Colour Experimentation: Creating a Logo

 For my personal brand I was tasked to create a new logo, since my current one was made using a free logo design website and the resolution was not very high. I knew that I wanted my logo to be have a sleek design and a floral element. I did not want too much text in my logo, as that makes it less recognisable. "In general, less is more and simplicity is more impactful." (Hoppe, 2020). 

I recommend watching the video on full screen. At certain points I am working on minor details that are difficult to see in a smaller format.

I started by creating the base of the logo, which would be my name. I used the studio pen that comes with Procreate and set the stabilisation to 100%, this helped create clean lines despite the tremor in my hands. I spelled out my name, connecting the letters together in a box format. I added a gradient to the base, because I felt that the bold, black lines were too harsh. I added separate colours to the letter as well, to create a distinction between them and my name would be more recognisable. I tried a red and green version with muted tones, as that fits my brand the best. The aim was to fit into the minimalist and calming atmosphere that I would like to create with my designs and projects.

I started to think about what type of flower I would like to add and where to add it. My experimentation with placement can be seen in the video using quick sketches. Ultimately, I decided to put a larger flower on the longest part of the logo. I decided to put the flower on the left, so it can catch the viewers eye immediately. I made two versions, a white lily and a tulip. The tulip represents my home country, since the Netherlands is known for them. Surprisingly, the daisy is our national flower, instead of the tulip (University of Leiden, 2023). Still, I chose to include the tulip, since it is internationally recognised as the Dutch flower. I made the flower itself orange, I do not think I need to explain why.

I chose to add a white lily, as it has personal meaning to me. I chose to do both in a fineline ink style, similar to the fineline tattoo art style. I used hatching to create shadows and to add depth. 

I created several versions using different colour and image combinations. For example, the red base with green gradient and vise versa, no gradient and different flower combinations. 

 

Both flowers with different coloured leaves and placement, green letters with red gradient at 50% opacity.

 

Both flowers, lily is placed directly under the tulip. Green letters with red gradient.

Coloured tulip in front of the base. Green letters with red gradient.

Coloured tulip behind the base. Green letters with red gradient.

Coloured tulip behind base. Red letters with red gradient.

Coloured tulip behind base. Green letters with red gradient. 

Coloured tulip behind base. Green letters with green gradient.

Uncoloured lily in front of base. Green letters with red gradient.

Coloured lily in front of base. Green letters with red gradient.

Coloured lily. Red letters with green gradient.

Coloured lily. Green letters with green gradient.

Coloured lily. Green letters without gradient.

Coloured lily. Red letters with red gradient.

Uncoloured tulip behind base. Green letters. 

Coloured tulip behind base. Black letters with green gradient.

My personal favourite is the first one. Both flowers work well together, their placement feels correct and the red letters with the green gradient create a soft contrast. 

Below are my single flower favourites. The red letters with the green gradient are the best option in my opinion. The coloured flower help grab attention without being too overpowering.

References:

Hoppe, M. (2020). 7 Principles of Kick-Ass Logo Design. [online] blog.hubspot.com. Available at: https://blog.hubspot.com/insiders/logo-design-tips [Accessed 25 Jul. 2024].

University of Leiden (2023). National flower: The daisy is everywhere thanks to men with mowers. [online] Leiden University. Available at: https://www.universiteitleiden.nl/en/news/2023/06/national-flower-the-daisy-is-everywhere-thanks-to-men-with-mowers [Accessed 25 Jul. 2024].