Project Statement

Within my essay i explored the ways in which mainstream advertising present unrealistic ideas of femininity, through this research my main findings included gaining an understanding in to the way in which society impacts the way women and their bodies are viewed and therefore influences the ways products are advertised, with one of the main areas of research within my essay revolving around female sanitary brands, looking at leading brands and the ideas of femininity they present.
As noted in my essay, Whistnant and Zegans argue that menstruation is viewed as a hygienic rather than maturational crisis, when looking at Bodyform's Bloodnormal video advertisement, it did not appear that menstruation was being treated as a hygienic issue, rather the focus was on young women, learning who they are and dealing with menstruation throughout it all. 
When this taboo breaking advertisement was compared to their current sanitary product packaging, it was clear that the two weren't visually cohesive, nor did the two communicate the same message.
Bodyform is an example of a brand who present realistic ideas of femininity through their advertisements and online presence, however their packaging communicated ideas that supported Whistant and Zegans' previous argument through the emphasis on cleanliness within the language on the current packaging and in result present unrealistic ideas of femininity, it was felt that in order for the band to appear sincere and visually cohesive with their online persona that the packaging should be redesigned. 
Throughout my essay i gained an awareness of how all design can be considered an advertisement, with sanitary products on the shelves of supermarkets acting as advertisements for the brand, this influenced the decision to redesign Bodyform inspired by their Bloodnormal advertisement, so that the brands message is clear and can be spread throughout across all available platforms. 
Although i do feel as if the decisions throughout this design have been appropriate and in result my final outcome effectively communicates the empowering & taboo breaking attitude Bodyform present, my issues with the outcome lie with the overall production, i feel that if more consideration was given to the materials then the final outcome would have been produced in a much more sustainable and clean way. Although, with this being said the overall design achieves all the criteria i set out out the beginning of the brief; the colour pallet straight away addresses the stigma around period blood by using colours which women can personally identify as they're the colours they experience whilst menstruating, further to this the language is very direct, encouraging; encourages women to start conversations about periods. The feature illustration is a very successful element of the design due to the way it utilises otherwise wasted space, it's empowering, eye catching and directly links to the Bloodnormal advertisement. 
Overall i believe the practical outcome addresses and challenges the unrealistic ideas of femininity presented within mainstream advertising through the stigma breaking, realistic, modern and informed final outcome which has the ability to lead way for other leading brands to change the stigma surrounding menstruation. 

Evaluation

Throughout all of the cop modules over the past 3 years this one has been the most rewarding for myself as i finally focused on a topic i'm interested in, and i feel this really helped be continue to be engaged in both the research and writing part of the brief as well as the practical.
I feel as if i enjoyed this module due to the fact that the issue of gender in advertising is something which effects myself, as well as it being such a contemporary issue which meant that there was plenty of relevant information available to explore.

The essay was engaging due to the fact that i was constantly finding out new information around the ways in which female products are advertised, until this module i never really paid much attention to how sanitary products are packaged and advertised, but i've realised, through my essay, that this is due to the fact that these are norms of society which are engrained in girls from such an early age.
When it came to actually looking in to the packaging of the sanitary products i was quite surprised that i hadn't realised the issues with it sooner as they were so obvious once i really paid attention to each element. I believe the fact that i had personal experience with being a menstruating woman, and growing up in today's society with periods always being a secret that you shouldn't talk about, it helped me redesign Bodyform as a brand in to something that i, a young woman would be proud to buy and would want to show other women and star discussions about menstruation.

What was interesting was the fact that whilst in the classroom writing my essay or analysing female products, my male friends would comment on how unrealistic women's products are, it gave me confirmation that what i was researching and designing was a contemporary issue that really mattered, and even from just using rd on the packaging, it's more progressive, current and taboo breaking than any other mainstream brand on the shelves of supermarkets.
This module and the findings within my essay have inspired by to create more practical solutions to the issues i raised within my essay, such as advertising pregnancy tests to women who want the reassurance that they're not pregnant, perhaps a 'just because i buy the test doesn't mean i want a yes' kind of campaign to help break down the stigma around women having sex for pleasure not procreation.

Further Considerations

If this redesign was to be used by Bodyform, i think having different versions of the box, depicting women of different ethnicities and body sizes would be a good way of ensuring the brand is a brand for all women. Above is an example of how the same concept as the ones used on the my redesign could be used to show a different type of woman, to ensure very woman feels represented.

Photoshoot

I decided to take photos of the sanitary pad box to capture the whole design, i used a pink fluffy backdrop (using a section of a carpet). I chose to use such a stereotypical feminine backdrop to contrast with the actual design, which redefines the use of pink within sanitary packaging design; using the colour as a representative of period blood. I believe the choice of backdrop is appropriate as it works in contrast to a design which redefines femininity.

I didn't have access to a photography studio and so i used a light-box which i already had to light the box correctly, i really like the overtly feminine look of the final images as i feel they really fit not only the colour pallet of the design but the also help to further the message.

When it came to constructing the sanitary box, due to the fact it was digitally printed on o white card, the white paper began to come through after binding the box together; however i touched up the final images on photoshop in order to more accurately depict how they would appear if they were to be manufactured by Bodyform and mass produced. 

Production

Given i had organised my time better i would have had the opportunity to attend a digital print session where i could get my net printed in double side; having an appropriate colour on the reverse/inside of the box, however i had to use the digital print drop off service which only allowed one side printing and so i have layered pink card no the inside of the net to have colour consistency with the exterior of the design.

I printed 3 copies of the net just to be safe incase i made any errors, using a knife i cut out the net and serrated the flaps of the design, i then applied double sided tape to stick the box together with the lid movingly freely so the box can be resealed.

Upon reflection, it would of been wiser to use a paper stock which was already coloured, as when it came to assembling the box, parts of the white stock began to come through after bending certain parts for sticking together, however if this was actually for Bodyform, then i doubt people would be binding the box by hand, and so this wouldn’t be an issue.

Social Relevance

After completing my final design and having bound my essay, i went on twitter in the evening and one of the top news stories can be seen on the right, stating that Gender stereotyping is to be banned in UK advertising.

As my essay centres around unrealistic portrayals of femininity within mainstream advertising, i feel my essay and whole project is now even more socially relevant. 



As seen in the tweet below, advertisements will no longer be able to suggest that transforming your body will make you romantically successful; i actually touched upon this subject within my essay in terms of the ways women's razors are advertised. I pointed out how over sexualised these advertisements were, and often centred around a narrative of men touching women's hairless legs in a romantic setting; suggesting that being hairless will make you more attractive to men.


I'm really glad that change is beginning to happen within female specific advertising, and this new rule has made me hopeful that more of the issues i pointed out within my essay may begin to change in the future, even if it isn't immediate; this is a step in the right direction.

Final Design (net)

Above is the final net design for the Bodyform sanitary pack redesign, when i set out to design this, the initial criteria i set for myself was the following: 

the design should be inspired by the blood normal campaign, be uplifting and encouraging, be modern and stylish, be real and above all break the taboos surrounding menstruation. 

Inspired by the blood normal campaign: the design has been heavily influenced by the blood normal video advertisement, language and imagery have both been used throughout the design in order to communicate the strong message that no blood should hold us (women) back. 

Uplifting and encouraging: I believe the uplifting and encouraging elements have been communicated through the brands overall colour pallet which makes blood normal, and not something that should be hidden.

Modern and Stylish: when comparing this redesign to the current bodyform design it's objectively more modern and stylish through the use of a minimal but relevant colour pallet, the use of bold sans serif type and contrasting tones. 

Break taboos: My main aim throughout this design was to break the taboos surrounding mensuration, from my essay i found that society as a whole has an issue and preconception with menstrual blood; referring to it as dirty, and telling women and girls that it's something they should be ashamed of and hide. This design however  does the opposite, red has been used everywhere, although it's such a simple decision to include red, the fact that no other mainstream brands use red means that it's treated as a taboo. By using tones women can associate with menstruation, along with the relevant illustration inspired from the advert, and the use of bold 'break the taboo' text placed throughout the design i believe that with this design the taboo surrounding period blood has been addressed and hopefully broken. 

Design Development

I began to experiment with the composition on the front of the Bodyform box, in the original design i feel as if there's too much unnecessary imagery and information to distract from what the product actually is.
In order to achieve the modern personality i hope to communicate i feel as if the front of the box should be a-lot more simple and less busy.

The colour pallet for the packaging has been taken from the illustration shown in a previous blog post, using tones of red and pink and brow to visually communicate menstruation, and not to hide the product behind an irrelevant colour pallet.
I began experimenting with just text on the packaging however this felt too bare

I then tried to communicate elements from the Bodyform logo within the design, through incorporating the shape of the logo, however as previously discussed the logo seems irrelevant to the product and so just using the bodyform name felt more appropriate as this redesign is about breaking taboos and starting conversations.

I then experimented with using a circle within the designs, leaving the front background bare felt too bare whereas through incorporating a circular figure within the imagery not only does it create a sense of depth, and also allows the use of other tones, but it can also be said that the circular shape more directly links to menstruation, as it resembles the blood stains on sanitary pads.

I experimented with creating different depths within the front of the packaging however it made the design resemble a music album colour rather than sanitary products, and it was also kind of distracting to the design which may make the overall message be harder for the viewer to understand.

I felt as if braking up the two halves of the design worked well in order for the 'ultra' to be more recognisable, further to this; the transition in tones from a deep shade to a lighter shade can communicate the idea of the menstrual flow reducing throughout the time of using the product.

The final front design (right) can be seen here, flowing lines have been added behind the now more vibrant red circle which is central to the design, the lines have been taken from the backdrop of the illustration which will be on the right side of the sanitary pad box. By using an element from another part of the design it makes the whole design flow more smoothly. The lines not only make the design cohesive but further to this they represent the menstrual flow women experience and use this product for, with the overall front cover directly linking to menstruation but in a subtle way.
Further to this, the teardrops used on the original packaging have been replaced with circles.

It would of been easy go over the top with this design, using blood-splats and explicit imagery however that wasn't the point of this design, the point was to create a redesign which directly communicates menstruation in a contemporary way that makes women feel empowered to start discussions about menstruation, and help to break down the stigma around the whole topic.

 Here are composition variations for the left side of the packaging, on the original left side, only the contact information and barcode were visible; leaving space for something new. I thought this would be a good space to place the 'blood normal' slogan this design is based on (based on the blood normal ad), again using tones from the right side illustration this side of the design includes the relevant contact information and also a powerful bold message.

 I experimented with again using the lines from the previous two sides however in this case the lines distracted from the 'blood normal' and so they were removed as the message was the main feature of the left side.

The final composition can be seen above, this design uses the same colour blocking as the front design, however this time the tones have been reversed, this design decision was made in order to allow the design to flow nicely from one side to another, and also so that the pink text could be visible.

When it came to deciding on what to place on the base and top of the packaging i thought that the space could be utilised to spread the main message and aim of the overall design which is to break the taboo. 

On the original packaging the space was used to show different types of sanitary pads and how much liquid they could hold, however i didn't feel that this information was crucial for the redesign as the main point was to spread the message of breaking down taboos and accurately depicting menstruation in a modern way. 

As previously discussed in an earlier blogpost, the text on the back of the box has been changed in order to spread the intended message. 

The colour pallet is consistent to the rest of the design with deeper red tones being used to highlight the key messages within the back passage. In addition to this, some relevant information has still been included such as the bodyform website and the 'we're going the right way' slogan which was used on the existing bodyform packaging, however this time it's evident that bodyform ARE going in the 'right way' due to the the overall message the whole design communicates.

Language

Language taken from Bodyform website

- a perfectly natural bit of blood
- menstruation is a natural process, but we still live in a society where we hide pads up our sleeves
- we want to break this taboo by generating more conversation

Original back of packaging text:
 "Some days you need a little extra comfort and protection, so our towels keep you feeling fresh and confident. Designed with women in mind, they have a specially shaped front and back to fit your body perfectly...so secure so comfortable"

New back of pack text:
 "menstruation is a natural process, but we still live in a society where we hide pads up our sleeves. Here at Bodyform we want to break the taboo around a perfectly natural bit of blood. No blood should hold us back"

typeface

After looking on the Bodyform website and seeing their use of a bold Helvetica typeface i believe it will be most appropriate if the type on the packaging is similar, not only to link directly to the brand but also because by using such a universal type with bold characteristics it will effectively communicate the element of taboo breaking design i hope to achieve within the design, further to this it effectively replaces the overtly feminine serif typeface previously used by the brand, helping to dismiss any notions of stereotypical femininity within the design.

Although i couldn't find access to the exact Helvetica type used, above are three variations which i believe could communicate the same ideas as the original. I believe the bold italic variation is the most appropriate due to the consistent width of all the characters.

Above i have demonstrated how some of the text on the packaging may appear, i feel as if when it comes to adding the text on to the packaging, both capital and lowercase will be used. 

I did consider hand drawing the type to emulate the style of the illustrations which i intend to include within the re-design, however i feel the use of a universal, bold type would increase the strength of the overall design in communicating the modern and empowering essence of the design. 

Net

As previously mentioned, i have chosen to make the packaging more sustainable by making the sanitary pad packaging in a card box rather than a plastic wrapping, not only to show the new design in a more clear, flat way, but also to make it more environmentally friendly.

I printed out various sized girds and made paper mock ups, the dimensions that i finally decided on is for the box to be 8.5cm x 8.5cm, i feel like a square will be most appropriate as a lot of the scenes within the video the design is inspired by use square framing, in addition to this there is also a link with social media; as instagram users post images in square formats, which furthers my intent to make the design modern and it subtly links to a big part of the society we live in. 

Feature illustration

In the previous blog post i looked at the Bodyform website and found that the illustration style used within one of the articles could work really well incorporated somewhere on the packaging.
I had the idea of utilising the blank space on the right side of the Bodyform packaging to depict a scene from the Bloodnormal video advertisement which the redesign is inspired by.
By emulating the style of illustration seen on the brands website, not only will their be a direct link to the brand making the redesign cohesive to their current online presence, but also because of the subject matter i intend to illustrate; their will be a direct link to the advertisement which will again link directly to the brand but also depict a taboo breaking scene which furthers my intent to communicate periods as something that shouldn't be hidden.

Above is a quick sketch of the elements that will make up the packaging, i think it will be appropriate to ditch the current plastic packaging in order to make something a more structured and environmentally friendly, i will make the sanitary pad box using recycled card stock.

Here is the first scene i experimented with illustrating, the scene comes from the end of the advertisement just before the image blurs (as period blood is about to be shown), although i think this image works i'm not sure if it's clear it comes from the advertisement
I illustrated the image in a style similar to the one found on the website (see previous blog post for example), the style of illustration used no outline rather it built up shadows and depth using different tones, i adapted the colour pallet to be more representative of the colours women associate and experience with menstruation, pink, red and brown tones have been used as appose to the pink, purple and blue tones used on the illustration the piece takes influence from. I believe these tones are a lot more successful in communication menstruation and will help to communicate the message that women shouldn't feel like they have to hide their period.

The second and i believe more successful illustration takes inspiration from the scene within the advertisement in which a girl floats in water on a pool float reminiscent of a sanitary pad.
I think this scene is most appropriate in reflecting the empowering, taboo breaking elements i'm trying to communicate within the overall design

The colours have again been adapted in order to reflect tones which women experience whilst menstruating, once a final illustration has been produced the tones of the rest of the packaging will be taken from the illustrations.

In order to decide on which scene is most appropriate i held a mini crit and asked people which out of the two designs they thought was most appropriate.
All of the 10 people i asked agreed that the second design was the most appropriate, with some of the comments saying that this design was most appropriate due to the fact that you can see a woman (communicates the empowering element) the use of a sanitary pad effectively communicates the taboo breaking element i hope to communicate throughout the whole design.

I will produce a more refined version of this illustration when it comes to putting together the final design.

body form online research

I decided to look at the bodyform website to see if the characteristics of their packaging is reflected in their web presence or whether they're communicating the same boldness and taboo breaking attitudes as their blood normal campaign. 

body form website 

illustration from body form website informing women about endometriosis

illustration for article on body form discussing how to talk to your daughter about her first period

image taken from article discussing how break taboos surrounding periods with period emojis

The above images have all been taken from the Bodyform website, from looking at the website alone it's clear that Bodyform are redesigning their brand in order to be more progressive, taboo braking and encouraging than their packaging suggests, however there is still no red being used anywhere on the website; something i believe is vital in the redesign in order to communicate menstruation as being something that women shouldn't be ashamed of. 

The typeface used on the website is bold and not overtly feminine like the current serif type used on their packaging, if i can find out what the typeface is that they have used on the website then i will use this throughout the sanitary pad packaging (if not then i will use one with similar characteristics. By changing the typeface not only will my redesign be visually cohesive with their web presence but it will also communicate the bold and not gender specific qualities i believe the packaging needs  

The quality of the line illustrations as seen above could possibly be used somewhere on the packaging; perhaps to redesign the table in which the absorbency of the pad is displayed, i also think the period emojis as seen above could be used somewhere in the design; possibly to replace the tear drops seen on the front of the packaging; a little illustration of a sanitary pad with different amounts of 'blood' on them could be used instead. 

The illustration taken from the article discussing how to talk to your daughter about her first period i believe could work really well on the packaging; i could emulate the style of the illustration and depict a scene familiar to menstruating women, something relatable and realistic, perhaps it could be placed on the side of the packaging which currently has nothing on it 

Branding Inspiration

The above images come from the Indian design agency NH1 Design who created sanitary pad packaging aiming to address the stigma associated with menstruation. The use of a striking red colour pallet and straight forward language have been used to break down the taboos surrounding menstruation and period blood in a visually striking way. 

The concept behind the above designs really captures the taboo breaking elements i'm going to try and communicate within my bodyfrom rebrand, however i need to make sure that i'm communicating inspiration from the bloodnormal ad, making sure the redesign visually communicates the fact that period blood is normal whilst still taking visual inspiration from the video advertisement.  

Bodyform packaging analysis

Below i have began to dissect the elements that make up the Bodyform packaging, commenting on the elements which need changing.

front

The front of the pack of sanitary pad has an image of an actual pad on it with the words 'fits front and back' meaning that the pad will cover most of the woman's underwear, this part of the design also has what looks like air wrapping around the pad with the text 'Dryfast' underneath. just from this part of the design alone it's as if they're trying to avoid any language or imagery that would indicate to the subject of menstruation. The navy blue bodyform logo resembles a napkin which is most likely a link to sanitary pads formally being known as sanitary napkins, with the addition of a bird like symbol, a white glowing border and a typeface which doesn't really make sense the overall logo looks out of place, dated and just not appropriate.
Bodyform have used navy toned tear drops to signify how much period blood the pads are capable of holding, however i believe their is a more realistic way to portray this; rather than showing a blue liquid yet again.
The silhouette of a woman walking with her arms up needs to go. It's not appropriate, it's not realistic.

right side

 The right side of the packaging is completely blank; this seems like a good area to include the 'no blood should hold us back' text from the bloodnormal ad

left side

 The left side includes contact information for the customer service department along with the products bar-code.

back

 Although the back of the packaging has no new imagery, the language used is condescending and furthers the idea of periods being something that should be hidden: "We know the feeling" - trying to create a connection with the woman buying the product "some days you need a little extra comfort and protection" - some days meaning once a week every month for the next 30 years, "our towels keep you feeling fresh and confident" - communicates the idea that periods are dirty and are a hygienic issue, the fact that they say the pads are "designed with women in mind" is completely unnecessary, of course they're designed with women in mind; they're a product for women. The use of what appears to be quotes talking about the pads being "...so secure, so comfortable" is quite bizarre really, it's almost as if they're trying to make the product seem luxurious and like women are treating themselves by buying it. Finally another issue with the text on the back of the packaging is the fact that they've placed a "heart at the front for easy positioning" which is understandable if these pads were specifically for females first starting their periods, but women who have been menstruating for over a year are perfectly aware of how to use a sanitary pad.
Within the redesign i believe all of the text needs to be re-written too, in order to stop using condescending language that furthers the idea of menstruation being a secret between women that shouldn't be spoken about; the new text needs to be bold, to the point and not hide behind anything.

top

 the key on the top of the packaging is useful so that women know what pad absorbency is best for them, however it still needs redesigning.

bottom

Above are images taken of all sides of Bodyform's 'normal' sanitary pads. 

Elements that need re-designing: 

• typeface 
• body type 
• logo 
• colour scheme 
• absorbency symbols + key 
• back of the packet text