Wash Bucket Update - Part 2
To recap, I bought some larger 20-litre buckets, swapping from white to black in the process. I also got new red and blue gamma seal lids, colour matched to the carry over bucket dollies and grit guards. From here, I wanted to mix things up.
If Obsessed Garage still offered those original red and blue decals, I'd probably have just bought a fresh set and called it done. But OG recently redesigned their bucket package too. The red, blue and black on white is gone — replaced by a monotone look across black, grey or white buckets with black and grey labelling. The new labels look slick, but there's no colour recognition, which I always thought was the whole point of the decals. I hate to say it given how much influence Matt has had on my detailing over the years — but I feel like it's time to stop promoting someone else's brand. So, I decided to go my own way...........
After some time online, I landed on a basic logo and a font I liked, then worked through several colour combinations before settling on crisp white lettering set against red and blue backgrounds. The decal designations also got a rethink to better reflect how I actually use them. Blue for RINSE, red for WHEELS, red for WASH (laundry) — and a new addition, blue for RINSELESS.
From there, I took the design to a local sign maker, colour matched the decals to the gamma seal colours, worked out the sizing and finalised the shape. I'd originally planned to go rectangular, but asked them to mock up circular and hexagon options to compare. I'm glad I did, the rectangle looked bland, the circle a bit "me too." The elongated hex looked fresher, more personalized.
Yesterday I picked up the decals from the printer and went ahead and installed them on the buckets. The smaller sizing of the decal was deliberate. While I like the impact the larger OG decals make, on my shorter buckets they were partially hidden by the bucket dolly. So, smaller, less in your face, fully visible. And because I've kept the colour deviations, they are easily identifiable.
Did I need to have a dedicated RINSELESS bucket? Not really, I just thought why not. The WASH bucket is for holding used towels, basically a dedicated laundry basket. I guess I could have gone with LAUNDRY, but I felt like sticking with WASH because that's what its for........
washing towels.
With anything custom, you never truly know if it will meet the vision you had in your head. And while this wasn't totally what I'd originally planned — it's actually better than I had anticipated. But more importantly, this time it's mine.