At the beginning of my logo design process, when I ask my clients to select up to five aesthetic qualities that are most important to their brand, clients most often choose “elegant”. We can all tell that something is elegant when we see it, but what specific graphic design choices create that effect?
Reading: How to create a simple and elegant logo
In this article I have explained the 5 most important guidelines to make elegant logo designs. There are exceptions to each of these rules because sometimes we need to balance aesthetic qualities that seem to be on opposite ends of the spectrum. In this case, the elegance is usually emphasized by another part of the design. However, this is always a good starting point.
1. Elegant brand identities have limited color palettes
The most elegant color combination is black and white, specifically white letters on a black background. This combination is often used in brands of luxury products such as cars, watches and jewellery, sometimes with touches of gold or silver.
Muted Law Firm Logo Color Palette and Brand Identity
It does It doesn’t mean that elegant brands should not use chromatic (rainbow) colors at all. Your brand will be more easily differentiated from the competition if it features a main color that is different from what everyone else is using. However, the overall color palette should tend toward muted/monochromatic, with at most one highly saturated color.
All colors can be elegant in the right context, but some are more difficult to combine in this way. While dark grey, navy blue, beige and deep purple are quite elegant in and of themselves, neon green and bright red are not known for being so. If you choose a light, rich color for your palette, only use it for highlights, but never on large areas if you want to look elegant.
The logo and brand identity of an IP law firm features a strong accent color , but the rest of the palette is neutral
This brand identity features a strong warm accent color in the monogram, but is always surrounded by neutral colors. A dark, cool, unsaturated color dominates the brand applications, which is emphasized in the brand style guide so that nobody makes the mistake of using the coral red color extensively.
2. Elegant logos use a single font style
The fewer fonts you include in the logo design, the more elegant it looks. While there are exceptions, you really have to ask yourself: is it really necessary to add another font? What will this do and how will it affect the perception of elegance?
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One exception I see quite often is the combination of a script font for a word in the name, and a sans -Serif for another smaller word below. This can look good, if maybe too trendy.
The overall brand identity can and should have more than one font in multiple font styles because one font alone would look too boring. We typically use one font for headings and quotation marks, and a different font for paragraphs, lists, tables, and other smaller text. But for the logo itself, less is definitely more.
3. Thinner fonts look more elegant than bold ones.
A thinner font (regular, light, or extra light) looks more elegant than a bold one (bold, black, or extra black). But be careful, logos that are too thin are difficult to read at small sizes.
Exceptions are high-contrast serif, sans-serif and cursive fonts, which somehow make it to be bold and elegant at the same time, and are often used in fashion magazines.The logo I made for a hotel consultant is like this because the client wanted it to be elegant yet bold.(She is also a fashionable woman with an elegant style, so the subtle nod to fashion magazines was intentional.)
Big and chunky logos make an impression, but are not considered elegant.
4. Elegant Logos feature simple graphic symbols
The most elegant symbols are silhouettes and monochromatic line art. They are also easily reproduced in any medium n: digital apps, offset printing, screen printing, embroidery, laser cutting, etching…
If a logo has too much detail, it looks more like an illustration. Typically, emblems of organizations (such as government organizations, universities, or sports teams) do not look elegant because they are too complex. Fortunately, in recent years many organizations have recognized the importance of using simple symbols in digital media and have started simplifying their old-fashioned emblems.
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The family-run glass manufacturing company Rückl has Redesigned their traditional stork emblem in 2017 and this new version looks fabulous on both their website and their glassware.
Creating symbols that are unique, easy to recognize, yet simple is not easy task. Take away too much and it can look too bland. Add too much detail and it’s a mess. It takes a lot of skill to achieve the perfect balance between character and simplicity.
5. Elegant logos don’t use graphic “effects”
Many young designers go through a phase where they add Illustrator effects to their designs to make them look more “impressive”, like reflections, drop shadows, gradients, 3D extrusion, etc .But it’s not very impressive. It often looks cheap and tacky, which is the opposite of elegant.
Clever design solutions are rarely achieved through automatic effects in the design software, but are carefully constructed by hand. Even when a If the logo has some sort of shadow, mirror, or 3D effect, it’s probably not the default effect you’ll find in Illustrator.
Automakers are moving away from the skeuomorphic 3D metal hood ornament look , and simplify their logos into solid forms.
Elegance is usually achieved by removing all superfluous details that do not add to the meaning of the logo. There may be times when an extra flair is in demand, but we have to ask ourselves whether the logo is really better suited for it.
Is elegance a must for r every logo?
Elegance is just one of many potential brand aesthetic qualities, and it’s not always the one we need to strive for. The choice of logo design depends on the brand’s core values, unique value proposition, brand voice and target audience.
There is no single aesthetic quality that is right for every brand. That said, if elegance is one of your five most important brand qualities, now you know how to achieve it.
For more graphic design tips, check out my article: Top 11 Easy to Fix Ones Beginner Design Mistakes (With Visual Examples)
Looking for an elegant logo design for your business?
I help consulting firms increase their visibility and impact, my signature human-centric branding approach. For more information on how we can work together, see my Brand Identity Design Services.
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