Brand book
Brand1 brand guidelines One brand. Every expression.
These are the Brand1 brand guidelines, open to read: our own identity shown the way we use it, kept in the same Brand Source we build for clients.
We build the brand first. Then we make every expression from it.
Brand1 is an AI-native brand and creative studio. Strategy and identity are authored by people. We encode them in Brand Source, the brand book that runs, and make every expression from it at AI speed.
Brand before content.
Every client starts with strategy and identity. The expressions come after.
People author. AI multiplies.
A named designer draws every mark. AI scales the expression.
Systems over guidelines.
Brand Source keeps the brand working after the project ends.
A wordmark and a disc, drawn by hand.
Keep clear space equal to the height of the disc on every side. Never redraw, stretch, recolour or set the wordmark in another face.
Always on the 50° bearing.
The disc is the one circle in the system. It enters, leaves and travels only on a line of 50°.
- 01Between 45° and 55° is fine. Outside 40° to 60° is not.
- 02One disc on screen or page at a time.
- 03Crimson on paper and bone. Rose on ink.
- 04Everything else is square: no rounded corners, no shadows.
Paper and ink, with crimson kept rare.
- Ink#0A1320RGB 10 19 32Type and dark grounds
- Crimson#9B2C3BRGB 155 44 59The disc and one action
- Paper#FBFAF7RGB 251 250 247The page
- Bone#F2EDE6RGB 242 237 230Quiet grounds
- Rose#DA6B72RGB 218 107 114Accent on ink
- Garnet#681020RGB 104 16 32Links and depth
Widths show how much of each colour we use. Contrast is measured from the values above; crimson on ink falls short, so rose is the accent on dark grounds.
Two families. Bold, tight, and plain.
Schibsted Grotesk
Headings · Bold and Semibold · tight tracking at display sizes
ABCDEFGHIJKLMNOPQRSTUVWXYZ abcdefghijklmnopqrstuvwxyz 0123456789
IBM Plex Sans
Text · Regular and Light · 17 to 20 px for reading
ABCDEFGHIJKLMNOPQRSTUVWXYZ abcdefghijklmnopqrstuvwxyz 0123456789
A designer draws your mark. AI makes the versions. Every piece of work carries the name of the person who signed it, and every claim carries its limit beside it.
We write the way we design.
Plain.
“A designer draws your mark. AI makes the versions.”
Not: Human-centred generative brand ecosystems.
Short words for large ideas. If a sentence needs a second reading, rewrite it.
Specific.
“Six stages. Three human sign-offs. A pass mark of 85.”
Not: A comprehensive end-to-end brand solution.
Numbers, names and dates beat adjectives.
Answerable.
“The partner signs picture lock.”
Not: Fully automated production.
Name the limit and the owner. Nothing is automatic if a person signs it.
Unhurried.
“Start with five days. Decide after.”
Not: Transform your brand overnight.
Confident, without urgency.
Words we keep
- brand
- source
- author
- draw
- sign
- version
- consent
- credential
- specimen
- score
Words we don't use
- revolutionary
- game-changing
- cutting-edge
- seamless
- world-class
- leverage
- synergy
- unlock
- empower
- supercharge
Sentence case for headings and buttons. British spelling: colour, programme, organisation. One idea per sentence.
Type, the disc, and quiet photography.
Our own artwork is type and the disc. Photography is editorial: real places, materials and work in progress, graded quietly and credited by name. Every image that used AI carries a label and Content Credentials.
What we always do, and what we never do.
Do
- 01One crimson action on screen at a time.
- 02Alternate paper, bone and ink grounds.
- 03Label specimen work quietly as a specimen project.
- 04Point to the price sheet; never publish prices.
Don't
- 01Crimson text on ink. Use Rose instead.
- 02Shadows, gradients on type or rounded corners.
- 03Invent a client or a quote.
- 04Set text on a diagonal. Type reveals vertically.
Every change to this brand book is proposed, reviewed and signed by the founder. How Brand Source keeps living brand guidelines current. Read the Client zero: Brand1 identity case.
Brand guidelines, answered
What should brand guidelines include?
Brand guidelines should include the core idea and positioning, logo usage with clear space and misuse, the colour palette with contrast values, typography and hierarchy, tone of voice with real examples, imagery rules, and the dos and don'ts for each format. The best guidelines also record who approved each change and when.
What does a good brand book look like?
A good brand book is short, specific and current. It shows the brand in use rather than describing it, gives numbers instead of adjectives, and says what never to do. The Brand1 brand guidelines on this page are an open example: eight sections, versioned in Brand Source, with every change signed by the founder.
What are Brand1's brand colours and typefaces?
Brand1 uses ink #0A1320 and paper #FBFAF7 as its main colours, with crimson #9B2C3B kept rare for the disc and one action. Bone, rose and garnet support them. Headings are set in Schibsted Grotesk and text in IBM Plex Sans, bold and tight at display sizes, plain for reading.
Why does Brand1 publish its own brand book?
Brand1, a brand and creative studio, publishes its own brand book so clients can read the standard before they buy it. The brand lives in the same Brand Source the studio builds for clients, so this page shows the living brand guidelines the studio works from today, not a mock-up made for marketing.