I have worked with the guys behind Anahaw Books previously, when I designed and developed The Kitchen Bookstore. They kept receiving numerous requests for other titles outside the scope of Kitchen, so they decided to open Anahaw Books, specializing in Philippine publications.
The brand for Anahaw evokes that of an Asian gentleman’s/gentlewoman’s library, with palm fronds outside the window. Anahaw, as you know, is a round leaf fountain palm found in Southeast Asia. It is multi-faceted, which the owners thought was a perfect symbol for their bookstore.
The color palette, therefore, is in deep greens and golds.
MOODBOARD
LOGO DESIGN
The logo design is at once modern and traditional. I designed the monogram with hand-drawn palm fronds, and the name right below.
I chose a very classic typeface – Garamond, named for the sixteenth-century Parisian engraver Claude Garamond. The gold is a metallic foil texture, very much like hand-wrought jewelry. It shows up really well against the deep green background.
WEBSITE DESIGN
The website of Anahaw Books is almost a twin of The Kitchen Bookstore, but with some slight differences. I love the touches of gold in the buttons, I think it makes it look more Filipino.
I worked with their talented brand photographer, Jafe Enriquez, in the overall creative direction for the banner photos – which are liberally used throughout the website and on social media. Here is the moodboard that I sent her:
The moodboard for the photographer is full of rich textures and patterns: wood, leaves, machuca tiles, native woven mats, etc.
I also sent her this guide:
(Because I wanted everything to be perfect, and photos can make or break a website’s look.)
Jafe Enriquez really blew me away with the final images! They’re so creative, and really evocative of the mood that we were going for. Here are some samples:
Check out those wrappers too! Yes, customers get their books wrapped in these gorgeous custom wrapping papers with their logo and Philippine motifs printed on it. They also get custom bookmarks designed by artist and multi-awarded pastry Chef Penk Ching. These guys pulled out all the stops. Their Instagram game is also on point. (I love it when clients listen to me!)
And here is how it all came together in their website design:
Check out the website here. They ship worldwide!
