WEEK 1

PUMPKINSEEDS &COOKIES

Our first sell day was based around snacks that everyone could love; seeds and cookies with chocolate chips.

We were totally unsure of how it would go, we worked up to the last minute: cutting and folding our publications/packaging, creating the display, scrambling to get change, and dragging everything upstairs to the cafeteria. We were up there by 11:00, ready to go.

graphic from the stamp used in the pumpkin-seed packaging.

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The night before, we crammed into my tiny kitchen, trying to find all of the right supplies (like what to actually bake them on), carved the pumpkins, washed the seeds, made the batter, tried to abstain from eating too much of the dough, and then transporting all of the goods to school the following morning.

WK No.1

MATKING

Gabby washes the seeds.

Jazmyn checks on the pumpkin.

Tiffanie assembles the cookies.

The seeds are washed.

Tiffanie, Gabby, and Elizabeth wash the seeds, while Jazmyn dutifully carves the pumpkins.

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For the first week, they designed invitations to the first Cluster day. Instead of making a poster that gets lost on corkboards and walls, they created something a little more personal with the intent to distribute them through the mailboxes. The mailroom, upon hearing about the project wouldn’t allow us to distribute them this way, and instead the invitations were left in bathrooms, under studio doors and around the school. Because of this, it felt even more personal, and a few people even brought the invita-tion to the stand!

WK No.1

ADVERTISING

GATBBY / ELIZABETH

The invites in action. The multi-fold invitation to all of calarts.

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The first pub was a total smash, it was free at the stand, included the recipes as well as our manifesto. Additionally, it folded out into a small poster as a kind of added bonus for anyone who took one with them.

WK No.1

PUB

TIFFANIE

Augusto is engrossed in the pub.

The multi-fold publication, folded out into a poppy free poster.

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For the packaging, we both found cheap materials that would best compliment the product. Jazmyn created boxes, so it wouldn’t be like a typical bakesale with cookies on a tray. I used a transparent fabric (basting) stapled to a stamped label to give them a classy look that was very affordable (buying it by the yard instead of tiny plastic bags).

WK No.1

PACKAGING

COOKIES: JATZMYN / SEEDS: LILA

Delicious salted pumpkin seeds.

Jazmyn's pumpkin cookie patch.

I got stamped.

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We sold out! It was great! We got the typical people who just glanced, people who just wanted a snack on their way to class, and even better, people who really wanted to know what we were all about. Each of us was there to answer ques-tions, handle purchases, and make sure people got their pub with their purchase.

WK No.1

SELLING

Pocket mans the stand.

Happy customers.Mitch loves Cluster.

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WK No.1

Claire & Violet pay us our first $2.

The stand stands alone.

WK No.2

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WEEK 2

On our second sell day we chose to make Hummus & Pita, and sell the pair for $1. The cooking was a bit complicated, but it all tasted great, and a bunch of people left with a healthy snack and some reading that day. For this week, we also worked a little closer on the overall display of our products.

Hand-painted flags made by Tiffanie and I.

HUMMUS& PITAT

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Jazmyn and Gabby went to Val Verde to get started, and Tiffanie, Elizabeth and I made it over later. They had been cooking Pita all day.

Some were finally making pockets by the time we got there, and we started a tiny assembly line to get all the food packaged.

WK No.2

MATKING

Pocket works real hard making pita & hummus

These pitas have pockets!All the tiny hummus containers are ready to be sold

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She went all out for this week's advertising. She created a system of "found" flyers advertising pita and hummus. Instead of slits to rip off a phone number she created smaller advertisements with beautiful vinyl stickers. These were attached by string. They went pretty fast.

WK No.2

ADVERTISING

JATZMYN

Closeup of the individual flyers strung to the posters.

Looking for hummus in all the wrong places. Andelee is looking to get a sticker!

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She created another multi-fold publication with our man-ifesto, and recipes for both products. It was filled with her very-Gab illustrations.

WK No.2

PUB

GATBBY

Learn how to make it yourself!

"This week's special"

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Instead of the usual type and imagery associated with Hummus, Elizabeth went far more polished for her design with slick plastic bags and matching stickers (stuck on appropriated condiment cups).

WK No.2

PACKAGING

ELIZABETH

A classy pita packet

Each hummus got onesprig of cilantro.

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We sold out yet again for our second week. We started at 11:30 instead, because there had been a lull before.

The health inspector came by briefly... he didn't seem to like what we were doing, but he never took any ac-tion, and we stayed there till it was all gone.

WK No.2

SELLING

The other vendors

Christina!

Danae!

Tiffanie finishes setting up the display

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WK No.2

Tiffanie and I took on the responsibility of the overall display/branding for this week. We already had the logotype by this point, but since we had at least one sell-day under wraps, we could focus a little bit more on how it would all look. We bought butcher-paper style wrapping paper for the table, stencilled the logotype onto a chalkboard (like you would see in a cafe) and created hand-painted custom pennant flags to be hung wherever we set up. This was by far my favorite task during Cluster.

BRANDING

TIFFANIE & LILA

Sell-day No.2

The flags in action. (Above: All the flags have been painted, and Tiffanie tries them on)

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WK No.2

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WEEK 3

BATNANA&

SWEETPOTATTOCHIPS

On our third sell day we chose a slightly more junk-foody (but still homemade) option: chips. We had planned on baking everything but because of a few setbacks and time constraints we ended up frying them. We almost sold out, and they were still a hit. We definitely learned a lot about the physics of frying, and how difficult it is to do it right. Definitely one of our most challenging endeavors.

Online flyer advertising this week's treats

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We used Tiffanie's house for this operation. We sliced all the sweet potatoes and bananas. There was a batch of each that went into the oven (for several hours) but because we didn't have enough time that night, we ended up frying the rest. We found out how difficult it was to do everything right with frying. Also, we learned about how much oil it takes to actually fry something!

WK No.3

MATKING

Jazmyn cuts the sweet potatoes

Frying sweet potatoes Preparing the bananas

Packaged chips ready to go

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She created some B-E-A-utiful silkscreened flyers (a little bigger than postcards) to be hung around the school.

She designed them, cut the paper, printed all the layers herself, and hung them around the school. After the sell day, i made sure to get a few copies myself because I loved them so much.

WK No.3

ADVERTISING

TIFFANIE

Chips, they're everywhere

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The pub was another multi-ple-fold document, but this week had a twist. It had two different sections for the two different kinds of chips, but it had several ways of open-ing/flipping through the content. It was unusual for the kind of food we had that week, but it folded down to almost the exact same size as the chip packaging.

WK No.3

PUB

JATZMYN

Jazmyn's complex folding pub

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For the packaging, we decided as a group that we would use wax paper that week (since the hummus packaging had cost a little more….) and to iron it together. Gabby designed small tags for both kinds of chips to be stapled within the packages themselves.

WK No.3

PACKAGING

GATBBY

Gabby's tags ironedinto the packaging

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This particular sell day went a little slower, but we sold almost everything. The highlight for this week was one of the barters we got: a poster (from Peter in critical studies who had been running a free-chilli booth at school) in conjunction with the occupy-ca-larts activity that had been manifesting at school more and more.

WK No.3

SELLING

Peter's poster Jazmyn mans the stand

Today's special

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WK No.3

Since each week got slightly easier, we kept adding additional tasks (like the display design the previous week). For this week, I was tasked with setting up a web presence. I started a tumblr (clustershop.tumblr.com) that had recaps and pictures from previous weeks, copies of the publications/recipes, promotional material, and what would be expected the following weeks.

WEBSITE

LILA

The most recent posting on the website

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WK No.3

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WEEK 4

This was one of the more delicious weeks in my mind. It had a few setbacks in the materials needed (specifically the jars) but the results were delicious and very very cute. It was our final sell day (but not the end). We had raised the prices to $2 for the pickles and kimchi, but the beets were still $1. Still, everything sold out!

Our menu was extra full of good-ies on day no.3

PICKLES & KIMCHI& D.I.Y BEETS

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The making stage was the easiest for this sell day. We split each over a few days. The hardest part was tracking down jars (which apparently were out of season at most places). The pickle sea-soning smelled something awful, but both the pickles and kimchi tasted delicious. We had the help of healthy-hipster Becky Song to guide us in the kimchi-making.

WK No.4

MATKING

Becky helps us make Kimchi

The goods are ready to go

Kimchi-eye-view

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For this week, she created a modular system of square tiles (advertising Cluster, Kimchi, and Pickles) to be placed in different arrange-ments around the school. They could work with only a few, or in whole assemblies in larger spaces. They even got us invited to a K-pop party in L.A. (what?).

WK No.4

ADVERTISING

JATZMYN

Modular flyers

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I focused on the fermentation aspect of this week. I made a folding publication/poster similar to the first two (in form) and used the idea of bacteria to make ornaments in the pub. It was reversible so they would look custom for whichever product was purchased (but they would also get the other recipe).

WK No.4

PUB

LILA

Fold-out poster

How the pub was pritedReversible covers

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Since both products were to be put in jars, they each de-signed adorable stickers for the jars (and to pass out).

The beets were planted a few weeks prior, and in the mean time, she had designed little holders for the seed cups and a corresponding booklet (with instructions and beet-centric recipes) that was placed inside. There were about 7 or so total, and it was the first time Cluster branched out into a non-snack realm.

WK No.4

PACKAGING

PICKLES: GATBBY /KIMCHI: TIFFANIE

D.I.Y BEETS

JATZMYN

9 beets to go

Gabby andTiffanie's stickers

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Our final sell-day was a total success. We had the two main products, the DIY beets, as well as a questionnaire Gabby had designed (aligned with the Student Council's involvement with occupy) that she passed out with each purchase. One of our favorite barters was a song that had been written for/about Cluster (and we got the notation and lyrics as well!).

WK No.4

SELLING

Mitch love's Cluster!One of everything

Augusto, a subscriber

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WK No.4

Elizabeth starts her own personal project, but Cluster stays strong

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WK No.4

The Cluster jingle given to us as a barter by Matthew Clough-Hunter

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WEEK 5

We wanted Cluster to end with a BANG!POP!KAPOW! So because it was towards the end of the semester and the (usually annual) AIGA BBQ had not yet happened, we decided to take it on. We decided we wanted it to be a sponsored BBQ as well as a potluck, and to plan additional activities to get people talking and out of their studios. We faced some logistical problems try-ing to hold an official event at the school… but we eventually got it to work out and it was a blast! (well I heard after… I was only there briefly since I had an awful cold at the time).

The party moves to the table to work on Tiffanie's book

BYOB = partyBBQ = food

"Bring yourown barbecue"

B.Y.O.B.B.Q

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They designed an awesome hotdog poster with a beautiful split-fountain; each had a different "quote" from various designers in the program (to create buzz about the event).

WK No.5

ADVERTISING

TIFFANIE & JATZMYN

Each poster had a different (fabricated) quote from one of the future-attendees

The poster in full

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WK No.5

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WK No.5

MAKE.IT.TOGETHER.BOOK

TIFFANIE

All at once, everyone picks out their different sheets and a bag to assemble them in

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WK No.5

She created/designed one of the activities at the BBQ that would be both collaborative and rewarding. She created a selection of collaborative projects (along the same lines as exquisite corpse, etc). Each had their own loose-leaf page, and were all placed in a single bag (to be bound af-ter). There was a space on

the cover for each participant to sign their name. The idea was that everyone made their books at the same time and so everyone took home a bit of everyone's work. The little I saw seemed super fun, ev-eryone was crowded around their different pages draw-ing/coloring/collaging/etc.

A different kind of party;a designer party

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For my contribution, I created one of my favorite things on the plannet, a treasure hunt. I thought of AIGA bbq's in the past where even within the program, several people would end up gravitating to the people they knew and there was a lot of "meeting new people" that actually happened.

With a treasure hunt, each team would already have a common goal and something to talk about. Each team had the same kind of clues but the specifics were different and throughout several places around the school. The prizes were modest (candy and confetti poppers) but equal across the teams and they seemed to love them regardless. Mitch told me later that they had been running through the hallways screaming in-between clues trying to find the next one!

WK No.5

TREASURE.HUNT

LILA

In conjunction with Tiffanie's book, the treasure hunt was another loose-leaf page to fill out. The first clue pointed to a magazine in the library

The second clue was a typo-graphic riddle which completed a webpage: clustershop.tumblr.com/bottomsup (+ coffee break + hot potato + half baked)

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WK No.5

The third clue was a coded mes-sage found on a website

I hand out the first clue

All four teams eventually made it

The fourth clue pointed to a spe-cific point in the sublevel based on quantities of floor tiles

The final clue was found on a bulletin board around the school, it had different quizzes that eventually equalled the room number (to our crit room where the prizes were)

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WK No.5

("Big Cheese")