Don’t We All

Any graphic designer can attest to having heard this phrase a time or two. How does hearing this phrase usually turn out? BAD… always bad! And I am not just saying that for the graphic designer, I am saying it for those looking to have a logo made as well!

Watch Out Designers

Here are the caveats for the graphic designer. Usually this means they want the work for free! It seems though that the person recieving the favor will inevitably forget it is free and start imposing deadlines and an endless number of revisions. All the while reminding you how valuable this single design will be in your portfolio.

Those recieving “The Favor”

While I have warnings for the graphic designers, I have more for the person needing the logo! First of all, in logo design you often get what you pay for. Logo design can be expensive, especially when you begin getting into corporate design and branding. So if you are expecting a favor from a friend… expect a poor design you will not be satisfied with.

Hold on, that is just the tip of the iceberg! Once you receive this slopped together logo, and realize it is worse than what you threw together in photoshop yourself, you will no doubt offend your graphic design friend when you don’t use his 30 second logo! The worst part about using a friend is even if you do pay him, the chances are you will not be satisfied with his design. And once again you would feel obligated to use it, but without the option of leaving nasty feeback.

So… What to do?

If you are looking to have a new logo designed, just pony up the cash and have it done right. A good logo can go a long way. There are a lot of quality sites on the internet like 99designs.com, or logomojo.com, where you can be sure that your logo is designed professionally for a great price. This way you can keep your friendship with that graphic designer and still get your logo finished.

One final warning, your graphic design friend will surely be offended you didn’t go to him for your logo, and will most likely tell you he could have created a better one… you can tell him he is welcome!

Raymond Loewy and Lucky Strike

The Redesign of Lucky Strike

Known for his fiery personality and arrogant comments, nobody will argue that Raymond Loewy was very gifted as an industrial designer. In 1940 a bet of $50,000 was placed with Raymond Loewy that he could not increase sales of the Lucky Strike cigarettes by simply redesigning the logo and packaging.

Confident in his abilities he began re-design, his goal when designing was to make a logo that if seen just once would be imprinted in your memory, this was done using simplicity.

The first change on Lucky Strike was to change the background to white, and place the logo on both sides of the packaging, this would reduce printing costs as well as increase brand exposure. He changed the text around the package to smaller sizes to not distract from the new logo design and to provide a clean white background.

Needless to say he was awarded the $50,000 and increased Lucky Strikes profitability, not to mention created a design that is difficult to forget.

Do these design changes sounds familiar? White background… Google. Remove text on packaging to not distract… Apple. Designers today are still using the same design tricks Raymond Loewy was using over 70 years ago to increase profitability. Have we come full circle to simplicity, or did simplicity ever leave?

- Disney California Adventure Logo Redesign

I, for one, haven’t ever liked anything Disney has done, or has been associated with, but this logo is pretty solid logo redesign. More futuristic, more playful and more fun! – Disney Dreaming

- A David and Goliath War: Harrods Vs. Hollands

Harrods, one of the leading luxury department stores in the UK, has threatened the owner of a small Essex cafe over ‘striking’ logo similarities. Maybe Mr. Nigel Holland was unfortunate enough to read “unbiased reviews” before hiring his logo company. Meh, bad luck, buddy! – Daily Mirror

-Australia plans to ban branding on cigarette packets

Another WTF Moment: Australian Government is planning to coerce tobacco companies in the country into removing all branding from their cigarette packets. Is that for real or what? – Just Creative Design

- Charlie the Interviewer

Hey Buddy! I see you are also doing quite a few heady things like interviewing some really great graphic designers and all. I suppose that’s one of the ironies of life doing the right thing at the wrong moment… Keep up the great work! – Top Graphic Designers Interviewed

- 30+ Free Watercolor Brush Sets

A wonderful and really helpful collection of 30+ free, yet premium quality watercolor brush sets for photoshop. – You The Designer

- The Golden Apple: 22 Carats Gold iPad with 53 Diamonds in Apple Logo for $189,000

Hercules could have paid $189,000 instead of risking his life fighting that nasty dragon… Famous designer Stuart Hughes has designed the world’s first solid Gold+Diamond crafted iPad, which is encrusted with 25.5 Carats of ‘I’F’ Flawless diamonds. A glorious total of 53 individually set sparkling gems dwell beautifully in their solid 22 Carats Apple logo – Redmond Pie

- Seattle’s Best Coffee New Logo: Try Again!

In a recent Times poll about the new logo of Seattle’s Best Coffee, 68% of the voters suggested that the Starbucks-owned coffee chain should really “try again”. Please tell us what you see in this logo. An oil change service, a watermelon, a blood bank, or a bloody indication of the fact that Coffee makes sperm speed up!? – Under Consideration

- So you think you know the Ramones logo?

I don’t know why but I just can’t stand Punk music. By the way, The Ramones are one of the earliest and most influential “real” punk bands ever, and in this article, Steve wonderfully describes the history and design elements of Ramones logo. A few fundamental influences on the genre include MC5, The Velvet Underground, The Who, The Stooges, and yeah, Jimmy Page’s work with The Yardbirds and Led Zeppelin – The Logo Factor

- Improving typography through space

Brian Hoff’s awesome post about improving typography through space which really got me thinking… Ninety-five percent of the web is typography! The Design Cubicle

- Quality or Money – What matters more for the clients?

Charlie is my good old buddy and I really loved sweet little pies made by his momma – Graphic Design Blog

- WordPress Plugins on DavidAirey.com

A fine, helpful read for wordpress newbies – David Airey

- Raising A Designer: A Mother’s Insight

The mother of Jacob Cass, one of my favorite design bloggers, speaks words of wisdom – Just Creative Design

- 40 Free Widescreen Nature-Themed Wallpapers

An awesome collection of wallpapers for your desktop – You The Designer

Remember the old-time storytelling broadcast on radio? Those mysteries and thrillers that were the primary medium of entertainment and fun for all age groups at a time not so long ago…? Today, at our Logo Design Blog, we have good news not only for the lovers of audio theater, but for everyone else who uses internet and/or iPhones.

New Fiction is an innovative web 2.0 that brings you the second-generation free audio books. The site offers absolutely free subscription to a wide variety of cool iSoaps (unique type of audio books with top-notch voice-overs and interesting graphic artwork; similar to old-time serial radio dramas) for downloading and listening to them online. Their weblog and community portal also let you interact with other users, discuss your favorite stories, and keep you updated with the latest trends in the world of books, publishing, and fiction. In other words, New Fiction has sparked a 21st century revival in a nearly lost art form.

You can play iSoap episodes online, get it as podcast and play it in your feed reader, or even download/ play episodes on your portable device (iPod, iPhone, cell phone, or PDA).

Have whole-lotta fun with those audio stories and share your thoughts!