Hang Tags, Clothing Tags, and Illustrations

Mmm, the leaves outside my bedroom window are starting to tinge with yellows and reds, as the colors slowly drain from their tips, drooping ever so slightly and bowing their heads for the inevitable change of Fall. There is a crispness in the air here, the scent that can only be natural and rural hinted in the breeze. The lake down the street has started to still, to calm, the gently ebb and flow of the waves lapping at the grainy sands, softly marking time. I walked along the shore today with one of my best friends, for the first time in a long time, having not seen her and realized how much I missed her company. I've missed watching her in nature, the way she moves and glides over things, eyes always fixed on the details of everything from the scars of rocks on the shore, to the texture of bright green moss tucked in its crevices. Anyone else might look at her and think she's simply inspecting, eyes the color of snow bright with curiosity, moving her along to the hum of the waves and the cries of birds overhead. But I could hear it, see it, her mind buzzing as I could look at her and know she was creating beautiful illustrations in her head. In truth, with my back towards her as we sat on the rocks looking out at the lake, in stillness and quiet, I knew I was at peace, settled, content. I haven't felt that way in such a long time, it gave me strength.

For the past few months, I have been in a kind of haze of grief and sadness, having lost someone I loved deeply for many years, knowing I had to give up that feeling of them being my home. Never in my life have I felt so lost. The fact that I have gotten quite sick again the last couple of weeks has only made my soul and heart darken, but after this visit I hope to pick myself up as I really can't afford for the pneumonia to return.

I have been trying, my dear readers, to think of what to write or to be able to show you new creations but in my state, I must say what I have been working on has been terribly slow, or have simply not had the heart to do anything at all. I've buried myself in books again, which has been lovely to get back to after so many years of not being able or having time to do so. Currently, I am re-reading, Jasper Fforde's, The Fourth Bear, a nursery crime novel series, that follow the investigations of Detective Jack Spratt. (Yes, all the characters are from fairy tales or nursery rhymes!)

Illustration from "The Fourth Bear"

Recently, I also decided that it would be good for me to get a move on conceptualizing, illustrating, and otherwise creating the hang tags that I wanted to be able to include with shipments of Pop Princess designs. Also, I thought it was about time for a revamp of my logo, so I went into Illustrator and got to work. I thought you might be interested in seeing them, as well as initial sketches.

In the beginning, my logo was simply a mint ribbon much with the same shape as the top version and a crown that was similar but with a cross on the top. I wanted the new logo to be a little more streamlined and feature more depth as well as some visual intricacies. I decided to add shading, as well as the stripes to a more rounded ribbon shape, and gave more detail to the crown. I decided to replace the crucifix with a heart because I remembered reading that in certain areas and cultures of the world, it's against some religions to be able to wear anything with that symbol, and that prevented a lot of girls from wearing Angelic Pretty because of the cross. Plus... hearts are cuter! Then it was only to decide between loose, or compact!

Final, initial sketch

One of the main features in my portfolio was a completed silhouette illustration using the main colors of my brand: mint x pink x white. I enjoyed the simplicity of it so much, having always favored block colors, that I wanted that again for my hang tags. Since the illustration would be minimal, I could leave the sketch rather loose and fluid, which for me is easier to accomplish in ball point pen, as that's how I do all my art work in the start.

B/W Version

When working on silhouettes, I find it's easier to work in black and white to begin with and once you've finished, then to change in color as the details are so much easier to see. I did everything with the pen tool, as that's how I was taught when taking electronic illustration classes and I find it works easier for me than say, a tablet. The crown and mirror were done as separate Illustrator files, and then imported into this design so I get all the itty bitty details in on a larger scale!

In my mind, I think that once day if I were ever to have enough money... I would adore the get the crown and the mirror printed in a hot foil so they shimmered against the background of the card. (Just like how the gold in Innocent World or BTSSB is metallic!) It would be oh so pretty! I decided to go with Moo.com as this is also the place that I had my illustrated business cards printed, and I loved the texture, smoothness, and detail of their card stock and printing abilities. (Plus, I had a $15 dollar "moo-lah credit" so the whole pack of 50 only costed $5.79! *o*) And.... the reveal.....

^-^ I am really thrilled with the way they turned out!! It makes me feel like a super legit indie brand, ha ha, and I appreciate that they retain such detail after being scaled and printed as well. I am picturing a pearly 1/8 of an inch white cording and tiny gold safety pins for attaching the hang tags. So the next person that buys a Pop Princess garment gets the first new hang tag! My next step will be embroidered/woven clothing tags... having the actual custom logo done would be quite expensive so I am currently researching options that would simple but still professional.

I hope you enjoy these, and I promise as soon as my health is back there are beautiful garments to be made and many new fabrics to be shared! <3 Sometimes I wish I had an assistant! ; o ; xoxo