David Airey's Blog

100 Archive is an annual collection of design work from Irish studios and designers. The 2024 archive was recently published, and I’m pleased to have my book Identity Designed: The Process featured alongside such a fine curation.

Here’s a before and after snapshot of my logo redesign for Quillette, an Australian–based online magazine that focuses on long-form analysis and cultural commentary.

Elsewhere, I’m a quarter of the way through writing the third edition of Logo Design Love. This and previo...

Many thanks to everyone who voted in last edition’s poll. After chatting with my publisher I’m stoked to start work on Logo Design Love, edition three. Publishers typically expect 25 percent of the content to change with a new edition. I’m aiming for double, going in-depth on recent logo projects, bringing more exceptional contributors on board, talking about how designers (and clients) can benefit from developments in the profession, generally making the book a lot better than its decade-old pr...

I’d appreciate your opinion.

I’ve been invited to write a third edition of the Logo Design Love book. The first was published in 2009, the second in 2014, so I know I could improve the content with lessons learned and by featuring many other designers, but a part of me wonders if I should move onto the next thing rather than rewrite the past.

The full title is Logo Design Love: A Guide to Creating Iconic Brand Identities, and with the content focusing more on logos than the broader identity I coul...

With this first newsletter of 2025 I thought I’d share a positive note for my fellow designers searching for new work, from a 2012 speech by Neil Gaiman (on YouTube).

“People keep working in a freelance world [.…] because their work is good, because they’re easy to get along with, and because they deliver the work on time.

“And you don’t even need all three.

“Two out of three is fine.

“People will tolerate how unpleasant you are if your work is good and you deliver it on time.

“People will forgive th...

A warm welcome from the Emerald Isle.

Future editions of the newsletter will have more chat about life as an independent designer (finding new clients, project insights, resources, the occasional interview — that type of thing) and less content roundups from my two side-projects identitydesigned.com and logodesignlove.com. As I find myself increasingly focused on designing for clients rather than curating for those aforementioned sites (both due an overhaul) it seems natural to adapt the content ...

It was a real pleasure working with Welsh craft brewery Polly’s to redesign their logo and can labelling. Backdrop illustrations by the talented Phill Blake. More on the design process soon.

A quick note following my last newsletter — brilliant to connect with so many of you on LinkedIn, and many thanks to the teachers who got in touch about review copies. As of this month, the new book’s shipping in the US and Canada. Shout-out to Counter Print for stocking it, too. Love their...

I've been asked a few times if I use moodboards in my client projects. Not always. But moodboards can be useful for narrowing the focus and reaching consensus on design ideas before any design work takes place. Here’s a PDF (5mb) that shows a sample of this early project phase. I pieced it together for a recent client call to discuss the potential of three design directions and how various identity elements could pan out.

A few more thoughts in the video below.

Elsewhere, a couple of questions you...

It was about 25 years ago when I first bought one of Rockport’s design books. Back then I had no idea I’d go on to team up with the renowned publisher to bring my own writing to market with ID (2019).

And now I’m delighted to share that I just received an advance copy of my second book with Rockport, a 240-page hardcover titled Identity Designed: The Process.

The book guides you through the four fundamental stages of the design process: research, strategy, design, and...

Designer Christopher Doyle said, “In every single project we have ever done, even the most successful ones, the ones we are most satisfied with, and feel the best about, there is at least one small thing I would change.”

I know exactly the feeling, and it’s deeper than design. It’s human nature. It’s the question of whether, for more than those blissful, fleeting moments, any of us are ever truly satisfied.

And on that happy note, I recorded a quick video so those that haven’t already can put a vo...

The Process (in bookstores in 2024) has been edited over the past month or so. I’ve just set the index pages, and we’re down to the last tweaks and corrections. 240 pages, almost done. I’ll keep you updated.

As always, many thanks for reading. I appreciate you being here.

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