BRAND CASE STUDY
TRIANGULAR STUDIO × THE FIRST SENTENCE
FOUNDER — KRISTEN CORDELL
ESSAYS ONLY
✎ ESSAYS THAT SOUND LIKE YOU · NOT A CONSULTANT · HOLISTIC ADMISSIONS FRIENDLY · NO STATUS FLEXING · JUST YOUR STORY ✎
THE CHALLENGE
Kristen Cordell was launching The First Sentence from scratch — one sharp idea: help the students the college admissions industry tends to overlook.
Most competitors sell full-scope consulting starting in middle school, chase acceptance letters from a short list of Ivies, and charge four or five figures. Kristen wanted something narrower and more honest: essay coaching only, priced so most families could actually say yes.
The brand had to hold two things at once: the warmth of someone who's personally sat across the table from a discouraged seventeen-year-old, and the credibility to be trusted with something as high-stakes as a college application.
THE DELIVERABLES
01 / 06
Wordmark + Lockups
Primary wordmark, oval badge mark, stacked lockup, and a standalone "the 5" logomark.
02 / 06
Color System
5-color palette in hex, Pantone + CMYK for print, WCAG AAA checked pairings.
03 / 06
Type System
A bold display serif, an editorial sans, and a light body serif.
04 / 06
Custom Icon Set
Hand-drawn line icons — coffee in hand, a vintage computer, a pencil.
05 / 06
Pattern Library
Warped checkerboard + wavy stripe systems for socials, stickers, and print.
06 / 06
Full Brand Guide
A complete creative direction deck — every rule, ratio, and reason.
THE COLOR STORY
First Page
#F6F6F6
The space before you start. Clean, quiet, unintimidating.
Garden Draft
#E6E7B0
The energy of a good study session. Momentum, not pressure.
Blank Canvas
#F9ECE4
Warmth that says come in, you're already interesting.
Clear Thought
#AABFD5
The calm that shows up once the thinking clicks.
Final Copy
#2A2726
The confidence of a finished draft. Grounded. Done.
BEFORE & AFTER
BEFORE
Overwhelmed
Discouraged
Unsure Where to Start
Doubtful
Poorly Equipped
the glow-up
AFTER
Empowered
Relieved
Hopeful
Positive
For founders ready to grow
Surface-level branding doesn't cut it anymore. You’re building something meaningful, and your brand should support that.
We combine strategy, storytelling, and elevated design to help you create a brand people remember, trust, and choose.
SEE WHAT WORKING TOGETHER LOOKS LIKE ▶