final branding book explaining story and process of creating the book "(self)care". clean graphic design slide info with macro photography and a square book layout.

1. the making of
(self)care
final project presentation
michelle lee d’alessandro

2. for anybody,
everybody
key user profile
use case
project summary
take something familiar
and make it unfamiliar

3. sparking introspection
and conversation
goals and objectives
the main goal of this project was to explore and
examine what selfcare means to each of us.
at first flush, it’s personal storytelling through
photography. but within that story, i want the
reader to reflect upon their own practices.
what feels familiar, what makes them
uncomfortable? why?
if they were to share their own routines and rituals,
what would it look like?
project description

4. you.
users
well, more realistically anyone who can
access the book.
so after today, likely my friends and
family.
and maybe people who view my
portfolio or wherever it ends up online.
but maybe one day it’ll be available for
more people to see, because i want
people to see it. i want you to see it.
project description

5. maybe you’re at home.
or in ryder one-eighty
context of use
for now, there exist only two copies.
but perhaps one day it’ll sit upon a
coffee table somewhere and someone
will pick it up to show their friends
more than likely that someone will be
me. but maybe it’ll be a stranger.
project description

6. maybe you’re at home.
or in ryder one-eighty
context of use
for now, there exist only two copies.
but perhaps one day it’ll sit upon a
coffee table somewhere and someone
will pick it up to show their friends
more than likely that someone will be
me. but maybe it’ll be a stranger.
project description

7. brought to you by...
inspiration
the sweet flypaper of life by roy
decarava and langston hughes
madeinspace.la
la jetee by chris marker
reyner banham loves los angeles
the work of marina abramović
the work of chrion duong
the work of tehching hsieh
caring for photographs
a handbook of reproduction processes
special thanks to professor arnold
mages and the local library
related research

8. caring for photographs
(1982)
layout studies
a handbook of graphic
reproduction processes
(1972)

9. what do people think
about self care?
surveys
through instagram, i asked some
general questions about how they
experiences and thought about
self care to guage interest, spark
discussion, and guide the contents of
what the book includes
it also led to many great conversations,
which helped deepen my own
understanding of care
related survey

10. related survey

11. related survey
If/when you struggle with your
mental health, what parts of self
care become most difficult to
maintain?
“i always find time. it is my
way of coping”
“eating, especially
something ‘healthy’”
“to move my body, doing
yoga or exercise”
“definitely personal hygiene,
like showering, skin/body
care, shaving, etc...”
“skincare so much.
brushing teeth. showers.”
“working out, eating
healthy, speaking to myself
in a kind way”
“anything over the bare
minimum (wash body, hair,
brush teeth). eating well”
“eating and showering”
“basic maintenance like
brushing my teeth and
showering regularly”
“plucking my eyebrows”
“showering, exercise,
spending time on my
hobbies that are more
purely for myself”
“hygiene, regular mealtime”
“skin care. i get bad
inflammations after waxing
and taking care of those
becomes impossible”
“exercising often and
mustering up the energy to
eat three meals a day”
“skincare, body care
besides a quick shower, and
hair care. and eating”
“my self care shifts to
survival mode and those
tasks feel more difficult
than usual”
“when my disability won’t
fully allow me to take care
of myself”
“all of it... i’m lucky if i get up
and brush my teeth”

12. narrative of the design process
How did this book
come to be?

13. where was i
january 2023?
phase zero
this project starts with a little background into
what this semester has been for me.
january 13, i was in a moped accident.
i spent seven days in the hospital, had two
procedures, and three months recovering.
the entire time, i took photos.
i was stuck at home, i struggled to walk, and my
mental health took a dive.
and my understanding of care changed.
narrative of the design process

14. brainstorming
narrative of the design process

15. how can this become a
larger project?
phase one:
my days were consumed with rituals of
care and my camera gallery grew with
documentation of my healing process.
through work as a photographer in the
beauty industry, i began thinking about
how i could find beauty and reality in
the grotesque or mundane.
my first journal consisted of photos
and the beginning concept for a book
about care.
narrative of the design process

16. first weekly journal
narrative of the design process

17. making a proposal and
finding the project
phase two:
i used my proposal to flesh out how i
wanted my project to progress, both in
content and timeline.
the book would be formed around
three pillars:
showing, telling, and asking
intially, i had planned on a section using
more interviews and outside input
but decided to involve others through
questions posed instead.
narrative of the design process

18. project proposals
narrative of the design process
CONCEPT
how do we
for ourselves?
care
This visual project will explore what it means
to care for ourselves, intersecting what modern
beauty looks like with the routines of care for the
body as a home.
How do these routines intersect and overlap
during medical care or disability? Where is the
line between modern medicine and modern cos-
metics? How does the meaning of care change
with depression or with injury?
Self care has become a catch phrase for all sorts
of commercial solutions that promise a better
life. How much of that is real and how much of
that is marketing?
What does it mean to have a ritual of care?
What did it mean to me?
EXECUTION
This is primarily a story-telling project, using photos and text within a
zine to open up a conversation of what self care has meant to me and im-
ploring what it might mean to others.
It will also feature a related set of mocked physical objects meant to con-
tinue the conversation of self-care. How can we feel accomplished by the
silent challenges of caring for ourselves?
INSPIRATION
I was in an accident that limited my mobility and halted my usual prac-
tices of care. I am someone with depression, which has hadoften made
caring for myself challenging. I am femme-identifying and the industry of
beauty and care has been commodified and advertised to us practically
since birth. Where do beauty and basic need intersect?
During this time, I’ve had to start my routines from scratch. The steps I take
to care for myself have changed. Perhaps, so has the meaning of self-care.
imagery of the
realities of caring
for myself following
the accident &
comparisons to the
beauty and cosmetic
surgery industries?
exploring how care
has changed for me;
as someone who
works in beauty, as a
femme, as someone
with mental health
struggles
posing inquiries
into your own care
routines and the
future of the self
care movement.
how can we keep it a
meaningful act?
showing telling asking
and why do we do it?
CONCEPTS
ACCESSIBILITY//CONFIDENCE
HYGIENE//ROUTINE
PROCESS//PROGRESS
VANITY//NECESSITY
CARE//PAIN
INDUSTRY//IDENTITY
STIGMA//ACCEPTANCE
STRUCTURE
how do we
for ourselves?
care
EXECUTION
Photos and text within a
zine/book
+imagery
+text
+query
So far, I have been
compiling images and
began drafting some
text on the topic.
I am considering using
interviews to add
outside voices to the
“asking” portion of the
project, getting real
responses to inquiries
into care routines
I want this project to be
expresssive, but also
spark conversation.
INSPIRATION
I was in an accident
that limited my mobility
and halted my usual
practices of care. I have
had depression, which
has often made caring
for myself challenging. I
am femme-identifying
and the industry of
beauty and care has
been commodified
and advertised to us
practically since birth.
Where do beauty and
basic need intersect?
During this time, I’ve had
to start my routines from
scratch. The steps I take
to care for myself have
changed. Perhaps, so
has the meaning of self-
care.
Imagery of the realities
of caring for myself
following the accident
& comparisons to the
beauty and cosmetic
surgery industries
Exploring how care has
changed for me; as
someone who works in
beauty, as a femme, as
someone with mental
health struggles
Posing inquiries into
your own care routines
and the future of the
self care movement.
How can we keep it a
meaningful act?
showing
telling
asking
and why do we do it?
ACCESSIBILITY/CONFIDENCE//HYGIENE/ROUTINE//PROCESS/PROGRESS//VANITY/NECESSITY//CARE/PAIN//INDUSTRY/IDENTITY//STIGMA/ACCEPTANCE
CONCEPT
This visual story-telling project will explore what it means to care for ourselves,
intersecting what modern beauty looks like with the routines of care for the
body as a home.
How do these routines intersect and overlap during medical care or disability?
Where is the line between modern medicine and modern cosmetics? How does
the meaning of care change with depression or with injury? How can we feel
accomplished by the silent challenges of caring for ourselves?
Self care has become a catch phrase for all sorts of commercial solutions
that promise a better life. How much of that is real and how much of that is
marketing?
What does it mean to have a ritual of care?
TIMELINE
ACCESSIBILITY/CONFIDENCE//HYGIENE/ROUTINE//PROCESS/PROGRESS//VANITY/NECESSITY//CARE/PAIN//INDUSTRY/IDENTITY//STIGMA/ACCEPTANCE
project proposal and
image collection
FEB 8
images collection +
drafting book sections
FEB 15
finalize book sections +
begin layout designs +
text drafting
FEB 22
continue book
designing + text writing
MAR 1
book drafted +
writing revised
MAR 15
final product creation
APR 5
✳
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michelle lee dalessandro

19. what to say and
how to say it
phase three:
as the semester progressed, i began
drafting the first versions of the book.
i made an intial grid, chose my main
typefaces, and began applying the
layout sketches i had made.
i also started thinking about text —
i wanted to spark conversation without
laying out text that spelled it out for the
reader. i also had to add enough to
give context without speaking for the
photos.
narrative of the design process

20. draft one
narrative of the design process

21. draft four
narrative of the design process

22. draft ten
narrative of the design process

23. typefaces:
version 1
narrative of the design process
Aaux Next Regular 8pt
Body Text
MoretBook48pt
Title
Mackinac Pro Book 18pt
Heading Text
colors used:
version 1
#dd078b
#b8c4c2 #100016

24. typefaces:
version 2
narrative of the design process
Aaux Next Regular 8pt
Body Text
MoretBook48pt
Title
Lipa Agate High Nar Medium 60pt, 20pt
Headings
colors used:
version 2
#dd078b
#6c6ea0 #100016

25. refining and
reviewing
phase four
the book grew as i added photos,
redefined the grid, and created
repeating layout themes
i also showed it to other people during
the “testing” period. their feedback
and reactions were encouraging, and it
seemed like the book was achieving a
sense of “cool but weird” atmosphere.
it also left most of them reflecting on
care, which i counted as a success.
narrative of the design process

26. layout patterns:
repeating “L” shapes
narrative of the design process

27. layout patterns:
repeating layout/themes
narrative of the design process

28. “it makes me think about
my own self care routine
and what i do in my
own life.”
testing period
The most common feedback
responses after being shown
the book:
“it feels really intimate”
“it’s weird to see skin so
close up. it’s kinda gross
but kinda cool.”
“i didn’t know you went
through all that. it feels sad
and lonely.”
“what is this for?” (mom)
“i feel uncomfortable. but
it’s also really interesting.”
“cool”
“that’s sad yet beautiful”
“it makes me think about
my own mental health...
and how hard it can be to
care for myself.”
“i really like the questions.
they make me think about
what i do”
“a jarring but kind of pretty
look at what you actually
went through”

29. finalizing and
sending to print
phase five
at no point did this feel super finished, because i
feel like there’s so much it remains in continued
conversation with.
i’m still healing. caring for myself is a practice that
will continue and change throughout my life.
there’s so many more discussions to be had
about how disability, mental health, consumerism,
and waste intersect with self care.
but alas, it was time to send to print.
narrative of the design process

30. narrative of the development process
What challenges
were faced?

31. what topics to
include and how?
challenge one
i wanted to be able to use the narrow scope of
this one specific, personal experience to coax
discussions of more general topics like care,
mental health, healthcare, etc.
however, i didn’t want the book to be text heavy
and rely on laying it out for the reader.
i struggled with finding a balance of enough text
to be thought-provoking without being obvious. i
also had to refocus the content on just this one
story, as i didn’t end up using outside interviews
as i had originally planned
narrative of the development process

32. first draft
vs. final draft
narrative of the development process

33. pacing and
making “sense”
challenge two
i also worked to find good pacing that
felt continually engaging.
the book was sectioned into two parts:
self and care
it would slowly zoom out from up
close, more abstract imaging to more
defined photos that made it easier
to understand what was going on
and what challenges were being
experienced.
narrative of the development process

34. self
vs. care
narrative of the development process
the second half is “zoomed
out” literally and figuratively.
the photos and text add
more context and it moves
from art to documentary
and carries the reader on an
emotional journey.
as it progresses, there’s
less full bleeds and more
negative space in the
sections on routines, care,
and supplies.

35. to page number
or not to page
number?
challenge three
intially, i had added page numbers to
each page as i assumed it would be a
required aspect for a book.
however, it occassionally took away
from the photos or page layout and
wasn’t crucial to reference every page.
narrative of the development process

36. page numbers:
narrative of the development process
i ended up keeping page
numbers on select layouts
where they added balance.
it was enough that one
looking to find sections
could figure it out, but
just enough to feel a little
confusing and unfamiliar —
mimicking how i felt
during this time.

37. end
So take a look.
What do you think?