826 Valencia

826 Valencia is a San Francisco based nonprofit that helps under-resourced students develop their writing skills and channel their creativity through free educational programs. We embraced the whimsical adventure of the 826 tutoring centers and applied it to all things digital.

Student in a red headscarf holding a pencil over a notebook at a writing center table

826 Valencia website pages in a tilted grid: the Welcome homepage, Field Trips and a student story

Approach

We expanded their color palette, illustrated a crazy cast of characters, and paired a handwritten script with a woodblock-inspired headline type for a creative, welcoming energy.

Grid of 25 illustrated icons, including a quill and inkwell, a skull biting a pencil and an apple in sunglasses

Three hand-lettered greetings on red: Howdy, Ahoy and Hi!

Student quote in block type on teal: "Do not look the frog directly in his eye." Suirad Boone, age 9

Tutor and student laughing together over a writing assignment at a classroom desk

Illustration of a seagull holding a pencil in its beak, standing on a rock in the water

Woodblock-style headlines on tan: King Carl's Emporium and Join Us, The Shipmates Society, with a whale in a hat

Student raising a pencil at a table of laptops, beside an illustrated tentacle with a heart tattoo

Website heading "Why Writing?" in script and block type above a short statement that writing is agency

Two students reading a book together at a wooden table in the writing center

Smiling student writing with a pencil, with an illustrated monster peeking over the top of the photo

Tablet on a wooden chest showing the 826 Valencia store's illustrated map of San Francisco

Student Voices page with a story card titled Blue Eyes, flanked by an illustrated sea serpent reading a book

This website has completely revolutionized our online presence, particularly as we built two new centers and our brand evolved and we needed more money, and volunteers, and partners to reach even more kids!
Bita Nazarian — Executive Director, 826 Valencia

Three phone screens of the 826 Valencia site: homepage, Student Writing filter and Our Programs

Letters spelling 826 Valencia! in mixed typefaces on a grid of halftone color tiles

Illustration of a red one-eyed monster with a wide grin and a small pirate hat

Child looking through a brass periscope inside the pirate supply store, surrounded by nautical curiosities

Each 826 location has its own wildly imaginative theme that immerses students into a whole new world of writing along with a magical storefront magic. We worked to infuse this spirit into their ecommerce website, focusing in on ease-of-use and usability.

826 Valencia store website pages on black, with product listings for bottled pirate supplies like Gnome Be-Gone

Phone screen of the store product page for Scurvy Begone, a corked bottle of yellow capsules, $9.00

Phone screen of the store's Accessories listing with category filters and a jar of Pink Eye Leeches

Press & Awards

Webby Awards

Nominee, 2019

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