Alder aims to help create moments of calm connection with your body through skincare.
In the busy everyday life we all seek moments of calm to ground ourselves in the here and now. Every morning we find ourselves in the bathroom getting ready for the day and every evening we come back there to rinse off the day. These are the perfect opportunities to connect with yourself – check in how you feel and what your body needs. Alder’s mission is to help you create this ritual. The brand offers a limited set of gentle to skin products for both the face and the body. The products are meant for every gender and they champion quality ingredients as well as cruelty free production.
The creative challenge of this project was to create distinct branding and packaging that reflects these values.
Creative direction & design: Laura Dirzyte
Alder • 2024
Brand Name & Logotype
The brand name emerged from the desire to create products inspired by nature and suited to be used by people of any gender. Alder is the perfect tree to represent the brand because it is commonly found near streams, rivers, and wetlands. Alders are distinct because they bear both male catkins and woolly female cones. These qualities matched the brand’s purpose to offer gentle, natural and nourishing skincare products for every gender.
Inspired by these principles the logotype design unites diverse qualities. Feminine and masculine, bold and elegant, organic and modern meet in the name Alder. Round letter elements join straight stems that are cut at an angle at the baseline and at the top of ascenders. The ‘A’ is a distinct interconnected element in the logotype representing the brand’s aim for people to find time to connect with themselves.
Visual Language
Since the logotype is visually expressive, the rest of the typography takes a step back in the designs. A light weight sans serif Agrandir font by Alex Slobzheninov was chosen to compliment the shapes of logotype.
The color scheme is influenced by the forest hues. Shades of natural green blend together and meet the brown of glass bottle and white of label elements.
Packaging
Bottle shapes and sizes were an important part of packaging design. Their visual appearance gives a clear indication what the products are for. Smaller transparent bottles with green liquid are meant for the face while taller brown bottles are meant for the body. The glass bottles and cork tops became the uniting elements of the packaging. Even though they are not the same, they are united as a family – each member unique but sharing the same foundations.
Products come as sets in boxes, either a body care set or a skin care set for the face. The front of the packaging echoes the bottle label design while the surrounding box walls present the key information about the ingredients and use.
