THE HANGOVER HAPPY MEAL
BRIEF
The objective of this project was to create a new Happy Meal aimed at a specific audience. To achieve this, we researched our ideas, brainstormed design routes, applied our finalized designs to our meal, and then constructed our new Happy Meal. While designing, we also needed to incorporate the McDonald's branding, such as their colors, iconic smile, and the Golden Arches at the top of the box, to give the idea that McDonald's is selling this product. Our meals included chicken nuggets, or a hamburger if we wanted, fries, a drink, and a toy. The primary aim is to poke fun at what it is like to be hungover, visually represent that feeling, and create an over-the-top design.
CHALLENGE
The objective of this project was to visually inform viewers about what it is like to be hungover while also using clever play-on-words to make jokes about the topic. The main focus of this Happy Meal was to be a very over-the-top idea that viewers can be entertained by while enjoying their meal. I incorporated bright colors, fun illustrations, and clever sayings to give the overall chaos of what it is like to drink and eventually be hungover. The meal includes a 4-piece chicken nugget, a small fry, a small beverage, and a toy box that would hold a throw-up bag.
ROLE
My role in this project was to design and create the illustrations and compositions found throughout the meal. It was also to construct the packages and bring them into physical form.
TOOLS
Adobe Illustrator, Procreate
CLIENT
School project
THE MAIN BOX
For the box design, I focused on using bright colors and fun illustrations to show what it is like to be hungover. I also included fun sayings and a checklist activity for the viewer to go through. Illustrations of Ronald McDonald throwing up and holding his head are included, to portray the idea that he is experiencing a hangover. Vomit is also spread across the back and side of the box as if someone threw up on it.
4-PIECE CHICKEN MCNUGGETS
For the main meal, I focused on the side effects of a hangover. This includes feeling tired, experiencing sickness, and being in pain. For the nugget box, I included cooler colors to give off that feeling. Common sayings that are said while hungover are placed around the box with a sick "4" on the top of the box.
SMALL FRIES
For the small fries, I included the same design found on the main box and the nugget box. On the front of the fry, the Golden Arches have been vomited on with vomit rolling down the sides. To the left of the arches, footsteps wrap around to the back of the packaging leading to a passed-out Ronald McDonald sitting in a puddle of his vomit. This represents another side effect of drinking.
SMALL DRINK
With the design of the cup, there is vomit running down the sides of the cup, as if someone has just thrown up into the cup. A hungover Ronald McDonald is also present in the design with a text bubble saying "Never drinking again.", a very common saying after drinking. The other element present is a remedy that the viewer can make to help relieve their hangover.
TOY-THE HAPPY HURLER
PROCESS
RESEARCH
To start this project, I began by researching hangovers and how people depict them. I researched colors associated with them, illustrations of people who were hungover, and the feelings/emotions that come along with them. I also researched the McDonald's branding and what colors are used along with it. Afterward, I went back and dove deeper into how to represent a hangover visually using colors and composition.
SKETCHES
Using Procreate and Adobe Illustrator, I created sketches of how I want the Happy Meal box to look as well as the cup that comes with it. In the beginning, I started with solid colors, mainly purple, green, and brown, and added those to each side of the box. This created a solid color for each side. For the cup, it was very similar to the end result with the vomit running down the sides and the "Never drinking again." saying on it. Ronald McDonald started off in a very different style from how he's seen on the final product. Better proportions and more detail have been added but the uncomfortable face was kept. The sketch of Ronald McDonald throwing up in the toilet also improved in the final product. The illustration is much larger with more vibrant colors rather than being so small on the box. With the fry box, I had originally had the squiggly smile on it with vomit dripping out but that was later changed to what it is now.
TEMPLATES
PROTOTYPING AND CONSTRUCTION
Before putting the designs on the templates, I took apart the different packages that came with the Happy Meal and measured each one out. After I had the measurements, I then put them into Adobe Illustrator where I began my design process. Once I was satisfied with the designs on each of the packages, it was time to print. I printed each element out on Cardstock where I then cut them out using scissors and an Exacto knife. Once each item was cut out, I used a folding tool to help crease each tab. After everything was creased and folded, I used a glue stick to glue together each of the packages.
REFLECTION
This project was lots of fun to work on, and I enjoyed it a great deal. I love packaging design, and when we were told that we were creating our own Happy Meals, I was very excited, and I started brainstorming right away. Although this project was lots of fun, some challenges came with it. One of the biggest challenges I faced was printing and construction. There were a couple of times when my packages would come out of the printer either too large or too small which created a bit of a panic. Even though it was a little stressful seeing them not print the way I needed them to, going back and fixing the measurements was an easy solution that helped this problem.
The other challenge that I faced was trying to visually represent a hangover through designs and compositions. At the beginning of the project, I was keeping my designs pretty tame and didn't have a whole lot of bright colors and illustrations. However, after gaining some feedback, I learned that if I wanted this idea to work I needed to go over the top and all out with these designs which is what I ended up doing. I was very pleased with the end results of my Happy Meal and how everything turned out, it was just how I had envisioned it in my head. I really enjoyed working on this project and everything I learned along the way! I was ecstatic to see my ideas come to life through my very own
Happy Meal!
