OUGD501 - Bottle Direction

Concluding on researching into luxury water brands a large attributing factor is the presentation of the packaging, in recent years it has transcended beyond simple plastic water bottles to higher quality materials such as glass often moulded into unique forms to make the brand distinguishable by its bottle e.g. the tall minimalist cylinder is iconic of VOSS water and the unique ripple effect bottle designed by Internationally renowned Welsh-born designer, Ross Lovegrove was commissioned by Tŷ Nant to create their new luxury packaging. The main obstacle I would have with creating a new luxury water brand would be developing a high quality bottle to make up a large part of the bands identity as college does not have glass blowing or injection moulding facilities. 

To overcome this problem I looked online for plain glass bottles that I could source and apply my branding onto this. I found this more difficult that initially planned as most bottles were either in large volumes meant for tables or restaurants unrepresentative of personal water that I'm branding or featured some form of branding already placed on the bottle. I eventually found a suitable bottle that created stylish and sophisticated connotations due to its sleek minimal design complemented by the stainless steel lid, this would give the brand instant connotations of luxury using high quality materials for the packaging and the contemporary shape can become iconic of the brand. These bottles however came from China so postage was an estimate meaning I couldn't create a strong production plan until the bottles arrived however I could develop the branding and digital mock ups ready to have final designs in place for when the bottles arrive. 

I initially planned to apply my branding to the bottles using a frosted glass vinyl from the print room however through development critiques with my tutors they suggested using the sandblasting machine to create a permanent imprint into the glass making the bottle easily re-usable. This would also create a more substantial resolution in terms of high quality finishing processes that will look more high end than vinyl. Testing this in metal work on a test piece of glass found this finishing technique would work well in creating a high quality finish to the bottle. The sandblasting created a tactile texture that contrasted the smooth glass nicely to create a more engaging in hand experience that would elevate the quality of the resolution and add to the luxury connotations of the brand, making it more about the packaging and branding instead of the actual water, providing contextual links to my research essay.

Sandblast Test