hey, look!

That's us! We were delighted to open up our current issue of Chico Statements magazine and see a little shout out to our design business.

Thanks for the support, Chico!

louisiana oncology

Creating business identities is still one of our favorite projects to work on. Did you know since opening Different By Design we've created 23 unique business identities for different clients?

This is one of our latest logo designs for Louisiana Oncology. Louisiana Oncology needed a logo design that was simple, scalable, unique, and reflective of their state of the art, professional facility. We chose restful earth tones for the color palette to compliment their facility's interior and created a unique and memorable emblem using an abstract "L" and "O" to reinforce the initials of their business name.  

clark & conley

Seriously where has the time gone?! Are we really in November? Life and business has been moving so incredibly fast!

We were recently commissioned to design an identity for a local family owned and operated Christmas tree lot.

We had a lot of fun with these two families. Here are the two concepts we designed for them...one is more clean, modern, and playful while the other concept is more nostalgic and traditional feeling.

If you live in the Yuba Sutter area, we encourage you to shop local, support small business, and support  local families! Clark & Conley Christmas Trees will be opening on Black Friday and you can find them on Bogue Road next to North Valley Calvary Chapel. Why not make your tree a Clark & Conley? :)

promotional postcards we also designed 

well said, hank_scorpio

When looking for a designer to create a logo for your business, there are several important factors to consider when determining if you should trust the designer in question with your company's image.

While we don't discuss all those factors today, I did want to touch base on choosing a designer that will create your logo in a vector program (such as Adobe Illustrator) vs. Photoshop or another similar program.

We actually have had a good amount of design work come in from clients that had logo designs (not through us) that were not in a vector format and they not only paid another designer for that logo, they were now paying us to vectorize that logo for them so that they could actually use their logo (many printers will ask for the vector file of your logo).

Nearly every single thing we design at Different By Design is in Adobe Illustrator.

We have our own (similar..but more professional :)) explanation as to why we use Illustrator vs. Photoshop, but today I came across this little gem on the Graphic Design Form site... and um...yeah...I might just start going with what he says from now on.

Here is his response to someone who wanted to start designing logos for a living but didn't understand why he needed to learn a vector program if he could just make a big file in Photoshop:

Thanks for the laugh, Hank_Scorpio! All joking aside, he does a great job making his point.

So. When you are looking to work with a graphic designer, find one that has the capabilities and knowledge to use the right tool for the job.

tuff stuff jerky company

While Tuff Stuff Jerky Company has been around for as long as I can remember, it recently went under the new ownership of Pete Stocker.

Pete contacted us shortly after taking over and wanted to find a way to keep using the iconic "Tuffy" logo but in a refreshing, more modern, clean way.

We started out by cleaning up some of the lines on Tuffy and we played with a couple ideas Pete had...how about that cigar smoking Tuffy? :)

We then set out designing new labels for the jerky packaging. As you can see the old labels were rather gaudy and cluttered and they didn't do a good job of portraying the fact that Tuff Stuff Jerky is actually an all natural jerky, free of artificial ingredients, nitrites, and MSG.

We also wanted to make a clear distinction between flavors because there's nothing worse than accidentally buying one flavor when you wanted another because the packaging doesn't do a good job of distinguishing between different flavors!

The evolution of Tuffy.

Old label.

Picture by Sunflower Natural Foods Market, where you can purchase Tuff Stuff jerky.

Photo of the new labels we designed.

We are now currently in the process of getting a web site going for Tuff Stuff Jerky Company and getting Pete some new business cards that will match the updated look of his company. 

Thanks for thinking Different By Design, Tuff Stuff Jerky Company!

Bright Futures

We recently had the honor of working with the lovely ladies over at the Sutter County Children & Families Commission again.

We designed business cards for them several months ago and more recently they came to us for a 4'x8' banner and 6" circle postcards for a conference they are attending this month.

While we did not design their logo, we wanted to keep in being consistent with their color palette so we continued using primary colors and green in their collateral.

Probably the number one mistake we see small business owners make the most often in their marketing is not staying consistent. Everything from changing your logo colors with each new season or color trend to using multiple fonts that are not cohesive to your brand image weakens your marketing efforts.

We thoroughly enjoyed the challenge of finding a fun and playful way to continue enforcing the Bright Futures and Sutter County Children & Families Commission's branding in a refreshing way. We chose to use "block" shapes on the poster to also play off the wording of "building" bright futures and we love how the imagery and bright colors is appropriate for the audience as well as being eye catching.

You can learn more about the free services they offer through their Bright Futures program over at www.sutterkids.org

welcome to the world

It is with great pleasure and pride we announce the arrival of the newest member of the Different By Design family.

Lily Grace Wilson

joined us on 7.7.12 at 2:58 am, weighing 7 pounds, 5 ounces and 20 inches in length.

We are over the moon in love.

marquez & carlos

Our friend and client Tony Carlos recently went into private practice with another local lawyer.

We haven't really worked on any official branding with Tony for the law firm, but he was in a hurry to have some new business cards and it was a pleasure to work with him on them!

Thanks again for your business, Tony! We appreciate you and congratulations on making junior partner!

baby girl

Excuse our silence in keeping posts current with new work...we've been a little preoccupied preparing for the arrival of our final baby!

We recently designed these 5x5 baby shower invitations for our daughter. We printed them onto water color paper to give the invitations a bit of texture, then continued the theme of the invites over into the party favors using our favorite Japanese washi tape!



We'll be back to regular posting soon!

surprise!

We recently threw a surprise birthday party! My mother turned 50 years old and we thought it would be special to gather her family together to celebrate those 50 years! My mom is half Japanese and so we kept that part of her heritage in mind while designing these invitations. We also wanted to include some pictures of her throughout the years...we were short on time, but I think they turned out great!

Happy 50th, mom!

mtr photography studio

Web advertisement we designed for MTR Photography Studio here in Yuba City, California. We love working with Michelle and her staff! While MTR Photography Studio has taken adorable photos of our boys over the past couple years, we recently stepped in front of the camera ourselves to capture our last pregnancy!

MTR Photography Studio did an amazing job capturing this moment in time for us. In fact, we're certain if you book a Mother's Day Mini Session you too will be thrilled to have these fleeting moments saved in time. Thanks again for your business, MTR Photography Studio! We appreciate you!

jennifer + joseph

Recently one of our past bridal clients shared these special images with us from her big day!

Her sweet groom took the j & j cattle brand monogram we created for their custom designed wedding stationery and had one actually made for a decoration.

Isn't that just too perfect?

Congratulations again to the happy couple. They were such a fun pair to work with!

While our focus is on helping small businesses build strong brands, we occasionally take on personal projects as well! Please feel free to inquire if you have a special project in mind!

sunrise motors

We recently had the honor of creating a new logo design and accompanying collateral for local car dealership Sunrise Motors.

Ezra, the owner of Sunrise Motors, felt that his current logo design felt too "mom and pop" and he wanted to step up the businesses' image by having a logo design that was distinct and memorable. He was open to anything and just asked that we keep with the yellow and black color palette he was already using.

The new logo design we created moved Sunrise Motors away from using only a logotype by also incorporating a distinct emblem into the new logo. We cleverly combined the Sunrise Motors initials, S and M, into a shape reminiscent of both a car steering wheel and popular car logos.

We also took Ezra's idea for a clean, simple billboard and created this billboard design which can be seen at their HWY 99 and Bogue Road location in Yuba City, California.

We're currently working on other business collateral for Sunrise Motors and we can't wait for everything to come into alignment with his new branding. Thanks for thinking Different By Design, Sunrise Motors!

identity design

Pulled a late night at the studio preparing for tomorrow's logo presentation.

Identity designing is probably our number one design love.

There's just something about creating a perfect visual identity for both start up businesses and established businesses that are looking to rebrand or invest in branding for the first time!

Here's a few samples of some of the logos we have designed. Not only do we have a thorough design process, everything we create is original and designed with your business needs in mind. We take pride in designing "on purpose" unlike the thoughtless clip art logo designs that seem so prevalent in today's markets.

If you're interested in branding your business, give us a call! We'd love to talk to you about how a strong brand image and visual identity can grow your business!

530.790.5762

packaging love-Target

If you've followed our blog our FB for some time then you are quite aware that we are suckers for Target and for good packaging...which seem to actually go hand in hand.

The other night as we were walking the aisles of Target we couldn't help but notice how these products "jumped" off the shelves. They put their mediocre (and even badly designed) competition to shame.

To the left is Help Remedies medicine kits with EOS organic lip balms on the right. Great packaging, great products, great design, and great prices. What's not to love?

sweet addalie-custom invitations

At Different By Design our focus is on helping businesses build strong brands.

With that said, every so often a sweet little personal request ends up our way and we have to of course say "yes!"!

For example, we had so much fun designing birth announcements for miss Addalie, how could we resist designing her 1st birthday invitations? We also had the honor of designing her big brother's 1st and 2nd birthday invitations as well...we love this family!

Addalie is having a dessert birthday and if I know her mother (which I think I do!) I know it's just going to be over the top perfection.

Happy Birthday Addalie!

tim collom-realtor

We recently had the honor of designing some business collateral for Sacramento realtor Tim Collom.

Tim is not your average real estate agent and so he needed business collateral that would help him stand out in a sea of standard 4x6 postcards and boring proposals. We were more than happy to give him a professional graphic image to match his professional personal image!

Here are the 6x6 promotional postcards we designed for Tim...he had a great vision for simplicity and we loved that we were on the same page with the idea of "less is more".

We also designed a 5 page pdf proposal for Tim. We're keeping our fingers crossed for him and there's no doubt in our mind he would be perfect for the job! Here's the "title page" we created for the proposal.

Tim had a logo designed prior to working with us, but we were happy to take the colors he chose for his logo and continue them throughout his marketing to maintain a cohesive look to all his collateral.

Thanks for thinking Different By Design, Tim!

more moments to remember

We love that we get to work with Moments To Remember Photography Studio on a regular basis!

It has been well over a year since we initially launched the new logo design for MTR and developed a cohesive feel for both their print and web advertisements, building brand awareness and strengthening their image.

Here are two of the latest web advertisements we've designed. The girls at MTR do fabulous work, so if you are in the Yuba-Sutter area and contemplating booking a session or taking a camera class, don't hesitate!

hello february!

We've been busy little bees over at the studio...and it's true what they say. Time sure flies when you're having fun!

We recently designed these 4x6 promotional postcards for Moments To Remember Photography Studio. We first began their rebranding in 2010 and it has been a pleasure to continue working alongside them in guarding and promoting their new identity.

slide fire solutions-packaging design

Our studio has had the privilege to work with a United States gun stock manufacturer, Slide Fire Solutions, based in Texas on several design projects including lots of packaging design.

We carried a cohesive feel throughout this packaging to have a similar feel and color palette to some card headers we also designed for Slide Fire Solutions.

Color coding different products makes it easy for consumers to find the product they are looking for and it also serves to help the packaging jump off the shelf and be more memorable compared to other gun stock packaging.

We also kept some of the elements they were already using in their designs (including the American flag) as to keep with brand recognition they had already gained through their repetive use of the flag and also as a nod to their patriotism to our great country and commitment to products made in the good ol' U S of A.

Here's a few snapshots we took and we'll have some better pictures up when our new website launches soon!

One of the card headers we designed (picture from Slide Fire Solutions).

The former packaging to the left (we did not design this) with the new packaging design we created to the right.

Different packaging we designed for two different products.

Brian Yerkes said, "Some designers create things to show you what they did. I designed things to tell you what I solved."

If you have a design problem you'd like for us to solve for you, including packaging design, stop by our studio at 546 B Yolo Street in Yuba City, California or contact us by phone at 530.790.5762.

hello 2012!

Hi everyone! We apologize for the silence over here on the blog lately...we've been busy working on client and studio projects and we forgot to come up for air!

We are currently preparing to launch our new improved and web site! Thought we'd share a very early sneak peek with you...can't wait till it's completed and launched with some help from our friends over at Tandem Web Solutions!

Hope 2012 has found you off to a great start!