Belgium Beers

This weekend I got to travel to Belgium to see one of my good friends, Elé, who is from a small town outside of Brussels. When I was in high school, Elé stayed on a foreign exchange with my family for a year. It was so fun to visit her after not seeing her for three years and be able to experience Belgium with her!

Elé and I ate food all weekend, including waffles and lots of chocolate. In addition to being famous for Belgian Chocolate and Belgian Waffles, the country is also famous for brewing hundreds of different types of Belgian Beers. Elé introduced me to her favorite Belgian Beers and it was fun to compare them to the beers I have had in America. It was also fun to see all of the different designs used on the labels. Each label's design was very different and used type in different ways to make their bottles stand out. Bright colors were one element I noticed was used on a majority of the labels. Additionally decorative types on the labels help the different beers to stand out and attract people to them. After seeing so many different labels, I think designing a beer bottle label would be a fun project. Maybe someday I will move to Belgium and help market Belgian Beer, but if not it will still be fun to go back and visit again someday.

Below are pictures of some of the beer labels I liked best:

Borough Market

One of my favorite things about London is all of the different markets around the city. I have loved exploring the markets on the weekends and seeing all of the various foods and goods being sold. On Wednesday, a few of us visited Borough Market near Tower Bridge. In addition to the amazing food, there was beautiful type all throughout the market.

Something new I noticed about this market is their branding. I noticed the same type is used on every sign that says 'Borough Market'. I wouldn't be surprised if the market has its own style guide because all of the designs and information about the market was very consistent. Out of all of the markets I have visited in London, I think Borough Market has done the best job creating a brand. Additionally spread throughout the market I enjoyed seeing all of the hand lettering signs and decorative types being used to attract customers.

I will definitely miss being able to go to different markets when I leave London, but at least I will be able to attend the Downtown Farmer's Market in San Luis Obispo and still have delicious food and see beautiful type.

The Signage of Dalston

Last week in our Web & Print Publishing course we went on a Type Tasting Safari! For this excursion we traveled about an hour away from Kensington to an area called, Dalston. As we walked through the streets of Dalston we were able to analyze the signage all around us. I learned how important signage is in influencing and communicating with people walking by.

Something that was made clear from our walk is how signage communicates the different cultures and styles of different communities. The signage we see everyday in Kensington is very classic and formal compared to the signage in Dalston. Just by looking at the store fronts of different businesses it is clear this area is very hip, full of culture and a place to be for the creative, free-spirited person. The colors, decorative type and unique materials used were fun to look at. Below are a few of my favorite signs and store fronts from the walk.

This is the storefront for a small, organic grocery store. Using wood for their sign plays an important role in communicating that this store is a natural place.

This signage is for a pizza company. The decorative type and overall design of the sign give it a hip, New York Style pizza place vibe.

This decorative store front is for an art gallery. This store front creates a very different vibe compared to the ones in Kensington. The bright colors and fun type help communicate that this is a gallery is full of creativity. 

This hand painted sign was my favorite from our walking tour. I love how relaxed and welcoming it makes this cozy, little bar appear to be. 

This sign additionally contributes to the trendy, hip vibe of this community. The bright orange with the gray creates
great contrast and makes this unique clothing store stand out.

Guiding Our Way Through the Guinness Storehouse

This weekend I was able to fly to Ireland with five other Cal Poly students. One of the many sites we were able to see was the Guinness Storehouse. The seven story building was one of the most beautifully designed attractions I have ever visited. The building was also designed in the shape of a pint glass, which I think was probably fun for the architects to design. 

In addition to beautiful type covering the many walls of the building, the self-guided tour was simple to follow due to well designed signage and wayfinding spread throughout the different floors. At the beginning of the tour we were all given an 8-page accordion folded brochure and map. These maps guided us through the storehouse and provided additional information about what we were viewing on each floor. Additionally, each floor had signs and posters that directed the visitors. The Guinness Storehouse does a great job navigating their visitors through their experience of learning about Ireland's treasured beer. It is also just one example of the hundreds of attractions which must consider which wayfinding designs and techniques they will use to help their visitors have a great experience. 

Each page of the brochure had the same layout, map, icons, and type used. This creates
repetition throughout the brochure and makes it easy for visitors to find what they are
looking for on each floor.

One of my favorite floors in the building, was the third floor. This floor was a history of the
advertising of Guinness. Just as we saw at Ascot, how hard the company works to brand their
 business, it is obvious much work has gone into and continues to go into the branding of Guinness.  

Throughout the brochure good contrast is used. None of the types or colors used are too similar. 

The use of contrast also makes the more important information pop off the page. The brochure also has good

 alignment. There are no items on the brochure that were placed just to take up space. This helps the brochure 

have a good amount of white space.

The walls of the building were filled with type of many different categories.

Our group before we started the tour of the building.

Wayfinding and signage play important roles in leading Guinness lovers to the many
different places in Dublin and around the world serving Ireland's favorite beer.  

Wayfinding at Stonehenge

Today I visited Stonehenge and it was a great day. Seeing it in person made the mystery of how people were able to move these stones in 2000 BC even more mesmerizing. Just like any historical monument or attraction wayfinding plays an important role in guiding people in the right direction at Stonehenge. There were several ways design helped guide us through the ancient temple today. 

These signs helped us get from the parking lot to the visitor centre. They were nicely 

designed in a Sans Serif font and universal symbols were used to help inform people which path to take. 

Guided maps throughout the trails today also helped direct and inform us of the sites around.

Finally, printed brochures including a map on the back helped us find our way. The map in my opinion is
very nicely designed. It has contrast, repetition, alignment and proximity.

Overall it was a wonderful day visiting this historical site and we didn't get lost once, all because of great design!

Adventuring at Ascot

Last Friday we attended the horse races at Ascot Racecourse! This was such a fun summer day dressed up in the sun and having the chance to see an example of what good marketing and branding looks like. From our first step inside the gates it was easy to see that this business has some amazing designers working to make Ascot a truly royal experience for all attending. In addition to betting on the races, the day was full of beautiful designs. Having an elaborate style guide is important in helping Ascot maintain it's brand and maintain consistent in their designs. As the pictures show below, the exact same shade of blue is used on every sign, banner and display. The same type is used as well.  From the tickets, the venue, the website and social media presences, and beyond all of the designs contribute to making the Ascot atmosphere an incredible day.

Magical Menus

London is truly lovely. One of the objects that makes it most lovely is the abundance of amazing food. Everywhere I look there is something delicious calling my name. As i've been eating my way through London something i've noticed at almost every restaurant is how nicely the menus are designed in this city. I have yet to see a menu using a font as bad as Curlz or Comic Sans. Below is one of my favorite menus I have found yet it terms of design. There are multiple font combinations being used, but I think they do a good job contrasting each another. It is clear what the price of each item is and nothing on the menu is confusing because the design has good proximity. The pages are full of text, but there is a good amount of white space creating a nice balance.

Cheers to the New Designers

Today we had an amazing opportunity to attend the New Designers Part 2 in London. This is an opportunity for best design graduates in the UK to show off their designs, products and portfolios. From new innovative furniture, to illustrations and the new hottest products this expo was one like I have never attended before. There was so much to see! I'm sure I missed some amazing exhibits, products and illustrations today. However, the ones I was able to see were incredible and in this post I would like to share a few of them. Congratulations to all the designers!

The view from the third floor of the expo.

Attention to all of my Cal Poly Dairy Science friends-- this is my favorite product I found today! It is a lockable milk flask. Maybe I like this product because I am a milk lover or maybe just purely because I'm a college student who is accustomed to my food magically disappearing from the fridge. Either way, I thought this product was an adorable idea. It is also a bonus the design is nice to look at.   

This is my favorite quote from the expo. As I am currently studying abroad in London, I am excited to be exploring a city I have never been to before. I am also excited to be studying typography and this is a beautiful, decorative type.

Look at these adorable Highland cows and this beautiful illustration! I love this!

These are my favorite ads from the expo. The illustrations are adorable, the typography is fun and the designs are nice to look at. 

Finally, I loved these illustrations of the Wizard of Oz! They look perfect for a children's book. I love the pop of the yellow brick road with the gray type. I wish I had a talent to create illustrations as beautiful as this!