The dahlia flower is native to Mexico and the rest of Central America. Within the same family are the sunflower, daisy and chrysanthemum. There are 42 original species that are brightly colored, which display most hues, with the exception of blue (unless grown as a hybrid). It is the national flower of Mexico. The dahlia has a flower head that is actually a composite with many florets. Each floret is a flower in its own right, but is often incorrectly described as a petal.

One of the bigger decisions I made was to split the flower in half. What allowed for this, logically, was something I found in research. People mistakenly refer to the dahlia florets as petals. Each floret is a flower in its own right, which made me consider it okay to separate the “so-called petals”. This also gave me a very creative way to incorporate the ‘D’ and ‘H’ initials. The color palette stems from the many hues in which the dahlia grow. Having multiple colors, along with it being contained inside of a single building, is symbolic of them being a family-owned business.

I originally used a sans serif typeface, but my clients insisted that it be serif. That put me on a mission to do something that would balance the sharp edges and thick stroke in the mark. I knew that I needed something sturdy, yet maintained a level of elegance. The bridge to that balance was a combination of the curves in the flower and the soft elements in the color palette. That led me to the typeface Americana, which I slightly modified to get the weight accurate. It also helps that the serifs of ‘D’ and ‘H’ seem to be inviting the points of the ‘petals’. Americana adds a layer of much needed trust and reliability, with this being a real estate investment company.