Lucky Strike
December 24, 2009
“While the change of Lucky Strike Silver happened back in April, I only noticed it this week on shelf. What caught my eye? The simple but visually arresting vignette passing through the blue, which just goes to show that design nuance can have great impact. The picture above was from the re-branding’s introduction, making clever use of the cellophane overlay. In retrospect, while one admires the brand’s original belief that the icon should always be red, and the name could manage the varianting, the new design loses non of the brand’s power, but is a darn site clearer.
In pure design terms the pack architecture is a classic, and colour change was key to its iconic status. Legend has it that designer Raymond Lowey told the client he could double the pack’s impact and save them money. He achieved this by the simple measure of taking away the green ink (which was also seen as a patriotic gesture saving materials for WW2). Little things can make a big difference, which takes me back to the observation about the vignette.”
Le Chien et Moi
December 24, 2009
“When have you ever been able to actually physically pick up, hold and flick through a website…
A website with weight..
We were recently presented with the task of communicating the look and feel of the beautiful Le Chien Et Moi, “an emporium of a diverse collection of unusual and beautiful things, old and new, with a touch of nostalgia”. Housed in an elegant listed building, complete with antique fixtures and fittings and a resident Basset hound” this would be no easy task and would require more than the average website. The owners both hark from the hallowed halls of Paul Smith.
The tactile nature of the shop lead us to the idea of creating an actual book which would be photographed and transformed from a piece of printwork into interactive design (in this case a Victorian scrapbook to suit the shop) that could be flicked through and browsed to show the contents of the shop and its story. The book features hand written type and professional photography (from the award winning Scene Photography), illustration, a crafted downloadable map, video and a engraved laser cut cover. Everything is considered and complements the style and feel of the shop.
In terms of website functionality the site is easy and enjoyable to navigate (we all have intrinsic knowledge of how to browse a book!). So don’t just read this, go to the actual website (www.lechienetmoi.com) and have a flick through, better yet visit the shop (and Mulberry the Hound!) ask nicely and they may let you handle the real version of the website..the book itself!”
via CR
