Balcony Coffee & Tea
During my second semester as a member of the Innovative Design team at USC, I had the opportunity to work with Balcony Coffee & Tea, a café nestled in the vibrant heart of Korea Town in Los Angeles
DURATION
Jan 2024 - May 2024 (5 months)
ROLE
Graphic Designer
TEAM
4 Graphic Designers + 1 Team Lead
Overview
The Challenge
The client sought a versatile logo that could seamlessly adapt across their digital platform and merchandise. Key design requirements included a clean, modern aesthetic with a focus on straight lines and the integration of a dog mascot to enhance brand personality and appeal.
Deliverables
• Logo/brand design for the website
• Designs usable for merchandise (hoodies/shirts)
• Mascot involving a playful dog
Mood Board
We carefully curated our mood boards to reflect the client's taste for clean, straight lines, while also incorporating elements of café aesthetics. We also ensured to include elements related to a dog mascot, aligning with the client's specific request.
My mood board combines a collection of images that reflect a blend of café culture and the client’s desire for straight lines. It includes soft images with a color palette of brown and green which create a calm, earthy feeling. I also discovered a logo combining the themes of dogs and coffee to serve as inspiration for our coffee dog mascot.
Low-fi Sketches
Mascot Concept 1:
For the initial concept, I aimed to incorporate an illustration of a dog interacting with a coffee cup, illustrating the connection between Balcony's mascot and their primary product.
Mascot Concept 2:
For the second concept, I envisioned transforming the dog mascot into a more abstract form. The idea was to integrate the silhouette of the dog with a coffee mug, blending the mascot into a functional, yet artistically reimagined, object. This design aimed to capture the essence of the brand in a unique and visually engaging way, highlighting the playful yet sophisticated spirit of the company.
Mascot Concept 3:
My third concept focused on creating a standalone mascot featuring just the dog. The design on the left side emphasizes a clean, minimalist aesthetic, using sharp lines to convey a sleek, modern feel. On the right, the design transforms the mascot into a softer, more endearing figure, employing gentle curves to evoke a friendly and approachable vibe. This dual representation showcases the versatility of the mascot, appealing to diverse audience preferences.
Branding Logos
Branding Concept 1:
My initial concept played creatively with the word 'Balcony' by substituting letters with elements related to coffee. On the left, I transformed the lowercase 'a' into a stylized coffee cup, integrating it into the typography. On the right, I opted for an all-uppercase format, where the 'O' was replaced with a coffee bean, adding a unique visual twist that emphasizes the coffee theme.
Branding Concept 2:
For my second concept, I explored creative variations of the letter 'B' from the word 'Balcony,' integrating coffee-related motifs into the design. The first image presents a 'B' with the wholes replaced by coffee mugs. The second iteration features the 'b' as part of a coffee cup, emphasizing the theme through playful visual integration. The third design incorporates the dog mascot hiding in a coffee cup branded with the Balcony 'B' to create a playful logo style. For my last sketch, I took the first 'B' design and placed it onto a sketch of a to-go coffee cup. Each design aims to merge the essence of coffee culture with the 'B' in Balcony, offering a fresh and engaging visual twist
High-fi Sketches
The Client's Favorites
Balcony liked my minimalist mascot sketch and abstract mascot that incorporated the dog with a coffee cup. Additionally, they also wished for me to iterate on the Balcony logo that replaced the ‘a’ with a small coffee cup.
Mascot High-Fi Sketches
For the high-fidelity phase, I developed several iterations of the abstract dog mascot, providing Balcony with a variety of options to choose from. Each sketch varied subtly, featuring different interpretations of legs, ears, and tails, as well as the addition of a friendly smile. This approach allowed us to explore a range of expressions and forms, ensuring that the final mascot could perfectly embody the brand’s character
For the abstract dog and cup mascot design, I refined the color palette to sleek black and warm brown tones, enhancing the overall look to achieve a cleaner and more polished appearance. This refinement process focused on streamlining the design elements, ensuring a sophisticated yet inviting visual impact
Branding High-Fi Sketches
For the Balcony logo, I opted to experiment with a palette of reddish-brown and black. I also evolved the typography to an all-uppercase format, substituting the 'A' with a tall, to-go coffee cup. This choice not only emphasizes the brand's connection to coffee but also adds a distinctive visual element to the logo's overall appearance.
Final Deliverable
After voting within our team for our final deliverable, below is what we delivered to our client to choose from.
For the first design, we crafted the 'Balcony Coffee' text in a circular arrangement, encircling the dog mascot from the high-fidelity iteration of my design. This layout not only highlights the mascot but also creates a cohesive and visually engaging logo that embodies the essence of the brand.
For the second design, we crafted the 'Balcony Coffee' text with a slight downward tilt, complemented by clean, straight lines that trace the lettering. This arrangement evokes the image of stepping stones leading to a balcony, creating a logo that is both metaphorically rich and visually striking.
