and I was hungry. Tiptoeing to the kitchen, I found a partially stale Costco croissant tucked away in some dusty plastic Tupperware at the back of our pantry. Balancing it in my palm, I began to reminisce about my days in London, enjoying warm, golden pastries and debating with my tutor about Locke’s interpretation of sovereignty. The previous term, I had similarly invigorating discussions with my peers in Beijing about the One-Child Policy and the Prime Minister of Japan, but over steamy youtiao and perfectly sweet doujiang. Peeling my eyes away from the pitiful croissant, I began to conceptualise my ideal restaurant—one that served all these scrumptious treasures in a friendly, welcoming environment.
ELEMENTS
*Sigh*, I am a designer, not a restaurateur. So, I did the best thing I could think of. I got to work sketching my favourite foods and mementoes that remind me of these lovely places and delicious treats. My themed online photobooth is a place where friends can snap pictures in my lovely "café" without setting foot in it!
Basically, the site welcomes users with a cute poster, then asks them to upload or take photos. After selecting an image, they can add stickers (one of the cute icons included above) and can download the resulting image to their device.
This project uses JavaScript, HTML, and CSS, and I sketched it in Figma and Sketchbook. It draws inspiration from a project by YouTuber @Nashallery.
I drew the colours and sketches from random Pinterest finds. The site is complete, but I’m still developing the branding and concept for this potential endeavour.
CONCLUSION
Overall, I learned how to complete a design project from start to finish, building the back end and making the front-end visuals simple and intuitive. I also received positive feedback from friends and family when I shared the link. If you use the site, feel free to share your images with me—I’d love to see your “visit” to my café.
