I’m SO excited to write about one of Witchcraft Branding’s most recent badass brands : Wildfire & Sage. I met Shelly, a herbalist and yoga instructor, through an Instagram challenge and our personalities instantaneously clicked. She needed some branding help to solidify a business idea she had been toying with and I wanted to know more about her cool profession. It was a match made in herbs (I know, I’m so cheesy).
THE NAME.
When I first started exchanging emojis and short Instagram messages with Shelly, she was using the name 'Wild Saje' for her soon-to-be herbal remedies, wellness coaching, and yoga instruction business and blog. It was actually that name which sparked our first conversations. I was intrigued by the combination of the words and wanted to know if using a ‘J’ instead of a ‘G’ in ‘Saje’ was intentional. My first thought was that her name started with a ‘J’. Shelly indicated the choice in purposely misspelling sage was for availability reasons and I knew moving forward we either had to own the ‘Saje’ and make it known it wasn’t a typo or we had to search for a new name. During one of our first conversations, after we’d officially started the branding process, the word ‘Fire’ popped up signifying the cleansing of the body, mind & soul through her wellness programs. I knew I was onto something. After playing around with a few options, Wildfire & Sage really hit the mark (plus it was available) and Shelly loved it as well.
THE MOODBOARD & COLORS.
Earth tones, blues, herbs, and strong female figures play a big part in the Wildfire & Sage moodboard. I wanted to the brand to be equal parts day and night. The day would bring knowledge and the guiding light. The night would bring intrigue and magic. To date, this is still one of my favorite moodboards, where every image has layers of neat details that make you want to dive into the photo.
I knew from early on, when I did the competitor brand research for this project, that I did NOT want to use green as a brand color. Every other competitor used green or - if they wanted to venture out - yellow or brown. For Wildfire & Sage, I wanted it to stand out not only as a herbal medicine company, but as a complete wellness center. Shelly’s expertise goes beyond herbs as she offers ways to heal the body & soul through food and yoga.
My mind went to blue. Blue is an interesting color. With its many shades, the feelings evoked by the different tones of blue can range from moody to jovial. Playing off two tones of deep blue, and pairing it with lighter earth tones, the Wildfire & Sage color palette draws you in and embraces you like a warm blanket on a chilly night.
THE LOGO.
The logo is inspired by the great outdoors as nature is such a fundamental part to herbal healing and wellness coaching. It also has a hint - well, maybe more than a hint - of whimsicality. The hand-drawn trees are a nod to the inner child that will emerge after going through the Wildfire & Sage process of achieving a healthier and happier lifestyle. The trees can also be seen as simplified drawings of sage stems and have a direct connection to the word ‘wildfire’. Clients will pass through the wildfire and, like these trees, they will have survived to become even stronger and more beautiful. For the wordmark, a hand-drawn slab serif font, Jimmy Serif, was used to marry the clinical aspect of the brand to the more playful approach.
With a cool new name at hand, the competitors & target audience defined, and the brand positioning, mission statement, brand keywords, brand voice, typography, and icons established - Wildfire & Sage has a very strong brand presence and foundation that will allow Shelly to grow this brand beyond her wildest dreams.
Head on over to the portfolio page to see more on this passionate branding project.