SCD branding

Friend of Swiss Cottage and official SCD photographer, Susan Pittard, came by the office last week to see what was cooking. We loaded her up with some of our new SCD goodies and she pulled together a few pics for us. One of my favorite parts about this business is getting to play with our packaging and branding. Just last month we rolled out our new site and since then we’ve been adding a few other freshies to the mix.  The big ones were our new business cards + client thank you notes. I ended up screen printing these {white ink on kraft paper} after I fell in love with a recent client job that was also screen printed. Our new business cards are letterpress on one side and screen printed on the other side {and then duplexed to be #220 lbs.}. Patterns have always been a weakness for me so I created two new envelope liner patterns to play with. I found a great company online and created some cute custom ribbon as well. Of course, like any tortured artist, as soon as it was all complete I enjoyed it for about 5 minutes before I jumped to thinking about what I’ll change next time… the joys of being a creative!

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Branding: Dupree & Co.

Man, we’ve been busy over here! July is a big month for design work, sorry for the radio silence! Whenever I feel stressed or overwhelmed, I can always count of my good friends, wine & cheese, to make me cheer up Charlie! So when Dupree & Company asked me to work on their branding, I really couldn’t say no. I mean, their shop is my idea of heaven! (all that cheese? stop.) The owner, Ethan, is a Brooklyn guy gone Islander. He opened his first shop on the island of Nantucket last year. I showed a little sneak peek of this design back in the Spring, but this June I was able to see the work in action.

Ethan wanted the logo to feel very French inspired but not too over the top. He also wanted to convey that it is a brick and mortar cheese shop. We created two main icons, a vintage cheese slicer and an actual cheese wheel. I think a common misconception with branding is that everything needs to “match” and I don’t think this is always the case. With Dupree & Co. we created two logo options and played with fonts and borders. We wanted it to feel well merchandised but not matchy matchy. The sign of a good logo is when it can be deconstructed to create more, simple logos.

Below are a few snaps of the shop and the work. Bravo Ethan!

Dupree + Co. Branding: Sneak Peek!

Did everyone have a great long weekend? We are officially up and running in the new SCD headquarters, feels good! While we are settling in, I thought it might be fun to share a new branding project. For the last few months we have been working with a great boutique wine + cheese shop to help them develop their brand logo and identity. We’ve done some great stuff for them, here a little peek of some of their printed goods. Excited to share the rest soon!

Geometric Branding

As a designer, you have to be fully prepared to understand that your first round of designs are exactly that- a first round. Most designs take a few round of edits before you and the client have given it your stamp of approval. But sometimes {and I love these sometimes} you hit the nail on the head the first time. And that, my friends, always calls for celebration! I designed this logo for a client and while it wasn’t the direction she ultimately went with, I really loved it. We wanted to take a classic concept and modernize it with sharp lines and bright, bold colors. It love how fresh and vibrant it is!

Fresh New Cards

Happy Monday everyone! Last week flew by in the blink of an eye but I was able to pick up my new business cards and I couldn’t be happier with them! I went in a different direction this time and I love the results. The cards are duplexed {printing on the front and the back then having them adhered for a double thick weight} and have orange edge painting. I’ve become semi-addicted to this fun upgrade. My printer told me it’s very hard to go back once you’ve started and he wasn’t lying. I used my graph paper pattern on the back and impressed “swiss cottage designs” in a very light gray leaving the illusion of a blind impression without actually going all the way there. I wanted to keep the cards simple but for them to still feel like the brand.

Now on a side note: Going off a tip from a client I started “The Hunger Games” last week. I can’t seem to put these books down, they are so addictive! If you’re looking for an interesting, easy read check them out.

RUMMAGE

I am a big fan of all things funky and vintage so when Kishani Perera got in touch with me about designing the site and logo for her new store, RUMMAGE, I couldn’t have been more excited. Rummage is a funky, eclectic assortment of all things vintage and are hand picked by Kishani. Kishani, who is an interior decorator by trade, knew exactly what she was looking for in terms of look and feel. We wanted to make the overall site feel very vintage glam but still be user friendly and simple. Sometimes when you collaborate with other designers it can be tough given that you both have strong ideas but with Kishani it was incredibly easy. There was lots of great back and forth and fun ideas flowing throughout the process. While I designed the layout and feel of the site, it took the magic of Josh at Every Angle Media to make it a full on functioning site.

If you’re ever in L.A. you must be sure to pop by and check out all the little treasures RUMMAGE has to offer.

Here is the original inspiration board that Kishani and I started with…