Production Work Report #3

Short Summary:

The purpose behind creating branding for Simply Handmade is simply for (beside myself and my portfolio) my client who has been approached by many admirers of her work as well as receivers of her crafts to start up a small business, one where she sells her crafts. My client has sold her crafts in the past, but never had a brand supporting the imaging and recognizability of her product. My goal is to create a brand that would allow my client a more successful chance of succeeding if she would choose to enter the small business realm. To create viable branding for my client, I will create at least the following deliverables: branding elements; a color palette; a versatile logo; header for social media; staged product photos for social media advertisement; and a sign for my client’s theoretical antique booth; however, there will likely be other deliverables created along the way as their need is recognized. Of these deliverables, I still must create a header for social media; staged product photos for social media advertisement; and a sign for my client’s theoretical antique booth. I was also contemplating creating business cards and stickers for my client’s theoretical antique booth. This project is a strong piece for my portfolio because it allows me to widen my horizons and further capture my capabilities. This piece will show employers that I am well rounded in my capabilities and showcase said capabilities.

Elevator Pitch:

If I had sixty seconds to pitch my project, it would be: “For DMD 400, I am creating branding for the potential brand, Simply Handmade. My client is a crafter who has been recommended to start a small business where she would sell her crafts. Creating a strong brand is vital for success within a small business. To create a strong brand for my client, I started by conducting research on branding and elements within branding, such as creating branding elements; versatile logos; and a color palette that follows the CRAP technique. From there I will go on to create more deliverables for the brand such as content for social media and for my client’s theoretical antique booth. Between working with both my client and my project advisor throughout the course of this project, I intend to create an optimal brand for my client.”

Research:

All the research I conducted at the beginning of this project is noted below:

VWO Crap Design Principles:

• • In the logo I included in my Proof of Concept, I learned that I made a few errors. First and foremost, there is not much contrast between the colors I used. This leads to the S and H not standing out against the background, so the letters may be difficult to see. A general rule of thumb I can follow going forward is to utilize colors that lie opposite of one another on the color wheel.
  • A trick this resource shared that I would use going forward is putting my image into greyscale to see if it has optimum contrast.
  • Repetition is key for consistency.
  • I learned what edge alignment is, which is when elements’ outer edge lines up against margins.
  • Lastly, for proximity, I learned that elements that are associated with each other should be placed closely.

Logo Lounge Trend Reports:

• • From 2021’s logo trend report, I found the trends to feel both familiar and unique. Trends such as asterisk, off jog, and trans flip were all ones that felt familiar. Electric tape is certainly one that felt more unique and considerably less familiar.
  • Something that surprised me is that when it came to font, stark sans was utilized in place of display serif simply to prove it was possible.
  • I certainly believe there is a never-ending amount of information that can be found through this resource, and I will certainly refer to it when I go to create my client’s logo. I will likely go further back than simply 2021 to see what else has been a trend amongst logos in the past couple of years.

LinkedIn Creating a Mood Board

• • After watching the introduction to the course, I feel as if I should have gone into my meeting with my client having already created a mood board; however, having a better vision of what my client wants, perhaps the first piece of content I create for this project should be a mood board.
  • I appreciate learning official terms, such as design asset, which refers to all materials needed to complete a project. A mood board is helpful in making decisions with design assets because the designer is better able to judge whether the asset is an appropriate fit or not.
  • Creating a color palette is the first step in creating a mood board.
  • Four design inspiration sources are: Pinterest, Instagram, Behance, and Dribble.
  • By using Pinterest for creating a mood board, there is no layout work, and the client is about to interact with the board, not to mention it is free.
  • Canva is a free graphic design app that has an impressive range of features which is another recommended program to use to create a mood board.
  • Adobe Spark, another recommended program for creating mood boards, offers a free online and mobile design app.
  • Instagram is a great platform for reaching potential clients; referral sources; and collaborators. Your posts act as a social media portfolio. The same goes for Pinterest.

Progress:

By the end of my first Production Work Report, I created a Proof of Concept; I conducted my first meeting with my client; and I conducted the previously included research. By the end of the second Production Work Report, I brainstormed my client’s branding; I created a mood board on Pinterest (https://www.pinterest.com/beccapaigex/simply-handmade-branding-mood-board/); created a monogram logo; and branding elements. By the end of this Product Work Report, I created a more defined color palette; adjusted the font to be more fitting to said brand; fixed the previously created branding elements; and adjusted the logo to allow it to be more versatile, which is represented in the image at the top of this Production Work Report. Attached below is the links to my three Production Work Report blog posts.

Production Work Report 1: https://sites.psu.edu/beccapmyers/2022/02/06/production-work-report-1/

Production Work Report 2: https://sites.psu.edu/beccapmyers/2022/02/25/115/

Production Work Report 3: https://sites.psu.edu/beccapmyers/2022/03/07/production-work-report-3/