Branding + Merch + Social Media
Hellscape
Hellscape is a patio, pool and bar in Dallas… that’s actually just my back yard. Years ago a couple in Austin created branding and an Instagram for a bar called The Pink Canoe. It was styled like a vintage summer camp and I fell in love with the idea after realizing it was just their backyard bar. I loved the idea of creating a identity for a third place for myself and my friends.
This branding, though it was just for me and for fun, went through a huge facelift right at the finish line. While I still love the original work, the current version is more true to me and my place.
The first iteration was moody, sharp and dramatic. I knew I wanted something hellacious and fiery so the name of the “bar” came pretty easily. Being in Texas the heat can be brutal on a typical yard so I wanted something that nodded at the climate of our great state but used it to lure folks in. This direction leaned heavily on custom cocktail imagery. I had planned on having “house draft cocktails” since my friends and I had go-to drinks we made every time we saw each other.
I began this project at the beginning of my home-buying journey so I didn’t know what I’d have to work with but knew I’d need to build a little oasis.
I loved the way these graphics came out. I had a variety of shapes and sizes, added some smokey textures and I loved the bright redish-pink main color. It was kinda cool and sexy like my favorite bars and felt like it had an established personality I could lean into with decor and landscaping… but then I actually closed on my house…
I found a dreamy little home in an adorable Oak Cliff neighborhood. And it had a pool! Crazy! I would have never in a million years thought I could have a pool. But the stars aligned and everything fell into place with this house.
It was clear to me that the first round of branding was a bit too moody. This back yard was already decked out to party and a sexy cocktail bar, it was not. This home was a friendly, bright, and inviting oasis in the middle of Dallas. So I pivoted and inspired by the cacti already planted in the back, I looked more at cantinas, canyons and the west for inspiration.
Following the trends of the time, I wanted a tombstone shaped element and I drew inspiration from two places in the home. From the LSU tiger painted on the outdoor dart board and the phone nook inside the house. I created a little collection of graphics and faux stickers and committed to a color scheme inspired by the original and what was already on the property.
Overall I may like the sharpness of the original graphics but it was an unrealistically detailed set of images for a logo and while this branding is not terribly simple either, its for me, by me, and I am a bit of a maximalist anyway.
The first real test of the brand package was creating fake social media posts for a movie night party I was throwing in my back yard.
As if it is a real bar, I have also mocked up some merch and print materials. I already have the stickers in-hand but look forward to creating shirts, hats, and koozies for my fake patio bar. I love the idea of folks seeing the shirt out in public and trying to google “Hellscape Bar Dallas” to no avail.