My name is Jonas and I'm a student at Virginia Tech studying Packaging Systems and Design. I've always had a passion for the design process. Specifically, I enjoy developing creative solutions to defined problems because I like forging my own path given a conditional end goal. This, coupled with my CAD experience in high school and aptitudes of ideaphoria and structural visualization led me to packaging. My portfolio showcases a variety of projects completed for class and competitions. Peruse my creations to see how my skills will benefit your company.
Projects
Album Cover Redesign
This graphics based project involved creating an alternate design for a music album of my choice. I decided to redo Jason Isbell's Southeastern, a beautiful and complex mix of Americana, rock and folk about finding sobriety, falling in love, and confronting death. I spent a lot of time grappling with how to visually represent these intricate themes. I settled on a less is more approach, depicting a magnolia flower growing out of a bottle of Jack Daniel's whiskey. This is tied into Isbell's prior habit of drinking whiskey during shows as well as the lyric in Cover Me Up "'till someone needs medical help or the magnolia's bloom," perhaps suggesting that he would have died had he not gone to rehab. I've interpreted this visual as a symbol of duality and hope, representing how something beautiful can come out of an ugly past. Alternatively, it could be viewed as appearing healthy on the outside despite that image being supported by maladaptive behaviors. I like that this cover is ambiguous enough to be interpreted in many different ways, allowing it to be impactful to individual experiences just like the music it illustrates.
Perfume Box
Chocolate Wraper
Red Oak Cutting Board
This was the final project for my Wood Design and Craftsmanship class. The main purpose of the project was to practice the process of safely machining wood. We started with rough sawn red oak planks. First, we cross cut each piece on each side with the radial arm saw to remove undesirable sections and create a perpendicular angle between the both cross section faces and one tangental side. Second, each piece greater than 4" wide was rip sawn in half with the band saw.
Next up was the infamous jointer. We used this machine to create a 90º angle between one radial surface and one tangental face. Next, each piece was fed through the planar multiple times to smooth any imperfections on the larger faces and form parallel faces. Then, we moved on to the table saw to clean up the remaining rough surface and make the final set of parallel sides.
That led us to the most fun part: selecting, arranging, and gluing the boards. We opted for the most interesting pieces. As you can see, there are several pretty knots as well as a beautiful section of spalted wood where black mold has outlined some of the grain. We arranged the planks in a gradient from most gray to the reddest.
To glue the pieces together we laid the boards on metal pipes perpendicular to the grain, creating a flat surface that would also allow the glue to drip through. We applied wood glue liberally and smeared it with a finger. Quickly thereafter, we aligned the planks and clamped them together.
Once the glue had cured, we scraped the excess off and ran the board through the planar again to remove any residue and smooth the lips created by slight variations in board thickness. To finish up, we sawed off the final uneven edge created by differing board lengths, sanded all six sides, routed the edges, and applied a thin coat of mineral oil. With that, we had a one of a kind, lovely cutting board.
Kizingo Bowl and Spoon Pack
This was the final project for my principles of packaging class. The prompt was to create a unique package for a set of toddler training spoons and the accompanying bowl using only recyclable paperboard and.
The spoons are a very unique, complex shape which made securing them a challenge. I chose to create an insert with cutouts the same shape as the spoons and bowl to hold them steady. To accomplish this, I used the intersect and cross section tools in Artios CAD, drawing a line across the spoons where I wanted the paperboard to be removed, and let the software do the rest.
This design worked quite well in the first prototype. The spoons enter from the backside and can only pull so far through because they expand towards their base and can't fit through the hole. The only modification I made was adding the small half circle flange to hold the spoons down.
After everyone in my class presented their packages, we all voted for whose was best in three categories: innovation, structure, and graphics. Mine won best structure and missed out on best graphics by just one point. I am very proud of this unique design, and I have yet to see a solution similar to it.
48 Hour Repack Coke "Gift Lift"
The short video we made for our submission emphasizing "Share a Coke"
The final cutout of the package before assembly
This is the project my four teammates and I submitted for 2024 48 Hour Repack, answering to the Share a Coke two pack prompt. This was my first experience going through the entire design process from brainstorming to physically cutting out and folding our design, a process I thoroughly enjoyed.
I also gained a new perspective about how I work and learn. Prior to this project, I believed that group projects were not for me. However, thanks to my hardworking, creative, and motivated peers, I now look forward to the next time I will get to work in a group. I expected that we would struggle to delegate tasks and one person would end up taking over. However, our strengths were diverse enough that we naturally drifted into our respective grooves and we ended up using our time very efficiently.
Additionally, I found the time restraint to be energizing and motivating, a valuable insight into the circumstances under which I thrive.
Candle Carton and Insert
Dragon Fruit Shipper Package
For this project, I was tasked with creating a package to ship dragon fruit from farms in Central America to markets overseas. Constraints included adhering to FEFCO standard footprints, tabs and slots for stacking, openings for airflow, a 1 inch crumple zone in each corner, and adjustable dividers to accommodate fruit of varying sizes. The package is made from standard c-flute corrugated for strength and impact resistance.
Speaker Consumer Package and Shipper
This was the final project for my freshman year CAD in packaging project. I was given a 3D model of a soundbar with two surround sound speakers to be sold as a home theatre combo. Throughout the semester, I went through the entire package design process, beginning with a market analysis to assess the competition and a proposal presentation, followed by designing an insert to secure the speakers and the consumer box that contains them in ArtiosCAD. I then designed graphics for the consumer box in Adobe Illustrator before finally creating a shipper box in Cape Pack and palletizing them in the most efficient pattern.