I've wanted to work on a really fun, playful brand for a while now, and I tried to create the kind of fun brand I have in my head with this project. Although I'm pleased with the final result, I wished I would have made the whole brand more fun and light-hearted.
It's difficult while working on a project to really push it in the direction you want while still making it cohesive and professional, and it's a balance that I'm working to strike all the time.
Jugosol logo.
This fictional brand is a Mexican juice company. The name "Jugosol" is a combination of the Spanish words for "juice" and "sun." It was a fun exercise to come up with a company name in another language.
Validation that I was heading in the right direction for a name came while brainstorming. I had come up with the name "Zumosol," and after Googling it, a juice company in Spain already uses that name.
Word map brainstorming ideas for the brand.
My first design for the advertisement layout was a completely different concept and execution, as seen below.
I knew the ad wasn't hitting the mark I wanted it to, and a critique session with my peers confirmed that. I scrapped the first layout and went in a different direction completely, and I'm happy with the results.
It would have taken too long to achieve the look I was going for with my initial concept, so I opted for a different style for the final design.
It's important to not get locked into an idea that isn't working and be able to adjust to something that can accomplish the desired outcome. This can be hard to do, especially after you've put a lot of time into something. I think I had about 8-10 hours into the first version of this layout before I switched direction.
The finished advertisement illustration and layout.
The style of the finished ad is more illustrative than I am used to doing. The style cues for the ad came from the design of the packaging.
The challenge was to create an interesting illustration that seamlessly integrated with the packaging design.
Illustration details from the ad.
The packaging was designed in Illustrator and then digitally mapped to the package in Blender.
The project was originally going to include a photoshoot, but the photo studio was closed due to Covid-19.
Creating a 3D model of the package gave me even more control over the positioning and layout than shooting photographs would have, and I wouldn't have been able to change directions with the project without re-shooting photographs.
The finished packaging layout.
Overall, I'm happy with how the project turned out. I appreciate the surprises and opportunities for growth that present themselves during every project, no matter how big or small, and strive to never stop looking for those growing moments.