How to Create a Logo For Your Business
01 May is the unofficial anniversary of SOLEMNIKO. On 01 May 2020 I launched the How We Came To Be Project and from there everything you know as SOLEMNIKO was founded.
However, I have never invested in a proper logo for SOLEMNIKO. Having been in business properly for over a year I felt it was the right amount of time to invest that time, and my understanding of the brand in a proper logo.
new SOLEMNIKO logo as of April 2024
There were many parts of SOLEMNIKO which I wanted to honour in this design, as well as creating something that would be timeless, and live alongside the brand as it grows. I also wanted something completely unique, and I wanted an illustrated logo. As an artist this is something which is really important for me, and having lived with a text-only ‘logo’ for so long, I knew a visual was really important for me.
So, how did I go about doing it?
The Process
I actually count myself very lucky, I’ve designed logos for other people’s businesses before so I know the process of checking that my design won’t infringe any currently copyrighted designs out there. Because there’s nothing worse than spending hours on a design you think is unique only to find out that someone’s already created a version of it.
01: Copy Cats
When it comes to ensuring this, the best thing to do is look at brands you feel your business is in the same sector as or the styles you like. There’s nothing wrong with getting inspiration, and the best way to not copy is to make sure you know what’s already out there.
02: Why are you using certain elements.
Nothing should be random.
For example, me choosing a hare as the animal I wanted in my logo was no accident or whim. Hare’s are lucky omens, they’re also one of the fastest land animals, they’re strong and symbols of transformation, beauty, fertility, rebirth, timidity and lunar connection. All of these things are important to me and my business. Due to being speedy animals they also fit in nicely with what SOLEMNIKO is all about, namely slowing down and enjoying the simple, mundane things in the every day. I also find them exceptionally beautiful animals.
The iced coffee was also important to include because it’s a modern thing, certainly in the UK! So I wanted to include it as a signal to being traditional but also a modern brand, not stuck in the past but taking those hard-learned skills (symbolised by the books and the tea chest) into the future.
The clothing which the hare is wearing is purposefully androdgynous, a nod to my own sexuality and showing that the brand is for everyone regardless of sexuality or gender. The ear piercing is a nod to rebellion against the status quo, it’s not something that would feature in the more traditional version of this kind of illustration and therefore showcases my own wish to curate a brand that doesn’t conform to stereotypes.
Obviously I didn’t get to this design on the first go, it took many weeks, a lot of days of not looking at it so I could view it with fresh eyes when I did, and I asked other people’s opinions.
03: Experimentation & Exploration
I’m old-fashioned, I love a sketchbook, a pencil and a Pinterest board as the way to combine elements and get ideas for what would work well together.
I started by sketching out the heads of hares, getting a feel for the shapes and placement of elements like the ears and the eyes. I also tried lots of different angles.
Then I searched for pictures of male models posing in seats, I knew the vibe I wanted (old-school tweedy aesthetic) so I found a few poses I liked and sketched those out as well as basic outlines to again get an idea of angles and placement. Also size, because some poses were more self-contained than others which asked for a larger picture.
It came down to two poses, and I used two different head angles, ear placements and vibes for each - drawing them out properly with all the details to get a totally accurate representation of the final look. This was the point where I asked for other people’s opinions. And the jury went with the illustration that now makes up the final logo.
But I’ve included an image of the other one below to show you how different the vibe could have been!
