Creative Design For Products and Packaging
Eco-Friendly Bio-Degradable Jute Bags
Photography by Shared Earth UK
Reusable Eco-Friendly Rice Husk Drinks Cups
Photography by Shared Earth UK
Botanical Illustrative Designs For Natural Handmade Candles, Soaps and Gift Boxes
Design Copyright Laura Thompson Design & Illustration, exclusively licensed to The Scented Candle Studio
Designs For Eco-Friendly Jute Bags
Bold and vibrant designs created for screen printed jute shopping bags, manufactured by Earth Bags in Kolkata, India, for fair trade company Shared Earth. This heavy duty jute natural versatile fiber is biodegradable and environmental friendly. From a design perspective, there are some limitations in terms of the detail that can be achieved in the design, so bold, graphic and clear imagery is key. To achieve a cost effective result for the product, it is important to restrict the colour palette as each colour is printed from a separate screen which adds to the time to create and cost of materials. Other considerations in the design process included the background dyed colour of the jute, the handle and side colour or print. The resulting designs have a block graphic style, with the majority placement designs and a few all over surface pattern repeats to add variety. The designs featured predominantly animal and wildlife themed which fit with Shared Earth's brand and core values, with other commercial decorative floral and geometric repeating surface designs.
Go-Sip Rice Husk Eco Cups Designs
A collection of nature-inspired designs created for Shared Earth. Wildlife and botanical surface pattern designs featured on this eco-friendly product range which has done very well across the UK, having been wholesaled into a variety of fair-trade and eco-conscious independent shopping outlets. The eco cup range is a mix of hand painted watercolour designs and some digitally created surface pattern designs. This project had particular design considerations; the placement of the design motifs and the scale of the overall repeating pattern design was important to ensure that the central silicone heat protection band did not obscure the design too much. Another design challenge with this freelance illustration project was that the truncated cone shape of the product meant that the design had to be appropriately warped from top to bottom to make sure overall the design appeared balanced - a bit like a visual illusion, while maintaining the repeat pattern to join at one side of the eco coffee cup.
Botanical Illustrations - Wildflowers and Bees Drawings
Detailed black and white etching-style botanical illustrations for a gift box range of luxury natural candles and soaps. The wildflower and bee illustrations were carefully designed and hand drawn, then a range of shading applied using fine archival ink pens of varying thicknesses. As well as differing line widths, shading and texture was achieved with cross-hatching drawing techniques to create depth.
These bespoke illustrations were then vectorised using Adobe Illustrator software to then be applied to the product range of soaps and beeswax wraps with accompanying information cards, notecards and packaging box stickers. As well as the illustrations, the designs for the labelling were created and communicated to and proofed on behalf of the client with the chosen printing manufacturers.
It is a delight to work with another eco-friendly and conservation orientated business, creating detailed botanical illustrations to adorn the packaging of the new product range of gift boxes. 5% of the sales from the gift boxes are donated to The Bumblebee Conservation Trust and The British Beekeepers Association.
The wildflower seeds included in the range are also all varieties that are encouraged by the RHS Plants for Pollinators.
Designing Fairtrade, Eco-friendly and Sustainable Products
During my graphic design career, I have had the pleasure of developing product ranges with oversees suppliers in the eco-conscious and Fair Trade sector, working with skilled craftspeople and artisans from around the world, who worked with a range of traditional techniques. From wood carvers, jewellery makers, screen printers, textiles crafts to ceramists and even dream catcher makers! I designed and developed product and offered design advice from a UK market perspective to help create new unique products, while building an understanding of the practicalities and limitations when working with particular products and traditional techniques. I was also fortunate in this time to travel oversees to visit suppliers in Thailand and Bali on research and buying trips.
For more information visit: www.sharedearth.co.uk