Kara Dally's Digital Imaging

This project was much more difficult than I anticipated. I realized that I honestly hardly know anything about illustrator. As I type this with cramped hands, I can tell you that I think I finally learned a little bit. Not nearly as much as I need to but that's why this is only the first project, not the final. I struggled with the perspective on just about everything, which was probably one of my biggest challenges, but in the end I just left them so that I could finish. Looking at my masterpiece now, there are many things I don't like about it, but I have to say, I'm kind of pleased with how it turned out. 

I think I might go back to my original plan because I found a vertical tanning booth that looks exactly like the inside of a toaster (I can't make this up) and so I'm thinking I'm going to go back to my original plan of making doors on the outside of the toaster, instead of on the inside. 

So I think I decided on turning my toaster into a "tanning bed hotel" but for food. I was going to have a pool on the top of my toaster so that I could have the lever as a diving board, and then use the side of my toaster to show where the tanning rooms are.  However, I found some reference photos of the inside of a toaster, and in my opinion it looks exactly how I would imagine a tanning bed hotel. So I'm thinking from these photos, that I  might change the perspective to a top view and put the tanning rooms inside of the toaster and use the lever as an elevator through the different levels of the rooms. I'm liking where this is going so far tho. 

  This is my current progress so far. I have mainly been wanting to just get the shape of the toaster first before I started doing anything fancy. I have started on some of the reflections and shiny parts of the buttons and the metal, which has been tricky because I'm still learning how to use the gradient tool, but I'm getting the hang of it. I have been thinking about what I want to combine my toaster with and I've been leaning towards a building, using the leaver as an elevator, or a diving board, something that springs into the air etc. As for what kind of building, I've been trying to thinking of places that relate to heat/ heating things, so maybe a tanning bed company? Not sure yet, still fleshing things out. But I like where I'm headed.  I have mainly been trying to work on the reflections of the buttons and metal on my toaster. There is still a lot to do and more to figure out but I'm looking forward to seeing what I come up with.