HOW TO | Designing a logo

As I was sketching ideas for an icon I thought it would be useful to show you guys on how I do it. It is something that I've thought to do myself and came useful for uni as it's something I often have to do for uni as well.

Logo's or icons are seen everywhere and when it comes to having a brand (name it blog, webshop or youtuber) on the internet it is often very useful to have. You can either outsource it or make it yourself, which is way more fun right? But what should you do when you have no idea on how to start? That's where this post come in handy..

Sketch your design

It seems like the most obvious step but a great logo starts from a great design idea. The best way to start designing is to have an idea on what it should portray. Have a brainstorm session on everything your brand is about. For example if your blog is focused on jewellery, write everything down what you think relates to jewellery (e.g. chains, pendants, silver, bling). And start from there by sketching chains, pendants to get your brain working. Another thing to think about is what are your USPs (unique selling points) what deviates you from all the other jewellery shops? Is it 3D printed? Think about combining a few ideas and just let your mind flow. If your stuck or in need for inspiration, it is okay to check pinterest or tumblr. Analyse things you like and incorporate them in your design.

Digitalise your sketch

This is most probably the tricky part where most people get frustrated or clueless. How do you go from your sketch paper to a digitalise version of it? Useful software to have is Adobe Illustrator CS6 ( I have this version but older versions are alright as well). I use Illustrator instead of Photoshop is because you want the image you're creating to be a vector. A vector allows an image to resize without losing the quality (pixels). This is handy because you want to have the freedom to use your logo everywhere without worrying about the quality. If you have a ambitious sketch on paper, which you think is difficult to do it by the eye, a scanner can be useful. You can then open the scan on Illustrator and use 'image trace' to gain outlines of your sketch. With the use of a drawing tablet, which probably saves you a lot of time instead of a regular mouse, you can manipulate the lines to your liking. It may take some practice but eventually you'll get the hang of it.

I've searched some useful tutorials to do this.

The complete beginners guide to Adobe Illustrator

Basic Illustrator tutorial

Here is the result. It took me longer than anticipated, mainly because I wasn't really satisfied with my original idea and had to change some things a long the way. A phrase that is used often in my school career is to 'kill your darlings' (not literally obviously) but you have to be able to let go of your favourite ideas if it doesn't work out the way you expected and take a step back and redesign it.

Tell me what you think about this sort of post. Is it useful?
Leave your comments below!

x J.

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