The idea was to create 12 Skyrim related icons. I wanted to approach these icons in a minimalistic way to help communicate what they are and to make the entire set cohesive.

To begin, I took time to write down everything I could think of in relation to Skyrim. And it was A LOT. The game as many aspects to it so being able to write our as much as I could helped me greatly in deciding what I should focus in on. Understanding my time limits and the constraints of making 12 icons, I decided to focus my sketching on items and weapons found in the game.

In sketching, I played around with different angles and ways to place the items. In my first round of doing this, I dumped everything I could think of out on paper. It helped me see what limitations I would have and what I could do to keep things simple. I was able to narrow down exactly what items and weapons I wanted to do. In the second round of sketching, I focused more on composition; how I wanted things to look, angles, possible backgrounds and styles. I was able to explore some more as I had concrete ideas of where I was headed.

Before I went any further, I took time to gather reference photos from the game Skyrim as well as professional vector graphics that were similar to the style I wanted to approach this icon set with.

I launched into Adobe Illustrator, focusing on using simple shapes to design my icons. Through trial and error, I found a style that I felt worked and created 4 icons in this style. I then reached out to fellow designers for feedback who were able to point out things I overlooked like proportions of the sword handle and the highlights on the axe. I took this feedback and made the changes while creating 4 more icons.

I was able to consult with my client about the 8 designs I had so far. The feedback I was given was: to increase the weight of the containment stroke to improve value contrast, make the gaps on each icon consistent, and to add minor details to various icons. With this feedback, I went forward with those making changes.

The biggest change I saw was my bow and arrow icon. Previously, due to the thinner containment stroke, it was difficult to differentiate between the dark brown and the stroke. With the thicker stroke now, it was easier to not only see the break in the stroke but the color of the bow itself.

After creating my final four icons, I had a complete set of 12 Skyrim icons. By setting “rules” for myself such as stroke weight, colors, and breaks in the stroke on the left side, allowed me to create a cohesive set through repetition and contrast. The consistency ties them together as one but each icon can stand on their own and communicate what it is without the need of the other icons.

I learned the importance of brainstorming, exploring my options and pushing past my initial ideas. I was able to see more possibilities and not settled on “okay”. I also learned more about contrast through this design process. It not only makes designs more visually interesting but it greatly helps in the message that is being communicated to the viewers. I will continue to apply these learnings into my future designs and design process.