In case you haven’t heard: we’re really into custom flag designs.
Helping make flag designing accessible and simple for absolutely anyone, even total design novices, has been our goal for years now. With our custom design system readily available to help you take your first steps, designing your own flag has never been easier. But creating an effective flag design is a very specific art form. To help you put together an impactful design, we’ve compiled some of the key design principles that make a memorable flag.
Utilizing some of the amazing design tips from the folks over at NAVA (North American Vexillology Association), we’ve whittled down some of the main points to keep in mind when creating a custom flag design.
For personalized advice regarding custom flags and banners, contact our team at BestFlag today.
Simplicity is Key
When it comes to designing flags, less is more. Simple designs are highly regarded as the hallmark of effective flags. Your flag should be so memorable and easy to recreate that a child should be able to recreate it themselves with just a pen and paper. This isn’t just because simple flags are more visually appealing, either. Keeping things simplistic serves a practical purpose.
Flags are not rigid. They bend, flap, and wave about in the wind. If you create a flag that is overly complex in design, you aren’t going to recognize it once it starts to move about in the wind. Keeping things straightforward means that your design is able to be appreciated and recognized no matter how it’s displayed.
A good rule of thumb is to use just 2-3 basic colors in your flag design. Simplicity, simplicity, simplicity. We can’t hammer that home enough. If you take just one from this entire article, let it be that simplicity always, always wins!
Always Be Intentional
A good flag is comprised of two important factors: design and symbolism. The two go hand in hand – symbolism should be embedded within the design. You can’t really have one without the other! So, as you dive into your design, you need to keep symbolism at the forefront of it all.
Here’s the thing: symbolism needs to be succinct, efficient, and intentional. Take the Italian flag as an example of purposeful symbolism. The three stripes, oriented vertically, were placed in direct opposition to the rest of Europe, which, at the time, sported several horizontally oriented stripes. With one tiny, simple design choice, Italy made a careful statement about the individuality and differentiation of itself as a country.
Tiny design choices can go above and beyond in representing the values you stand for.
Avoid Lettering and Seals
Any guesses as to why you might want to avoid lettering and seals? You guessed it: simplicity is key. Adding features like these might seem appealing, but ultimately they just serve to add unnecessary complexity to the design. Lettering and seals tend to be hard to read from far aware, as they are typically smaller elements.
Stand Out From the Crowd
This is maybe the most important and most difficult principle of all. When simplicity is a guiding factor of your flag design, it can be tricky to reconcile that with the need to be distinctive. But, at the end of the day, the point of your flag and branding is to be recognizable. You don’t want your design to look like everyone else’s – otherwise, why get a custom flag in the first place?
The solution all boils down to creativity. When merging simplicity and distinction, you’re going to need to rely on an innate sense of creativity and thinking outside the box to bring an effective design to life.
Use a High-Quality Design System
Even if you have a strong design plan in mind, you’re limited by the technology you use to bring it to life. Fortunately, here at BestFlag, we’ve been working hard to make the design process as straightforward and easy-to-navigate as possible. We’ve been working for years to launch our ultimate flag designer system, built for efficient and intuitive designing that absolutely anybody can use.
Our flag designer prioritizes several key factors: ease of use, versatile capability, and fast production. Our top navigation bar has all the tools you could possibly need to arrange, place, and piece together everything you want on your flag. All the tools available ensure there are no limits to what you can design, and you’ll easily be able to set your brand apart.
Once your flag is designed, the process is quick. Our BestFlag team works hard to finish your custom flag order quickly, producing and sending everything out to you within a matter of days. You read that right – with our designer, you can design your flag and have it at your doorstep in just 3-5 business days. Hard to beat that deal!
Start Designing Your Flag Today with BestFlag
No matter the size of your order, from 1 flag to 1000, BestFlag is ready to bring your vision to life. With our easy-to-follow design process and readily available experts to offer advice, flag design has never been easier. Contact our friendly team to get all your flag design questions answered. Or, if you’re ready to jump straight into it, start designing today!
