® X Frame shop logo makeover 0707 Before&After BAmagazine.com i U X Logo makeover Frame shop Newburyport Framers, a high-end custom framing business, needs a new logo. The best way to design it? Ground it in reality. Continued FIRST OF THREE PARTS Continued
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® X
Frame shop logo makeover 0707
Before&After BAmagazine.com i U X
Logo makeoverFrame shop
Newburyport Framers, a high-end custom framing business, needs a new logo. The best way to design it? Ground it in reality. Continued first of three pArts
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frame shop logo makeoverTo create a new logo for a high-end custom-framing business, we turn abstract attributes into real images.
first of three pArts | Larry and Sherry Pearl own Newburyport Framers, a high-end custom framing business in the idyllic seaside town of Newburyport, Massachusetts. There, they pro-vide tailored design service to locals who are as passionate about art and framing as they are.
Newburyport Framers has the luxury of a descriptive name: in two words, it tells you where the business is located and what they do. What the name does not convey, however, is a true sense of the Newburyport Framers’ experience. Customers rave about the Pearls’ artistry, and about their outstanding service. The new logo should honor these abstract attributes. The way to do this, paradoxically, is not to think in the abstract but to ground the design in reality. Here’s how.
to boost their business and expand their reputation, New-buryport framers needs to blend the renown of a well-established chain with the personalized expe-rience of a local business. the design should convey their supe-rior craftsmanship while also anchoring their work within the environment it inhabits. (Above: Newbury-port harbor, Larry and sherry pearl)
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Analyze the situationFirst, assess the client’s “world” and desires. From there, establish the goals of the design, then create a palette of words and images for inspiration.
the client’s world . . .
type of business: small custom framing store with a handful of employees; do custom framing, matting, and shadowbox construction
Audience: Current and prospective customers, employees, local galleries, other businesses
Assets: Resources to purchase typefaces, build a web site, and have material printed, including signage
Limitations: No on-staff graphic designer to main-tain and ensure overall adherence to the design plan
Design goals: Convey a sense of artistry, compe-tence, craftsmanship, desirability, an artistic, high-end vibe, and attract attention to the business
the direction: Newburyport Framers has the advantage of being local; it’s run by North Shore residents for North Shore residents. We’ll highlight the business’s personalized, local service by imbuing it with a sense of local identity.
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evaluate the existing designAn existing design will often (but not always) yield clues about the client. In this case, the “before” highlights the initials “NF,” which came from Sherry’s love of typography.
Logo and colors Initials NF are set in Bembo, a classic typeface that evokes both art and literature. It’s a beautiful choice that’s then neutralized by two unfortunate additions: 1) Overlapped and shoehorned into a black box creates a sense of clutter and heaviness quite different from the light, airy atmosphere of the typeface and frame shop; note, above right, the many trapped, busy spaces that result from the overlap, none of which exists naturally in the typeface. Adding insult to injury, the N had to be stretched horizontally to make the monogram work.
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but unaligned with each other — making disconnected bits when what’s needed is a cohesive whole. It’s complex and unattractive.
type The designer also sought uniformity by setting the text in the same Bembo typeface as the monogram. But for the tagline (1), its formal roman style clashes with the casual exclamation, “Custom Framing You Will Love!” Setting the busy mix of sizes, colors, type weights, and cases not only requires unnecessary effort, it’s untrue to the old-style typeface. 2) Simple italic, designed for more-casual speech, makes the statement more clearly and is certainly easier to set!
2) Attention-getting red & black colors were pulled from the store’s outdoor sign (above, left) and carried through logo, web site, and business card in an attempt at uniformity. It was the right idea, but red & black is a masculine, high-energy combination opposite the soft neutrals of the gallery and the quiet gentility of the business-card typeface. Meanwhile, the designer lost sight of the many unrelated typefaces that were populating the design, and the different layout styles that were developing. Result: Newburyport Framers didn’t achieve a unified look.
Business card (above, right) is laid out with no appar-ent grid. Whether by design or accident, elements are aligned on four axes — one flush and three centered
Before: Colors from outdoor sign . . . to web site . . . to business card . . .
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history Settled by English trades-men in the 1630s, Newbury-port grew into a booming maritime trade center. Life always revolved around the Atlantic Ocean, and today both a sense of history and a sense of place are at the core of the town’s identity.
sailboat Seafaring is still important in Newburyport today, but people are now more likely to raise the sails for plea-sure rather than business. A sailboat’s silhouette (below) is an unmistakable blend of sharp, triangular shapes and subtle, graceful curves.
sand, shells, beach, fish, birds, water, driftwood In many ways, New-buryport’s seaside location shaped its destiny, so we can’t overlook the most basic things that distinguish this envi-ronment: a beach strewn with shells, each uniquely curved and worn from the tide; infinite grains of sand at once both smooth and granular; and vibrant bird and marine life, finely patterned with feathers and scales of all variations.
framed artwork Whether it’s a treasured family painting or a simple memento, all framed objects have one thing in common: they’re personal. What we frame is a statement about what we value.
establish the design goals and direction
The design goals and direction are a statement of what the logo is to embody, and how it will do that. This is not always clear at first, but in this case we know. First, of course, it must relate to framing and be “ownable,” meaning unique to Newburyport Framers. Two, the Pearls want their logo to convey a sense of locale, artistry, craftsmanship, desirability, and to pro ject a high-end vibe. That’s a good list.
Where to start the design? By familiarizing ourselves with the his-tory, ob jects, colors, and styles of Newbury-port — and framing:
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Colors Black, gold, and woods like cherry and walnut are classic frame choices, while the clients recently repainted their shop interior (left) a sand color with undertones of gray. They also expressed a preference for soft grays and other pale tones, like the color of bleached driftwood (below, left).
BLACKSMITH
Architecture As the name sug-gests, New England bears many resemblances to Old England, partic-ularly in terms of architecture. New-buryport’s stately brick buildings and cobblestone streets make the down-town area feel suspended in time. In addition, the signs in the town’s
old port area are unique to each business, and recall ancient shop signs (anchors for blacksmiths,
bread for bakers, and so on). Their dynamic use of three-dimensional figures and creative, non-rectangular shapes indicate that they not only tell customers what the business does; they speak volumes about the character of the business itself.
frames (modern, vintage, corners) Frames come in nearly every design, color, shape, and size. Whether ornate or simplistic, bright primary colors or demure shades of brown, rectangular or oval, or big or small, the frame corner is any framing store’s most distinctive silhouette.
Coming in part 2 With creative brief and research in hand, next will come the fun of working out the design, from concept to sketch to final rendering.
typography Because Newburyport is such a storied town, we should look to the past for typographical inspira-tion. Here we’ve pulled examples from wood carvings, his-torical signs, manuscripts, and lithographs. Each typeface has serifs, is easy to read, and has stood the test of time.
Before & After magazine Before & After has been sharing its practical approach to graphic design since 1990. Because our modern world has made designers of us all (ready or not), Before & After is dedicated to making graphic design understand-able, useful and even fun for everyone.
John McWade Publisher and creative directorGaye McWade Associate publisherDexter Mark Abellera Senior designerKristine fuangtharnthip Writer, summer intern Before & After magazine323 Lincoln Street, Roseville, CA 95678 Telephone 916-784-3884 Fax 916-784-3995E-mail [email protected] www http://www.bamagazine.com
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