MORE Using Black in Food Packaging

I remember my old post on using black as a color in food packaging was so well received, that I wanted to do another post of more surprisingly beautiful packages. It's also kinda neat to observe how black goes in and out of fashion- i guess so does white. They all have their own shelf-life. But one thing is sure, adding black to food packaging makes it exquisite, gourmet and upscale.
Oh, and if you're curious about the first post on black in food packaging, please click here.

Packaging Design of English Foods (Biscuits...yummmm)

Almost everyday I indulge in McVities Digestive biscuits with milk. I know, I am 12 (actually, i'm a lot older lol). There is something about dipping those biscuits in milk and letting the days troubles slip away (OMG, now I sound OLD lol). So, when I stopped off in Heathrow a few months ago I must have landed in heaven because I saw all these beautiful packaging designs for english foods, especially the biscuit tins! I love their use of themes and elements from the past and their use of colour. Enjoy!

Food Packaging in the MiddleEast- Part I

So, I am holidaying back home in Oman, which is in the Middle East, incase you are wondering. It is about a 3 hour car drive from Dubai, if that helps. It's funny how growing up I obviously didn't pay attention to anything in particular here pertaining to consumer design. But, now that I live in Texas and am a practicing designer, my eyes are wide open (and camera ready), as I troll down the aisles in

Oman's supermarkets and hypermarkets. I noticed a few things-- food styling is not a huge priority like in the States; packages are very colourful; free promotions are a huge push; food comes from all over Europe, Asia and the MiddleEast, so the packaging has a wide influence and pinpointing a style is hard. This is part one in a series of posts. More to come!

New Label Design

I wanted to show my latest label design. The client wanted a cowgirl/western/retro-ish look, and this is the end product "Crap Shooter." Funny name, but the product smells good. I've also put a detail of the boot I did designed.

Using Black in Food Packaging

I was working on a project at work that dealt with using a black container for food packaging. We would need to create graphics that looked good on a black background, still keeping it appetizing. I started doing some research and quickly realized the UK market is way ahead on this trend (aren't they generally more ballsy with their design anyway? lol) Here are some great examples...

Italian Food Packaging

Mulino Bianco is an Italian food company that produces biscuits, breads, and yummy bagged pastries. Below are some examples that exude that wonderful warmth that only comes from a glass of milk and a bag of italian biscuits!

Silhouette Packaging

Sometimes something as simple and elegant as a silhouette can enhance the design of a package. But silhouettes aren't limited to the black coloured side profile picture of the little girl we so often think of when we think of "silhouette." Here are some great examples taken from www.dieline.com showing the application of silhouettes.

Dallas Trade Show Designs

I attended the Dallas Summer Trade Show today and saw the candle packaging designs I had done all boxed and finished... they looked great.
The line is for Bec&Chelle candles and their focus is faith based candles. The packaging had spot varnish on it too so there was a nice matte + gloss feel to it.
The silver box line is the holiday line which looked spectacular. The boxes were full gloss with and ornament balls are available in jewel tones- opal, seagreen, magenta and amethyst.

Bag Design that makes you wanna go Ahhh...

Yes, I am tooting my own horn... isn't that what blogging and tweeting and facebooking is all about anyway? lol
So, here is a bag design I did that I just couldn't resist discussing... The concept of the bag is feminine and luxury, but unique. Originally these started as candle boxes, which are still being developed, but the bag quickly become a great accessory.
The logo design is something simple to complement the large floral. The sides of the bag have purple stripes in various shades and tints of purple.

Flossingles Design

I recently did the logo and package design for a client introducing a very useful product- floss! Flossingles are a new twist on a not so new idea... little individual pouches of floss. Being a new dental product, I wanted to keep the design almost "sanitary" and fresh (the design equivalent of minty toothpaste!). The logotype is simple, with a gradient in the red stripe to make it "sparkle." The box itself has a white to light teal gradient with information kept clean and easy to read. Product will be sold in dental magazines and specialty offices.

What Do You Spend On?

Since my new obsession is marketing, I had to share this hilarious dissection written by Seth Godin, a guerrilla marketing guru. This is taken from his blog http://sethgodin.typepad.com

Here's a $20 bottle of soap. Functionally identical to a $3 bottle, so what's the $17 for?

1. The hang tag. It's special because most soap doesn't have a hang tag. Hang tags come on things that are a little more special than soap. And hang tags beg to be read. This one says a lot (and nothing, at the same time.) It reminds us that it doesn't contain SLS. What's SLS? Is it as bad as SLES?
2. This isn't soap. It's mineral botanic. Both words are meaningless, which means the purchaser can attach whatever feelings they choose to them. In this case, the marketer is hoping for old-time, genuine, down-to-earth and real.
3. It's not made by a soap company. It's made in a Dead Sea Laboratory. Laboratories, of course, are where scientists work, and the Dead Sea is biblical, spiritual and really salty. The company has a name (Ahava) that is onomatopoeic and reminds you of breathing. Breathe deep and find calm. [Even better, I'm told it means 'love' in Hebrew].
4. My favorite part is that it's made from bamboo and pansy. At least a little. Bamboo because it's fast growing and Asian and gentle and wood and grass at the same time. And pansy... well... pansy is for girls.
5. Two really good things here. First, it's for very dry skin. This is brilliant. If your skin is dry, you don't want to hear that it's sort of dry, kind of dry, not as dry as that guy over there... No, you want to hear that it's extremely dry, really dry, so dry it's like sand. That kind of dry. This bottle understands how very dry your skin is, and it's here to help.
Also, it's in French! I love that there's the language of love and sophistication and diplomacy right here on the bottle. I can imagine that models for Chanel are using it on the Rive Gauche as we speak.
6. Did I mention the part about velvet?
It took guts to take this packaging so over the top. It doesn't match my worldview, but it might match yours.