~ Zoo - Collateral design 2 ~

By far the biggest job for this project being the hand painted signage that needed to be done on the actual building as this would be really physical work that needed consideration and precision. 

I began by creating the template/stencil for the sign, using a4 sheets taped together which made things really tricky but it works well enough for a rough template. I then used a scalpel to cut out all the white elements of the design.

I then blue tacked the stencil onto the wooden door to create the logo and drew through the cut out areas leaving behind the design. Unfortunately due to the door being quite un-even in finish I couldn't get the stencil to stick evenly so the circle was off. Instead I create a large compass device using a screw, string and pencil to draw out the outer circle perfectly. 

These are the final images of the finished hand painted sign for the cafe. It was a really good learning curve for me as hand painted sign writing is something i've been wanting to try for a long time. Working in this hand rendered way was a really personal experiance and it was nice to really put a part of myself into the re-branding and interior of the cafe as I feel its community vibe needed this personal touch.

Menu design

When going to the site to paint the sign I discussed menu design with the client and showed him some of the mock-ups and ideas I had previously designed. He really liked the designs but unfortunately told me he needed to simplify the design massively due to a really small budget for the printing - and in order for him to be able to change the menu on a regular basis without having to spend a lot of money each time.

The menu needed to be black and white and designed so the client himself could edit things easily when needed. It needed to be single sided and A5 format - all decisions with affordability and ease of production in mind. He really loves the typeface I used for the brand identity and liked the idea of keeping this consistent throughout the menu.

This is my initial design for the final menu; using the title typeface Swistblnk used throughout the logo design and overall brand identity and helvetica for the body copy. I initially used helvetica as I felt it may improve legibility of the smaller type. But I just felt this removed something from the overall hand rendered and personal tone of voice throughout the rest of the branding.

I also experimented with a typewriter style body copy typeface - this being a midway between old style hand rendered and digital/legible. 

I changed the body copy also to the same typeface and felt this worked much better; its consistent and gives off that community warmth that I wanted. The fact the typeface is all caps means despite it being more ornate its still legible as body copy in this context.

I kept the overall layout and composition really traditional, legible and easy to navigate. I used a slight grain texture in the logo and title type to add to that hand rendered nature that has played such a big role in ensuring the brand identity flows well with the cafes community and creative values. 

I've suggested to the client that due to his lack of budget regarding the printing a good way to add some colour and brightness to the design would be to print on a coloured printer paper. Particularly pastel green - it's still really cheap and the colour green is well informed by the fact the cafe is fully vegetarian as green has connotations of health and environmental consciousness.

Animation

Due to the zoo being an existing cafe before the client bought it I felt the re-branding needed to be unveiled part by part to get people excited over social media before the official opening. In order to develop a sense of excitement I wanted to create a logo unveiling video to show people the new identity and what to look out for when news about opening dates would be released etc.

This is my final logo reveal animation. I decided to create some tension in the beginning of the animation so the logo isn't fully seen until the end; to build up tension and make it exciting for the audience. I created a textured hand rendered tone of voice within the animation also to stay consistent with the theme of a very personal and diy aesthetic throughout the brand identity.

The next piece of collateral I considered was requested by the client specifically. He has got his own bespoke coffee blend made and the company making it has asked for a stamp design to go onto the packaging. I mocked up what this stamp will look like - using the full (non textured) circular design as the stamp process will create its own hand rendered look and feel.

The last piece of collateral I designed was really simple yet a key piece for this brief. I wanted each aspect from the interior, brand identity, menus right down to the waitress/chef uniforms to be consistent so the brand was a really apparent part of the experiance. This lead to the design of the uniform; brown aprons iconic of home cooking, screen printed with the logo design big and bold on the front.