Shew Design’s thoughts on color. From technical to moody, carefully mixed to simply found. We dig into the palettes and hues that shape branding and illustration.
“Do those two colors go together?” Occasionally I hear some version of the above in an initial branding presentation, usually when I show a direction that pushes past what a client expected. It’s a fair question. Most of us are taught early which colors are safe together and which ones aren’t. But sometimes brand color …
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“How do you create your color palettes?” I’ve been asked that quite a few times over the years. Sometimes to create a successful color palette I seem to rely on intuition, but that’s only because after years of creating color families some things become second nature. There are some basic rules to follow when getting …
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Replace or repair? First, do no harm. In many cases, it makes sense to modify rather than replace a logo design. A logo modification can correct issues that are not working in the existing logo while preserving its essential qualities and ideas make the logo a better fit for specific uses (for example social media, video, etc.) modernize the logo by …
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Carrying a camera with us wherever we go is something we do by default. The use of textures in graphic design has a long history. We often incorporate textures into our work, and on a recent camping trip to Yellowstone National Park we captured a number of textures to add to our library. These images …
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Research plays a crucial part in creating good design, and so a designer’s life is essentially a never-ending series of opportunities to learn. The best designers are really the best at learning. That’s what I like to say as I help myself to a generous handful of research. My third. “That’s Callebaut, 54%,” Kevin informs …
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Recently, towards the end of a branding phase for a client, we were finalizing page designs for their website. The site was essentially a reproduction of the paper materials. While they liked the design on paper, the same design on screen felt cool to the touch – overly so. We agreed with their perception. …
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Thinking about structure in your marketing materials is about how you decide to use visual relationships to reinforce your message. It means thinking beyond what is being said, and exploring the how. As always, the process begins with focusing on your message, ideally your one message. Deciding on a core message is often the biggest …
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