New Paltz New York, United States
Establishment of a multi-passionate entrepreneur's personal brand.
Location:
New Paltz New York, United States
Service area:
Worldwide
Sharing:
Plant powered recipes
Our role:
Branding; Brand Strategy, Creative Direction, Brand Identity Design and Rollout, Custom Website Design and Development
When we learn to pay attention to the natural world, we can access its beauty in all its many forms and feel a deep kinship with all forms of life.
— Jana Blankenship
Jana Blankenship is the founder of Captain Blankenship, a hair care range leading the way in natural and mindful formulations, and author of Wild Beauty: Wisdom & Recipes for Natural Self-Care, and the to-be-launched book The Seasonal Family Manual — a collaboration with chef and close friend, Emma Frisch.
Jana’s impact has always been centred around helping people integrate nature into their everyday lives. The Captain Blankenship range allows consumers to connect with nature through their self-care rituals, and her books provide multiple easy-to-use recipes, both internal and external, that educate readers on important natural ingredients and medicinal benefits.
A self-proclaimed “maker”, passed down through her ancestry, Jana’s creations have cultivated a community-based following of like-minded individuals that share her ‘always learning’ attitude.
With a natural evolution of teaching and leading, and an intuitive nudge to have a clear, consistent brand of familiarity with her community, we were invited to collaborate with Jana once again. This time, to establish a personal brand that is a reflection of her personality, complements her existing endeavours, and offers a harmonious hub for her content to be shared.
We dove head first into understanding the witch (self-proclaimed) and heart behind the brand and the books. Our goal was to create a visual identity that not only forms a new, yet familiar presence, but establishes order amongst the many moving parts of Jana’s work.
Creating, educating and sharing is no new adventure for Jana, however, this was her first time formalising her brand under the brand name, Jana Blankenship — a culmination of her personality, perspectives and pursuits.
Our uncompromising commitment to deep groundwork and research, cultivating an open and honest line of communication, and getting to the core of Jana’s respective audiences was as crucial as ever. In order to deliver a truly aligned and authentic brand identity, our first step was to gain a rock-solid understanding of Jana and her community.
Jana’s work is marketed and priced to be inclusive, welcoming, and accessible to all. It’s innately important to her that no matter where you’re from, what you do, and what you have – you’re invited into Jana’s space with open arms: a brand that feels like a warm, long conversation with a friend.
Our research cemented three crystal clear consumer groups of Jana’s work – different in many ways, but with a shared awareness and curiosity for the power of plants and the magic of mother nature. The challenge was ensuring we connected with these consumers – without leaving anyone behind.
Our output was a strategic solution to showcase Jana’s truth in a way that humbly supports her audience's deepest desires. And so began, creating an identity system and a home portal for her musings to live and evolve, and allow Jana to continue her mission of bridging the gap between earth and its inhabitants.
Jana’s ‘come as you are’ philosophy was at the forefront of influencing our design decisions.
A key insight during our research was that despite a deep understanding of her audience, it's innately important to Jana that her offerings are accessible to people from all walks of life – there are no bounds or boxes to tick. Jana’s ‘come as you are’ philosophy was at the forefront of influencing our design decisions.
Our goal was to create a brand identity that connects and complements Jana’s natural hair care brand, Captain Blankenship. We took elements of those existing concepts and infused them into what came next – without replicating or pairing them too closely.
It was paramount that the Jana Blankenship brand was a true reflection of Jana’s personality – compassionate, playful, spirited and adventurous – of course, rooted in nature’s inspiration.
The fun began with iconography and colourways built upon a 70s-inspired approach — we explored patterns, arts, nature and palettes resonant with this theme. Taking the visuals back in time, we balanced Jana's excitable, happy-go-lucky essence with supporting elements that balanced warmth, fun, and approachability.
Infusing lightheartedness and play were key components of our conceptualising. We achieved this through the use of animations across the background and buttons of Jana's website. These elements come to life by scrolling down the page or hovering over them - deliberately subtle, yet symbolic of fun.
We wanted to ensure that the brand was full of character and inviting for all – but we were conscious of legibility and structure and set out to provide something both strong and friendly.
The linework and shapes chosen are representative of leaves and flowers. Intricate, yet simple – we applied the use of asymmetrical grouping to break up the symmetry used.
Much like Captain Blankenship, the colourways selected were inspired by Earth’s elements and chosen for the way they evoke a sense of joy and boldness.
Inspiration for our creative output was drawn from the same source that Jana’s creations are – nature and its seasons. Our overarching strategy was to align this with an inviting online home: one that could provide a rhythm and structure for her content to be shared, eliminating inconsistency and providing clarity for her community.
‘Jana Blankenship’ is centred around the healing power of nature – the work she puts out into the world are resources that support education, expression, creativity, exploration and connectedness.
Now, Jana can boldly share this loving wisdom of the Earth’s elements, right from her very own corner of the interwebs, complemented by a visual presence grounded in intuition and alignment.
Doing things differently starts with a conversation.
