Description

For this project, I collaborated with a real client, W&M Victory Garden—a veteran-owned business with a powerful mission. Founded by a Marine, this business is more than just pickled goods; it’s a brand built on resilience, transformation, and community. Drawing inspiration from military discipline and handcrafted tradition, I reimagined the logo to reflect the brand's grit and purpose. The final design balances rugged military aesthetics with artisan craftsmanship, capturing both the boldness of the Marine Corps and the warmth of locally-sourced, small-batch products. My goal was to create a brand mark that symbolizes strength, unity, and the journey of healing through community and connection.

Process

This project began with a proactive outreach to the client after I noticed opportunities for improvement in the original branding of W&M Victory Garden. Following the initial conversation, I sent the client an onboarding questionnaire to understand the business's story, mission, and design preferences. The project was twofold: a logo refresh and packaging label design for their pickled products. Once I received the client’s responses, I curated mood boards to present different design directions that aligned with Combat Pickles' bold, mission-driven identity. With the client’s feedback, I proceeded to sketch several rough concepts by hand, exploring various layouts, typography styles, and symbolic elements. After evaluating the strongest ideas, I moved forward with vectorizing the chosen concept in Adobe Illustrator. Unlike some of my other projects, this design did not rely on a strict geometric grid; instead, I achieved visual weight and balance using my designer's eye and intuitive judgment to create a natural and impactful layout. For the color palette, I chose military-inspired olive drab green and earthy tones to reflect resilience and strength. These colors were strategically selected based on principles of color psychology to evoke feelings of trust, grit, and authenticity, perfectly aligning with the brand's veteran-driven mission. To help the client visualize the end product, I created mockups in Photoshop, showcasing the logo and label design on jar packaging. This step allowed the client to see how the branding would look in real-world scenarios, reinforcing both its practicality and aesthetic impact. The final presentation included clear explanations for each design choice, ensuring the client understood how the visual elements supported their brand mission and storytelling.

Reflection