Westwynd Gardens
Westwynd Gardens is a new wedding and event venue in Pennsylvania. They came to Homeward looking for a full brand identity and website so they could promote their venue when construction began. They needed a brand image that would align with the serene landscape the venue provides for its visitors.
THE CLIENT
Brand identity design
Showit template customization
BRAND TONE
Enchanting, Serene, Kind, Comforting, Dependable, Romantic
SERVICES
The Strategy
Westwynd Garden's primary feature is a stunning greenhouse where guests can host an "outdoor" event, no matter the weather. We wanted to capitalize on the nature-inspired feeling the greenhouse provides by creating a brand identity that felt organic and natural.
We also examined several competing event spaces in their area, and found a common theme. Most of the surrounding venues had logos with extremely detailed illustrations and/or ornate details -- sweeping script fonts, swirls, realistic full-color drawings. While this wasn't always a bad thing, we determined to do something different to make Westwynd stand out from the rest.
Creative Direction
The logos, color palette, and fonts needed to stand out from local competitors and align with Westwynd's landscape and style.
HAND-DRAWN ILLUSTRATIONS
We wanted to add more of a down-to-earth and personal touch to the visual identity through hand-drawn illustrative elements. To avoid feeling ornate, we would keep things relatively minimal, not too much detail, with imperfect textured lines to make them feel more organic.
A custom logotype
To avoid the common theme of ornate and illustration-based logos from their competitors, Westwynd's primary logos would be typography based. The primary font needed to feel natural and organic while also maintaining a clean and simplified look.
Customized the font by adding a curve to the end of the W and the G that looks like a leaf bud – further emphasizing the connection to nature.
A classic serif font in all capital letters feels trustworthy and a little romantic, and the slightly thicker weight of the letters will be easy to read from a distance (i.e. on building signage). The corners of each letter are slightly rounded rather than sharp to help the logo feel less "luxury," and more friendly, and the inside corners are rounded to make it feel more organic, similar to the effect an ink bleed would have if it were written by hand.
Custom Brand Pattern
Westwynd's brand pattern was created using illustrations of an Anemone flower. They get their name from the Greek word for "daughter of the wind," which is why they're commonly called windflowers.
With "wynd" as part of the brand name, we thought it was fitting to use a flower that represented the wind – and varieties of windflowers also grow in Pennsylvania.
The textured background is reminiscent of old photo albums to add a touch of nostalgia and warmth.
The Website Challenge
Westwynd's website posed a bit of a challenge. They needed a working website in order to start gaining interest and (eventually) booking tours and events. But because the venue was under construction, they didn't have any photos of the actual venue or past events.
So to make the site work for now (and leave room for growth when they DO have photos in the future), we used curated stock images where necessary, allowing the client to easily swap out the images when they're ready.
Website Strategy
We rearranged the base template (”Vesper” by Tonic Site Shop*) and temporarily hid several of the canvases, so they could easily go back and add them when they have more photos and details.
The site’s design aligns with the brand identity as whole. The headings across the site use an editorial serif that feels romantic and minimal, combined with a transitional style serif font for paragraphs that feels casual and warm.
*Affiliate link. Use code HOMEWARD for 15% your Tonic purchase.
"Vesper" template by TONIC
SHOWIT TEMPLATE AFTER CUSTOMIZATION
SHOWIT TEMPLATE BEFORE CUSTOMIZATION
