Wednesday, September 30, 2009

for the love of logos

I love logos! I love the idea of creating a logo. I love creating logos. I love the long process of researching a company, brainstorming creative ideas, sketching out all the unworthy ideas that immediately come to mind and getting them out of the way. Eliminating the garbage. Reducing the clutter. Then I walk away from it all and do something completely different than think about logo design... clean out the chicken coop, pull out all the spent plants from the garden, make a batch of pesto with the last of the season's basil, bake some chocolate chip cookies... well, you get the idea. It's then that the best ideas hit me. Then I sit down and sketch more ideas. Nothing. Panic. Nothing. Panic. Beat myself up. Nothing. Panic. Sketch. Okay, I'm liking this a little. Sketch. Way too much going on. Simplify. Simplify. Simplify. That's the amazing part of logo design. It's a long involved process. It's the process of taking in tons of information and reducing it all down to the most simple terms imaginable.

Here are some colorful logos I spotted while walking through Disney's California Adventure and Universal Studios this summer...

logos

logos

logos

Logos

logos

Have you ever had one of these In-N-Out burgers? Like a logo it's reduced to it's simplest essential ingredients. A thin meat patty, a large slice of tomato, a chunk of crispy lettuce and special sauce on a perfectly toasted bun. Yumola!

In-N-Out burger

Our good friend Ian stopped by with his Dad last weekend. I made some chocolate chip cookies. One of Ian's favorite things to do at our house. Eat as many of these as possible without getting sick. That and having fun with Isabel.

Is and Ian

_MG_7080

I made four batches of pesto from the remaining basil to stash in the freezer for winter. These should get us through October.

end of season pesto

Last night was Back to School Night. Parents attend their child's classes in brief increments of about 15 minutes per classroom (six total) to learn what's in store for the year and what's expected of students. The stressful part was learning about several missing assignments. Then there were the tears when we returned home, and several hours of work through those tears. Each new school year brings at least a month of transition time. Maybe it's the shock of reality that life is not really a giant summer vacation.

On the positive side... I was very proud to see my daughter designed a logo that was on display outside her art class. I frequently find papers covered with small drawings around the house. Little logos in the making. Perhaps I've passed something on to her.

The disorganized part must come from her Daddy.

...

4 comments:

Susan said...

Wow, that In-n-Out logo is perfect, isn't it? I've never had one of their burgers, but I've heard they're to die for and now you've confirmed it.

That is quite a process you go through to design something that seems so simple when we see them emblazoned on a building or billboard. It's wonderful that you can work at home, so you can have those little breaks that bring you back into focus. Of course, they can also become distractions just as easily, I'm sure.

Isabel and Ian look like they're rehearsing for Halloween. Very cute!

Cindy said...

Susan, It's probably best that we don't have In-N-Out restaurants in Oregon. I certainly don't need any more distractions from work!

Isabel and Ian have been friends since he was a wee one. They're a lot like siblings, only they rarely fight. It's fun to watch Isabel enjoying younger kid games when he's around. I always tell her to hold on to her childhood as long as she can.

Lisa said...

I don't often eat hamburgers but I did enjoy our stop at In-N-Out Burger last spring. Very straightforward and great tasting burgers can actually be a great meal. Who knew?

Back-to-school is always a bit of a challenge for me too. Just as soon as I figure out a family schedule it changes. Keeps me on my toes.

Nice post!

jazgal said...

I especially love Popcornopolis - it is the classic kind of logo that Chris has boxes of photos of - mostly from El Camino Real south of SF - there used to be tons of those kinds of signs back in the day. I am also very fond of the diving women indicating swimming pools at motels - splish, splash!

Iz and Ian look like they are having the best of times - how fun to have a buddy like that!