THE DEEN MAGAZINE | Brand Refresh & Creative Direction

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The visual identity was designed by a fellow graphic designer. My scope was everything that came after — the strategy, the content direction, the briefs, the copy, and the execution. This is a pure Creative Direction and Social Media Strategy case study. 

 The existing visual identity wasn't broken — but it wasn't speaking to the right people in the right way. The magazine needed to feel warmer, more hopeful, and more present in the daily life of a young Muslim — not like something you open when you want a reminder, but something you follow because it makes you feel good about who you are. 

Everything was built around one idea: Light, Not Loud.

Islamic content that feels present in daily life, not distant or heavy. A visual world that feels like light entering a room. This concept became the filter for every decision — color, typography, photography, illustration, grid layout. If something felt heavy, dramatic, or preachy, it was wrong. If it felt soft, honest, grounded, and hopeful, it was right.

 The new palette was drawn from contemporary Islamic Andalusian art — architectural tiles, natural materials, and the quality of light in Andalusian spaces. Warm cream, soft gold, deep navy, teal, and sky blue. Colors that feel cultured and rooted without being nostalgic or heavy. The rule built into the system: never pair two high-contrast colors in the same design. Everything should breathe. 

 The existing Arabic typefaces — Doran for headings and 29LT Zarid Text for body — were preserved to maintain continuity. Manrope was selected as the English typeface for its clean, modern geometry that sits comfortably alongside the Arabic. Decorative fonts were explicitly ruled out. The hierarchy was kept simple: bold for impact, regular for readability, semi-bold only for emphasis. 

 Three content formats were given their own direction — photography, illustration, and text-based posts — to ensure the grid felt cohesive even with visual variety. Photography guidelines called for natural light, real moments, negative space for text, and grain over dark overlays. Illustration direction called for flat or semi-flat style, limited brand palette, no black outlines, and friendly proportions. The Instagram grid was designed as a systematic balanced mix of all three formats with consistent spacing and margins. 

 A complete Brand Refresh Guide covering objective and scope, brand essence, color guidelines with usability rules, typography system, visual direction across all content formats, creative concept direction, and grid concept application — delivered as a final PDF. 

 Brand refresh strategy, color palette, typography selection, Instagram visual direction, photography guidelines, illustration style direction, creative concept direction, brand refresh guidelines document.