Project Snippet - Wild Wild Wings Brand Exploration

At Nextbite, the creative team helped bring to life, and inject new life, into many of the virtual kitchen concepts that the start-up owned. One such concept was Wild Wild Wings. They already had a logo (which you can see here), but it was (and still is) boring and expected in the space. One internal branding exercise we did was to re-brand Wild Wild Wings, and create something that spoke to the deliciousness of the offering, while also creating excitement digitally when no brick-and-mortar experience existed.

Below are three brand concepts that I created. Ultimately, a rebrand for Wild Wild Wings didn’t go through, but it’s fun to look back on what could have been right?

Concept 1

This simple logotype encapsulates the idea of mix-and-match; plain, legible type mixed with heatwave inspired text that could be arranged in a number of ways echoes Wild Wild Wings customization offering. Saucy brushstrokes contrast with the clean edges of the type, and mirror the appetite appeal of the offering. Yellows, oranges and reds make up the lion’s share of wing-brand color palettes, so I wanted to create something that introduced an unexpected, contrasting and attention-grabbing teal.

Concept 2

Skewing into more familiar territory, this direction relies on a classic color palette and visual cues to feel sporty and approachable. Saucy typography, textures and platters feels appetizing and relates to the product. Contrasting that with silouetted and playful imagery, this direction feels fresh, new and exciting.

Concept 3

For this direction, I was struck by how the sauce colors, mixed with the off-white of ranch and bright pop of celery green, felt very retro and psychedelic to me. I decided to make a pattern with these colors, mixing them all together as sauces do at the bottom of a plate of wings. To contrast this swirly, funky pattern, I created a custom funky but hard-edged geometric logotype. The shapes of the letters could also be used as masks for imagery, creating a stable, architectural grounding against the melting pattern.

Project Snippet - Hope Road Cafe

At Nextbite, we often partnered with other restaurant companies to help them break into the virtual kitchen space. As part of the pitch process for these potential partnerships, part of my role was exploring what that partnership could look like as a virtual kitchen brand. One such potential partnership was with the Bob Marley House. Below are is a visual exploration for Hope Road Cafe, a concept for a bowl-based virtual kitchen.

Project Snippet - Unused Brand Direction for The Cerulean

The name The Cerulean probably looks familiar. I recently posted another Project Snippet for the same brand, showcasing some of the merchandise I designed for the concept. This is an early exploration of that same brand, one that was a bit more refined and Southern in it’s execution, reflective of the higher-income patrons of the Bay St. Louis area.

Typography inspired by classic boat name handlettering makes up the monogram and the primary logotype. A monoline script is paired with this typography to feel classic and personable. I also chose a relaxed Great Blue Heron as the brand mascot. Native to the area, you normally see these regal birds standing tall over the water or flying with their legs outstretched behind them. Instead, I’ve chosen to show the bird breezily floating along on the water. This bird is mean to represent a more refined local patron taking it easy at The Cerulean.

This small snippet of a visual identity represents the nostalgia of a bay-front seafood restaurant packaged in a contemporary way.

Project Snippet - Little Fish Sushi Houses

Another little logo designed during my time at Vigor for Scratch Kitchen’s family of brands. This one got to see its day in the sun, and I’m so glad it did. For this mark, I edited existing typography to emphasize each letters sharpest edges, like the blade of a well-maintained Japanese knife. For the letters that featured flamboyant finials (say that five times fast) I added fins, and turned the F into a fish symbol for the brand.

Project Snippet — Rare Bird Barber

I don’t take on a lot of freelance work. Mostly because my day job is demanding enough. However, I’m always willing to help out friends, or in this case, significant others of friends. My hair stylist’s (shoutout to Wanderlust Salon for keeping me and my boo phresh) boyfriend reached out to me needing an identity for his new endeavor, Rare Bird Barber. After working at a string of barbershops, Steven had decided to spread his own wings and go solo.

Take a look some of the strategy below, some unused explorations, and the final result. Enjoy!

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Rare Bird Barber Unused Direction I

In this unused direction, the center icon would swap out between different birds, all sporting different popular mens hairstyles.

Rare Bird Barber Unused Direction II

In this unused direction, the letterforms themselves took on bird-like characteristics.

Rare Bird Barber Unused Direction III

This unused direction took a more literal approach, crossing a feather with a pair of schears in stylish ways.

Rare Bird Barber Unused Direction IIII

The schears take flight in this direction, literally becoming a rare bird.