Mixtape Extravaganza - Foxes Blog

Mixtape Extravaganza

Mixtape Extravaganza from Foxesblog.com

Mixtape Extravaganza

Mixtape Extravaganza from Foxesblog.com Mixtape Extravaganza from Foxesblog.com

Happy Valentines day and all that. This isn’t really a valentines post as such, but I guess it kind of is? I recently met a nice person (easy tiger, don’t go counting the chickens or anything) and when we first started talking, there was banter around mixtapes and valentines day. Do people still do that anymore? They asked me, heck yes is what I of course replied with. And if not, then they should. There was some joking around the giving of mixes, and I decided to keep up my end of the bargain, because making someone a mixtape is awesome and takes a whole lot of effort, way more than giving a generic card or some flowers. Well it does if you are me and you turn it into a super fun project… I’m still waiting for my mixtape, but the day is young and who knows, I might get a link to a personalised spotify playlist later on.

So what did I end up making? Well, a personalised playlist (click here if you want to have a nosey) to me just wasn’t going to cut it. I’m a creative, who at the time was procrastinating and this was the perfect excuse. I needed something to physically give the playlist on, enter a totally rad USB of one of their favourite things after a few hours searching online it was ordered and on it’s way. I needed something to put it in, an actual tape case! A quick trip to the local op-shop had that sorted. Genius. But then I needed something to pop inside the case, a cover. I started to design a sheet with the tracks handwritten, but that was boring. So instead I started making them a personalised colouring in sheet, which morphed into illustrations from most of the tracks on the actual playlist, plus some in-jokes and personalised illustrations. It’s something that served it’s purpose as a cover and was kind of fun if you had some down time.

But how do you tell them why you chose each one? So, I made a second sheet that was an interactive PDF…. where all the icons became coloured in and had pop-art inspired text boxes pop up as you put moved the mouse over each one. A stroke of genius. I think I’ve gone too far. Or I’ve out done myself. By now, this had taken two full days to create and I was wondering if I should actually give this to them…

Needless to say, I did, I got a pretty awesome reaction when I became brave enough it actually give it to them and I’m pleased that I did. So, things can go either way now; it’ll make a cool story for our grandkids, or I’ll forever be remembered as that chick that gave them the best mixtape in the history of mixtapes. And both are pretty cool options.