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Lawless forge is a team-building event experience located in SoDo Seattle, where you can "be a blacksmith for a day." The studio was seeing an uptick in bookings and wanted to take the original branding mark out of a start-up look and into a more professional direction representing the experience offered to the public.

Role: Principal Designer 

Deliverables: Brand Identity | Swag

Nicholas Nelson Branding Marketing Designer Lawless Forge Seattle
Lawless Forge_no tagline_white.png
Nicholas Nelson Branding Marketing Designer Lawless Forge

My creative process starts with getting to know more about blacksmithing. I booked a spot in a class with ten others to experience Lawless Forge firsthand. We started with a half horseshoe and were walked through the steps of turning it into a functional knife. 

Taking the class I learned the fundamentals and backstory of the craft including what type of hammers are used, how to handle them, and the origins of an anvil. Additionally, being able to be involved in the user's experience and perform ethnographic research left me fully enlightened on the subject. 

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Now armed with user observations and a general understanding of what blacksmithing is, I started researching the who, what, when where and why on the history of the industry. From that, I started creating mood boards based on a few directions I planned on moving forward with. From that, I moved to the sketch book and put down anything and everything I could think of in pencil. 

Nicholas Nelson Branding Marketing Designer Lawless Forge Pencil Logo sketch
Nicholas Nelson Branding Marketing Designer Lawless Forge Pencil Logo sketch
Nicholas Nelson Branding Marketing Designer Lawless Forge Pencil Logo sketch
Nicholas Nelson Branding Marketing Designer Lawless Forge Pencil Logo sketch
Nicholas Nelson Branding Marketing Designer Lawless Forge Pencil Logo sketch
Nicholas Nelson Branding Marketing Designer Lawless Forge Pencil Logo sketch

Once the direction of the initial hand sketches was green-lighted, ten digital roughs were presented to the client. After several conversations and face-to-face meetings, a solid order emerged, and we landed the final look.  

Nicholas Nelson Branding Marketing Designer Lawless Forge Seattle Logo Design

The final mark was put to use in a handful of applications. From exterior signage, interior paneling, digital ads, and Airbnb experiences to branded apparel

Nicholas Nelson Branding Marketing Designer Lawless Forge Seattle Logo Design
Nicholas Nelson Branding Marketing Designer Lawless Forge Seattle Logo Design T-Shirt
Nicholas Nelson Branding Marketing Designer Lawless Forge Seattle Logo Design
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