Brand identity, print design, and illustration for the Celestial Library, a neighborhood book lending stand in San Francisco’s Outer Richmond district.
Mural Concept
The first thing my client wanted was a mural for her shelf! I took a lot of inspiration from old star charts, which I’ve always found sort of elegant and mysterious. Here’s the sketch versus the painted version:
Signage
Next for the shelf were print signs — an A-frame welcome sign, a bookshelf panel, and a horizontal gate placard. I wanted to strike a balance between classic and academic-looking with modern type.
Posters
Posters for neighborhood distribution — dark and light, to spare printer ink.
Social Media Stories
Templates for Instagram stories: title alerts, early closings, and closure notices, all consistent.
Bookplate
A bookplate insert tucked into every borrowed title, with the return address and a prompt to share on Instagram.
I had a lot of fun building a distinct brand from scratch with this project, and I learned a lot about how to design for various sizes and formats. For more, see my client’s Instagram page. She’s fundraising to open a book store, which is very exciting!