new nonprofit logos for the common table

For the last three months, I've been lucky to work as a contractor for Common Table Health Alliance, a Memphis nonprofit whose mission is to achieve health equity through trust, collaboration and education. Their focus is broken down into four REAL Community Goals -- Reducing Childhood and Family Obesity, Eliminating Health Disparities, Activating Consumers, Patients and Caregivers and Lifting Health Care Quality. Pretty good stuff.

Fortunately for me, I started working with them right before they began a name change and brand overhaul, so I was able to offer up my graphic design and branding expertise, designing new logos, collateral materials, advertisements and web graphics. The three logo projects I completed for them were pretty cool, so I wanted to share them!

The first logo was for a hypertension initiative that features former Memphis Grizzlies Coach Lionel Hollins as the spokesperson. Jonathan and I were season ticket holders during Hollins' two best years with the Grizz, so this was a huge honor for me. The team knew what they wanted, so they gave me direction and I created the design:

For the agency logo, I was charged with creating several logo options that fit the new mission and vision. I mocked up versions that represented everyone's ideas, and the top three choices were presented to the organization's community partners for a true common table vote. The design that was selected was a collaboration between me and an awesome coworker. It was a really fun project, and everyone was really pleased with the results: 

The Common Table plans three events each year, and the next one is a 5K that is organized in partnership with Memphis Mayor AC Wharton. The 5K is in its second year, and the staff wasn't crazy about the event's logo. They asked me to freshen it up, so I took some inspiration from the old logo (the tape measure) and added a sun icon (from one of my logo mockups). I tied those pieces together with the new CTHA font and the official CTHA colors to create a logo they can use for years to come:  

I hope to share some of the collateral materials I've created for the hypertension campaign and 5K next week. I'm so proud of these projects, and I'm really grateful to the staff at the Common Table for giving me the opportunity to create fresh designs for them. It has been a fun and rewarding experience, one that has really boosted my nonprofit design portfolio and my confidence! :)

gerald & joan brand edit

When I began sketching out ideas for the new website, I looked at the entire Gerald & Joan brand -- logo, branding, marketing materials, services, blog, etc. I was happy with the overall feel of our branding, but I wanted to streamline and edit each of the elements before we headed into our second year. 

The major change in our branding was the switch from tan, brown and sepia to dusty grey,  vintage mint, black and white. After a year of working with an earthy color palette, I decided that incorporating black and white as a part of the new color palette would totally streamline the brand's look. The color combination of black and white is classic and fresh (think little black dress and pearls). I kept the dusty grey as an ode to the former color palette, and then I added the vintage mint as our statement color (continuing the LBD analogy, the mint represents the statement shoes). I think the resulting color palette is sheer perfection. 

When it came to selecting fonts, I knew I wanted something that would look great in print and on the web. Georgia was a no-brainer, and I loved the handwritten look that Homemade Apple Pro provided. When paired together, they strike a nice balance between vintage and classic.

The vertical line, ampersand and bird are our original brand elements, but they look completely different in mint. The white bird in the mint circle is my favorite motif. The final touch was the addition of the 1940s black and white photograph of Joan. Vintage photography has been an important part of the G&J story since our beginning, so it made sense to use a vintage family photograph as a brand element. Additional photographs (some black and white, some color) are featured on the interior pages of the website. Like the fonts and color palette, the photographs feel both vintage and timeless. I love how they pop against the website's white background. 

I was really thrilled with the results of Gerald & Joan's first brand edit, and I'm getting ready to apply them to our marketing materials. I will share the results soon!

Do you need help wtih personal, business or nonprofit branding? We're here if you need us!