Casa Mia - Designing the menu

So I have finalised started designing menu, using all the content I've collected, designed and taken. I decided to produce 2 types of menu size, one for sections with larger amount of items, and a smaller for those with a small amount of items. In this case, the large 200mm x 200mm format will be used for the Breakfast and Mains menu, the 200mm x 100mm will be used for wines and desserts. I have decided the fronts of the menus will be screen printed, trying to achieve the colours as closely as I can, and the backs will be digitally printed. I want to try
and foil the logo at some stage as I think it would add an elegant and classy edge.

Casa Mia - Crit for Finalised Identity

So I asked for some feedback on the two types faces I had so far resulted with for my final identity. I was unsure which was most suitable. Nearlly everyone I asked prefferred the Serif typeface as it looked elegant, classic and befitting with Italy and Casa Mia. So I've decided to use this as my final outcome.

Casa Mia - Brand Change in effect of crit

I've taken on what was said in the crit, about using a Serif typeface within the identity, as its very traditional of Italy and Italian restaurants. I think it looks a lot more high end but I want to get some other opinions on which typeface would be most appropriate to use and have my own crit.

Casa Mia - Final Identity & Logo

Design Development

So I've finally managed to come up with and create an identity for Casa Mia. I wanted to step away from the Serif, decorative typeface, for it to be come simpler and in keeping with the decorative typefaces I've designed for the menus. Anything busy, and decorative paired with my designs would simply blend in and it wouldn't be apparent as the logo for the restaurant. 

Finalised Identity

Initially I found creating a colour palette quite difficult, trying to avoid the christmas cliche colours. I've simply replaced the green with an earthy cream, and the white with a contrasting light black, these colours screen printed on an already chosen substrate will work really well. The typeface chosen is consistent from logo, to menu content and material (other than hand rendered type), the weight is simply changed accordingly. The tracking has been altered to make the type tighter and more legible as two words (within logo). I'm quite proud with my outcome, I feel it reflects the Modern, new identity I wanted to give Casa Mia and too reflects the aura of an Italian Restaurant.

OUGD301 - Crit Feedback

Action list in response to feedback:

Typosgraphe:
Make an incentive for designers to submit
Some kind of award? Part of some kind of society?
Membership cards? Expand - Free Membership for entrants?


Casa Mia:
Excentuate the idea of it being local not corporate 
Look at Italian typefaces - Serifs, scripts
Explore colour palette through food
Experiment with format needs to be really legible

Doing my nut in:
Explore regions - use formats to explore
Is it aimed at British people?
Define Britain (wales too?)
Look at small format - handy pocket guide, hot dog fold books
Focus more on the origins of dialect in terms of visuals
Highlight humour in book
Look at putting phrases into coat of arms

Casa Mia - Hand rendered content

I wanted there to be some subtle hand rendered type within the menu to retain consistency and the theme of hand rendered type, from front to inside. This will sustain my brand and identity design throughout. My inspiration came from a design I came across for a bakery, which can be see in my context blog.

Casa Mia - Type a day - Menu Fronts (minus colour)

I'm really happy with the final outcome and that i've managed to stick to my type a day project. The type works really well all together, and separately to be used for particular menus. My only concern now is how I am going to go about making them distinctive from one another, they work as a set so far, but it isn't clear which menu front is for what. I intend on exploring how existing restaurants make this distinction.

Type a day - 32, 33, 34, 35, 26, 37, 38

32 'Natural' 

33 'Squeezed' 

34 'Grilled' 

35 'Scrambled'

36 'Classic'

37 'Mixed'

38 'Boiled'

Casa Mia - Identity and Brand - Sketchbook idea generation

I have started looking at re-branding Casa Mia, moving my focus away from the hand rendered type a day project, which is well underway and nearly finished.

I want to create something which reflects Casa Mia's passion with its food (thus reflected in descriptive words), which is recognisable as an italian restaurant, avoiding cliche design factors which do this. I want to create a modern, clean cut identity which brings Casa Mia into the 21st century.

Doing my nut in - Identity sketchbook development

Layout and format

I'm interested in looking at layers and materials to show visually the dictionary format for a phrase or word. The layering will lie on top of words to either change, cover up or distort the word to become the dictionary format. The way I intend on doing this is through creating a concertina format, which means there is constant layering and interaction with a reader.

Publication Identity and logo design

I'm focusing on the idea of creating a coat of arms for each publication, so its iconic to see and recognisable as to which location the book is focusing on. This will be done through colour (the citys flag) and icons, such as iconic locations and logos which symbol and reflect the city and culture. I also intend on involving the roots of the accent, for instance 'Geordie' came from the Miners in Newcastle, castle fellow minors 'George'. 

I will be focusing on print methods too to make the coat of arms a interesting and vibrant symbol rather than representing something historic.

Generating idea's as to how to overlay phrases with dictionary terms.

Type a day - 31 Moist

#31 'Moist'

Type a day - 30 Glazed

#30 'Glazed' 30.10.12

Type a day - 29 Coated

#29 'Coated' 29.10.12

Type a day - 28 Distinctive

#28 'Delicious' 28.10.12

Type a day - 27 Roasted

#27 'Roasted' 27.10.12

Type a day - 26 Finished

#26 'Finished' 26.10.12

Type a day - 25 Homemade

#25 'Homemade' 25.10.12

Type a day - 24 Divine

#24 'Divine' 24.10.12

Type a day - 23 Delicious

#23 'Delicious' 23.10.2012

Type Factory - Photographing range of final products

Our designs working together as a series.

As we stuck to set typefaces and colour our designs work really well together, but work separately too, directed at our individual target audiences.

Type Factory - Networking

http://www.facebook.com/Typosgraphe

Last week we set up a Facebook page feeling it would be one of the best ways to get in touch with some of our target audience (peers, students). Uploading pictures of our postcards and prints, we will try and network on here with potential people to submit, posting submission guidelines.

Later on that day we updated the profile picture to something more inkeeping to the identity:

Type Factory - Printed Outcome - New Format

So I finalised my designs using feedback given to me in my personal tutorial session, experimenting with format and 'Frankenstein' type. These postcards I've done personally for my side of the industry, which is aiming at Freelancers and those who produce 'Type as image' work. These will be sent out to a list of suitable contacts, along with a business card to hopefully gain some work in return. To keep things professional we have printed out stickers which hold our logo, these will be placed on the envelope, and has space to write an address on.

Doing my nut in - Dialect characteristics - Designing Process

After conducting some research (found on my context blog) after looking at the origins of dialect and accent and the pronounciation of words I listed a few characteristics which I feel will help me in the designing process.

Geordie - 

Miner origins, common name 'george' among pitmen

Over pronounce vowels

Liverpool -

Scouse shortened from lobscouse - Meat stew eaten by sailers

Fast, highly accented

Rise and falling tones

Yorkshire -

Short 'a'

Vowels short

Birmingham -

Metal Working

Iron and coal

Thickest steam in Britain

Miss Vowels - 'Goat' 'Got'

Price and Choice - Oic and ic the same

Type Factory - Exploring Format - Further Design

So after a suggestion I decided to combine the 3 typefaces I was using, to create the overall title so it becomes a type as image piece. I have also explored a square format as it frames it better, and I feel is less 'throwaway-able' as it differentiates from the standard A sizes.

Casa Mia - Colour Palette

One of the things mentioned in my progress tutorial, when I mentioned Casa Mia's christmassy colour palette was to experiment with tones, trying to replace one of the 3 colours so its reputation and identity still somewhat remains. I looked at Kuler on Illustrator searching 'Italy' and 'Italian' and was surprised to find quite a few palettes relating. Using these I came up with a range of colour palettes, I wanted to stick to just 3, as Casa Mia does now.

The colour palettes I came up with:

The printed outcome

Looking at the print out I could see colours which didn't print too well (of course this will change printer to printer so will have to do a test print each time), so collated the colour palettes I prefered and put together new colour palettes.

4 Chosen from above as best:

Final Choice

I feel it still sticks to the Italian theme, being all I changed was the red, to an orange which is of the same tone and is still considered a warm colour.

Orange - D08449

Green - 1E594E