Ashley Blaes (English ’22) deftly transcends period and genre in this collection of Restoration-inspired cover pages for several works studied in English 2201. Explaining her goals and inspiration, she writes:
During our discussion of Evelina and 18th-century novels as a whole, I was very interested in the design and thought that was put into each publisher’s cover pages. From the various fonts, text sizes, and even degree of wear on the page itself, I could tell some novels had been very well received and loved […] Drawing inspiration from Evelina‘s cover page, I created my own covers for four very different pieces we discussed in lecture over the four literary periods: Pre- and Post-Conquest, Renaissance, and the Restoration.
Here’s more on the process of making these stunning pieces, in Ashley’s own words:
After drafting, I used an online typography template to find as close a match to the print type that was utilized on most 1700s cover pages, Evelina included. I referred to covers such as Robinson Crusoe, Pamela, and of course, Evelina, as inspiration for the layout of each page. After editing and printing, each cover page was then stained and blotted with coffee and dried three times over to give the appearance of yellowed and aged parchment that has crinkled/faded over time.
Ashley Blaes is a second-year English undergrad majoring in literature with a minor in creative writing. It’s no secret that like all English majors she adores books and would love to become a writer of my her fictional stories someday! In the mean time, she works at a bookstore and constantly obsesses over the UK and pretty much anything British. OSU is helping her achieve her goal to study abroad in London, England for the entirety of her junior year: “I could not be more excited!” she writes.