Here I decided to do pirate themed icons because I absolutely loved the ocean. I also wanted to pick icons that would symbolize the wonder, adventure, and excitement of pirate stories people usually hear. I included a sword, eyepatch, and treasure chest as examples of the pirate aspect. Other icons I thought would be fitting include a mermaid, a clam with a pearl, an a lantern, to name a few. 

My aim was to sketch as many as I could in order to come up with examples of the idea

I was able to get some feedback here from my professor as well as other students. One recommendation was to get rid of the circle backgrounds. Other edits included getting rid of extra anchor points, freeing trapped white space, and slightly more realistic starfish. 

Here are the finished icons with the aforementioned adjustments. When I ran into difficulties I was able to turn to fellow students and ask advice. The biggest edit that improved the icons tremendously was removing the backgrounds.

Keeping the icons in a cartoon style prevented the theme from being too serious while the treasure chest, mermaid, and sword conveyed the excitement and fun I wished to convey.