Laura Looijen // Portfolio
I am Laura Looijen. I call myself a concept designer because I dabbled in all parts of design. I have a master’s degree in design engineering, but I have work experience in graphic and digital design, founded a startup from zero to selling, and have a passion for art, textiles, and illustration. I love to be a creative multitasker and take projects from scratch to pixel-perfect perfection! Take a look around at all my projects. Who knows I can be of service to your company or your projects.
What do I do?
//Projects //Projects //Projects
Graphic & exhibition design
Opera Amsterdam
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what did i do?
I currently work at Opera Amsterdam, where I handle all 2D design work for exhibitions—everything from typography and large-scale illustrations to infographics , wallpapers and projections, you name it!
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This role has given me extensive technical experience in print production and DTP. I have been honored to oversee major exhibitions in leading museums, such as the British Museum, the Holocaust Museum or the new exhibition on SEX positions in the Jewish Museum.
Digital & graphic design
Marlies | dekkers
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what did i do?
I worked at Marlies | Dekkers as a visual designer. I created their content for the social media channels, website, and app. Furthermore, I participated in making magazines that showed the launch of new collections and supported the development of the branding of the company.
In the time I worked at their headquarters, I streamlined their design process. I strived to make the process of making the briefings by the marketing department to the final feedback for the designers more efficient. To do this I made standard PSD templates for all channels to eliminate repetitive work and create more coherency, I added naming conventions for all the files, and worked on improving the communication of the other departments with the designers.
Tattoo artist
wildbloei.ink
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what did i do?
In addition to my graphic work, I’ve ventured into tattooing, where I get to bring my illustrations to life on the most meaningful canvas of all: the human body. This art form allows me to explore creative freedom like never before, making each piece truly personal and unique.
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You can visit my instagram @wildbloei.ink:
https://www.instagram.com/wildbloei.ink/
master graduation project & startup
maki | tu delft
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what did i do?
Together with my business partner Roos van 't Klooster we founded Maki. We both are passionate about making our own clothes and wanted to share this with others. We noticed the world of sewing could use young, fresh, and simple sewing patterns. We took a few business courses at the TU Delft and founded Maki. We gathered a following of young enthusiastic sewers and developed the startup further using The Lean Startup method.
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I graduated with my master's at the TU Delft with developing the product side of Maki. I created an online platform together with a set of printable rulers that teach beginning sewers to make a garment in their measurements completely from scratch with zero skills or knowledge. I graduated cum laude and received funding from the TU Delft to further develop Maki in the future. Want to know more about Maki and see a video? Click here. ​
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bachelor graduation project
hema|tu delft
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what did i do?
Theeleggers is my Bachelor's graduation project in partnership with HEMA, and even though I have grown much as a designer since then, it is still a project that is close to me.
Theeleggers are little booklets attached to HEMA's teabags, so there is a little peaceful moment of reading during your tea together with a great chance for aspiring writers to promote their work. I believe the design being this simple is what gives it its strength.
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I made it to the finalists of the HEMA design contest in 2020 and got to present my idea at their headquarters. Want to see more of this project? Click here.
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Web & branding design
vr arcade Rotterdam
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what did i do?
For a VR Arcade in Rotterdam, I designed a branding, logo, and website in a retro 80s gaming style. I enjoyed the creative freedom that was given to me in the process. Although the website has been edited by other people with new information over time, you can still visit the website here to get a glimpse of the original design.
branding & strategy design
fearce
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what did i do?
During my time at the Faculty of Industrial Design Engineering, I had access to a laser cutter and a lot of scrap material. I decided to make statement earrings from acrylic and sell these online and at festivals as a side project. I enjoyed branding and photographing something that was completely mine, and it was incredibly humbling to see other people wear my earrings. As this was my first experience with selling products online, I learned a lot about social media advertising, building a working web store and having an entrepreneurial mindset. This knowledge is still a foundation of a lot of my work today.
industrial design engineering
yumen bionics
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what did i do?
In a design team with six students, the TU Delft partnered up with Yumen Bionics to create a game controller for young boys and men with Duchenne muscular dystrophy. Since these men find their muscle strength reduced over their disease progression, a special controller had to be designed.
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The controller has a pod that holds the electronics that can be placed in different outer shapes with silicone skin that each fit a specific stage of the disease. This creates a squeezable controller that provides more grip and won't damage their muscles further. In this project, I prototyped these silicone skins, streamlined the electronics and software development, and was responsible for the visualization and branding of the product. My main goal here was to make these boys feel as if it was not a product for "disabled" people but just a cool controller that they can use. Want to more about the project? Click here. Want to know about my prototyping skills? Click here.
art & textiles
hobby projects
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what did i do?
During Covid, I learned how to sew. It has been my passion ever since. In sewing, I can combine a lot of my skills and interests. From thinking of ideas to more technical pattern drawing to working with different materials, the skill fits me like a glove! I started with making garments but have now begun with making soft sculptures. I see these projects as my chance to let go of all commercial incentives and to truly take my personal creative space to create anything that inspires me. Currently, I am inspired by speculative biology. At the moment I am working on an exposition of alienesque-insects. This is done through CAD sculpting in Blender. After this, I generate patterns from these models and make them out of waste textiles and stuffing.
illustration
hobby projects
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what did i do?
In my free time, I love to do Illustration. If Adobe programs were a language, I am fluent in them! I enjoy making brightly coloured and fiercely outlined illustrations and animations and exploring different styles. Want to see more? Click here.