Final Packaging

Here is the final outcome of my packaging.

Collection of shots of the packaging.

Looking back as I mentioned in the report I'm delighted with the final outcome of my packaging. I feel it captures all the characteristics I wanted to portray in the packaging and I feel the packaging compliments the two companies well. I adore the level of consistency of the development of the packaging and I feel that shows in the final outcome. However some slight issues I've encountered with the final outcome. Looking at it I do feel the packaging arguably would in the end of benefited from some sort of window. As I feel on the shelf if you don't look at the tags you wouldn't really know what the contents of the packaging are. I also feel the engravings could have been done better and although I wanted a minimal face maybe I could have included some more illustrations on the face. However it is only a concept and if I was to take it forward they would be things I'd consider.

Digitised Visuals

I decided against mocking up digital versions of my packaging instead focusing and using my time elsewhere in areas I feel will benefit from more attention. I feel that my hand-drawn concepts offer just as much if not more detail than graphical versions of my packaging would have.

However I did take the liberty to design the recipe cards and the gift tags.

For the finalised versions I decided against using pictures of the products. My thinking behind this was I wanted the tags and card to give the appearance they have been hand rendered, with the scratchy font and rough, earthy textures. Giving the impression that each tag and card has been specifically written for each customer. Adding to the rustic essence of the packaging. Using a photo on the tags and cards I feel would dispel that vibe.

Tags

Recipe Card # 1

Recipe Card # 2

Recipe Card # 3

Finalised Design

Here is the finalised design for my packaging. I made some minor tweaks too the final package which I believe improve the package. I wont delve to much into the design and choices such as the illustrations, material etc as they I've mentioned these in abundance throughout the design process however I do feel I must note on the final changes and considerations made to the packaging.

Outside (face)

For the outside not much changed from previous iterations however I decided in a last minute consideration to remove the windows for the bottles. I believe in the end having no windows gives the face of the packaging a more simplistic,less cluttered, minimalist appeal. Speaking to the client of Wye they said that it isn't 'critical' to include windows for the packaging if I was to include a little tag or other way of informing the customer on the products inside the packaging. The tag will attach to the strong.

I really adore and I am delighted with the design for the face of the packaging, and captures everything I wanted from the packaging. A rustic, traditional, very stylistic package.

Inside

The inside of the packaging will still be packed in with straw keeping in with the rustic/hamper style of the packaging however due to the fact the windows have been removed there is no need to have the three compartments. This design change will also allow the recipe cards can lay flat in the box.

Sides

For the sides I still kept the lip for the draw for ease of use to pull out however I did take liberty to remove the logo carvings from the sides. My thinking behind this was when stood or lay down on the shelf you'd only be able to see one and it would have cost too much to carve on the face and the sides of the packaging. I will now attach the logos for the companies to the tags on the face of the packaging which I feel is a more suitable placement for the logos. 

Products to packaged in

After conducting brief research regarding the ales and condiments to package in I've come to the conclusion of what ale and condiment would be a suitable pairing. What I didn't want was two unique, different flavors that wouldn't deliver a complete 'package'.

I decided to package Wye's best selling ale, their HPA ale and the HPA steak ketchup. Pretty self explanatory why I decided to package these two products together.

Hereford Pale Ale (HPA)

HPA Steak Ketchup

Continued Development

As I'm pretty much set and happy with the packaging from a visual/aesthetics point of view, what I want to focus on now is subtle additions such as the gift tag idea and something to pack in with the products. I feel that packaging in a recipe book or series of recipe cards focusing on recipes using ales (steak and ale pie etc) and the kind of ingredients/condiments sold at Legges would work really well, an idea the client and Wye believe has a lot of potential.

Here I've just conducted a mind map on other items that could work well packaged in, bearing in mind the hamper appeal of the packaging.

Mind Map.

I really like the idea of designing and packaging in a series of recipe cards rather than a book. Much more simple, concise and would be much easier to produce and package in with the three items. Could even design the cards in a similar theme/style to the tag that will be attached to the packaging.

Tag Concepts

The tags will attach to the string that is wrapped  around the packaging. 

The tag (booklet) will be comprised of four pages with a colour scheme of four different shades of brown, I was tempted to use blacks and creams the colour scheme of Wye but I feel it wouldn't really compliment the package or deliver the rustic essence I feel that browns achieve. The front cover will bear a cut out of a barley illustration, again fitting in with the production of the ales and the hop vines that will illustrate the fact of the packaging. The second page will just be a lighter shade of brown with nothing on the page. This way the lighter page (shade) will be visible through the cut out of barley on the front cover delivering a subtle yet visually striking design choice. The third and fourth pages will bear the information of the ales and condiment that will be packaged in again both lighter shades of brown.

The recipe cards will be designed in a similar theme/style to the tags. they will again bear a colour scheme of five different shades of brown, a colour which I believe delivers a more rustic appeal. The five cards will attach together through string. The cards will use the illustrations that will be on the front of the packaging. I've decided to use a minimal, clean layout. Not too text heavy and tidy. I didn't want to use a cluttered design for the cards and tags similar to how my packaging is. The cards will also have a stylised illustration of for instance steak and ale pie matching up with the recipe. Simple but a nice addition rather than just a card full of text.

Here is how the tags and cards will look. Simple, subtle additions but I think will add character and deliver a more polished, complete package for Wye Valley and Legges. 

Materials/Construction of the packaging

The construction and build of the packaging is a major element of this brief but also for Wye Valley and Legges. Not just from an ecological and environmental perspective. There are many other issues to consider, such as, production, aesthetics, durability and cost. These are just a few key points that must be considered. Obviously the packaging being environmentally friendly is arguably the most important but it's crucial not to lose sight of other factors and issues to consider.

As my chosen material is wood I decided to research firstly, different types of wood that could be used for the packaging. Woods that would be available for me to use, weighing up the strengths and weaknesses of the woods available to me.

Plywood

Advantages

• Relatively cheap wood and readily available.
• Very strong wood. Much more stronger than similar thickness of wood, due to the built up fiber strands forming a cross pattern. Extremely durable.
• Comes in many different sizes.
• Very high strength to weight ratio.
• Doesn't corrode.
• Very easy to use. 

Disadvantages

• Can look quite cheap. This could be an issue with my packaging, especially as i'm going for rustic, traditional aesthetics. Possibly look in environmentally friendly wood finishes to combat this issue.
• Can expand when subject to a lot of moisture/heat.
• Some types of ply can be expensive.

MDF (Medium Density Fiberboard)

Advantages

• Very cheap and readily available
• Usually built from recyclable material.
• Very light and still quite strong.
• Dense and has no knots.
• Versatile wood.

Disadvantages

• Can split quite easily, especially when using nails and joints.
• Urea formaldehyde can be produced when cutting MDF. Which could cause irritation to eyes and lungs.

Ash

Advantages

• Beautiful wood
• Very easy to work with but requires a lot of treatment.
• Very strong wood.
• Versatile wood.

Disadvantages

• Quite expensive. Wouldn't really be practical from a business point of view to use such a wood, despite how beautiful it could look.
• Splinters very easily if not treated well.
• Prone to rotting within damp conditions.

Pine

Advantages

• Cheaper than the majority of softwoods
• As it is a softwood, easy to work with.
• Strength to weight ratio is very high.
• Ascendancy.

Disadvantages

• Seen as quite a low quality wood.
• Scratches and dents very easily.
• Soft nature of the wood is a huge disadvantage.

Redwood

Advantages

• Attractive wood.
• Very strong.
• Beautiful colour. Would look very effective for the packaging. Rich, red colour.
• One of the most durable woods, doesn't decay, expand, become brittle over time.

Disadvantages

• Fairly expensive
• Not the easiest wood to work with.
• Not as readily available as other woods such as plywood, MDF and pine. 
• Soft wood and needs a lot of maintenance. 

Chosen wood

After researching different types of woods i'm looking at crafting my packaging from either plywood or MDF. considering price of production, strength, thickness and weight for my packaging I feel that both these woods, are the most suitable wood to use. Both woods are very easy to work with and readily available. I could even be tempted with these woods to use an environmentally friendly varnish or finish to enhance the rustic appearance of the packaging. I would have loved to have used a wood such as ash or redwood but it was just too expensive and not practical from a business perspective, beautiful woods they may be but not suited to this brief. With plywood and MDF I believe can still deliver a beautiful package, possibly with the use of environmentally friendly wood stains/finishes. Once assessing the wood firsthand i'll then make a decision on whether to go for plywood or MDF.


Now I've made a decision of the type of wood the packaging wiill be made from, what needs to be identified now is how the box (packaging) is going to hold, join together. I've conducted research relating to different methods and techniques of wood joints and will asses what joint, method of construction will be best suited for my packaging. Bearing in mind the ecological consideration of the packaging. Wye would also prefer (not crucial) flat packing for storage and transportation, so a method where Wye would be able to easily construct the packaging themselves i'll certainly take into consideration.

Different Joints

With my packaging it has to be constructed obviously from an ecological perspective so bearing that in mind here are a couple of techniques I've researched in regard to assembling the packaging from an ecological standpoint.

Really interesting stuff I found here, regarding wood joints using no glue, nails and screws. I've exported the notes into a PDF.




http://www.rona.ca/rona/servlet/ContentServlet?assetId=37628&langId=-1&jspName=print_asset.jsp


Considering in principle that my packaging primarily is a box I feel dowel joints could be a really attractive option for me. I researched dowel joints a little further.

Dowel Joint

A dowel joint is a butt joint that has been reinforced with wooden pegs. A well-made dowel joint is as strong as a mortise and tenon joint. It is often used instead of the mortise and tenon joint if cost is a consideration in the assembly of the work. Dowel holes must be a perfect 90 degrees to the face of the work or the dowel will twist when assembled.

Advantages 

• Strong.
• Eliminates use of glue and nails.
• Cheap.
• Easy to use.
• Simple, easy to make but a very effective joint.
• ECO

Disadvantages

• Holes have to be accurate otherwise the dowels won't fit.

One major downside to using dowels for the assembly of this box is that the wood will have to be around an inch thick. This would bear major issues, to weight and size, along with cost

Nails (Recyclable)

There are nails out there that are 100% recyclable. I think using thin, steel panel pins would be another good choice. They will be 100% recyclable and fit in with the eco demographic of the brief.

They'll be cheap, easy to use and easy to get hold of.

Development

The concept that after consideration I decided to pursue was concept one. I believe that this design has the potential to produce a beautiful package and capture the characteristics that Wye and Legges were looking for in their packaging.

Here is my development of that concept.

Early rough notes and sketches of refinements and improvements to the design.

More detailed.

Outside of the packaging

With the outside of the packaging I decided to use to hop vine illustrations, in favor of one or a mix of barley and hops. My thoughts behind this design change was that I felt the vines shape and frame the package much better, delivering a more consistent visual and illustration on the face of the packaging. I just generally feel it looks much better with two vines and less cluttered. Bearing in mind a huge design characteristic of my packaging is its minimalist, simple style, it was important for me to not have a cluttered, busy face to the packaging. This is also an illustrative design that I feel will appeal more to females, with the embroidery style of the illustration. Taking into consideration that generally it will be females purchasing the products.

When it comes to the windows for the products, i'm still torn with how to combat this issue. Here again I have toyed with the idea of using square windows, which I believe work well, compliment the actual square shape of the packaging, look clean and modern. This is the style of window i'm leaning toward. I also again took into consideration, illustrating the vines in a way so they can merge into windows for the products inside.

However speaking to the client from Wye Valley, I asked them about this, what would they prefer or if having a window is even a critical element of the design. They said you could possibly incorporate a gift tag style menu, attaching it to the string that would display the products inside, like you see on boxes of chocolates. Bearing in mind that my design has that rustic, hamper vibe I was really intrigued by this and can see it working really well. I could even include this little book, gift tag feature with the packaging alongside windows as well, giving more concise, detailed information of the products or the companies themselves. This subtle touch and feature to the design I feel holds a lot potential and would be a really nice addition to the packaging.

Sides and Inside the packaging

Certainly looking at packing in a recipe book or something that would relate well to the theme and products being advertised, like a bottle opener, even a recipe card. A secondary use of the packaging and after discussing this also with the client is that due to the compartments, which primarily are included to house and align the labels to the windows, after the products have been taken out the packaging could be used to store condiments, recipes, kitchen appliances, even be used a rustic picnic box possibly?

Another couple of subtle changes I made was instead of including the logo's on the front of the packaging. (to combat cluttering the face of the packaging) I've decided it would be better including them on the sides. Carved or engraved into the wood. Also included a lip style cut out so it will be easier to pull out the drawer. 

Aesthetically and from a design perspective is 90% complete and really happy with how it's looking. The packaging has that premium edge to it and I feel is looking beautiful. However what I need to consider now and as I further develop my pacakging is the build and construction, especially from a ecological and environmental standpoint.