Rattle Vodka is a fictional spirits brand I created to work on incorporating illustration into more of my projects. When conceptualizing the brand, I wanted a brand that was bold and daring, even borderline dangerous. When creating the logo and additional marks, I wanted multiple applications of the snake as well as a smaller mark that would complement the text lock up. A boot spur was the perfect solution. The typeface I chose, Interstate, works perfectly with the boldness and simplicity of the brand (and would work well on a WANTED poster). The colors I chose were inspired by all things west and their names (bootleg, dynamite, saddle, and saltlick) embody that. The logos/marks, packaging, and label were designed in Adobe Illustrator, the mockups in Adobe Photoshop, and the brand guidelines in Adobe InDesign.

Josef & Anni: Life & Work is a sample coffee table book created using information and photography from the Josef and Anni Albers Foundation website (https://albersfoundation.org). For my design directive, I focused on parallelism. Josef and Anni worked alongside each other but never produced work together, acting as parallel lines that compliment each other, but never intersect. The spreads were focused on balance between imagery and typography. Layouts for the book were created in Adobe InDesign.

I love watching the show Hot Ones on YouTube, especially in the background while i’m designing. Hot Ones is a show hosted by Sean Evans (a fellow University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign grad) where he interviews celebrities while they eat wings increasing in spice. While watching, I always notice the packaging of the sauces. For a product that has so much energy and life to it, I’m continuously underwhelmed by most the labels on the bottles. I saw this as an opportunity to create my own. I used Adobe Illustrator to create the logo, variations, illustrations, and other visual aids. The mockups were created in Adobe Photoshop and the guidelines were designed in Adobe InDesign.

Birds of Prey is a book I created using my own custom display typeface and illustrations. When making the font, I wanted to create something I could apply the font to as well as something that would compliment the mischief of the typeface. The seriousness of the scientific bird descriptions juxtaposes the playful whimsy of the typeface and bird drawings in a lighthearted and humorous way. The illustrations were drawn in Procreate, the descriptions were generated by Chat GPT, the typeface was created in Adobe Illustrator, the spreads were designed in Adobe InDesign, and the mockups were rendered in Adobe Photoshop.

Nourish is a fictional skincare brand I created focused on enhancing natural beauty. When experimenting with the design direction I wanted to pursue, I was inspired by earthy colors and clean visuals that embody the ethical and empowering values of the brand. Since the branding is for a skincare line, I kept the logo clean and pure. Including the flower-esque emblem above the “I” in nourish married the simplicity of the brand as well as the organic undertones. I chose a simple typeface to represent the (theoretically) all-natural, clean, and ethically-sourced ingredients the products are made of. When designing the packaging, I focused on making it inviting for a consumer to read and interact with, emphasizing the transparency of the brand and products. The logo and alternative marks were created in Adobe Illustrator, the photography edited in Adobe Photoshop, and the brand guidelines in Adobe InDesign.

Comics drawn by hand using markers and ink. For more drawings check out @lucy__doodles on Instagram