Concept: A New Warning Label for a New Decade

After a few years around the cannabis industry, I always noticed the small warning label. Staring at it this weekend, I began to see the exclamation point appear in the center of the leaf. I’m pretty sure it was light affecting my eyes – the same when a flash goes off, and spots appear. While I have seen it so many times before, now was the perfect time to update it.

Planning the Design

Because design is all about constraints, I gave myself a few boundaries based on perceived decisions previously made. (1) The “CA” typeface could not change. I did not want to spend time sorting through fonts. (2) Do not change the dimensions of the triangle because die-cuts may already exist, and any new shape would need a new die produced, which is just a waste of money if not needed. (3) The cannabis leaf and exclamation point must be “one unit.”

A Stylistic Update: California Cannabis Warning Label

With the plant leaf and exclamation point separate, the current label communicates, “This product has cannabis inside, caution.” Placing the two icons as one, shifts the cautionary reminder message slightly. The new design now communicates “Caution, you are about to use a cannabis product.” In the new concept, the eye can no longer separate the symbols and must view them as one.

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