Case Study

An icon systemfor asaree store

A saree showroom sells things you can only feel - the weight of a Kanjeevaram, the shine of real zari, a border that took a week on the loom. This is the icon system that put those claims on a shelf tag, a window and a six-foot banner without a single stock photo.

MY ROLE: Product Designer
CLIENT: Kaladhar Sarees, Hyderabad
SCOPE: Icon system · 42 marks
YEAR: 2025

Context

A new shop with nothing onthe walls yet

Kaladhar Sarees opened opposite Croma in Manikonda, Hyderabad on 31 May 2025. Before the doors opened they needed one visual vocabulary for the product - shelf labels, window graphics, banners, Instagram - in a market where every competitor writes the same three words: pure, premium, authentic. A shopper walking past a rack reads a picture faster than a paragraph, and a banner outside a shop gets about two seconds.

What was asked for

A set of icons covering the store’s product claims - the fabrics, the craft, the range and the service - ready for print, web and social.

What it actually needed

Not drawings - a system. One grid, one stroke weight, one decided style, one colour, and a file the next person can pick up and extend.

Style exploration

Six directions,one survivor

The same four icons drawn six ways on the same grid - only the treatment changes, so the comparison is honest. One colour throughout: the brand indigo.

Simple line

One weight, no fill. Cleanest at 16px, quietest on a banner.

Highlight tone

CHOSEN

One element tinted to carry the eye. Still prints in one colour.

Two-tone

A lighter indigo fills the accent. Softer, costs a second tint.

Flat on tile

Heavier stroke on a neutral tile. The most printable option.

Filled tile

Indigo on a tinted tile. Strong at distance, softer up close.

Pop

Solid indigo tile, reversed stroke. Great on Instagram, loud on a tag.

THE CHOSEN STYLE ON THE THREE SURFACES IT SHIPS TO

LIGHT

DARK

DARK ELEVATED

The deciding question wasn’t which looked best on screen. It was which one still worked printed in one colour on a paper tag - because that’s where most of these icons actually live. Highlight tone won: one tint, no second ink.

Foundations

The grid underevery icon

A saree is built on a grid - warp and weft, thread by thread. So is an icon. Every mark sits on the same keyline: a square live area, a circle, an inner circle, a landscape and a portrait rectangle, two diagonals. Then each one is checked at the four sizes it has to survive, from a 16px tag to a 140px banner.

KEYLINE GRID · 40 × 40

Live area 36px, 2px safe margin
Circle, inner circle, two rectangles
Stroke 1px at 40, scales with size

STRESS TEST · SAME ICONS, FOUR SIZES

140 · banner

64 · poster

24 · UI

16 · tag

The library

Forty-two icons,five jobs

Grouped by the job each icon does, not by what it looks like. That grouping is what stops a shop putting five “quality” icons on one banner and none on another. Below: the final Highlight tone set in indigo, plus the six alternates kept in the file.

Craft & weave

13 icons

Traditional Weaves

Exquisite Handwoven Patterns

Exquisite Zari Work

Rich Borders

Banarasi Grandeur

Artisan Craftsmanship

Authentic Craftsmanship

Authentic Weaves

Unmatched Craftsmanship

Elegant Pattu Shine

Golden Glow

Intricate Details

Intricate Designs

Fabric & feel

12 icons

Premium Fabrics

Rich Fabrics

Luxurious Texture

Unique Texture

Sheer Grace

Soft Yet Strong

Lightweight Comfort

Breathable Comfort

Lightweight and Breathable

Lightweight Elegance

Durable and Lightweight

Eco-Friendly Fabric

Design & range

11 icons

Elegant Designs

Signature Designs

Vibrant Colors

Vibrant Design

Wide Variety

Ever-Changing Variety

Timeless Appeal

Versatile Appeal

Versatile Style

Versatile Elegance

Perfect for Every Occasion

Quality & trust

2 icons

Premium Quality

Uncompromising Quality

Shopping

4 icons

Easy shopping

Seamless Shopping Experience

Customer Favorites

Customer Satisfaction

Alternates kept in the file

second takes on six marks, kept for reference, not shipped

Vibrant Colors

Artisan Craftsmanship

Elegant Designs

Perfect for Every Occasion

Customer Satisfaction

The library · sticker version

The same forty-two,as stickers

For Instagram and WhatsApp the line icons were too quiet. The second cut puts every mark on a gradient tile with a highlight and a lift - eighteen colour families, so the set reads as a collection rather than a list. One component, one property: Icon.