If you’ve been around my blog for a while, you probably just arrived and immediately thought “Wait, am I on the right blog?” Yes, yes you are. I have struggled with the branding for this blog many times because the direction fluctuated so much. After a year of blogging here at Kimi Who, I can finally show you what it’s like to be comfortable in my own skin and reveal some new branding that reflects me.
Goodbye Cats
I know, I know… I thought the cats were cute too. But thing is, they aren’t the focus of my blog. They made adorable spokespeople (err spokescats?) and in some ways, they still can. But this isn’t a blog about my pets – it’s a blog about ME. There… I said it. Maybe that sounds vain, but it’s the truth.
I also felt like my overall branding was childish. Sure, it was totes presh (*groans*) but it didn’t reflect the elegance I aspire to bring to my blog. It almost looked like it was a blog meant for children. That’s not who I am and it’s not who I want you to see me as.
And besides – was anyone as bothered by the fact that only Bruce & Oliver were represented? I re-branded the day before we adopted Harley and hard as I tried, I couldn’t seem to make her fit in the logo as well as she fits into our every day lives. It’s bothered me ever since.
Color Scheme
It might surprise you to know that blue is not my favorite color. Right? I bet that’s a shocker considering my blog has been accented in blue since I started it over a year ago. I was trying to do something different because my natural instinct is to go pink as it’s my second favorite color (my favorite is olive green and most people don’t find it feminine or attractive). Pink is overdone a lot but then I remembered something important: This is my blog. It needs to best represent who I am. And who I am, is a woman who likes pink.
I have always been attracted to websites that focused on the content and natural imagery that comes with posting frequently. I love a lot of light and negative space (white space) on my blog. It makes me feel more comfortable, open and ready to share. I think it lets the content shine so you don’t feel bogged down by what’s going on around it. That’s why I chose these colors to work with. They allow for subtlety where needed.
Font Selection
I have an obsession for beautiful Sans-Serif fonts. In the past, I’ve used Champagne & Limousines by Nymphont quite heavily. In fact, I still use it for my website The Alluring Artist and my Second Life business Kitty Cattery. A few months ago, I fell in love with Raleway. Sure, it’s one of Google’s many standard available fonts, but I think that’s part of the charm. I’ve since been using it on everything from my blog post titles to headings and even in my images to keep up an heir of cohesion.
But the logo? It needed that touch of whimsy while still being legible. I knew I wanted to make the logo something more artistic – something that would incorporate my design background. Something sketchy… watercolor… handwritten in look perhaps. I feel like I combed Dafont.com for years. That’s when I landed on Kikelet Brush. I’ll admit, I wasn’t 100% sold on it until I worked with it to create what is now my new logo.
Social Media
Of course, no rebranding would be complete without a social media overhaul. Most of my social media efforts go towards Facebook and Twitter, so I’m focusing on bringing the new look to those platforms first.
Facebook allows text on page Timeline Covers, but only 20% (Twitter on the other hand allows you a lot more wiggle room). That’s difficult when your logo is basically made of text. The good news is that I can give it the same look and feel you get here on my blog by mimicking the negative space and sticking to something very simple and classy.
Facebook:
Twitter:
Oh The Ad Banners…
One of the most annoying issues I have faced in my branding is that my old logo didn’t really fit on a variety of sizes well. I was always trying to either fill a bunch of space or squeeze the logo into a small box. The new branding gives me a lot more control since a big part of the look is the negative space.
Another problem I went through is that I didn’t make all of my old banners at the same time so I was always trying to figure out how I was going to make the next size that came up. Well now, I have all of the standard sizes I have had to use in the last year.
What Do You Think?
Do you like the new look? What’s your favorite part? I’m pretty partial to that adorable falling star over the first “i” in my name. Isn’t that darling!? I’m really excited about this fresh coat of paint. It’s much more reflective of who I am.
I love the new look! Pink is a favorite color of mine. I actually re-did the header for my blog this weekend, but am dying for a big overhaul as well.
This is the second time I have rebranded completely. I really think this will stick for a long time to come. Sometimes, you just gotta do what’s comfortable and right!
I absolutely LOVE the new look! Everything is SO AWESOME!!!!! <3 <3 <3 <3 <3 I too love the star over the first "i" in your name. :) <3
Thank you! I’m glad everyone is being so receptive.
This new look is beautiful & refreshing! My favorite part is the pink and the pretty font you chose for your logo. Awesome!
Thank you! I feel soooo much more comfortable in it. One of my friends told me “FINALLY FINALLY FINALLY I see you in your blog.” sooo I guess I wasn’t the only person who felt like my blog’s branding was just not me. :D
Thanks for checking it out!
Love it!
Thanks for checking it out!
Fresh and feminine, even if I do miss the cats. ;)
Aww haha. I thought it was cute… just really wasn’t where my blog is, ya know? Glad it’s liked tho!
I totally hear ya. Just my prejudice as a crazy cat lady coming out. ;)
It all looks so great! I was excited when I saw it, but didn’t get a chance to really comment until now. I’m glad you went with the pink. If you like pink, embrace it!
Thanks! I know… you’ve been busy at the con! #jealous
I think it looks great! Love the color scheme, despite not being a huge pink fan myself. I didn’t know you did graphic design either, that’s so great! Despite being a pretty competent artist, I am just awful at graphic design. Around the new year I have plans to hire a designer to help me with a re-brand as well to hopefully accompany the opening of a shop to sell my art! I’m excited about it, but also nervous as I don’t really have any idea what I want….I need to get on putting some though into that!
Thank you! And indeed… I do graphic design. While I didn’t create my theme, I do all of the customization and tweak things about any theme I purchase that I want changed. It’s one of those “jack of many trades, master of none” kind of things.
Rebranding is hard – especially if you are hiring someone. You’re already thinking smart by realizing you don’t know what you want. You’d be surprised the number of clients I have worked with who had no idea what they wanted and expected me to draw up tons of ideas for them (all while complaining that I was charging them for my time).
Why don’t you try theme shopping? Find a look you LOVE and start there. That’s what I usually do. I just happen to really love my theme overall and find rebranding it easy. :D
LOVE it!!
Hooray! :D
Nice look my dear! Really well done!
I actually like what you rebranded to! I didn’t see what your blog looked like before but I love the way this has turned out! I love the color and the watercolors as well!
I know that I have come upon this post super duper late… but that’s cuz I was searching your blog for something to do with branding…. cuz I learn from you. :) I really enjoy this post and although I don’t know what your blog looked like before… I like what it looks like now. It’s definitely very Kimi and I just love it for you! There is much I aspire to learn from you and I can’t wait to do that through your new endeavor!
Much love,
Jenn