Colouring the octopus

Posted on March 26, 2016 by Jess Claxton

After I had transferred my sketch of my logo to Illustrator, I had to choose a colour scheme as well as how I wanted to colour it, for example just the lines or fill the whole thing.

I started by using my rough colours that I had chosen for my colour palette, but not finalised yet, to use as the lines.

I thought that this looked alright but I wasn’t entirely happy with it as I felt that it looked a little boring. The first colour I had chosen looked too dark on the lines, and almost looked black and the final colour I felt was a bit too light. I also had another colour after that one but that was far too light.

I wanted a watercolour background, similar to that of the watercolour tattoo I had previously seen but in my colour palette. I found this really difficult to do in Photoshop, despite downloading watercolour brushes. I wasn’t happy with how any of the colour was going onto the page or how it looked. I also tried finding a watercolour background that I could put straight onto it although I was still not happy with how this turned out.

I had put a font at the bottom although I hadn’t picked a final font yet. I liked that the octopus was filled in as I felt that it stood out more but I wasn’t sure what I could do with it.

I asked for some feedback from my housemates and one suggested filling in each section of the octopus with a different colour from my colour palette.

(again, I hadn’t chosen a font yet or a position)

I liked this a lot more and I felt that it stood out quite well. The only issue that I had was that I wasn’t entirely convinced that it could be used as a logo for a tattoo studio.

Another suggestion from my housemate was to change the colour of the lines to white so that the octopus was just made up of the coloured panels.

I like this as well, although I feel that it looks a lot lighter.

Tattoo Studio Logos

Posted on March 1, 2016 by Jess Claxton

I have also looked at already established tattoo studio logos to get some inspiration for my own logo designs. Below is a collection of tattoo parlour logos:

I also found an article that I found helpful that talked about the creating of a logo of a tattoo studio called Madhouse Tattoo, including the brief given to him by the owner as well as the technical aspects of actually designing the logo.

Comprehensive Brand Identity

Posted on March 1, 2016 by Jess Claxton

I found an article that looks at the 8 Essential Elements to a Comprehensive Brand Identity. I found this to be fairly helpful when looking at making my own logo and brand identity for High Seas Ink. Below are the 8 points that they made.

1. Logo or wordmark A logo is the graphic symbol, whereas a wordmark or logotype is just the name of the company set out in a particular, fixed way

2. Different logo “lockups” Although the logo needs to look consistent, it should have variations based on placement and fit

3. Key colours Key colours are used to define the company. Often two are used but some can more complex

4. Additional colour palette options Other colours can be used, that complement the original logo, which bring the brand identity together

5. Corporate typefaces Only a few fonts should be used in one brand identity and should be available on a computer

6. Standard typographic treatments The way things are written or laid out should be similar across platforms

7. Consistent style for images All imagery should have a consistent look and feel

8. Full library of graphic elements For example background textures, line style treatment or use of white space

Initial Ideas

Posted on March 1, 2016 by Jess Claxton

My first ideas wanted to include a nautical symbol that is easily recognized but drawn in a tattoo-styled way. I didn’t want to use an anchor as I felt that this was too obvious for a nautical themed tattoo studio. I looked at nautical tattoos, which can be seen below:

I wanted my logo to look as though it could also be a tattoo – this could show to the customers the quality of the type of work that the studio does. The last photo above inspired me to use a ships wheel and a banner across which would say the name of the company. Below is my original sketch of my first logo:

I then started to transfer this onto the computer by drawing it out on to Illustrator. This was my original drawing in the Adobe program:

This part was the easiest by far – although it wasn’t easy. I made it by creating shapes and lines and then warping them using the tools available in Illustrator. I created a lot of guide lines and grids to make sure the wheel was symmetrical. I am not happy with the inside of the wheel but the banner will cover most of this up and so should not be a problem.

The next stage was to create the banner that goes across the wheel. I made this on one layer and overlayed the text on top of that. I then had to warp the text to fit on the banner and look as though it was printed on it. This was difficult, as I had found on the previous project when I had tried to warp the grid on the space project. This time I used the perspective warp tool available on Photoshop. However, I found it very difficult to get this right and make it look as though it is actually written on the banner. Below is how far I got with it.

When I tried to perspective warp it the top of the ‘s’ and ‘ink’ would get cut off which I did not know how to fix. However, I wasn’t as happy with the digital version of the logo as I was with my original sketch.

Colour

Posted on February 21, 2016 by Jess Claxton

Alongside looking at the meanings of shapes, I have looked at the attributes and meanings of different colours.

RED captures attention and is one of the most visible colours. It has a physiological effect on the viewer and prolonged periods of viewing can have an increased effect on a persons heart and breathing rate. Red can suggest aggression, energy, provocation and is the colour of danger. It can suggest luxury and celebration when used in conjunction with rich golds.

Attributes:

– increased enthusiasm

– more energy

– action

– confidence

Uses in media:

– to make people take action or make a purchase

– to indicate energy and passion

– often used as a warning sign

– best used as an accent colour as too much red can overwhelm

BLUE has obvious links to water and the sky and suggests trust and has a calming sense. It can be seen as being stable and reliable. It is often used in finance, medicine, science and technology.

Attributes:

– conservative

– safe, predictable colour

– orderly

– suggests direction

Uses in the media:

– conservative corporate businesses where trust, dependability and honesty are important

– light blue relates well to health and wellness and to travel and relaxation

– dark blue is a serious colour which inspires integrity, honesty and is used by political organizations, religious groups and legal firms

YELLOW is the most luminous colour and easily captures our attention. It is warm, positive, friendly, inviting, vibrant and stimulating. It is a highly dominant colour when placed with others and is preferred as an accent colour.

Attributes:

– represents sunshine

– happiness and warmth

– indicates caution

Uses in the media:

– For children’s products

– To stimulate the mind and creativity

– For leisure products – promote playful and fun activities or entertainment businesses

– To keep people moving

– As a caution colour

GREEN has connotations of growth and health through its links to nature. Dark greens suggest wealth and luxury, whereas lighter greens and pastel shades have a calming effect. Green is found in branding that represents or wishes to imply healthiness, energy, environmental sensitivity and intelligence.