[kaff]

Currently working on a uni assignment, redesigning a hotel identity. The old identity is very budget and dated, counting up to 5 different logos! Have a look at Melbourne's best central hotel, The Victoria Hotel if you're interested.
Hotel was established in 1880, so I wanted to keep the old notion of it, but give it a modern approach and attract more business guests than foreign tourists like it does today. The area of the hotel location is rapidly shaping up to be classy, designer shop, business area, whereas it used to be quite shabby, in which the current identity of the hotel is standing out - in a bad way.

Incl is the logo, letterhead, business card (200% size), compliments slip and envelope.

[joey]

The first pink background is absolutely obnoxious! Get rid of any/all of the gradients.

As for the mark specifically, the typeface used with those illustrations specifically does not work together in my opion. Doesn't really flow.

[Herr Kurm]

any copy printed on that background will be a cock to read

[kaff]

Yeah, I figured that too, so I removed it and gotta keep a full-coloured pattern on the back instead.

[steveb]

I was wondering if what you posted is the old shit or your redesign. Nuff said.

If you're going to put any text on anything, you might as well go the whole hog and make it legible. The point of business cards is to get business. I'd destroy my remaining eyesight trying to decipher the phone numbers.

If your brief is to redesign for contemporary businessmen instead of aged American tourists, try to incorporate a feel of contemporary business!

[kaff]

Update on business cards, the other applications will follow.

Front


Back

[Herr Kurm]

Which pantone are you qoing to use for that magneta? Coated/uncoated?

[steveb]

Getting better. It's smart to use the reverse of the business card too instead of the usual blank. I don't like the wallpapery pattern, but if that's part of the brief, so be it.
I can imagine a couple of technical problems in the printing process for this business card. There's a strong possibility that some of the finer lines on the front side will be broken because of the negative print, especially on slightly cheaper card. (You know the magenta will be printed first with the black on top). So will the 6 pt text for "general manager". It's too small!

[cocknose]

it looks like an interior furnishings company in black and pink!!

couldn't you foil stamp the logo/text in gold or even.. foil black that'll look good??

then use a silk backed paper and spot UV that pattern on the back

that will all cost a fortune but look mega.. and if its a uni project you could fudge it all:
eg:

-get the silk backed paper (source samples from a paper supplier) 100gsm-ish
-would be fiddley but you could source some metallic leaf instead of the foil block, and apply it yourself
-on the silk side of the paper stencil the re-occurring pattern on it using a gloss spray varnish

would take some sourcing and pissin about but i'm sure you'l get a good mark and something that'l look good in a portfolio

[Limbo]

Black and white. Pink looks totally out of place in this case.



Get a feel for your client...

[Aen]

Looks more like it's for a Goth punk boutique than "classy designer".

[pedge]

The typeface for the logo looks too weak, doesn't really impress (especially when you look at the quality of the furnishings in the hotel). Magenta and black look a bit tarty, don't get me wrong, the colours work well but in this instance they look cheap.

I would have thought a more commanding typeface for the logo, using some gold foil is a goo idea too. Back when I was at college we used to buy foil on a roll - you'd stick it onto a black & white laser printed proof and run it through the laser printer as a blank sheet. The heat would transfer the foil to the black toner underneath; so you could use a sheet of black card, print black on it and apply the foil so that you could still have the black background unaffected by the foil. I think the process was called Omnichrom, but the cheaper way was to buy a roll of the foil rather than the machine as well.

[pedge]

Here's a few links:

gold transfer printing foil lettering

eBay.co.uk: Laser Printer Red Foil - Certificates, Invites & More (item 150114074766 end time 29-Apr-07 07:00:00 BST)

Oh yeah, ALPS used to make printers that used foil on a roll rather than inkjet, so you could get loads of different effects - not sure if they still do the machines though...

eBay.co.uk: OKI DP 5000 ALPS MD PRINTIVA printer & NEW PRINTHEAD ! (item 150112487389 end time 24-Apr-07 14:37:57 BST)

[kaff]

Update on logo and colour palette.

[cocknose]

a huge improvement!!!

[steveb]

Sarcastic bugger!

[neon]

yeah im not keen on the pink and black, looks like an invite to a swingers party..

[kaff]

Hehe, ditch the pink and black - and the logo to go with it. Rather go with the new one I posted.
Updates are coming throughout the week.

[Herr Kurm]

black-gray-white combo makes everything look better

[notfreelance]

your ornamentation has improved drastically. The previous went all over the place and had no variation in line weight. The all caps makes it look more professional and color scheme is very subtle and classy.