First I tried out one of the typefaces that I had designed and I made it up using the paint brush tool. I did like how the typeface turned out but I dont think it worked very well on the cover because the strokes had to be quite thin to get the detail to show so they did title did not stand out very much and was over powered by the rest of the cover. I also think that the handwritten style typography that I designed before became more a part of the design because it joined with the background whereas this one looks a lot more separated and like it is not supposed to be there.
Next I began experimenting with the designs for the back cover. I tried using elements from the front cover (the keys and pocket watches) to make a border around the text. I like the look of the first design but didnt end up using it because I think the whole book cover ties in a lot better together when the white keyhole shape is also used on the back. I also ended up changing the font of the text because this font didnt have the best legibility when made smaller and the size I did it in initially was too large to fit in the keyhole that I added in later on.
I wasnt happy with the colour scheme of a black background because I felt it didnt really relate to the book in anyway so the next thing I did was experiment with different colour schemes. I ended up choosing the medium blue colour because this worked well with the contrast of the white keyhole and allowed the pocket watch and keys to stand out and it also relates to the book as it is the colour of Alice's dress and is a colour that most people would immediately associate with the book. The book is also generally aimed at children and children respond better to bright colours so I think it makes it appeal more to them. I also experimented with a black keyhole but I think this was too much of a contrast against lighter colour and got lost against darker colours.
I then began to build the cover on to the template to help me begin to get an idea of how it will all look like put together. I added a drop shadow to the keys and pocket watches and I think it gives the cover more dimension so it doesnt look flat and also gave the effect of them floating around the keyhole which gives it a more magical and fantasy look to meet the theme of the book.
I chose a simpler font for the blurb to help with legibility and so that it would fit in to the key hole space easily and be easy to read.
Next I designed the spine of the book by using the typeface I created earlier and a script style font for the authors name because I think this is the most suitable for a fantasy book. I also added in the publisher logo which I developed later to remove the white background.
I then developed the typeface for the main title by creating a script style font using the paint brush tool that was based on the first font I created. I think this looks better than the one I had before because it blends well with the rest of the design and looks part of it which makes the type the main focus point. I think this font still works well with the style of the book because it is a script font so reminds me of something you would see in a fairytale fantasy book.
Next I added in the price, ISBN, barcode and publisher logo on the back cover. I simplified the existing logo by using the pen tool to go over the symbol and doing this meant I could get rid of the white background so that it looked better on the spine of the book and I also got rid of the text because the symbol is recognisable enough without it.
Lastly I filled in the gate folds with review quotes. I did this by hand using the paintbrush tool for the main quotes and I used a script font for the website names. I did the website names in a ready made font because when I used my script font and made it smaller it was not very legible so I used a script font that was legible at a smaller size. I decided to put the quotes across both gate folds because I did them in the same style as the main title with the lines leading off the edge of the page and this makes them look like they could be connected so makes the gatefolds match in with each other and look like continuous writing when placed next to each other.
This is my final design put into in design. Overall I am happy with the way it looks because it all matches and blends in well together as I used similar designs for the front and back and for the two gatefolds. Because of this I think it works as a wrap around cover as the keyhole looks like it goes right through the book. I think it meets the brief because the type is the main focus as this is where your eye goes first and I also think it represents the book well as I did it in a fantasy style with the script font and floating objects and the colour and objects relate to the book.
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