Category: brand development

BYC brand guide

Posted on by Rhea Diehl

BYC brand guide

brand redevelopment | copywriting | publication design

Challenge:

Using an extended logo design, create a set of brand guidelines for the company of the client in the form of an electronic book to illustrate the brand’s story, customers, and aesthetic.

Design Solution:

In April of 2021, Backyard Creations (an outdoor living design and build company) reached out to seek my help in a complete brand redesign. Unsatisfied with their current logo and brand, BYC wanted to elevate their aesthetic to relate more with their business relationships and knowledgeable clientele. After participating in several design consultations with the team and their own designer, a logo was designed that brought a sophisticated, modern touch to the otherwise industrialized style of this trade.  A company bases its entire brand off of its logo, and now that it was complete, I would be taking over the project. My big task was to create the brand guidelines that would ensure a seamless aesthetic company-wide.

Building this brand guide was essentially starting from scratch. They wanted to do away with their old style completely, save for a couple of colors and fonts. Starting with the guidelines themselves, I did some heavy research into brand guide documents and storytelling for this project. Not only would I be writing about this company’s brand, but I’d be writing about who they are, and telling the story of their success.

Hours and days of research and brainstorming led to the design decisions you see on these pages today. From the big, important components that you see in all brand guides (target audience, logos, typography, blah blah blah) to the small details, like making the color palette out of paint swatches.

The BYC team and I also had this great idea of creating an emblem for their products. We conceptualized a wood-burning iron of sorts that gives their product a permanent “seal of approval”. They really liked the look of the vector leaves used in the brand guide design; so much that they chose that graphic as the main component of the seal. Something simple yet sleek.

Self-Reflection:

I really loved how this project came out. I think a lot of strong design decisions were made here, and that they really elevate BYC over their competitors. Their new brand aesthetic communicates that they mean business, and they’re the experts, on the up-and-up in outdoor living. Follow-ups will be made at a later date to see how the rebrand is working out.

View the Digital Publication

Click the button below to be redirected to Issuu.com, where I’ve created a digital brand book to read through in more detail.

Brand Book

Interested in learning more about BYC and their products?

Visit their company website to read all about their experience, quality products, and the expert services that they offer.

Learn More

wayfinding brand revision

Posted on by Rhea Diehl

wayfinding brand revision

digital media | brand redesign | illustration

Challenge:

Develop a wayfinding system for an organization of your choosing, complete with icons, maps, and kiosks.

Design Solution:

When developing this concept for a wayfinding system for Yosemite National Park, my first instinct was to keep the “nature” vibe they already had. National Parks are all about getting outside and enjoying the beauty the world has to offer, and to modernize that would be to diminish the entire feeling of the park. That being said, I decided to improve their logo to showcase their most popular attraction; El Capitan. The fonts and style I chose are reflective of the “natural” vibe I went with, adding just a tiny touch of modern by using Josefin Sans as a “secondary font” in the logo. As for the icons, I wanted to stay simple and minimal, but these are a work in progress. As they are right now, the restroom icon is far more detailed than the others; and I actually prefer them that way! I am in the process of revising these icons to fit more with the restroom icon.

Additionally, I have created a wayfinding kiosk for visitors to use to map out their travels throughout the park. When designing this part of the project, I took a lot of inspiration from the appearance of wishing wells. The kiosk is also a work in progress, as I would like to refine the details in this more. Lastly, I developed a couple apparel items, consisting of a t-shirt and a baseball cap boasting the new logo. Ideally, this would be for park staff to wear so that visitors can pick them out easily.

Self-Reflection:

This project was definitely an interesting one, to say the least. I recall hitting a lot of roadblocks in the initial ideation of this work. I guess if I can take anything from this one, it’s that sometimes back to basics is best.

kids playhouse gender neutral package design

Posted on by Rhea Diehl

kids playhouse gender neutral package design

package design | illustration | crafting

Challenge:

Design a gender neutral brand and product for an assigned kids playhouse.

Design Solution:

During my time in college, I was asked to develop a brand identity and package design for an existing architectural playhouse assigned. I chose to pursue a sandcastle concept that would appeal to children of both genders. Regardless of gender, everyone can agree that kids love sandcastles. I used this common interest as inspiration for this project, and developed a concept of a crab themed sandcastle. From the package design, to the pieces of the kids playhouse itself, the theme is communicated efficiently and cohesively throughout the brand. The playhouse set also features an on-theme paint set with a brush to customize the castle, washable, of course. Whether your kid colors inside the lines or out, the included paint is washable to make cleanup a breeze.

Self-Reflection:

This project combined my branding and crafting skills, and challenged me to build a brand and product that is cohesive throughout. It also challenged me to focus on a broader audience, being a gender neutral product for children. Knowing and being able to appeal to your audience is an important skill in the design world.

Interested in finding out more about gender neutrality in packaging and product design?

View This Article

subscription box package design

Posted on by Rhea Diehl

subscription box package design

branding | crafting | web design

Challenge:

Formulate a unique concept and design a monthly subscription box and website.

Design Solution:

For Digital Media Studio II, we developed a brand, corresponding website prototype, and subscription box on a topic of our choosing. Artistic expression was my main focus of this assignment, and this prompted my concept of an art and wine subscription box named Dabble; a brand that promotes dabbling in various arts. I’m sure that I am not the only one who prefers to drink and do my art at home, as opposed to in public. I used this common interest as inspiration for this project, and developed a wine and art box; similar to that of a “wine and paint” event. It was my intention to communicate artistic expression throughout all aspects of the brand (using brush strokes, homemade patterns, and more).

The monthly subscription box features a bottle of wine, an art project with supplies, and a cracker and cheese pairing, as well as offering several ways to get creative, even down to the lid of the complimentary supply box.

Self-Reflection:

This project encompassed an array of my skills, such as branding,  crafting physical prototypes, photography, and web layout design. I took this project as a new challenge, and used the opportunity to come up with a unique concept that was executed beautifully. From the box, to the contents, to the website; this brand and product screams “creative” in a way that is elegant and artistic. I would consider this project one of my strongest yet.

Click the button to view the working desktop prototype for Dabble Creative.

Click here

sneaker brand apparel design

Posted on by Rhea Diehl

sneaker brand apparel design

digital media | brand development | illustration

Challenge:

Develop a creative, innovative shoe brand or collaborative ection complete with brand assets and unique illustrations.

Design Solution:

When developing this concept for my Digital Media Studio class, it was at a time where I was really starting to take off in my vector art. Acknowledging that my skills were improving tremendously, I wanted to create a brand centered around vector art and icons. For a few projects, I had been toying with the concept of space, but it had usually been scrapped for a different concept. This time, I decided to take the theme of space and run with it. Finally trying my hand at a space themed design, I wanted to create a brand that could appeal to all ages, but still give off a high-end vibe, inspired by Vans and their famous skate shoes.

I accomplished this by using a thin, clean, unique typeface as the center of the logo, and kept it relatively minimal. The color palette was pulled straight from a photo of the solar system to ensure that the tones used were reflective of our galaxy itself.

Self-Reflection:

I had a ton of fun with this project! I feel like this really showcased where my illustration skills have come from, say, three years ago to now. Not only did it show off my vector icons, but I learned a lot about apparel design in itself, and how to really bring my work to life through the clothes we wear from head to toe.

moleskine x just my type product design

Posted on by Rhea Diehl

moleskine x just my type product design

branding | typography | digital media

Challenge:

Conceptualize and build a brand around previously designed typographic patterns.

Design Solution:

This project was actually taken from a typography exercise that I did in freshman year. We originally had to develop patterns using only type, and while one of them wasn’t too great, I’ve always loved the look of the ‘Q’ pattern. It was my professor this year that inspired me to create a notebook collection centered around typography, utilizing this ‘Q’ pattern among others.

A lot of this project was dependent on my first pattern. I couldn’t use the same font again, nor the same color palette or letter. I had to get creative, so I took to Dribble and Behance to muster up some inspiration. After playing around in Illustrator for a while, I came up with these patterns, which in a way can relate to the different side of my personalities, the side that is loud and bright, the side that is more feminine, and the side that has a great appreciation for the retro era.

Since these patterns are so busy, I chose to go rather simple with the logo, which helps to create a unified balance between elements.

Self-Reflection:

I don’t think I ever would have thought to turn this simple, interesting type exercise into a full fledged notebook collection. A lot of the time, I think more about thinking and moving forward than back, and don’t really take the time to reconceptualize former work. I’d say the main thing I took away from this project is that just when you think you’ve stretched your ideas as far as you can, there is always a way to make it better. Just think outside the box a little.

*Disclaimer: I do not own the rights to the existing logos used in these designs. These were made on an educational basis.

design for good brand development

Posted on by Rhea Diehl

design for good brand development

branding | publication | layout design

Challenge:

Design a branding campaign for a fictional charity, complete with a branding strategy, logo, and peripherals.

Design Solution:

As both a designer, and a compassionate individual, this campaign was right up my alley. Pawsible is a fictional organization that focuses on bettering the lives of shelter animals. I chose to create a brand that displays cohesion and creativity for a passionate subject. I developed a brand strategy to communicate a lighthearted approach to a serious issue.

The logo design intended to get the point across without being too busy. The color palette and font choices were chosen with hidden meanings in mind; how colors and fonts make us feel, and what they stand for. Print peripherals were based off of emotional movement; using headlines that hit home to convey our serious point of view. On the other hand, my apparel conveys the playful element of the brand.

Self-Reflection:

The end result of this project was integrating two themes to create a brand that is eye-catching and cohesive while spreading a message.