The Name
The hardest part about opening an Etsy store was picking the name. I liked the idea of incorporating my name, but mine happens to already be associated with several chains. (Growing up I answered a lot of phone calls asking if we had glitter.) But my family history helped find a solution.
My father’s initials are M.A.D. He wasn’t the first in his family to have them, and one or two were known to have a temper. One in particular earned the nickname “Mad Dog Dollar,” and it became a sort of family joke. Paired with the allusion to Alice’s Mad Hatter, I’d found the quirky-yet-meaningful moniker I was looking for.
The Logo
I wanted to keep a connection to my professional branding, so started with Century Gothic as my base font. I decided on red for the primary color, and worked up a few base-level logos. My first needs were a shop icon and a watermark for photos. Simpler would be better.
The Illustrations
I really needed more to complete the brand. It was created as an avenue for my quirkier creative projects, and it should reflect that. I started working on a series of illustrations that reflected my own tastes and interests. A tea cup solidified the connection to the Mad Hatter, but it needed to have more. I added the sugar skull decorations to give it a more offbeat feel — and to reflect my love of skulls. The cup is tilted, with tea splashing up above the rim, to create a more dynamic look with a sense of motion and energy.
