Why does the wording affect the SVG?
Every logo, icon, sticker and badge the studio makes is drawn first and then traced into vector paths, one shape per area of flat color. A drawing made of a few bold, flat shapes traces into a few clean paths. Shading, texture and gradients trace into hundreds of slivers. So the most useful thing a brief can do is ask for artwork that is already flat. The studio's own instructions ask for that, and your words should not undo it.
What should a logo description say?
Three things, in one sentence: what it shows, who it is for, and the colors.
a fern leaf that doubles as a rising arrow, for a savings app called 'Fernvault', deep navy and warm gold
- One idea. "A leaf that is also an arrow" is a logo. "A leaf, a coin, a chart, a shield and a key" is a crowd.
- Concrete nouns. "Trust" and "growth" cannot be drawn. "Two hands", "a sprout" and "a rising arrow" can.
- The name in quotes, or in the name field, only if the logo should spell it. Pick the Wordmark chip if the name is the logo (logo styles).
How do I describe an icon set?
List the icons as chips (things, not actions): cup of coffee, croissant, map pin, loyalty card. Then describe the style once, in the style box. It goes into every icon, which is what keeps the set consistent.
The icons in our guides are one set made this way: twelve chips, Flat colour, rounded corners, the colors #0061fc, #0a2d8f and #ef6e50, and the style words "clean modern product illustration icons, simple bold shapes, flat fills, no outlines, no gradients".
Good style words are about drawing, not mood: "rounded ends", "thick even lines", "sharp corners", "no outlines", "chunky shapes", "retro 70s poster colors". Avoid words that add detail the icon cannot hold at 24 px: "realistic", "intricate", "3D", "detailed shading". Keep one level of detail across the list. A "dot" next to a "city skyline" looks uneven whatever the style.
How do I describe stickers and badges?
- Stickers: for a character, describe who it is, once and precisely: species or object, body shape, two or three colors, one detail ("a round chubby ginger cat with a cream belly and rosy cheeks"). Then list expressions, with the caption in quotes:
waving "Hi!". Keep captions to two or three words. Every letter is drawn, so check the spelling before you send. - Badges: the achievement's name goes on top, a short rule or the same words go below. Two or three words fit the curve of a badge's ring far better than a sentence. Describe the picture in the middle as one simple object: "a running shoe", "a mountain with a flag".
What should I leave out?
| Avoid | Why | Ask for instead |
|---|---|---|
| gradients, "glowing", "shiny" | turn into stripes of flat color | two flat tones |
| photographic light, shadows, "realistic" | trace into many slivers | "flat", "solid shapes" |
| fine texture, "grunge", "watercolor" | trace into specks | a clean edge, or texture added later in the editor |
| tiny text, taglines inside the mark | unreadable at small sizes | the name beside the mark, set in a font |
| more than three colors | muddier sets, more paths | up to three colors, named or as hex values |
How do I fix what comes back?
Change one thing at a time. If a set is close, use a round and redo single icons with a short note ("simpler, a plain rolled-up mat") rather than starting over. If a logo is close, refine it in words ("make the R bolder"). If only a color or a stray shape is wrong, open the SVG in the SVG editor, which is faster than another round. And when the SVG has many more paths than the drawing has shapes, the drawing was not flat enough: ask for "flat fills, no shading" and draw again.