The Challenge

Gardenview Montessori needed a brand that reflected the heart of their school, a Montessori environment rooted in hands-on learning, independence, and the natural serenity of the Pacific Northwest. Their existing identity lacked credibility for parents and didn’t capture the warmth, playfulness, or intentionality happening inside the classrooms.

The challenge was to build a visual system that could speak to two audiences at once, children and their sense of wonder, and parents who want legitimacy, trust, and professionalism. The brand also needed to visually connect to its environment, a school surrounded by cedar forests and Bellingham’s distinct natural character.

The Solution (The Concept)

We developed a full rebrand anchored in Montessori values and expressed through a Pacific Northwest lens. The identity system blends playful forms with structured typography, achieving a balance of warmth and credibility. A custom sun icon and an expanded set of playful marks create a visual language that feels tactile, curious, and optimistic.

The color palette draws from the surrounding landscape, and the layouts borrow cues from Montessori materials, simple, modular, ordered. From campus signage to staff badges to classroom touchpoints, the system was designed to feel human, consistent, and rooted in place.

The result is a brand that feels lively enough for children, trustworthy enough for parents, and distinct enough to stand confidently in an educational landscape crowded with generic visual identities.