A few months ago, Casual Creations was only a concept. The client loves to bake and thought that making desserts for small gatherings, such as bridge clubs, parties, reunions, etc., would be an enjoyable way to share her love of baking while earning extra income. I was tasked with developing a name and tag line, creating a visual identity, and creating marketing materials.

There were two main challenges when working on this project.

1. The name and tag line. We needed to convey the idea of homemade desserts that might not be picture-perfect, but that still tasted delicious. After much brainstorming, “Casual Creations: Desserts like grandma made,” came to the forefront.
2. Reconciling my own design ideas with the real world. I originally envisioned a beautiful, stylized illustration of a lemon pie, using only white on a rich, lemon-yellow background. Unfortunately, if the yellow is dark enough to read white text, it no longer looks lemony. While struggling with this concept, Debbie, my client, received a beautiful red Sunbeam mixer for her birthday, providing a focal point for the solution.

In the end, I was able to create a brand that evokes grandma and her kitchen. We determined that, instead of letterhead and envelopes, a price sheet and dessert labels were more important for this business. For the website, we continued the idea of grandma’s kitchen by not only making an “online business card” but also making it a place for Debbie to share other recipes with her customers.

Update: Sometimes it’s just as exciting to see what the client does with the finished product. Debbie told me several months later that she punches holes in her price sheets and dessert labels and ties them together with a red-and-white-checkered bow that matches the ribbon she ties her desserts up with. A perfect touch to the brand. Way to go, Debbie.