Senior Maranda Bressi places in nation-wide design competition
Thursday, February 16th, 2017
Maranda Bressi, PCA&D Senior majoring in Graphic Design, of Reading, PA, was awarded second place at the Independent Cosmetic Manufacturers and Distributors’ Young Designers Award Competition, on February 8 in Newport Beach, California.
Her entry in the competition, a fictional Milkman Cosmetics line mixing humor with outstanding design, was lauded at the competition which drew entries from 18 colleges nationwide.
The three top winners were given cash awards at a dinner aboard the Ambassador yacht, under sail from Newport Beach, which was attended by ICMAD members, packaging industry professionals from around the country and featuring an industry “star” to present the awards. The ceremony was presided by Lisa Hoffman, the founder and president of Lisa Hoffman Beauty, which specializes in fine fragrance products.
Bressi said of her experience, “Being able to meet with the owners of all those incredible cosmetic companies was fantastic. So many doors have just opened for me that I wasn’t expecting!”
To create her entry, an assignment for her Packaging Design Class taught by PCA&D faculty member Tom Newmaster, Bressi drew on lessons taught by her professors and experiences from her internship with Suzy Rae Design, Reading. “My professors really impacted my ability and my experience during my internship advanced my design skills,” she said.
For her S
enior Thesis, Bressi will be creating packaging and catalog design for another fictional company, 3rd Base Cosmetics, using the theme of helping girls to become familiar with cosmetic products. Maranda, currently of Reading PA, decided while attending Wilson High School in Reading, PA, that cosmetic packaging design was her career goal.
Tom Newmaster, who teaches PCA&D’s Packaging Design Class, accompanied Bressi to the Young Designers Award event. In 2015, another PCA&D student, Kyle Newkirk, Class of 2015, had success in the competition, winning third place.
According to the ICMAD website, the Young Designers Award Competition encourages and develops future creative talent and showcase the extraordinary and emerging talents of packaging and design students at the college level. The Young Designer’s competition awards the best design students around the country through their creativity and ingenuity. The event allows students to network with their peers and hear from key industry speakers.
The competition was established in 1999 with rules for designing a cosmetic package. Judging was based on specific “real world” criteria and judges were selected for their expertise in the package design field. Participating schools are given a clear 6oz jar with cap to design the label and outer packaging. Schools submit their top 15 entries to be reviewed by December 19, 2016. Judged by a prestigious panel of cosmetic and personal care packaging design experts, the criteria includes overall uniqueness, ability to be reproduced economically, and ability to stand out favorably against competitive packages. The judges select the top 5 entries. Honorable mentions are awarded to two and the top three are flown out to southern California for the awards ceremony.