Forge Forward Academy: Brief to Brand; Inner City Cafe Brief | 4 Week Course | STARTING SUNDAY 22nd June 1pm - 4pm
Design Basics: A Branding Workshop for Emerging Creatives
Learn to build brands that are bold, intentional, and portfolio-worthy.
This isn’t just another class about making logos.
This is a guided, three-part workshop that walks you through the actual creative process of brand building, step by step, from idea to execution. Whether you're a design student, a recent grad, or someone who’s tired of vague briefs and surface-level feedback, this course is for you.
What You'll Learn:
How to break down a brief properly and build direction with confidence
How to create powerful mood boards that actually guide your work
Naming strategies, brand storytelling, and audience thinking
Sketching and developing logos by hand
Illustrator tools and techniques for digitising your ideas
How to give and receive critique like a pro
How to design with clarity, not guesswork
Who It's For:
Uni or TAFE design students who want more clarity and support
Recent grads looking to build a strong folio piece
Creatives who feel stuck in the early stages of concepting
Anyone who wants to turn ideas into intentional identities
“I’ve been thinking about what kind of person would be drawn to something like Forge Forward Academy. I’d say they weren’t here to fuck spiders, they’re not here for a gold star or just a flimsy certificate. They’re in it because they want to get close to the process, to the questions, to the craft. They’re ready to get their hands dirty. They’re not afraid of depth, of discomfort, of cracking something open to see what’s inside.
These are the ones who actually do want to learn, who want to know, not just be told. Curious, open-minded, anti-passive types. The ones who know that knowing how to do something is far more valuable than having a piece of paper that says you can.
I think this the gap small learning environments fill. Not just a few sentences feedback on your work with some pithy recommendations for changes. It’s about meaningful critique, real time feedback on your work and to ask questions that matter. To build real friendships. To find future collaborators. To learn in a room that actually gives a shit.”
- Amy, your teacher :)
What You’ll Walk Away With:
A full branding concept based on a brief
Powerful mood boards
A unique brand name + mission statement, values, and story
10–20 hand-drawn logotype sketches
A digitised logo-in-progress built in Illustrator
2 audience personas + a thorough understanding of your target audience
A process journal you can turn into a folio case study
Feedback from a practicing designer + your peers
Worksheets that you can re-use for future projects
A process you can adapt to your future projects
A group of new friends who can help you out! Think of this like intentional networking
Why I Designed This Course:
Because you deserve better than rushed critiques and guesswork. You deserve guidance, language, and community, so that when someone asks “Tell me about this brand,” you can actually answer with clarity and pride.
The Brief:
This brief is about bringing a cafe brand to real life. You’ll be mood boarding the vibe of the space, naming the cafe, doing some competitor analysis, checking in with your team mates and posting everything to a central online padlet board to keep on track and see what your peers are creating! This brief is great if you’re passionate about hospitality, coffee and maybe if you’ve ever thought about starting your own cafe 👀
When is it?
This course is in four parts, going for 3 hours per module.
The classes will be on:
SUNDAY 22nd June 1pm - 4pm
SUNDAY 29th June 1pm - 4pm
SUNDAY 6th July 1pm - 4pm
SUNDAY 13th July 1pm - 4pm
Why is this so cheap?
Great question. I have run a test pilot of this course and used the feedback to guide me on growing this to be better and better. I know I have value to offer and I’m keen as beans to help you, but I know this is a work in progress as well - the design process is iterative after all! This class is only open to 8 people and at this price until July 2025.
Design Basics: A Branding Workshop for Emerging Creatives
Learn to build brands that are bold, intentional, and portfolio-worthy.
This isn’t just another class about making logos.
This is a guided, three-part workshop that walks you through the actual creative process of brand building, step by step, from idea to execution. Whether you're a design student, a recent grad, or someone who’s tired of vague briefs and surface-level feedback, this course is for you.
What You'll Learn:
How to break down a brief properly and build direction with confidence
How to create powerful mood boards that actually guide your work
Naming strategies, brand storytelling, and audience thinking
Sketching and developing logos by hand
Illustrator tools and techniques for digitising your ideas
How to give and receive critique like a pro
How to design with clarity, not guesswork
Who It's For:
Uni or TAFE design students who want more clarity and support
Recent grads looking to build a strong folio piece
Creatives who feel stuck in the early stages of concepting
Anyone who wants to turn ideas into intentional identities
“I’ve been thinking about what kind of person would be drawn to something like Forge Forward Academy. I’d say they weren’t here to fuck spiders, they’re not here for a gold star or just a flimsy certificate. They’re in it because they want to get close to the process, to the questions, to the craft. They’re ready to get their hands dirty. They’re not afraid of depth, of discomfort, of cracking something open to see what’s inside.
These are the ones who actually do want to learn, who want to know, not just be told. Curious, open-minded, anti-passive types. The ones who know that knowing how to do something is far more valuable than having a piece of paper that says you can.
I think this the gap small learning environments fill. Not just a few sentences feedback on your work with some pithy recommendations for changes. It’s about meaningful critique, real time feedback on your work and to ask questions that matter. To build real friendships. To find future collaborators. To learn in a room that actually gives a shit.”
- Amy, your teacher :)
What You’ll Walk Away With:
A full branding concept based on a brief
Powerful mood boards
A unique brand name + mission statement, values, and story
10–20 hand-drawn logotype sketches
A digitised logo-in-progress built in Illustrator
2 audience personas + a thorough understanding of your target audience
A process journal you can turn into a folio case study
Feedback from a practicing designer + your peers
Worksheets that you can re-use for future projects
A process you can adapt to your future projects
A group of new friends who can help you out! Think of this like intentional networking
Why I Designed This Course:
Because you deserve better than rushed critiques and guesswork. You deserve guidance, language, and community, so that when someone asks “Tell me about this brand,” you can actually answer with clarity and pride.
The Brief:
This brief is about bringing a cafe brand to real life. You’ll be mood boarding the vibe of the space, naming the cafe, doing some competitor analysis, checking in with your team mates and posting everything to a central online padlet board to keep on track and see what your peers are creating! This brief is great if you’re passionate about hospitality, coffee and maybe if you’ve ever thought about starting your own cafe 👀
When is it?
This course is in four parts, going for 3 hours per module.
The classes will be on:
SUNDAY 22nd June 1pm - 4pm
SUNDAY 29th June 1pm - 4pm
SUNDAY 6th July 1pm - 4pm
SUNDAY 13th July 1pm - 4pm
Why is this so cheap?
Great question. I have run a test pilot of this course and used the feedback to guide me on growing this to be better and better. I know I have value to offer and I’m keen as beans to help you, but I know this is a work in progress as well - the design process is iterative after all! This class is only open to 8 people and at this price until July 2025.
Design Basics: A Branding Workshop for Emerging Creatives
Learn to build brands that are bold, intentional, and portfolio-worthy.
This isn’t just another class about making logos.
This is a guided, three-part workshop that walks you through the actual creative process of brand building, step by step, from idea to execution. Whether you're a design student, a recent grad, or someone who’s tired of vague briefs and surface-level feedback, this course is for you.
What You'll Learn:
How to break down a brief properly and build direction with confidence
How to create powerful mood boards that actually guide your work
Naming strategies, brand storytelling, and audience thinking
Sketching and developing logos by hand
Illustrator tools and techniques for digitising your ideas
How to give and receive critique like a pro
How to design with clarity, not guesswork
Who It's For:
Uni or TAFE design students who want more clarity and support
Recent grads looking to build a strong folio piece
Creatives who feel stuck in the early stages of concepting
Anyone who wants to turn ideas into intentional identities
“I’ve been thinking about what kind of person would be drawn to something like Forge Forward Academy. I’d say they weren’t here to fuck spiders, they’re not here for a gold star or just a flimsy certificate. They’re in it because they want to get close to the process, to the questions, to the craft. They’re ready to get their hands dirty. They’re not afraid of depth, of discomfort, of cracking something open to see what’s inside.
These are the ones who actually do want to learn, who want to know, not just be told. Curious, open-minded, anti-passive types. The ones who know that knowing how to do something is far more valuable than having a piece of paper that says you can.
I think this the gap small learning environments fill. Not just a few sentences feedback on your work with some pithy recommendations for changes. It’s about meaningful critique, real time feedback on your work and to ask questions that matter. To build real friendships. To find future collaborators. To learn in a room that actually gives a shit.”
- Amy, your teacher :)
What You’ll Walk Away With:
A full branding concept based on a brief
Powerful mood boards
A unique brand name + mission statement, values, and story
10–20 hand-drawn logotype sketches
A digitised logo-in-progress built in Illustrator
2 audience personas + a thorough understanding of your target audience
A process journal you can turn into a folio case study
Feedback from a practicing designer + your peers
Worksheets that you can re-use for future projects
A process you can adapt to your future projects
A group of new friends who can help you out! Think of this like intentional networking
Why I Designed This Course:
Because you deserve better than rushed critiques and guesswork. You deserve guidance, language, and community, so that when someone asks “Tell me about this brand,” you can actually answer with clarity and pride.
The Brief:
This brief is about bringing a cafe brand to real life. You’ll be mood boarding the vibe of the space, naming the cafe, doing some competitor analysis, checking in with your team mates and posting everything to a central online padlet board to keep on track and see what your peers are creating! This brief is great if you’re passionate about hospitality, coffee and maybe if you’ve ever thought about starting your own cafe 👀
When is it?
This course is in four parts, going for 3 hours per module.
The classes will be on:
SUNDAY 22nd June 1pm - 4pm
SUNDAY 29th June 1pm - 4pm
SUNDAY 6th July 1pm - 4pm
SUNDAY 13th July 1pm - 4pm
Why is this so cheap?
Great question. I have run a test pilot of this course and used the feedback to guide me on growing this to be better and better. I know I have value to offer and I’m keen as beans to help you, but I know this is a work in progress as well - the design process is iterative after all! This class is only open to 8 people and at this price until July 2025.