Sketching is an under-appreciated tool in the designer’s toolbox. There is subtle connection between brain and fingertips that can allow the brain to express itself more fluidly than through the mechanical means of a mouse, which adds a few cognitive layers. In addition to the raw expression of a sketch, ‘happy accidents’ may occur where an unintended flourish manifests itself, or an optimal proportion naturally occurs.

In the case of the package design above, the task at hand was to create a shrink label on a bottle with compound curves. The design team had become very accustomed to designing on flat geometric planes. We all struggled as we tried to adapt our design ideas to the curved surface of the bottle in a way that didn’t feel static or rigid. After many, many tries on the computer by the design team, I sat down with a few writing instruments and some tracing paper to see if my hands would deliver something the mouse could not. The solution came rather rapidly, and included the curve from a component in the corporate logo. Everything fell together rapidly after this, and the minds of the design team were collectively freed to move forward with the refinements that made the whole design a home run.