Cody Cosgayon

DESN1011 Beverage Brand Concept Design - Progress Journal

[codycosgayon]

WEEK 13

Mockups

I had quite a bit of trouble with my mockups. My smallest issue was that it was really hard to get the right colour for the liquid. I changed the colour layer, but then when I went to the mockup, it always looked lighter and very translucent. In the end, I worked out that if I also changed the colour of the glass bottle, it added more opacity and made the colour look darker. In the end, it wasn’t quite the colour I wanted, but it was as close as I could get.

My other problem was that my mockup file only contained one bottle. But I needed to be able to duplicate and then flip the bottle so that I could have two bottles and put the back label on one of them. Otherwise, it wouldn’t have looked like the label wrapped around the bottle.

I got some help from my lectures, which was great because it gave me a better idea of what I needed to do. I spent a lot of time playing around with the layers, duplicating, locking, creating smart objects and transforming (flip horizontally). It was really hard because there were so many layers, and when I would make changes to one bottle, it would also change the other one. In the end, I had to do them in two separate files, which isn’t how I wanted to present it. I also tried to make sure that the shadow was on the correct side in my flipped bottle, but even when I continuously experimented and selected or deselected certain layers, I couldn’t work out how to do this.

So in the end, my presentation of the mockups wasn’t quite how I wanted it, but I’m happy that I worked out how to duplicate it and flip it so I could put a label on each bottle.

[codycosgayon]

WEEK 13

Label Designs / Editing

Although I had already designed the front label for my juice, I wanted to change it a bit for my final design. Although, I had some troubles coming up with new ideas even after looking at my sketches. This is because I really liked the layout of my original design. There were just components of it that weren’t working too well.

The design consisted of a lot of oranges and earthy browns, and it was going to conflict too much with the colour of the juice. I also included a clear section in my last label that would show the juice through it, however, when I placed it into the mockup file, it just wasn’t working as well as I thought it would.

Throughout my process of editing my front label, I came to a problem... my repeat pattern wasn’t going to work. This is because when you insert the pattern into a shape as a fill, it cuts off the edges and you can’t move it around. This meant that my rainbows were cut off at the bottom, and it couldn’t show the bottom details of the shape. I then tried to just repeat the pattern as 1x3, however I still couldn’t work out how make this work because it would always give me more rainbow shapes than I needed when I dragged them over. In the end, instead of starting fresh with the label, I copied and pasted my rainbow patterns from my original design into my new design this was quite a long and painful process because it wasn’t working in the way I thought it would and it took me a while to work out how to solve this problem.

An easier part of this editing process was choosing some new colours. I included a very light blue as it is the complementary to the light orange I’ve used in the main part of the design. This way, it gives the label a bit more focus because not everything is the same colour. I also edited the text and changed the font and colour to the same one that I use for the logo. I think it looks better with this font too, because it’s not so busy.

I created my sun illustration again, but in a much more effective way. Instead of placing and rotation each day of sunshine, I created the shape and repeated it around in a circle 18 times (using ‘effect’, ‘distort and transform’ and then ‘transform’) and moved it into a position that looks reminiscent of the sun. Finally, I put an inner glow effect on the sun to make it look more three dimensional and it gives it more interest.

The other component that is included in the attached photo is my nutritional label. I had to adjust it myself, as I didn’t like the outcome of the online generated label. I did some research a small found out the nutritional values of juices similar to mine, such as Nudie. I then inserted them into new text boxes within the label. I’m happy with how it turned out.

I like my new version of my label much better than the last. I feel like it looks more whole. I do wish that I could make it look better, but I feel like I don’t have the skills yet, as I’m still learning how to use all of these new programs. But with my ability now, I’m impressed at what I’ve been able to do.

The photo shows my original design and my new design.

[codycosgayon]

WEEK 12

Using the Mockup

I thought that using a mockup would be really difficult, but I found this process quite straight-forward. I still have more of the label to finish, but I wanted to test out what I have just to make sure it works and looks right.

First, I made a frame around the mockup square (where I’m supposed to insert my design) so I knew what size my sticker had to be. I had some troubles with copying and pasting this frame to Illustrator from InDesign though, so I just decided to keep the sized label I already have, and I can extend it so it fits just past the edges of the mockup.

I had some issues with the colour of the liquid as well, because it looks quite see through (kind of like apple juice). So I’m going to have to play around with this and see if I can get it to a darker orange, more opaque colour.

Another problem that I will face with this mockup is that I’m going to have to fit all of the other components of the label (icons, ingredients, nutrition table) into one label. When I was first coming up with ideas, I had planned to create a label that wraps around the juice bottle. So I’m going to have to work out how to get everything I need on the label in an organised and aesthetic manner. I will also have to try to mirror the mockup image so that the back label is on the left hand side of the bottle as though it is continuing on from the front.

Overall, I’m quite happy with how these testers worked out. And now I know how it’s going to look.

[codycosgayon]

WEEK 11

Mockup Hunting

Quite a while ago, I looked through a lot of mockups and saved quite a few. However, there were a few stand out that I thought would work well.

The first option that I was going to choose was this one: https://www.graphicpear.com/plastic-bottles-mockup/

Plastic Bottles Mockup

3 Plastic bottles mockup in a front view modern scene to showcase your bottle label design in close to reality manner easily via smart objec

I thought it would work the best because it had three bottles, so it would clearly show all parts of the label (front and sides). But after inserting my design into it, and adjusting the colour of the liquid, it just didn’t look right. I realised this was because I was actually changing the colour of the opaque bottle. So there was no way that this was going to work because it didn’t look realistic without having liquid in the bottle.

After this, I went looking again, because I wasn’t completely happy with the mockups I’d found before. Today, I found a good mockup and paid $9 for it, however, when I opened it up in Photoshop, there were only two layers to play with. This mockup wasn’t going to work either, which was annoying because I’d paid for it.

I then remembered one mockup that I loved and had luckily saved earlier. It is this one: https://www.graphicpear.com/classic-glass-bottle-mockup/

Classic Glass Bottle Mockup

Today's graphic is another classic glass bottle mockup crafted for you in a way that makes it easy to customize with PSD smart objects.

Where did I find it?

This mockup was on a website called Graphic Pear, which has lots of good quality mockups. I looked at the mockups under the tag ‘bottle’, and was really happy to find it.

Why did I choose it?

I chose this mockup because I really liked how the bottle was lying down, making the liquid bubble in a different way. It’s a unique composition and I feel like it’s quite different to the other mockups I’ve seen. There are so many layers that I can edit, which is perfect because I can experiment and edit it until it is exactly how I want it to look. I’ve also had this shape of bottle in mind right from the very start of coming up with ideas for this assessment, so it was good to find one like it.

[codycosgayon]

WEEK 11

Repeat Pattern

This week, we were asked to experiment with making a repeat pattern.

I’d already made my rainbow illustration and placed it into my intial label design in a way that already looks like a repeat design. However, when I was doing this in the holidays, I didn’t know how to make a repeat pattern. Therefore, I moved each rainbow individually, and eventually copied and pasted it into a line. From this line, I could copy and paste it again to make lines of the rainbows above or below. I then had to try and cut the edges off these rainbows so they ended at the edge of the label.

I wish I had have known how to do this earlier, as I found it so easy to make this week. I inserted my rainbow illustration after ‘grouping’ it so it became a single object. I then made the repeat pattern within a 100 x 100mm square (which I can adjust to a different size for my label), and played around with the pattern options, height and width until it was just right.

I’m so happy with the end result and it makes me feel so much better I can use this method when creating my label.

[codycosgayon]

WEEK 10

Label Anatomy Diagram

In preparation for bringing our whole label together, we used an image of a flat label layout and had to identify each component. Through this, I found out what exactly needs to be included in my label. It will also be helpful having this to look at when doing my label, as I can check that I have everything I need.

In the holidays when doing the intial designs for my label, I researched the label requirements and made a list. This list is shown in the attached photo, along with some ideas of where to place them on a flat label layout.

It was interesting doing this activity, as you realise how much you actually need to include in the label. And as a designer, you have to make sure you have all of these components, while ensuring that the overall look and feel of the design is good.

[codycosgayon]

WEEK 10

Label Imaging Case Study

In this class, we were asked to do a little bit of research. We had to find an already-existing label online that we were drawn to due to its design and imaging. It was suggested that we use Behance, which is a great site where designers can share their work. Therefore, there was a wide selection to choose from.

I found a kombucha brand called Muse + Metta that I really liked the label of. I’ve attached the link.

Muse + Metta’s design is quite minimalistic and uses a very limited colour palette. I liked how there is a solid block of colour at the bottom of each bottle, which also matches the sticker that runs from the lid down to the main label. They font used for this label is effective as it complies with the minimalistic approach. A very clever component is also the numbered bottles, which corresponds to the type of kombucha that it is. For example No 02 is Nettle, Lemon and Ginger and has a cream coloured label. It seems very modern and simple, yet it strongly conveys the sophistication that the designer was aiming for in a scientific-looking way.

In addition to finding our own, we had to share our choice with the small Zoom group that we got put into. We discussed the reasons why we chose our label, and how it is effective design. It was really good to have this discussion, as it teaches us how to talk about designs and how to use the right terminology to communicate our ideas. It also encourages us to think and see these designs in a more critical way, and look into the reasons why the designer did what they did. I’ve attached a link to the case study that we chose as a group.

My case study: https://www.behance.net/gallery/61747015/Muse-Metta

Behance

My group’s case study: https://blog.tubikstudio.com/case-study-wine-brand-identity-design/

Case Study: Shpin's Wine. Identity Design for Family-Run Winery

The case study unveils the stages of branding design for a small family-run winery: creating a visual brand, from the idea search to the log

[codycosgayon]

WEEK 9

Imaging Research

Now that we have a better idea about our brand because

One of our visual directions has been chosen (mine is my vibrant design)

We have experimented, designed and illustrated

We have made a logo

It was important to make another inspiration board which is more specific to our design ideas. My new board on Pinterest features images that I think are a lot more suited to my vibrant approach. When making my initial board at the very start of this process, I didn’t really know what I wanted to do or how I wanted the label to look. However, after going through this design process, I have a pretty clear idea of how I want to go about it.

The images in this board are composed of the style of illustrations that I want, some typography inspiration, photography of the product, key ingredients, patterns and colours. I also included some collage because I really love the process of making collage by hand, and thought that having a digital collage on a juice label would be very unique and would capture consumers attention.

Now that I have this additional Pinterest board, I’ll be able to look back at it when editing and fixing up my label, so that I can remember how I want it to look and be inspired by the images that I’ve pinned.

Here is the link to the board: https://pin.it/4jSnoPY

104 Best Vibrant Drink Packaging _ Imaging Research images in 2020

May 30, 2020 - Explore ccosgayon53's board "Vibrant Drink Packaging _ Imaging Research" on Pinterest.

[codycosgayon]

WEEK 9

Logo Development Process

Using the example PDF from Blackboard as a guide, I went through the process of creating my logo. The process stages that I undertook included...

Live Typography

Outlined Typography

Type Manipulation

Symbol Exploration and Arrangement

Colour Exploration

Refining

Final Results

This process took quite a long time, as I’m a perfectionist and wanted to get everything right. However, it was so helpful having the different stages clear as separate components, as I knew what I was aiming for and I could see how the logo was developing along the way.

There were a few different options with my logo. I based the illustrations off my preliminary logo sketches, and worked out how to create them in Illustrator. I can across a few problems such as my white text disappearing on a black background, or lining up my text along a path. However, by watching some tutorial videos, I also learnt some new techniques such as creating an inner glow which I used in the sun illustration.

I went with the sun illustration in the end because I felt like it clearly relates to the name of the brand ‘Rise & Shine’. I also chose the ‘Adorn Condensed Sans’ font from Adobe Fonts as it was easy to read and bold, but also has a unique feel to it. I played around with this font too by changing the shapes of repeated letters, so that no letter was the same and looked for hand made.

I’m happy with how my final product turned out.

[codycosgayon]

WEEK 8

Logo Research

To gather some more ideas about my logo, I had a look at some labels of existing products. These stood out to me due to their simple design, with some illustrations. By doing this, it became clear that I like the circular structure.

The Mildura and Remedy Kombucha logos stood out to me the most, as they’re playful yet clear. The Mildura label also looks similar my idea of combining text and sun rays.

It’s helpful having a look through products such as these, as it gives me an idea of how I need to go about producing my logo.

[codycosgayon]

WEEK 8

Narrated Pitch Presentation Participation + Visual Development

During tutorials this week, we listened to everyone’s pitch presentations and voted for the visual direction we thought was the best for each person. I was a bit nervous when mine came around. I was hoping everything would work and run smoothly, and I wanted people to like my ideas. In the end, my vibrant approach was chosen. I like both of my designs, so I would’ve been happy with either one chosen.

We also had to work on our logos and typefaces. I have approached this brief a bit different from the start, as I started designing the label before the logo. This works alright because I now have a bit of an idea of the direction I want to take when designing the logo.

I did a few more sketches of label design for my vibrant approach, as this was the direction that my class voted for following my pitch presentation.

After this, I did a few rough sketches of logos. I’m not too sure yet if I want it to include a simple illustration or just have the initials ‘RS’. However, I do like the look of my first drawing (sun with text following the circular path) and my 5th drawing (simple, spaced text underneath the simple sun illustration), just because they clearly communicate the ideas behind the juice and name.

I then looked back on my notes that I jotted down while designing the two labels for each direction. By doing this, I was able to see the typefaces that I found interesting when I was looking through them all and trying to choose which ones would suit each direction the best. I compiled these into an InDesign document, so it is clear and easy to find each of the fonts.

When I was deciding on these fonts, I found it really fun looking through all of the different options. I couldn’t believe how many there were. I was a bit disappointed to realise that the fonts that I really liked on MyFonts were quite expensive to buy. So I then had to try and find similar ones in Font Squirrel and Adobe Fonts, which turned out well.

[codycosgayon]

WEEK 7 / HOLIDAYS

Label Development

Over the holidays I wanted to work on some designs for the labels of both juices. I didn’t go right into detail with the icons, barcodes and nutritional info because I knew that we’d be doing this in class after one of our designs had been picked after our pitch presentation.

I really enjoyed making these in Illustrator. It was much easier having practiced doing some designs (rainbow, sun, segmented circle) to include in my pitch presentation. I did a lot of experimenting and playing around with the positioning of components, especially for my vibrant approach. This one was harder than the minimalistic one, as there are a lot more components. I had some troubles with moving around the rainbows and cutting them off at the edges. I had to do each one individually, so hopefully I can learn how to do it as a repeating pattern that I can just place in as a whole object.

The two designs are very different to each other regarding their overall look and feel, as well as colour, illustrations and typefaces. I had to do the vibrant approach on a black background, as I want to have a transparent part which could only be seen over black.

I’m happy with these, and I’ll edit them further once we come to it in class.

[codycosgayon]

WEEK 6

Pitch Presentation Documentation

After finishing my PowerPoint I was ready to begin experimenting with recording my presentation.

What did you try?

I was a bit unsure how to do it, as I’ve never done something like this before. I downloaded Loom and QuickTime Player, but ended up using only Loom. I decided to do this because it seemed like a more user-friendly option that was easy to navigate.

What worked and what didn’t?

I opened up Loom and chose to record the screen only. I was happy to realise that it gives you a countdown, so you have time to get your slides ready before it starts recording. The aspects that worked well included the ease of opening my short test up in the website and listening to it. It was also easy to save it and then listen to my saved MP4 file. The only problems that I encountered were that I spoke a bit too soon, so my first few words were cut off. I also found it a bit difficult working out how to trim the video, as I determine whether I was deleting the red section or keeping the red section (see in photo). After a few tries, I trimmed it properly and got the video I wanted.

What was the biggest challenge in creating your Narrated Pitch Presentation?

Knowing what to say was a difficult component, but I wasn’t too worried as I was just testing Loom out. I look forward to being more prepared with some palm cards and recording the proper MP4 file. As mentioned before, I also found it hard working out how to trim the video, but that was easily fixed.

What advice would you give someone else completing the same task?

Just have a go and experiment the different options the software has to offer. When you play around with it, you can get the end product you were envisaging. Also, make sure you have everything ready to go for the presentation, so all you have to do is press record and speak.

[codycosgayon]

WEEK 6

Pitch Presentation Slides

Our self-directed brief for this week was to start planning our pitch presentation and experiment with recording it. However, I was a bit behind and it look me a little bit longer to create the PowerPoint.

I wanted to include some draft drawings such as the colour wheel, rainbows and a sun. I created these in Illustrator. I really enjoyed doing this, as it allowed me to be a bit more creative and experiment with different tools within the software. I learnt how to write text along a path, offset paths, cut shapes, build shapes and colour them. I worked using some colour palettes that I created too. There was a lot of experimentation in this process, as I worked things out on my own as well as watching tutorial videos for specific tasks I wanted to complete. In the end, I got the product I wanted and I’m happy with it. Also, now I have the skills to create them again but with a better quality.

I then placed these images into my InDesign document where I was making my presentation slides. I liked working in InDesign too, as I could play with different layouts, change the text and images and move everything around with ease. I found it interesting being able to combine my designs from Illustrator with the slides I was making in InDesign.

The final part of forming my presentation slides was to add my mood boards, design rationales and key words. I had already written some preliminary design rationales, however I felt that my ideas and designs had changed a bit since then. I began to write two new rationales with inspiration from my last ones. I also downloaded Grammarly to assist me in making sure everything sounded correct.

Finally, I saved my InDesign pages as jpeg’s and inserted them into PowerPoint ready to experiment with recording.

[codycosgayon]

WEEK 5

Tumblr Journal Process Peer Review + Design Process Advice

This week in our tutorial, we were guided through how to give a peer review via a PDF on Blackboard. Following our class, we were given a name of another student as well as a link to their Tumblr account.

I enjoyed doing this, as it gave me an opportunity to see another person’s work. I could also guage where I was compared to theirs, in regards to what needs to be done. It’s really interesting seeing how other people work and how their designs progress over time. It was kind of difficult giving feedback because I’ve never marked work before, but it’s a good skill to have. It’s helpful being able to give and receive constructive criticism.

I found this quote by Paul Rand, and I thought it was very relevant. It is true that design is simple - it is something that the audience sees for a few seconds. However, it is likely that they don’t realise how much work has gone into creating it. This adds to its complexity, but design also becomes complicated because you are required to consider many different components that will go into forming a successful work that appeals to audience.

Through learning to use various technologies and software, I have had some difficulty. Yet, it is always rewarding when you find what you want to communicate and how you can do that using your unique style. Rand’s quote influenced the piece of advice that I have included, as it can be hard to find the balance between what you want to create and what you want the audience to feel.

[codycosgayon]

WEEK 5

Preliminary Label Design

Following making our second versions of our mood boards, we were asked to design some labels. We need two labels - one for each direction.

For my ‘Packaging’ inspired label, I followed the minimalistic approach that my mood board had. I appropriated one of the patterns that was included in my mood board, as I found that it can represent the sun’s rays in a slightly abstract way. I struggled with deciding what colours to use, even though I had already made a colour palette for this direction. I realised that my emphasis on green may contradict to the connotations that ‘Rise & Shine’ creates about the sun, suggesting that I should be using warmer colours. However, I then concluded that the juice will be orange coloured. Therefore, I can still use my original colour palette, as the ‘sun’ ideas are implied through the juice itself.

Like my mood board, my ‘Audience’ inspired design is more playful and will include more colours than my other direction. I really liked the rainbow style design as well as the simple sun illustrations that I inserted into my mood board, so I incorporated this into the label. I also wanted to use a more free-flowing font to add to the fun nature of this direction. I’m a bit worried that, again, there may be too many colours which will make the label look too busy. But I will have to experiment with this when I design it in Adobe Illustrator.

[codycosgayon]

WEEK 4

Words and Images + Feedback and Implementation

This week’s tutorial consisted of us presenting both of our mood boards, and receiving feedback from our classmates and Crystian. I found it very beneficial not only gaining some tips on how to improve mine, but also seeing other people’s work and hearing the feedback they got.

We also learnt how to deep etch images in Photoshop, and then went home to edit our mood boards according to the feedback that we got. I found this really hard, as I was getting very confused with how to use Photoshop and all of its different tools. However, I experimented and also received some tips on how to use the software. After a while, I used my new skills to change the colours on many of my images to make it suit the colour palette. There were some parts of this that proved to be a bit trickier, as I wanted to separate certain parts on an image to change their colour without changing all the colours in the background layer. After working this out and getting the desired colours, I placed the new images back into my mood boards in InDesign.

I also took on my advice to add some more fonts. As a result, I had to work out how to select only the text within the photo using the selection tools (magic wand and object selection). I then made this a work path, and copied and pasted it into a new layer, allowing for the text to be shown on a transparent background. Again, I inserted this into my mood boards in InDesign.

I’m happy with how my second version mood boards turned out, although I still think that there may be too many different colours in my ‘audience’ inspired mood board. I like how minimalistic my ‘packaging’ inspired mood board is. These will improve over time as I begin to work out my final products and how I want them to look.