The truck should not have been backing up there, but I've installed welded brackets to raise it up out of harms way. I replaced the damaged sign for now. I will probably stay with a new main panel size of 2' x 8' since I have the steel in place to receive that.

Here is how my logo appears on my truck, business card, & yellow page ad. It is usually on a black background

(The paint blobs are in the shape of the Hawaiian Island chain)

The original sign has the name jig-sawed out of MDO & stud mounted w/ 1/2" stand-offs. The 2 triangles are flush mounted 1/2" panels.(far one with arrow says "IN BACK")
Logo & spectrum are edge prints, border, arrow, brush & lettering are reflective & pick up headlights well at night.

At the back of my building where I am, my sign over the door is an old sandblasted sign in wood tones. I've always felt that I should tie in to the same colorful look as the front sign so I could make a completely new & different sign up front & move the old sign back over my door. (& change the "IN BACK" part)

Suggestions would be most appreciated. Tear it up, I'm ready to hear it & would benefit from honesty here.

For what it's worth edge printed decals have become a major part of my business, vinyl on MDO, sintra, magnetics & vehicles make up most of the rest. Very little sandblasting & dimensional stuff. Screenprinting is in the legal name, but somewhat phasing out.

[ December 08, 2001: Message edited by: Doug Allan ]

[ December 08, 2001: Message edited by: Doug Allan ]

quote:

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The logo doesn't really seem to fit on my sign since I want my name to be large. I probably sould quit trying to force it in there

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I think you got me moving in a good direction. The triangle is a prism for any who may not have interpreted that, but it is somewhat in the way. I now have a larger pallette with more 3D realism in the islands. I thought about water, but came up with this Koa wood look instead for the pallette. I want to do cut-out componants again, & there is room for the pallette to be reaching out above the 2' height of the main panel.

It wood be cool to carve a brush & have that 3D. The way my logo has always been, the brush is not accurate in how it comes out of behind the pallette and goes through the back of a letter that is in front of the pallette. This hasn't looked too bad on flat prints but will be a problem if I want to carve a brush.

I have tried some color variations for the background, lettering & shadow. I'm not sure what to do with that yet.

Here's what I got going now if anyone want's to comment further.

Each design keeps getting better and better! I think the last drawing with the wood pallet looks very professional! I'm wondering if the general "Joe" public would notice the clever design of the Islands in your design?? Would it help to lable them or would that confuse an already great looking sign?

(To you painters out there, forgive me, but that artistic icon of a pallette was too cool not to steal once I "saw" the vision of using the island shapes. I will get my hand lettering lessons going at a meet some day.)

When people do see the islands then they like it even more for it's subtlety (sp.?) Also I think the profile of the island chain (which is used out here quite a bit) is more easilt recognized by residents.

[ December 12, 2001: Message edited by: Matthew Broadus ]

So since it has been on my signs trucks cards & invoices etc. I'm not sure I ought to change it.

Shep I'll say I'm left handed before I'll flip the pallette around! He He (Backwards huh?)

Mike, for a doctor of letters you should "brush" up on your fonts if you think that was helvetica in my layout.

As for the ROY G BIV, I altered that order to let the island of Maui be green. (which it is!)

[ December 13, 2001: Message edited by: Doug Allan ]

Jerry, I did try the thin red outline & fatter outline, but then I started thinking about the prismatic letters. I have always loved that look in other signs I've seen. I have a few fonts, but once read an article about how to make my own.

I would like to stick with Avant Garde but finally put in the time to create prismatic contours for my few letters in this font.

Also tried Bronzeo's suggestion of proportionately more blue background.

I am posting the last version above the latest so I (we) can see the difference better. I think the prismatic style could be made to work for me, but I need to get the color contrast happening. The gold leaf (signgold) looked good in the last incarnation so I tried a lighter transparent version over the gold colors I filled my prismatic contours with. I don't know if I can use gold & still come up with 2 good variations to read well from a distance. I think I will have to choose between gold or prismatic.

[ December 15, 2001: Message edited by: Doug Allan ]

[ December 15, 2001: Message edited by: Doug Allan ]

Also wanted to look at the prismatic style without the gold texture!

[ December 16, 2001: Message edited by: Doug Allan ]

Shows the truth in the old philosophy that.....
"Less is more"

[ December 18, 2001: Message edited by: timi NC ]

Thanks go to Cam & Joe Rees's suggestion to start losing the clutter, & Jerry getting me to lose even more, enlarge islands & try prismatic lettering. Matthew 's dark to light Blue background idea worked great along with Jack'scontribution on having me increase the ration of background to foreground. Si solved a dimensional glitch in the layout of the brush, & I think I am about ready to call it a new logo.

I posted a .jpg of 5 steps of evolution on the portfolio page, & other then a little pinline color adjustment, I am now looking at the final material choices & cutting, carving & layering decisions for the panels.

[ December 18, 2001: Message edited by: John Deaton III ]