Client
“Geeks in the Woods” is an annual off-site retreat at Tune, where engineering teams gather in a remote location and unwind while also brainstorming. Founded by twin brothers from Seattle, WA, Lucas and Lee Brown. The location of this remote work space found a home ten miles outside of Valdez, Alaska. Lucas and Lee transitioned Geeks in the Woods into a movement. Geeks in the Woods (GITW) started off with the tents that serve as fully connected workspaces. GITW has graduated from tents to tiny houses and are continuing to grow this movement in the beautiful 49th state.
Target Audience
The audience consists of tech and outdoor enthusiast between the ages of 25-45. People who spend their working life behind computers but desire a work life with less indoor and more outdoor. Geeks in the Woods is for developers, travelers, programmers, nature seekers, designers, and the CEOs.
Beta Square Moodboard
Objective
Geeks in the Woods needs a custom typeface to brand their buildings with nameplates. The typeface should be modern and evoke a futuristic vibe. The separate nameplates should feel cohesive but also have definitive differences. Each building has their own theme and the theme should be represented in the nameplate. The three tiny homes that are the focus are named after ski towns across the world; Zermatt, Niseko and Whistler.
Tone
The tone throughout is modern and futuristic. Geometric shapes and patterns with a hand written aesthetic. Having spent substantial time in both Niseko and Whistler as well as the GITW property, the end design will emote an unbelievable amount character.
Creative Considerations
Lee and Lucas provided a creative document used for the interior decorations of the three houses. They each have their own theme that coincides with the names. Lucas and Lee named each house after ski towns they’ve visited: Zermatt, Niseko and Whistler. Zermatt is primarily purple and red like the shaded and tones in different wines. It will have a “feeling of vintage luxury chalet”. While Niseko, will have a “feeling of modern Japanese design”. Niseko’s color scheme consists of greens and browns. Whistler on the other hand will be more indigo, turquoise and cyan. Whistler will have a woodsy northwest vibe.
Zermatt
Zermatt is in Switzerland. It has a population of about 5,800 inhabitants and is classified as a town. It lies at the upper end of Mattertal at an elevation of 5,310 ft, at the foot of Switzerland’s highest peaks. Zermatt is famed as a mountaineering and ski resort of the Swiss Alps. Until the mid-19th century, it was predominantly an agricultural community; the first and tragic ascent of the Matterhorn in 1865 was followed by a rush on the mountains surrounding the village, leading to the construction of many tourist facilities. Much of the local economy is based on tourism, with about half of the jobs in town in hotels or restaurants and just under half of all apartments are vacation apartments.
Inspiration
GITW provided me with images of a few personal items that inspired their interior decor for the Zermatt house. One images was of a cookie jar with bright red lips and big purple costume glasses hanging on it. The other image was a vibrant red chair and red pillow. The Zermatt themed home will use purple and red, like the shades and tones one would find in different wines, to decorate the interior. Zermatt has a “feeling of vintage luxury chalet”.
Zermatt House Moodboard
Niseko
Niseko is a town located in Hokkaido, Japan. To Japanese people, Niseko principally refers to a mountain range and a municipal area. However, overseas the name has come to refer to a wider area of ski resort. The name Niseko derives from the Ainu language, and it means “a cliff jutting over a riverbank deep in the mountains”. The Niseko United ski resorts are widely recognized as offering some of the best dry-powder-snow conditions in the world. Visitors to Niseko share in the excitement of what can feel like an endless supply of beautifully light, fluffy snow. Relaxing in with a pipping hot bowl of Niseko’s world famous potato ramen and watching the snow fall outside is just one of many reasons people return every year.
Inspiration
GITW provided me with images of a few personal items that inspired their interior decor for the Niseko house. One image is standing sculpture of the sovereign Buddha. The other image is a modern circular white coffee table. Both of these items will be in the Niseko house.The Niseko themed home will use greens and browns to decorate the interior. Niseko is going for a tranquil modern Japanese design aesthetic.
Niseko House Moodboard
Whistler
Whistler is a resort town in the southern Pacific Ranges of the Coast Mountains in the province of British Columbia, Canada. Over two million people visit Whistler annually, primarily for alpine skiing and snowboarding and, in summer, mountain biking at Whistler Blackcomb. Its pedestrian village has won numerous design awards and Whistler has been voted among the top destinations in North America by major ski magazines since the mid-1990s. During the 2010 Winter Olympics, Whistler hosted most of the alpine, Nordic, luge, skeleton, and bobsled events, though freestyle skiing and all snowboarding events were hosted at Cypress Mountain near Vancouver.
Inspiration
GITW provided me with a few personal items that inspired their interior decor for the Whistler house. The first image was a stained wood-panel dresser with white trim and sitting on top of the dresser was a brass geometric globe. The other image provided was of two white furry pillows and a fuzzy white blanket, bringing in a cozy cabin feel.The Whistler themed home will use blues with white accents and wood texture to decorate the interior. Whistler is going for an upscale modern barn vibe.
Whistler House Moodboard
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