These designs show the process, development and experimentation with type. The client was adamant to use their own handwriting within the design, to make it more personable and to make sure that no one else could ever use the same type, or that the design was copying anywhere else. There was also an issue with the typefaces used previously with copyright etc. Without buying the typefaces outright, it would be hard to get them and use them in the industry on all the branding.
Initial experiments show the client's handwriting being used for the name of the brand and also the client's name on the business cards.
It was suggested to try writing the name in a signature form, to make it look personalised to each of the customer. However this wasn't working, so it was tried out to just handwrite the name in full and also the brand name.
Below shows the different iterations and practice of the client's handwriting and how it was applied to the business cards.
The above design didn't seem to work as there was too many different contrasts of type and stroke thickness and technologically it was too hard to get these to the same level therefore this idea of the signature was scrapped and below shows the next experiment of using the handwriting for both the brand name and also the signature in a much simpler form. However the below design, the client and the designer still wasn't happy with, as again the layout of the type and the different typefaces weren't working as a cohesive design.
The images below show the other initial experiments of the client's handwriting alongside the signature, this time placed in a different layout. However it still wasn't working as there was too much conflicting typefaces on one card, therefore a decision was made to just use the handwriting for the brand name, as this is the most important part that everyone will see and which the brand will be known for. Therefore if it is in the client's handwriting, then it will be unique and it won't be similar to anything else out there.
The below designs show the final experimentations of using the client's handwriting just for the brand name and then using a sans serif typeface for the client's name and contact information. The reason this works better is there is the right contrast now between the serif, handwritten type of the brand name, alongside the simple sans serif typeface of Avenir for the rest of the text. It also makes it easier to read, which is important as customers will need to know the client's name and the contact information so it is easily accessible.
