Shapes Series: Circles

Today is circle day! Circles are another great and often-used design element. What I like about circles is that they're symmetrical, and that they never end. You can walk around in a circle on and on and on and just keep going! I like how simple a circle is, too. It's not like a trapezoid or some complicated shape like that (even though those shapes are good, too). It just has such a simple, clean feeling to it. See what I mean?

It's such a simple, minimalistic shape. It can be used for more complicated patterns as well, but I like the simplicity in this basic shape.

I found some circular items that really nail this minimalistic style on an Etsy shop called Chroma Lab. They sell mostly clocks (which are circles!). Here are some of their items.

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Aren't those fun? I love the circle clocks and how circles are used in different ways on the different ones. The red one is so striking with the splash of color, the off-center circles on the blue one are really fun, and I love the overlapping colors on the RGB clock. The "I love color" print is great, too. Another use of overlapping circles with color. I like how the "love" was replaced with the colored circle graphic.

Another creative way to use circles is to put other things inside them, as in the International Year of Youth logo. 

I don't know much about the organization (just what I read on Brand New), but I like the logo a lot. It's so bright and colorful, and it's a neat way to incorporate a circle into design. At first glance, it kind of resembles the RGB clock from Chroma Lab.

Isn't that circle icon cool? The Brand New article made the point that cutting off the thought bubbles seems a little amateurish (which could be possible), but I personally think that's not such a huge deal compared to the overall effect of the logo. A few thoughts on the logo:

1. I love the colors. They are bright and cheery, but also hip and modern looking. They're not typical colors necessarily.
2. I love the thought bubbles. The shape of them is great, and the varied sizes really make the design interesting.
3. I love this graphic:

Isn't the way the concept is applied so creative and interesting? The half circle type thing is even more unique than the original logo, and putting type in the thought bubbles was a great idea.

This logo reminded me of something, a print I saw on Etsy by Judy Kaufmann. It has a similar look because it's branches incorporated into a circle pattern with birds.

[buy this print here]

I really like the color of that print (surprise, surprise!), and the white pattern is nice. I like white printed on a colored background.

Switching gears here, there is another facet of circles that I want to mention (because I really like it): polka dots. Is anyone else here a polka dot fan? I really like that pattern - it's so fun and it can have lots of different feelings depending on things like size of dots and colors. Here are a few fun polka dot things I found. (Links below.)

1. Vintage Ring from Loley's & Co. | This ring is not technically polka-dotted I guess, but the circle jewels reminded me so much of the polka dot pattern!

2. Grey Dangling Dots iPhone Case from Jack and Bee Designs | Neat pattern - not the usual polka dot look, but a great use of dots all the same.

3. Vintage Polka Dot Pillow from Hindsvik | It's red! I love this pillow and the classic, old-style polka dot pattern.

4. Ditsy Dot Bowls from West Elm | What fun - I like how polka dots were incorporated into dishes here.

That is the end of the program for today, however, I want to let you know what today's special add-on is! In addition to commenting for a chance to win the Amazon.com gift card, there is another prize opportunity today. I made this poster using a circle as the basis. See?

You're probably wondering what this has to do with the prize, right? Well, the first three people to comment on this post get this poster design with their own personalized word and quote/Scripture verse on it!

So, just like yesterday, you've got two things you can do in response to this post:

• Do your regular comment for the gift card giveaway.
• And comment fast (!) because the first three people get to pick a verse and word for me to put into my poster design for them!

Have a great day everyone!