The Pixellogo Blog: Graphic Design, Logo Reviews, Tips & Tutorials

Pixellogo template review: Logo-2473

pixellogo — Wed, 22 Feb 2012 19:47:55 +0000

Today’s logo review features Logo-2473, one of our newly released logo templates. This logo design has a retro looking style with its font picks that combine old school chunky type with a sign style font that has a nice flow to it. The retro character of this logo is due its little details, such as the little stars and striped line at the bottom. The types chosen are very bold and they go well with the pint’s design, that has also a combination of bright shades of orange and completes the logo template with its bold strokes and simple shape.

It’s definitely a cute design, very modern and in the lines of the retro style trend for which it would be perfect for a new bar or a re-branding of one. The round shape that surrounds the design encloses the whole logo template to give it a more finished look. It would look great on badges, signs or even coasters. With this logo template you can also choose to get the business card, and here you can find more logo templates in this style.

Awesome type: topographic alphabet

pixellogo — Wed, 22 Feb 2012 19:24:10 +0000

We’ve seen already some examples of 3D typographies which are digital based. The folks at Synoptic Office have brought up the concept of 3D type to another level. In their website they have 2 beautiful examples of different applications of type, the most eye-catching one being the project Alphabet Topography, which as the name states, consists of embossed letters in different levels, as in the topographic maquettes. The result is an abstract looking typeface that can only be fully seen at a certain angle and plays with the various heights of each letter.

Their next project that I want to mention plays with the same concept of the curved lines that give the illusion of volume. They called it Swell: A Typeface. Basically it consists of a bunch of straight lines that are distorted in curves for this ‘swell’ effect. Pretty brilliant if I might say, and maybe also a wink to the Joy Division fans out there?

Great design review: Daniel Siim Studio

pixellogo — Wed, 22 Feb 2012 17:53:24 +0000

Daniel Siim is a danish graphic designer and student that works at his homonymous studio. His work varies from branding to editorial work, but what really caught my attention today is his work for his school’s branding project. The simplicity of his work and attention to little details is what separates his work from the average. As himself describes this project:

As part of a branding workshop I was asked to pitch a new identity for the merging schools which clearly signals the spirit and the values of the new organisation. The solution also had to include the need of individual profiles and different educational directions of the three schools.

The result is four minor logos (one for the organisation and one for each of the three schools) which combined creates a merging logo. A display typeface was also developed.

Here are some pictures of this project that really lives up to the nordic design style with its subtle details and clean cut overall look:

Editorial love: Saul Bass’ children’s book re-edition

pixellogo — Wed, 22 Feb 2012 17:15:06 +0000

Saul Bass is considered one of the best designers of our time, with works varying from world recognizable logos to film title sequences (he has also work as a filmmaker) and his visionary work in graphic design. His importance is due to his avant garde take on his projects establishing new parameters in the graphic design world which even today would be considered modern; just an example of his brilliant creativity.

His only children’s book: Henri walks to Paris has been re-edited for the first time since its release 50 years ago. This little book is a gem in the editorial world, the illustrations are absolutely beautiful with an amazing use of colours and minimalistic illustrations. The overall look of the book could not be more contemporary, it clearly shows how his work is still in full force within today’s trends. And even though I’m a grownup without kids this book is definitely going into my shopping list.

Via Brainpickings

Free Fonts: paint brush style

pixellogo — Wed, 22 Feb 2012 16:52:12 +0000

This week we’re featuring free fonts that have a brush stroke style. As always, you can download them for free from FontXS where you can find more in the same category. The types featured today range from a grunge style with distressed ink spots to more stylized types perfect for changing up the fonts for your designs!

Great Design review: The Green Standard

pixellogo — Tue, 21 Feb 2012 20:06:54 +0000

With the rise of organic food and non-processed products in the market, many brands are embracing contemporary style designs to boost up their identity and stand out from the crowd. The Green Standard is a new Russian network of high-quality grocery stores offering fresh, pure organic farm products and providing excellent service and consumer comfort combined with attractive prices. The whole concept of the brand requires of a modern, fresh and approachable look, which has been the go-to style for this kind of business.

The outcome of this brand launch is a vibrant image that is certainly eye-catching and modern. The logo is the form of an apple slice that evokes the sense of freshness of their products, and the rest of the overall brand image stays true to the organic- natural look. From the basic logo, its different applications, the wrapping paper details and to the interior design of their stores, every little detail has been carefully thought of and stay faithful to their natural look premise. It’s definitely a beautiful project that is also a nice example of simple yet thoroughly developed branding.

Sources: 1 (english version), 2 (russian)

Great logos: Word as Image

pixellogo — Tue, 21 Feb 2012 18:03:21 +0000

Ji Lee, designer and creative director at the Google Creative Lab has come up with a book that showcases his brilliant work with logos. The overall idea is to take each letter of the alphabet and transform it into a simple logo, where word meets image. The results are brilliant, the designs are really simple and clever with a hint of humour.

We’ve already seen how the minimalistic approach has been the huge hit in the design world, but as the minimalistic way could be used as a cop-out, brilliant designs stand out from the crowd when they make you re-think stuff, just a little twist on things to make people see them in a different way. It’s definitely some great work and you can also get his book on Amazon.

Pixellogo template review: Logo-1040

pixellogo — Tue, 21 Feb 2012 16:51:34 +0000

Today’s logo template review features Logo-1040, a retro-looking design. This logo design consists of simple shapes in the style of old-school video games or cartoons. It resembles a laser gun toy in a light blue colour with a bold black outline and little white details inside. It’s completed with an equally bold sans serif font that goes along the same style lines.

This logo template is definitely a fun design that would work well with toy stores or video game related business. The colour chosen for this logo template is a vibrant shade of light blue that enhances the playful aspect of it as well as its retro feel. You can find other related logos at our ‘Kids’ category in our catalog.

Graphic design classics: posters by Almir Mavignier

pixellogo — Mon, 20 Feb 2012 20:52:41 +0000

Almir Mavignier is a painter and graphic designer from Rio de Janeiro, Brazil. After studying art in his homeland where he worked on his first abstract paintings, Mavignier moved to Paris to continue his studies. He ended up working and studying along big names like Josef Albers and Max Bill in Ulm’s University. With this kind of training Mavignier’s work could not be less than impressive.

His initial work with abstract paintings moved on to the op-art style and advertising design, and his work would be considered modern even now. In some of his pieces you can see the similarities with some of Josef Albers’ work on colour theory, work that could probably be part of that study that would later on be part of the Bauhaus’ study course. There are clear references to some of the Bauhaus’ principles, such as the basic geometric forms and primary colours use, as well as the comparative colour experiments. Here are a few examples of Mavignier’s work, a great reminder of the beginnings of graphic design as we know it today.

All images credit

Typography love: Skin Type

pixellogo — Mon, 20 Feb 2012 20:26:39 +0000

Designer Bryan Stewart came up with Skin Type and as the name suggests, a digital print inspired font. Pretty simple, straight to the point and cleverly brilliant.

Everyone has one. Any time you’ve written on your hand, you’ve created one.

A unique DNA based typeface.

And as a side note, his Designer Rainbow made me chuckle. Check out his work, design with a bit of humour is definitely welcome!