A little logo help....

[sthammar]

Ok i am stuck.... Need ideas or a new way to think.

Its an economic association that has several big houses and in each house there is like 10 to 15 apartments. I don´t know what its called in english but i guess tenant-ownership is the closest i can find, but you can buy an apartment or the right to the apartment....

Well anyway, the client hade an old logo with just text and they wanted to redesign the logo so it's easy to see that they have apartements and so on. And further more they wanted it to have a warm and velcoming feeling in the logo.

But....
I have pretty few options when it comes to being creative since the client have given me some directions and rules..

1. I cant change the font.

2. I cant change the color of the font

3. I cant change the kerning of the font

4. I can only use 2 colors in total in the logo...

As you see i am pretty locked........

I tried to make a house with several windows to show that it is an apartmentbuilding, and a sun to get the feeling of beeign welcome and that it is a nice place in general....

Well, i think it is pretty boring logo but it sas what they want ( I think) But has anyone any idea to make it i donno know not so boring i guess....

 

[Shovelhead]

Ok i am stuck.... Need ideas or a new way to think.

Its an economic association that has several big houses and in each house there is like 10 to 15 apartments. I don´t know what its called in english but i guess tenant-ownership is the closest i can find, but you can buy an apartment or the right to the apartment....

Well anyway, the client hade an old logo with just text and they wanted to redesign the logo so it's easy to see that they have apartements and so on. And further more they wanted it to have a warm and velcoming feeling in the logo.

But....
I have pretty few options when it comes to being creative since the client have given me some directions and rules..

1. I cant change the font.

2. I cant change the color of the font

3. I cant change the kerning of the font

4. I can only use 2 colors in total in the logo...

As you see i am pretty locked........

I tried to make a house with several windows to show that it is an apartmentbuilding, and a sun to get the feeling of beeign welcome and that it is a nice place in general....

Well, i think it is pretty boring logo but it sas what they want ( I think) But has anyone any idea to make it i donno know not so boring i guess....

"co-op"..."rent to own"?

 

[J Hill Designs]

sounds like a "condo" to me

 

[Marlene]

considering all the restrictions, your idea looks pretty good.

 

[signgal]

I agree with marlene... I'd like to see the sun closer to the building or maybe tucked down 'into" the name with no "radiation bars" LOL

but otherwise it looks good to me. Simple is not always a bad thing... golden arches come to mind.

 

[sthammar]

New mockups

Ok thx for the inputs.

Here are some more suggestions i made...

What do ya think?

 

[signmeup]

post #6 top right.

 

[JasperST]

I'd make the name bigger and the sun doesn't add anything for me. Makes it look like a solar panel company for apartment buildings. Less is more with designing.

 

[SignManiac]

You have some good ideas. Here's another take with some minor tweaking on one of yours.

 

[sthammar]

Jasper, i see your point but in sweden everyone knows what BRF stands for so i don't think it will be missled to solarpanels here, but thanks for the warning. Do you have any more ideas considering making the logo feel warm and welcoming insted of the sun ?

SignManiac i never considered puting the BRF inside the sun, thanks for the idea , i kinda like it.

 

[Craig Sjoquist]

Wow cool likes your simple designs and even more the improvements, the 2 that I like the most are 1st one on top, ... next would be the 2nd row right, ...then top row right

What I like about 2 that have 2 buildings is it's more then one even has a good balance,
I do think the sun adds to the design makes it cheerful

One of the buildings I would add more doors meaning more the one " condo " in our terms instead of the lower window.

I like it looks good great improvements

 

[JasperST]

Jasper, i see your point but in sweden everyone knows what BRF stands for so i don't think it will be missled to solarpanels here, but thanks for the warning. Do you have any more ideas considering making the logo feel warm and welcoming insted of the sun ?

I see, never heard of BRF before. For me, the building is disproportionately large and doesn't lend itself to being uniquely recognized just for that.

I don't see the value in trying to go make it warm or welcoming, it's either effective or not.

 

[Just Another Sign Guy]

if you are trying to make it feel warm and inviting i would play with the color combinations to portrait those feelings/emotions.
http://www.creativecolorschemes.com/index.shtml

if you do some hunting there is actually a suggested palette of 'warm' feeling colors.

 

[daveb]

How about increasing the size of the sun? It kinda looks lonely where it's at.

 

[sthammar]

Jasper:
Thank you for your straight answers! Yes you might be wright about the size of the buildings but in real they are 7 buildings with 5 floors and 15 to 20 apartments or condos ( not as i wrote in my first post 10-15)

Where the buildings are seated there is no other buildings even close as big anywhere nearby so thats why i wanted the buildings to be pretty big.

The Warm an welcoming thing is a demand from the client so... i cant disregard from it.

DanStriker:
I cant change the colours that much, if you read the first post you see why, but thanks for the link, i could for sure use it in my other projects.

Daveb:
That was a real nice solution, and i agree the sun looks kinda lonley now that you mentioned it.

 

[Just Another Sign Guy]

well i did read your initial post but thanks for the comment "if you read the first post you see why" but there are other elements in your design (which in my opinion need to be reworked..the chosen ideogram really isn't warm/inviting doesn;t portrait what this company is/does and is simply plain and unrememborable) ....but if you are stuck on this design path you are currently on all you have to work with is color combinations (combination meaning more than one color) so as i said initially you could try various color COMBINATIONS (maintaining the color of the primary text and changing the other elements)to portrait the feeling you are after.

it seems to me you are making a pretty big deal about these 'rules' as you said you are feeling stuck and the 'rules' just don't seem that constraining to me at all..so what? the main text needs to stay as is..ok now move on or if it was my client and i felt trapped by their rules (not that these rules are very confining by any means)i would disregard the imposed rules and design something that presented them in a proper manner, that presented them how they wish to be viewed...and then they can decide if it is more important to have a logo that presents them as they want their potential clients to view them or if it is worth the limitations and stick with the 'rules'.

many designers are not capable of identifying what the clients needs are and are simply capable of following customer prescribed directions and then inputing the information into the computer...forget about concept sketches on site haha the problem with this is that the majority of clients do not have the education or training. they do not know the basics of design theory, they do not understand color theory / color psychology, they do not understand the impact poor design can have on their overall image in the eyes of their potential customers. sadly it appears that many designers lack this same skillset.

unfornately for the client a poor image can cost them cold hard cash depending on their industry.

you are supposed to be the graphics professional that is why they are coming to you, so that you can create an image for them that presents them in the manner they want their potential customers to view them in, if you can not present the client in the manner that they should be presented within the prescribed client 'rules... ditch the rules.

 

[signgal]

I totally got the sun necessity, as my in-laws live in Sweden. I know how important it is in making people have a good feeling about a company. I think it looks great! I like Dave's take on Maniacs addition... and I think proportionately speaking you will be happier with that one or your top right one as Signmeup picked.

 

[sthammar]

Dan, thanks again for some very useful insites and i agree completley with your statement about a company can loose cash with the wrong picture. I don´t agree with you about the feeling the sun and so on gives. but hey we are all different and see things differnetly. I do how ever respect your opinion and i have tryed various other themes but nothing got to my liking.

I have also done a completley new logo in a way that i would have prefered it. How ever the client keept on holding to these rules.

Signal i agree with you and the client did to, they where very happy with the top right one.

Again to everyone thanks for all your tips and help.

// Sthammar

 

[artbot]

i kinda hate it. it doesn't "brand" the company at all. it'd be like ford motor company using a picture of a truck as a logo. you need to get out of the box and not use those buildings. living is a condo is horrible, so don't remind the clients that they will be trapped in a giant building by showing it over and over again. the look of it borders on institutional.

create a logo that has more emotional content, like the name of the company laid over a modern vector of a door knocker. that way they'd be reminding the clients of "their property" i.e. their condo/door. not that they are sharing it with a bunch of strangers because it's more affordable than an actual home.

 

[signgal]

i kinda hate it. it doesn't "brand" the company at all. it'd be like ford motor company using a picture of a truck as a logo. you need to get out of the box and not use those buildings. living is a condo is horrible, so don't remind the clients that they will be trapped in a giant building by showing it over and over again. the look of it borders on institutional.

create a logo that has more emotional content, like the name of the company laid over a modern vector of a door knocker. that way they'd be reminding the clients of "their property" i.e. their condo/door. not that they are sharing it with a bunch of strangers because it's more affordable than an actual home.

wow... nicely put... what a good reminder to us all.