J. Christianson tree stripe graphic in storefront window, natural light

J. Christianson

Mid-century warmth without the nostalgia trap. A brand identity built from the name outward, designed to live on a storefront sign and a clothing tag with equal presence.

Field Brand Development Naming Logo Design Graphic Design

Author Jeremy Prasatik Published: 2019 Status: Complete

Classification Brand Development Naming Logo Design Graphic Design

Abstract

Ground-up brand development for a fashion and home goods label. Started with the name. Built the mark, color system, typography, and product graphics from there.

The logo is four circles in a tight grid. Same form, different color combinations depending on where it lives. Brown circles with accent colors for one context. Olive circles with the same accents for another. Flexibility built into the identity from the first sketch. One mark that shifts its palette without losing recognition.

A tree silhouette did the rest of the heavy lifting. Rendered in four seasonal colorways and layered over a striped color field pulled from the brand palette. Apparel. Candles. Hangtags. Print materials. One drawing doing the work of a full product line.

SECTION 02: THE TREE

The Tree Did What the Logo Couldn't.

The logo gave the brand recognition. The tree gave it a story. A white silhouette layered over the brand's stripe pattern, breaking out at the edges into white space.

Four colorways. Teal and dark green. Yellow and gold. Orange and rust. Brown and earth tones. Same tree, same stripe pattern, different palette in each. Branches reach past the color block into white space, breaking the rectangle so the graphic feels drawn rather than placed. Used on apparel, candle labels, hangtags, and promotional print. One drawing that earned a full product range.

J. Christianson tree silhouette breaking out of stripe color field
J. Christianson tree stripe graphic with tagline, Heavenly Inspired Fashion and Design
J. Christianson four seasonal tree circles, teal, yellow, orange, brown landscape silhouettes
J. Christianson brand identity on billboard, organic color shapes with four-dot logo
SECTION 03: THE MARK

The Mark Stays the Same. The Palette Doesn't.

Four circles arranged in a square. Tight spacing. No outline. Constant form. The colors rotate depending on where the mark appears.

Brown circles with yellow, orange, red, and teal accents in one version. Olive circles with the same accents in another. The accent colors hold position (bottom-right cluster) while the dominant color shifts. Recognition comes from the grid, not the fill. Fewer locked variations meant more places the mark could land without redrawing.

J. Christianson brand pattern, four organic color shapes with logo centered
J. Christianson dot grid pattern, brown with yellow, orange, red, teal accents
J. Christianson dot grid pattern, olive with yellow, orange, red, teal accents
Logo Color Permutations4 positions · 6 colors · 140 arrangements
BROWNOLIVEYELLOWORANGERUSTTEAL
J. Christianson storefront sign mockup, dot grid pattern on wood facade

Type that feels found rather than designed

J. Christianson outdoor sign mockup, four seasonal tree circles, evening lighting
SECTION 04: CLOSING

From a Name to a Storefront.

A brand built from a blank page. Name, mark, color, graphics, product applications. All developed as one connected set of decisions.

Services

Brand Development

Naming

Logo Design

Graphic Design

Product Applications

Stack

Adobe Illustrator

Adobe Photoshop

Links

Four circles in a grid. A tree silhouette over color stripes. A palette pulled from mid-century earth tones, warm enough to feel organic without the nostalgia. The identity holds from a billboard down to a clothing tag because the elements were built to scale.

The color-shifting logo meant fewer production variants. The seasonal tree graphic let one illustration cover a full product calendar. Decisions optimized at the system level so the surface could stay simple.