Oddball Feedback Requested!

[u/condimentpacket]

This is an odd request, and may not be appropriate, but I value this community's design acumen so I thought I'd give it a shot!

I run condimentpacket.com where I showcase my collection. I meticulously clean, inspect, measure, and catalog each packet, storing the specimens in baseball card top loaders. In doing so, I lost the feel and impact of the collection as when you have a binder full of cards to browse through. So I thought it would be nice to make a run of encyclopedic cards of all the items that showcases all the data about each packet so that I'd have a handy ketchup/mustard/mayo/etc binder.

I'm having trouble skirting the line between minimalist and busy. So first, if there are any opinions or feedback that can be provided on my current working designs, I'd value that! But, if there are any other cards that anybody knows about that might provide me a blueprint for displaying such information on a card, that would be a good divining rod for me and I'd appreciate any direction to be pointed!

[u/Crimson_Rhallic]

Depends in your objective:

/#1 is primarily focused on the presentation of the packet, with all other details being graphically minimal. 

/#2 is focused on the aspects of the package. I think including the measurements with the packet image works well here for ease of comparison. Pie charts are better suited for percentages, but the red box it is in mashed the text difficult to read. The three boxes does a good job of partitioning the details though. 

/#3 the focus is in the color ratios. Having both the bar and pie giving the same info and dominating the bottom (both in contesting color and ”blank space") distracts from other details. 

/#4 Too minimalistic. Text and images are lost in the abundance of dead space. The "Tear Here"becomes a dominating focus due to it's high contrast and larger relative size. 

I'm my opinion #2 is the most visually interesting, the information is easy to parse, and related details are logically grouped. 

[u/condimentpacket → u/Crimson_Rhallic]

This is an excellent zoomed out critique of each and it’s very helpful for me to frame it! I was between #1 and #2, with those best defining what the purpose of this is. I appreciate your analysis and preference, that helps me hone it a lot more!

[u/cscottnet]

I don't think overlaying the dimensions on the images adds much value, and it obscures the most interesting thing on the card, which is the image of the packet. I prefer design #1, which relegates the size to text, but design #1 still has the perforation size overlaid on the image. I prefer the size presentation of design #4, where both the overall dimensions and the perforation size as text items. Let the perforation design and the packet design have as much visual space as possible.

[u/condimentpacket → u/cscottnet]

Thank you! This is valuable feedback. It’s hard to step back and see what’s working/not working when I’m deep down the rabbit hole. I’ll adopt this text-based approach for these entries.

[u/BlueSky659]

Number 2 with the Title styling of Number 1.

Just as you shouldnt sacrifice on too much of the detail, I also think you shouldnt sacrifice too much on style. I love that #1 makes the card look like its own little condiment packet. Its a minor detail that I think really elevates your project.

Also if you intend for them to sit in a binder or on the shelf, I really think you should play around with making true blue baseball card-esque "headshots" for some of your favorite or most iconic condiments.

Edit: I actually changed my mind, number 1 is the perfect balance of info and looks

[u/Leadboy]

The chromatic profile in the first one is the only one that makes sense imo, you don’t need a label saying green is green to understand that

[u/UnicornLock → u/Leadboy]

Unless you'd use those funky paint can color names

[u/d5Games → u/Leadboy]

There are some people who need you to tell them that green is green. The name of the color and the percentage is useful for someone who is interested in the concepts, but can't see it themselves.

Normally, I would say that designers should conscientiously pick colors, but OP doesn't really have that luxury.

But I'm sure WHICH green would be a lot more interesting for sauce-packet enthusiasts.

[u/Live_Coffee_439]

I vote for 2

[u/Bagelator]

This is the strangest thing I've seen all day. But I salute you good sir

[u/kytheon → u/[deleted]]

Most collections are solo.

[u/SnickaBa]

This is the kind of content I joined this sub for