Aug22
Get ready for a morning of creativity with your coffee and breakfast. Creative Mornings Vancouver, a free monthly lecture series for creatives, happens on Friday, September 2, at W2′s Media Café.
Creative Mornings began in 2009 in New York City. Since then, it’s since expanded to cities around the world, attracting top creative professionals for free breakfast, coffee, and inspiration from some of the world’s top creative thinkers.
Dec17
Remember when Adobe InDesign was poised to be the next “Quark Killer“? Well, InDesign has surpassed that status and lived 10 years to tell the tale. “Page by Page: 10 Years of Designing with Adobe InDesign” is a beautiful limited edition, hard-bound book commemorating InDesign’s 10 years in the Adobe family.
I was recently sent a copy for review and have included a few sections of spreads from the book.
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Nov21
Challenge
The Djavad Mowafaghian Foundation came to our studio looking for a refreshed logo identity and series of business cards. The logo was long due for an overhaul, to be applied to the cards and future stationery pieces.
The office wayfinding includes a gold and copper version of the interweaving hands, so the challenge was to create a logo that would match their space as well as incorporate a modern approach to the printed material.
Background
For over 30 years, founder Djavad Mowafaghian has both funded various philanthropic projects and donated to various children’s charities worldwide. In 2003, the Djavad Mowafaghian Foundation was set up in order to guarantee the continuation of his philanthropy. The foundation, based in North Vancouver, aids children around the world through health and education.
Process
Avenir (a sans serif font that I often use in my work) came to the rescue, allowing several lines of clean information to be easily stacked on the back side of the card. The logo’s original form was used, with a two-colour foil stamp printing process on a clean off-white paper stock.
Result
The resulting series of cards are now in use and a stationery package is on the way. The client was very happy with the design solution and their current clients will recognize the familiar hands, while new clients will be drawn in by the modern, approachable design.
Nov20
Challenge
Gina’s Bath Soaks was looking to create a down-to-earth look for the launch of their bath soaks line, a key product in a line that includes milk and hemp bath products.
Background
Gina’s Bath Soaks creates locally sourced and produced milk baths, bath salts, and hemp milk baths that are sold at farmer’s markets and shops in the Eugene, Oregon area. The company takes great pride in using organic ingredients in the production of all their products. These bath products are produced in small batches and many custom orders result from their market presence in the local community.
Process
I proposed simply using the letter g as the key focus of the label, that I later carried through to the rest of the brand identity package.
Each scent received a distinctive colour and I designed the blue water splash illustration in order to contain the rest of the label information.
Result
The entire stock sold out upon the launch of the packaging in both the local grocery stores and at the next few farmer’s markets. The company plans to expand in order to complete orders for a new line of natural shampoos and conditioners.
Nov20
Challenge
A benefit was organized in support of Dan Grice, the Vancouver Quadra Green Party’s 2008 by-election candidate. The event was to include a silent auction, buffet, no host bar and cabaret show. Their team came to my studio in need of a series of deliverables to include a flyer, tickets, and a social media campaign design.
Background
Vancouver Quadra is a federal electoral district in British Columbia that has been represented in the Canadian House of Commons since 1949. Within the boundaries of this riding are the University of British Columbia and the western portions of the affluent Vancouver Westside. At the time, Dan Grice was the Vancouver-Quadra candidate for the Green Party of Canada. A UBC graduate, he has played a leadership role in BC’s electoral reform movement.
Process
I designed the flyer, tickets, and Facebook event page banner to reflect a classic speakeasy atmosphere, utilizing a sepia toned photograph of an old-fashioned microphone.
The Green Party logo contrasted nicely with the earthy sepia colour.
Result
The event was a success and raised both funds and awareness for Dan Grice and the Green Party of Canada.
Jul9
Back in February, the U.S. Mint chose a new reverse penny design for circulation this year. Created by U.S. Mint Artistic Infusion Program Associate Designer Lyndall Bass, and sculpted by U.S. Mint Sculptor-Engraver Joseph Menna, it depicts a shield with 13 vertical stripes bearing the E PLURIBUS UNUM (Out of Many, One) motto.
The stripes represent the 13 original states joined together as a united country. There were 18 designs submitted to the Commission of Fine Arts and the Citizens Coinage Advisory Committee. In turn, both organizations submitted their recommended designs to US Treasury Secretary Timothy Geitner, who selected the Union shield design.
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Jun28
“The toughest person to please in any logo design project should be the designer who creates the work.”
As a seasoned brand identity designer, I couldn’t agree more.
This valuable reminder, quoted by Malcolm Grear on page 29, sets the tone early in David Airey’s book, Logo Design Love.
Designed as both a learning tool and a set of case studies, Airey bridges a wide array of logo examples with the creative thinking process of identity design. You’ll gain valuable insight into asking the right questions from the start, learn constructive ways of working with your clients, and become proficient in how to present your ideas during the various phases of a project. Each section brings a new aspect of branding identity to the forefront.
You won’t get specific answers to the ages-old “How much should I charge” conundrum, but rather good food for thought in arriving there.
It’s an enjoyable read, based on the author’s own successful blog, Logo Design Love. The book showcases the best of Airey’s 500+ blog posts. As well, don’t miss his top 10 questions answered and 25 logo design tips towards the back of the book!
David Airey is a Northern Irish graphic designer who currently maintains two blogs: www.davidairey.com and www.logodesignlove.com
PS – Congrats to David on his recent wedding and kudos to the beautiful wedding photography capturing the day.
Disclosure note for review: Cmply.1
Jun24
It truly isn’t enough to graduate from a design school anymore. Knowing for example how to navigate your business plan, devise a proposal, and understand the important legal aspects surrounding intellectual property are equally important in order to be successful in this highly-competitive industry.
I just finished reading this book and found its value worthy of a mention on my site.
Shel Perkins’ book, Talent is Not Enough: Business Secrets For Designers, bridges all aspects of the design career into one resource. It’s a must-read for those starting out. The overview of what to expect and how to grow from a student intern through to owning your own design company (and building your physical space for maximum creative potential) is all here, smartly presented in chronological order.
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Jun14
Just back from vacation, I missed the recent Vancouver Whitecaps FC logo redesign launch fanfare. As a designer, I couldn’t resist having a closer look and weighing in with my own two cent’s worth.
1. What happened? The current logo has rounded lines and an organic shape to it that screams both sport and living near the sea. The new lines are cold and rigid, leaving behind any semblance of community or inclusion.
2. Where did the soccer ball disappear to? Are we selling a sports team, or a mountaineering resort?
3. The good part? The word Vancouver has been added to the logo, as has of course the “FC” affiliation. Why not keep the existing logo and incorporate those new text elements?
It takes a great deal of research, thought, and brainstorming to create a successful and captivating logo identity. While I don’t argue that the team behind the design put in their studio time, it would have been nice to have seen improvement in the end result.
Vancouver’s now on the pro-soccer world stage and the Whitecaps organization is equally deserving of a fabulous look to match their team’s talent! Anybody else have any thoughts either way regarding the new logo?
May28
Following my recent Photoshop and InDesign reviews, I’ll cover a few of the many new features Illustrator CS5 has to offer.
Dash Adjustment
Dashes that don’t exactly fall where you want them can now be altered to fit correctly. Illustrator will calculate the dashes to make them flow around the artwork. The options are in the stroke panel. Segments where paths containing dashes meet no longer look awkward, and the dashes will adjust to corners and path ends, adjusting their lengths to fit.
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