SUMMARY: The final project for Multi-Platform Design was to design a website using WIX. This project showed us how to understand multi-page webpage design. We had to create a website for any place or topic of our choosing. We started with research on other webpages designed through WIX. We also created wireframes to show how our pages would look. Our webpage had to be responsive, so it had to work for desktop and mobile devices. After the webpage was built, I created mockups using Photoshop and Quicktime.
GOALS: My main goal was to learn how to use the program WIX. I used WIX in high school to design a website, but it was very basic. I wanted my website to look fun and like it was built by a designer! I wanted to learn how to make my page responsive as well. I wanted the mobile website to look just as nice as the desktop version. I taught myself how to do nail art, and I love to do it on myself and my friends! I decided to create a fake nail salon for myself called Polished By Lydia.
DESIGN PROCESS:
WIREFRAME DEVELOPMENT: I looked at WIX website templates before I made my wireframes. I based my wireframes off of a website template I liked. Once I began to build my website in WIX, I pretty much abandoned my wireframes and changed things up. I started with a blank template and added sections and elements from WIX as I began to build my website. I developed my site more than I thought I would!
WIX PAGE BUILDS:
I chose a bright, fun color palette because I always choose bright colors when I paint my nails! I created my own logo and brand identity to use throughout my website. I wanted the whole website to feel fun and match the vibe. I also edited all of the pictures in Photoshop so they matched the color palette.
I made most of my decisions based on what I would want to see on a nail salon's website. The home page has pictures of the salon and the client's nails, along with some client reviews. There is an about us section, contact information, and a form to book an appointment. The contact and booking sections are carried throughout each page. The treatments page has the different nail treatment options the salon offers. The salon page tells about the salon. The contact page shows the different contact options, the social media pages, and a form to subscribe to the mailing list. My favorite feature on WIX was the shape dividers. This added fun transitions between each section and made the site feel like there was a design behind it.
FINAL WORK:
KNOWLEDGE GAINED: The biggest takeaway I had from this project was to be mindful of how your design will look when viewed on different screens. I had to delete and rearrange a lot of elements on the mobile version of the website, so that viewers could still navigate the website easily. I enjoyed using WIX, but it took some patience as I couldn't do everything I wanted to. I also expanded my skills in carrying a design system throughout a project. I decided on my system right away, and that made it easy to design the rest of the site. I enjoyed this project, and I would be interested in making more websites in the future!
