CURSED WOOD
My Role
Product Design, Brand Identity, Photography, Web Design, Web Development.
About this Project
Cursed Wood is a collaborative passion project that is fueled by our love for longboarding and quality woodwork. Along with my friend Melvin, a young entrepreneur, and my younger brother Jorg, a talented craftsman, I created a brand for casual longboarders who appreciate hand artisanship and a natural look.
The Longboard
Melvin and I worked together to design a board with a natural appearance, inspired mainly by the look of tree bark and the organic shapes found in nature. With Jorg in the lead, we went through a long process of prototyping and testing that resulted in the final product: a uniquely shaped board with a smooth ride.
The recesses, located at the top and bottom of the board's sides, give the wheels room to comfortably move while steering. We selected a distinct dark veneer to contrast the light birch underneath. The top layer of the veneer has a laser-cut gap that reveals our Cursed Wood logo - resembling letters carved into a tree trunk. With several layers of multiplex, we ensured a sturdy yet flexible deck that perfectly absorbs shock while cruising. Gluing the board together in a custom vacuum mould achieves a subtle concave that ensures optimal stability and steering comfort. Finally, we use a clear grip and coating to maintain the board's natural look while preventing slippage and protecting against the weather.
The Logo
The Cursed Wood logo is designed to resemble carvings people sometimes make in tree trunks. I made the letters long, thin and crooked to give the wordmark a cursed feel. For the logo’s placement on the face of the board, I've designed a surrounding border that resembles a gap in tree bark - appearing as if the board has been directly taken from a tree.
Color
Cursed Wood’s color palette consists of the colors found in trees: dark brown for the bark, light brown for the wood underneath, and green shades for the leaves.
Color
For our typefaces, we selected fonts that convey a sense of luxury yet maintain a natural and outdoorsy feel. Silk Serif (Light) does this perfectly - it's a chic font that pairs well with our visuals. For our body text, we used Nunito Sans: a clean, easy-to-read, sans-serif font that contrasts nicely with our serif font.
Photography
With an Olympus OM-D and a Cursed Wood longboard, we ventured into the mountains of Southern Spain. These pictures show more than just a longboard, we show a feeling of freedom, beauty, and joy. This is exactly what we felt cruising through this beautiful scene and this is exactly what we want everyone to experience while using our boards.
Product Photography
High-quality product photos that show off all of the details, hardware, and craftsmanship of our boards.
Website
The website provides a professional online presence for people to learn about our brand and purchase our boards. It combines all the elements of our brand identity and displays our story, values and community.
On the webshop page, the longboard can be purchased and all of its specifications can be found.
When we're out of stock, this form appears on the shop page. Here, visitors can leave their e-mail to receive a message when new boards are available.
Thanks for reading!
