INKD Organic Tattoo Aftercare
For my submission to the ICMAD Young Designer's contest in 2019, I created a high end tattoo aftercare line by the name of INKD Organic Aftercare. The target demographic for INKD is the slightly more dedicated body art enthusiast; there's a difference between a $50 tattoo and a $900+ one. With INKD, the goal was also to create an environmentally conscious product with only natural ingredients, as I personally care a lot about this planet and also have very sensitive skin. Created in ProCreate, Adobe Photoshop and Illustrator. Background painted traditionally with watercolor on cold press.
The Challenge
The biggest challenge that came up while designing this piece was finalizing the color scheme. I slaved over the palette of this identity system, trying to decide between using traditional tattoo colors from the Sailor Jerry era and using all natural, earthy tones. I settled somewhere in the middle and decided on a scheme that used stark red and green hues found in the first tattoo inks, emphasizing 3 different shades of green.
Image Descriptions
First: My box design for INKD, utilizing a custom dieline. My professor, multidisciplinary artist Jessica Mueller, created a dieline to encase a single bottle provided by ICMAD for the 2019 competition. Because the bottles were so small, I decided to do a set with 3 bottles and altered her dieline to fit them in a single package. After the tedious measurements, the most important part of this box was getting the background just right. I did 3 watercolor washes on 140lb cold press paper and scanned them with a large format scanner, utilizing the one with the most interesting blooms.
Second: The first bottle design for INKD, Antibacterial Soap. This aftercare system is based on one method to heal tattoos, traditionally using Dial Gold soap, A&D Ointment and a neutral lotion afterwards. I use this system to heal my own tattoos, and I did research on what would be needed to make the same products using natural ingredients.
Third: The second bottle design for INKD, Tattoo A&D Ointment. The icons reflect the type of product, stylized to emulate traditional tattoos. It was a clever afterthought to add leaves from the logo to further place emphasis on INKD being a natural product. And then it was a complete last minute decision to include a simplified version of the main logo on the back. It ended up being the missing piece that made the bottles and the box more cohesive while still having slightly different styles.
Fourth: The third bottle design for INKD, Moisturizing Lotion. The color scheme that is utilized on the bottles varies slightly from the box, as I added 3 more unique shades to each icon for more variation. Initially the bottle and lid colors were swapped, but a helpful critique led to their final appearance. Colorful bottles with black lids read as too whimsical and the icons got lost in too-bright backgrounds. Using a black background with inverted type reads as more elegant and compliments the box scheme better.
Fifth: The sticker insert sheet I created for INKD. Stickers are a low-cost advertising solution that a lot of tattoo artists use to promote their work. By including a sticker sheet with the product, you get people advertising for you when they stick them on personal items and in public. I chose to illustrate 3 designs related to nature in the same style as my icons and also included the hand drawn logotype.
2020 Illustration Exhibition
INKD was not only chosen to be included in the 2020 juried Illustration Exhibition at Bill L. Parks Gallery, it also won the highest honor in the show, the President's Award. Considering the amount of talent it was up against, I was truly humbled to receive this award. I'm still so elated this honor was for one of the pieces that I have worked the hardest on and dedicated the most time to with research and execution.
