Tests & Tastes: Behind the scene: testing the re-branding my blog with a freelance graphic designer

Last year, I strongly felt I needed to change something with my blog, not sure what... I figured that I was now writing mostly in English, and that the blog I had started to share about my travels had grown into a larger beast, encompassing music, food, and more...

Taking these interests into account, I opted for the name Tests & Tastes, which reflects well my interests. This was the occasion to create a new identity all together, but I know nothing about graphic design although it's a skill I have been wanting to own for a while (it's on my list for 2015 though). Having heard about freelancing platforms, I posted an ad on Guru and was rapidly submerged with quotes from graphic designer from India, USA, Canada, Argentina, Ukraine, etc... You basically have 2 decision tools to pick a designer: its portfolio and the price quoted for your job. I put my trust into "Polestar Solution" from India, who seemed to offer a good value for money 85 USD for coloured logo, black & white logo, business cards, banner and font.

We started straight away after I explained the goals and image I wanted for the blog. The good thing with him based in India and me in Singapore is that I would receive each of his new iteration first thing in the morning, send my comments at some point during the day, and will get again his new design the next morning. Smooth. Sometimes though, we had some clear communication gaps, as you will see below, which can be frustrating. However, he was very swift to provide new graphics and overall I think that the timeline and quality was good.

Here is what the iteration process looked like (from top left to bottom right, something like that, follow the numbers...), with my comments/feelings in italic...