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I’ve been to one of my favourite cities again: London. What I probably love most here is the Camden Market. The atmosphere and the cool shops are a paradise for every lifestyle freak. Here are a few photos: #camden #camdenmarket #london #fashion #shopping

The Deutscher Verpackungspreis (German Packaging Prize) 2013 has been awarded. Here, I want to show you some of the winners. ABSOLUT UNIQUE Everybody knows the vodka brand ABSOLUT VODKA. In a very complex procedure, four million unique vodka bottles have been produced, whereas no bottle looks like another one. Different colour layers and patterns have made every bottle unique. The thought of giving every Absolut Vodka consumer an individually designed bottle (with collector’s value?) is outstanding. Submitter: Ardagh MP West France SAS Designer: Family Business Producer: Ardagh Group User: The Absolut Company COMBIDOME For this product, the advantages of cardboard packaging (low weight, easy to recycle, durable) are perfectly combined with the advantages of packaging for a bottle. Everyone who has used the ordinary standard carton, is well aware of the difficulties to try and get the last drops of a favourite drink. This unique, bottle-neck shaped design is the perfect solution. Submitter: SIG International Services GmbH Designer: SIG Combibloc Producer: SIG Combibloc User: riha Wesergold Getränke GmbH & Co. KG ALVERDE NATURKOSMETIK Okay, these packaging designs are not very outstanding. But, organic ingredients and the organic/health aspect play a major (sales) role for alverde Naturkosmetik (natural cosmetics). The cardboard box consists of 80% recycled material, it was printed with mineral oil free, organic offset print colours (only renewable raw materials were used for producing these colours). The CO2 footprint is 76% smaller than with ordinary cardboard boxes. The organic theme was spread over the entire packaging process, which resulted in being awarded. Submitter: Carl Edelmann GmbH Designer: khdesign GmbH Offenbach Producer: Carl Edelmann GmbH User: dm-drogerie markt GmbH & Co. KG CHOCOLÉ These chocolate sticks are fantastically presented thanks to a round can packaging design made of cardboard, it looks very inviting. The high convenience factor brought this innovative, yet simple looking design an award. Submitter: Griesson De Beukelaer GmbH & Co. KG Designer: Griesson De Beukelaer, Van Genechten Packaging Producer: Van Genechten Nicolaus, Köln User: Griesson De Beukelaer RED BULL ILLUME 2013 IMAGE QUEST This packaging design was used for promoting a photo contest for sports and action photography. When opening the box (kept together with a magnet), the word „enlightened“ lights up. At the same time you hear the sound of a flash. This experience takes you directly into the world of photography. Submitter: Karl Knauer KG Designer: zooom production GmbH (Gestalter), Karl Knauer KG (Entwickler) Producer: Karl Knauer KG, Rox Asia Consultancy Ltd. User: Red Bull #packaging

Over the Christmas and NYE holidays you can eat and drink a lot and spend a wonderful time with family and friends. However, this can also be quite hectic. These candles can help to relax: By the way: They also create a pleasant atmosphere in case you have to sit in front of the computer and work a lot during the holidays. Candles like these really make working much nicer. #candle #christmas #xmas

Illustrations are great. You’ll find out how great, once you enquire about an offer for the same where the price knocks you off your feet. Don’t get me wrong, illustrations that tell a story and do not just look like children paintings are wonderful and I’m a big fan of this. But, plasticine sculptures should become the next „big thing“ I think! More oomph, more fun and all that in a real, three-dimensional sculpture. I can only say: Thumbs up for plasticine! (Source: Neon magazine, sculpture by Sebastian Haslauer) Nicorette children campaign (DRAFTFCB KOBZA; Bronze Epica Award 2007) Land Rover Freelancer (TV spot) (Source: creativityhasnobounds.blogspot.com) Answer Car Insurance #plasticine #advertisement #print

My infographic "Heart Attacks on the Rise" that shows facts about heart attacks, their reasons, symptoms and how to prevent them, was thoroughly analyzed by infographicdatabase.com and got an in-depth design review. #infographic

The infamous Glastonbury festival takes place in Great Britain every year (this year from 25 to 29 June). I saw a poster with some confirmed live acts. As soon as I saw that poster, I thought of an advertisement for a BBQ sauce or a BBQ party. Black, red, white combined with Stencil like fonts is not really a good idea. What did the designer think when doing this? I would not want to know. Also, the official Glastonbury poster is a shock moment for the eyes. A pro could not have done this – maybe a designer that retired 10 years ago. But: The website definitely makes up for that design faux pas! A great and consistent typography scheme and colours that perfectly match make the website look just fantastic. It transports a vintage and hippie style feeling what stands for the festival. Poster: Flop Poster: Flop (BBQ sauce or festival? Who knows.) Website: Top! http://www.glastonburyfestivals.co.uk/ #glastonbury #festival #posterdesign

I saw many great things in my recent Thailand holiday: golden temples, white temples, emerald buddhas, spas in the jungle, tropical paradise beaches, living shrimp salad, stink fruit juice and many other funny things. As always when I travel, I was looking for outstanding designs and inspirations in Thailand. And once more it showed how important a consistent corporate design is. A corporate design guarantees a high value of brand recognition. Just take a look below: Despite the Thai font, I'm sure you know all these products (find the solution at the bottom of this blog post): Red Bull has a special status as it originally comes from Thailand (it was made big worldwide by the Austrian entrepreneur Mr. Mateschitz). The Thai Red Bull also tastes very different! As it's very hip in Thailand to be like a European (skin whitening creme, eye operation etc.), the canned Red Bull - as we know it - is sold as "European Import" in Thailand: Red Bull in the can: "Product of Europe" This is how the Thai Red Bull looks like. In our western culture, it reminds of medicine. As you saw in this blog post, a logo alone is not everything. Only a consistent corporate design concept guarantees a value of brand recognition and thus generates the client's trust in the product. If you need a corporate design, send me an email and I'm happy to help you. Solution product names (order like photos): Colgate Total, Fanta, Sprite, Coca Cola Zero, Danone Actimel. #branding #corporatedesign #packaging #thailand #logo

Companies spend thousands of Euros for print advertisements - some magazines even charge six-figure sums and maybe even more. Considering this, it is sad to see expensive advertisements placed wrong. The Indian Holi festival, infamous for its colourfulness, might have been the inspiration for the advert above. The viewer’s awareness is smartly brought directly onto the product (a car in this case) by using a frame. But: The whole frame should definitely be on the page and not bled-off. The focus on the product decreases. I cannot imagine that this was planned by the brand. The Tyrolean tourism region Hochgurgl booked a double-page advertisement in more or less the middle of a magazine. The claim was "Der Höhepunkt Tirols" ("The highlight of Tyrol" or "The peak of Tyrol" as the German word "Höhepunkt" can mean both). However, this claim was placed in the centre of the advert and, consequently, the claim "Der Höhepunkt Tirols" turned into "Der Höhept Tirols" which doesn’t make sense. It is not understandable why some companies hire professional photographers and pay for high-class advertisements, when they don’t hire a professional graphic designer in the end. It’s sad how money gets wasted! #advertisement #magazine #print

Every graphic designer or every person working in the creative industry knows them: creative blocks. You try to get your head around the job as much as possible but it just leads nowhere. I have such moments too and they are very frustrating of course. But there are a few things that help me break creative blockades in order to get back into a creative workflow. TIP # 1 - BRIEFING MEMORY I write important points of the briefing on little cards and mix them. Then I lay out the cards on a big table – like a memory game. Translating the briefing gets some oomph through this and I sometimes get new ideas. TIP # 2 - TAKE A SHOWER It might sound funny, but my best ideas are thought up under the shower. Maybe the soulapping of the water makes my creativity flow, I don’t know. But I can be quite sure that when I take a shower, I step out with a fresh body and fresh ideas in my head. Important: Write ideas down as soon as you’ve finished the shower! TIP # 3 - EXERCISE Sports always helps to get a tired creative mind going again – jogging outside is especially good. Fresh air combined with a good workout is the best method to „reboot“ your mind. TIP # 4 - COOKING I love cooking. When I have a creative blockade, chopping fresh vegetables and trying out new exotic spices helps me a lot to get a free head for a good, intense work session. TIP # 5 - ELIMINATE MESS It depends on the person, but usually if everything is in order then distractions are at a minimum. "A tidy desk is a tidy mind" - this is not just for your physical desk, but your digital desk too. I once spent a few hours organising 2500 images that were just numbered (which did not help anyone). So now if I need a certain image, I can view my options easily without losing precious time and creative power. TIP # 6 - IDEAS AT NIGHT It is proved that the human brain is extremely active at night. And indeed, many of my creative ideas I dream at night. The good thing is that I mostly wake up when I have an idea. I immediately write it down then so no idea gets lost. TIP # 7 - RE-ORGANISE THE DESK/OFFICE Re-organising my desk or office furniture helps me get a new perspective on things and projects for clients which can boost creativity. (Upon successful completion of the job, the desk or furniture is put back of course.) TIP # 8 -HOLIDAY When time and budget allow, travelling abroad is always a benefit for my senses. I love travelling to countries where everything is completely different than in Austria – another culture, another language, other smells, other food etc. This is how I broaden my horizon, which tremendously helps me in my creative job. TIP # 9 - LOUNGE, JAZZ OR CLASSICAL MUSIC Studies proved that listening to classical music makes you work more effectively. And I can only confirm that. Some of my best works I created while listening to classical, jazz or lounge music ( http://deluxemusic.tv/ is fantastic for the latter). TIP # 10 - A RELAXING EVENING Here and there, it is important to completely switch off your mind and relax. If it is a foam bath at home, an evening in the sauna or a day at a thermal bath: Taking a break from everyday life fills up my creative tanks with fresh energy. Important: Don’t forget to switch off your phone! These are my 10 best tips for breaking creative blockades. All tested and approved! I hope I can help some creatives out there to prevent themselves from future creative blocks. #inspiration #creativeblock

Photoshop and colour selection effects of modern cameras make it possible: The black and white photography is having a comeback (or was it ever even dead?) and combined with smart colour selection. This creates a great photo look and the viewer’s eye is led towards a specific photo area (or the product on a billboard). Here you see a few examples: #colour #advertisement

Until a few years ago, 3D effects used to be really hip in graphic design. When Microsoft Windows 8 was launched however, a new design trend emerged: flat design. Flat design does not use any 3D effects like shadows, reliefs etc. Everything looks more flat, simpler and a bit „plain“. I personally like flat design a lot. However, this trend has not matched everybody’s taste. Sometimes I had the feeling that people either love flat design or they absolutely hate it. It polarises. Maybe this is one reason why you come across more and more flat designs with shadow effects now. You can see that a long, sharp shadow was added to the 2D design in order to make it look 3D, but in the end it still remains 2D. Maybe this is a new trend, a flat design 2.0? I’m curious how strong flat designs with shadows will become in the future. #flatdesign #icon

A study conducted by the APA (Association of Publishing Agencies, London) says that client loyalty rises by 32% because of client magazines. Depending on the kind and number of (potential) customers, establishing a client magazine can be a lucrative thing. Why? - rise of customer loyalty - new approach towards potential customers (client magazines are often handed over to friends and family members) - creation of an additional profit through advertisements - ideal presentation of products/services in the hands of clients - longer reader engagement with products/services compared to online advertisements (confirmed by APA!) - transfer of helpful additional knowledge what makes products/services even more valuable for the reader and thus increases the inducement to buy - increase of sympathy for a business On the other side, you have to calculate costs for desktop publishing, printing and distribution. A thorough calculation is necessary here. But a rise in customer loyalty by 32% is definitely worth a closer look! Send an e-mail to office@hcg-corporate-designs.com to request for a client magazine production offer. #magazine