Featured Design Contest: Dr. Mojo – Tequila Bottle Label

Today’s featured design contest was run for Hatchwise client cdorris, who was looking for something a little different in a logo contest. Instead of asking for a company logo, our client wanted a high-end design to use as a private label for bottles of tequila that will be gifted to patients at a cosmetic dentistry practice. 

The design brief stated that the client wanted a black label with white and gold text. The dentist’s nickname is “Mojo”, so they wanted the tequila label to say “Dr. Mojo Special Blend Tequila – Sip & Smile”. Other than the tagline, they asked that nothing teeth or dental-related be included in the design. They wanted something classy, strong, and bold, suggesting power and luxury. 

Cdorris offered a contest prize of $230 and received 122 entries. Let’s take a look at some of the designs that were submitted.

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One thing that makes this contest fun to look through is the way the designers chose to show what the finished product would look like when printed onto the label of a high-end tequila bottle. The shape of the outer edge here is what makes this understated design work.

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With its old-timey font and curlicue border, this label looks like it came straight off the shelves of a wild west saloon. However, under the words “sip & smile, there seems to be a design that looks like…a smile? Maybe even a toothbrush? This is a design that just might be playfully hinting at what Dr. Mojo is all about.

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Here, Dr. Mojo has a mascot. A dapper-looking fellow in a bowler cap shares his special blend with his patients. 

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While most of the labels shown have rounded corners, this submission is rectangular with straight lines.  An agave plant adds an asymmetrical dimension to this otherwise balanced design. 

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 You might almost miss it among the intricate scrollwork, but a friendly smile is hiding above the tagline here. 

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If you look closely, you’ll see that the designer incorporated a web address along the outer edge of this design. Otherwise, this could pass for something much older, perhaps a bottle pulled off the shelf of a jazz-age speakeasy with that art nouveau border.

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Two smiles are included in the design under each of the o’s in Mojo.  

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Simple white on black is a good look here. The ribbons in the design make it look like a prize-winning blend.

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Gold lettering gives a sophisticated look to these labels, but do you see the face hiding in the design? 

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And the winner is:

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Here, the client got everything they asked for and then some. The original request was to have something classy and sophisticated to give to clients, but along the way, our designers introduced the idea of hiding a smiling face within the letters of the design. In the end, cdorris selected this bold but playful design by quimcey.

At first glance, this label looks very much at home on a top-shelf bottle of tequila, but a closer look reveals a smiling face hiding in the letters of the name. What a thoughtful and luxurious gift for Dr. Mojo’s patients!

Check out other Graphic Design contests:

Mixter Seltzer – A product is a non-alcoholic mixer that bartenders/mixologists add to alcoholic drinks/beers.

House Of Light Global – House of Light Global is a spiritual/religious nonprofit organization that recognizes the Light and Life of God in all things visible and invisible. They believe that there is one Divine Life shared by all. House of Light Global offers programs and opportunities that make it possible to illuminate and nurture the Light in all things

Hawaiian Tradition – Custom packaging design for a manufacturer for Private Label Home products.

Cash, Inc. – Looking for custom signs that lemonade vendors will use to attract customers..

Metosin– A software consultancy with 20 people. They have a much larger impact on their field than their headcount would suggest. The design they needed is for reminding themselves of their principles of “Integrity”, “Courage”, and “Expertise”. They would like to put the design up as a framed picture at their offices.