Concept Design

A special Sunday bonus for all my readers and followers...

While I love designing softlines and apparel my other passion when it comes to consumer products is social stationery. My first job out of college was working in the social stationery category as a product developer, line designer and licensing coordinator (I wore many hats). I worked on a daily basis with such fun companies like Disney Consumer Products, DreamWorks Animation, Sony Animation and Nickelodeon.

When I'm not dreaming up Retro '71 apparel designs I'm dreaming up other products such as social stationery that goes along with the brand. Here's a concept for a set of fine writing pens based on retro art and logos for one of our all time favorite attractions, the Haunted Mansion. While the designs are complete, I've not had time to work up the packaging, but I envision a coffin shaped, spring-hinged box with purple velvet lining. The coffin case would be black leather with the Mansions logo embossed, possibly with some Rolly Crump-esque Mansion flourishes.

 

So what do you think? Would you through down 40 bucks for this Haunted Mansion Frighteningly Fine Writing Pen set? Let me know in the comments section! I have another series based on another attraction but I'll save that for another time.

Autopia, Grand Prix Raceway, Tomorrowland Indy Raceway, etc.

Welcome back to another Designerland typography case study. This week we will look at the fonts and typefaces used to brand Autopia, aka Grand Prix Raceway, aka Tomorrowland (Indy) Speedway, aka Grand Circuit Raceway. As you can see, this one attraction has gone through a series of names and rebranding, depending on which park you're visiting.

The original attraction, Autopia, was designed for Disneyland for opening day in 1955. The attraction allows guests to drive through an enclosed track in specially designed cars from   legendary Imagineer, Bob Gurr. Each incarnation across the globe is stationed in Tomorrowland . . . except for Disneyland Paris, which features its version in Discoveryland. Over the years, the sponsors changed hands, and therefore so did the look, mostly in the signage and place-finding graphics.

When looking back at the signage and posters, Disney's designers stayed true to the branding for Tomorrowland with the classic modern sans serif typefaces. However, when the Walt Disney World Resort opened in the 70's, the designers also snuck in a few 70's futuristic and groovy display fonts. The classic typefaces and fonts stood the test of time until the early 90's when both Disneyland and Walt Disney Worlds' attractions received an update. Designers now used heavily-modified display fonts that incorporated both a futuristic feel as well as fonts that conveyed the feeling of high speed.  The branding of this attraction seems to be all over the place, from retro to classic, display to modern. This one attraction has seen almost every kind of font. 

 

Well that does it for this week’s case study. Tune in next week for another Retro ’71 shirt, which is the final installment of our Epcot World Showcase series. I look forward to seeing you soon and have a great week.

In the Wild

Cory tweeted me this pic of himself enjoying a tasty pineapple float so I thought I'd share it with you all.  Thanks for shooting it my way and for the support. 

I still get about 5 emails a week in regards to if I'm ever going to do another run of the shirts...it's getting to the point that I might just consider it. ;)  I have ideas for some new shirts that would be able to buy come this spring. Stay tuned and see you tomorrow evening for a new Designerland Attraction Typography Case Study!!!!

China

Welcome back to another edition of the Retro '71 Apparel Line. This week our Journey around the World Showcase almost comes to an end but before the adventure is complete we have two countries left to visit.  This week we'll be visiting China.

Look upon the splendor of the scene - an enchanted garden with bamboo, willows, lotus ponds, and meandering walkways set against a graceful backdrop of buildings with Oriental tiled roofs of blue, green and ochre, all framed by the great "Gate of the Golden Sun." We have arrived in China, ageless and enticing.

Let the "Hall of Prayer for Good Harvests" (modeled after the celebrated structure at the Temple of Heaven Park in Beijing) beckon us, for inside it, the 8th century poet-storyteller Li Bai magically appears on screen to guide us on a magnificent journey - Wonders of China. Here we'll see rare views of the dramatic landscapes, architecture, and culture of China, even a glimpse inside the "Forbidden City."

And be certain to find the "Street of Good Fortune," for along it, a calligrapher will be happy to show you how your name looks when it's written in Chinese.

Once again following suit, this week’s design incorporates China's logo in a similar fashion as the previous shirts. The colors are inspired by the Chinese flag . Finishing the design is some slight wear and tear with a textured finish, which ties it into the branding and overall vision of the Retro '71 apparel line. 

But wait there's more to this weeks post!!! After doing my research and being inspired by the clever brochure copy I decided to create a companion piece for China, very much like my Canada post. For my second shirt I designed a tongue-in-cheek concept based on the "Street of Good Fortune" found within China's pavilion. 

I incorporated some cliche elements into this shirt but feel that it stays true to the vintage Retro '71 apparel line.  

Well that does it for this week’s edition of the Retro '71 World Showcase shirts. Looking forward to seeing you back here next Sunday as we delve into another attraction typography case study from the Magic Kingdom. Thanks for stopping by and have a great week!

New Look for a New Year

Thoughts? It took me some time to get Bookman Swash to work for me when designing the new logo. Overall I think it's a nice homage to the Magic Kingdom logo.

UPDATE!!!

Another font was found just today that should of been included in Sundays post! Sorry, once again my typeractive tendencies got the best of me and I just had to let you all know!!!

Sorcerers of the Magic Kingdom

 

Welcome back to another Designerland attraction typography case study.  This week's post is something special because we'll be looking at the early typography used for the interactive, role-playing, next-gen adventure game, Sorcerers of the Magic Kingdom.

Sorcerers of the Magic Kingdom is a game in which the guests become heroes with the objective to defeat the Disney villains who are working to take over the Magic Kingdom. Armed with spells in the form of playing cards, guests must search for magic symbols throughout the Kingdom which will lead them to the villains’ hiding places. By casting different magical spell cards, guests can do battle with classic Disney villains hiding throughout the land. From fireballs to cyclones, there are different spells to bring down each and every villain, with a simple flick of the wrist.

 

Since this interactive adventure is new, there's not too much typography to look at. Most of the typography we see is on the spell cards and of course the main logo. Starting with the logo, the designer was inspired by arts & crafts style lettering but hand manipulated it, adding distressed edging and flourishes to give the feel of fantasy. They also used a widely popular Pixar typeface but again changed it up by adding the distressed edging and calligraphy-like strokes to give the impression of hand lettering.

When looking at the land maps, one display font is used heavily to give the feel of an old illuminated manuscript...even though it's a touch too heavy. The designer(s) once again took liberties by adding extreme flourishes to the headlines on the maps but kept the original font intact for body copy. While using display fonts to set entire passages of body copy is an extreme no-no in the world of design, this is one case in which the rules are meant to be broken—after all, old world mystical maps wouldn't use Helvetica now would they? When looking at the magical spell cards, the designer(s) once again used the same display font as seen on the maps, which ties the two together, creating a cohesive font palette. They also used the original (non-hand-manipulated) typeface from the logo.

 

I hope to see more place-finding / signage in the future for this new interactive adventure, and hopefully we’ll see them in Fantasyland where all these wonderful fonts and typefaces belong. Well that does if for this week’s post. Hope you all have a great week and see you back here next Sunday for a new Retro '71 shirt design. Until then, thanks for stopping by.