Blog Post 6: Main Project Plans & Inspiration

In a nutshell, my main project will be a small series of original woodwork pieces for my bedroom at home in Beach Haven, New Jersey. I plan to fabricate this series by utilizing a woodshop space a couple streets away from my house. The materials I will use to do so are plywood and cherrywood. Then the machines and tools I will be using are a 3D printer, a laser cutter, a bandsaw, and an orbital sander among several others. Now, onto the more complex aspect of the project. Though my concept seems relatively simple, the details behind it could not be further from that. If I was creating some woodwork pieces for my bedroom the process would be easy– as I feel as though I am very in touch with my own personal design style and aesthetic as I am an avid artist and art major. The reason this design and aesthetic will be very difficult to develop is because my goal is to create a safe space in my bedroom back at home in Beach Haven, that demonstrates my own personal style/self expression, combined with my parents pristine, coastal aesthetic that they have created with the rest of the house’s interior design. My parents have made it clear that since my room is still technically under their roof, they’ve made it clear that it can’t resemble a college dorm room. So, I need to create a design solution and aesthetic that blends my personal style with their modest coastal design. 

My own personal aesthetic would definitely be inspired by the early 2000s, roxy surfer girl/ beach girl aesthetic, marked by tropical motifs, rounded/curvy lines and edges that mimic the flow of the ocean, and bubble-like typeface that mimics graphic design styles from the 90s and early 2000s. In terms of media, I would say movies such as Aquamarine (2006), 10 Things I Hate About You (1999), Blue Crush 2 (2011), Lilo & Stitch (2002), and Sharkboy & Lava Girl (2005), along with tv shows such as H20: Just Add Water (2006), iCarly (2007), That 70s Show (1998) have heavily inspired by own personal aesthetic. Surfer girl lifestyle and design style along with granola earthcore and 90s rave scene would probably be the three biggest influences on how I like to create, see, and be in the world around me. I would say that growing up being a competitive ballerina and competitive dancer also have a huge impact on my style swaying towards embodying a somewhat coquette, ultra-feminine aesthetic, while still being able to do pursue my hobbies such as surfing, skateboarding, snowboarding, and fitness, that may (unfortunately) be male dominated fields. I love to be girly and dress girly while still being able to rip on a snowboard just as hard (if not harder) than the boys and wear baggy snow pants and oversized clothing. 

Now to my parents’ aesthetic. It’s hard to describe where I’m from to an outsider because those who know, know. But basically, the town I live in– Beach Haven– is on an island in the Jersey Shore known as Long Beach Island (LBI). Our island is 18 miles long and only about 3-4 streets wide. Because of the small size of the island, all of the houses tend to take on a very similar style and aesthetic. Think old school cape cod style houses, but built up instead of outwards, with a hint of modernism that naturally comes from being only 2 hours from major cities such as New York City and Philadelphia. My family’s house is definitely a hybrid of an old school beach cottage, with nautical undertones and a hind of modernism in regards to the interior. The colors are pretty minimal, with my parents utilizing a palette with navy blue, beige, white, and grey. Their interior design style also almost embodies farmhouse style meets vintage coastal meets clean and almost sterile. So, definitely different from my more maximalist, colorful and bubbly aesthetic. Despite the contrast, I am ready to take on the challenge of creating a space that feels like mine while respecting their vision for the house.