Clayground branding
I love helping creative small business owners bring their ideas to life. I was recently asked to help launch a paint-your-own-pottery studio. Robyn needed a logo, brand styling, and marketing materials.
When I asked Robyn to describe her ideal brand, she said: "easy, fun, organized, playful, and relaxed." Here's how we built her brand around those ideals. I love how colorful the business cards, logo, mailable brochure, and gift certificates turned out!
1 // Concept designs
My first ideas were originally focused on the pottery aspect of "paint your own pottery." I was thinking of vessels, vases, clay texture. But before even picking up a pencil, I did my research. And the more research I did about this industry, the more I realized it was about the painting than the pottery. And it's more about offering a fun and creative social experience than the ceramic product you create. Moral of the story: Research is good!
I sketched out different concepts, experimenting with ideas of paint, playfulness, pottery, handmade, and playgrounds. These were rough designs communicate the the general idea, and sure we were on the same page about what Clayground's brand should express. Above, you can see concepts ranging from childlike to craft-inspired.
2 // Logo design
Robyn's favorite ended up being my favorite as well (love it when that happens!): a logo inspired by a painter's palette, using a clay bowl shapes as the "paint." We ended up changing the font in the first concept to something a little less 'artsy,' to help with readability.
3 // Brand style sheet
Because a brand is more than just a logo. I designed a branding system to help Robyn keep everything Clayground creates feeling consistent, from colors and typography, down to textures and icons (because teeny-tiny logos aren't fun to read!).
3 // Marketing materials
This is probably my favorite part, because all the design work done is used it to create more designs that people will actually use. And making designs that actually get used is awesome.
With branding guidelines clear, I get started creating some materials to help Clayground spread the word about its launch!
Business card
I was actually in Thailand when working on this part of the project. I ordered the business cards from Thailand (!) and had them shipped straight to her door. Love how colorful these are. And the vertical format makes them stand out a bit from more traditional business cards.
Promotional brochure
Robyn had already written the content in a Word template. She sent it over, and I made it look awesome. I sent this over in two formats: one PDF for Robyn to print at home, and a more technical PDF for if she'd wants to send it to a professional printer. Either way, ready to print and mail out to potential customers!
Gift Certificate
Clayground also wanted to create some gift certificates to kick off their business. This design is ready to print, with blank spaces to customize the amount and gift details. I also made sure that contact information was included directly on the voucher, so there's no reason not to use it.
“Everything was done promptly. I had no idea how to go about doing anything and you took care of everything.”
Launching!
I loved working on this project with Robyn, and helping her launch her business. The Clayground opened it's doors on March 12th, and people are already getting their paint on. A website is in the works, but in the meantime you can check out their Facebook page. If you're in the Syracuse area, definitely stop by!
Here's an overview of everything that was made:
Exciting news!
If you liked this project, I'm going to be offering a new package for small businesses to get all the design + marketing work they need to launch finished in just 2 weeks.
Similar to this project, it will include a logo, brand design, marketing materials (3 items of your choice), plus a website design. More details coming soon!
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