When the W Scottsdale approached us about adding some visual interest to the front of their hotel at Scottsdale and Camelback, we jumped at the idea of giving a little life to an otherwise dull arrival experience. Their dramatic 2nd floor WET® pool, which can be seen from the street below, had an empty acrylic box just begging for some attention. The W wanted us to embellish this box with imagery that resembled water, movement and the sexy style they are so well known for.

Working with the existing 3-dimensional red W that, strangely enough, seems to be the only red W anywhere in the hotel. We created an illustrative graphic element that captures the essence of the hotel’s water features and wraps all five sides of the acrylic box. Visitors to the W are now welcomed by a serene splash of purple and blue, accented by a pop of red! You can see the dramatic transformation in the before and after pictures above and below.

This past week, the crew at Splinter Creative launched a slick new website for a family of local bars and restaurants, Dos Gringos Mexican Cantinas. The site aimed at collectively displaying information about the (4) locations, providing up-to-date info on specials and events, and making it easy for their ever-faithful patrons to connect with Dos on various social networks.

On the new Dos Gringos website design, you’ll find it’s easier than ever to find exactly what you’re looking for. Trying to find directions to the closest Dos Gringos location? Curious if they’re pouring your favorite drink specials this evening? In the mood for some late night grub? Want to scope out the menu with your co-workers before lunch? Or perhaps you need to setup a party for Larry’s 30th birthday after work on Friday? All this and more can be accessed with just a couple clicks and a few minutes of your time.

Complete with a super easy, “my Grandmother could do it” content management system, Dos Gringos can now access their site and update it from any computer, anywhere. This permits both the marketing personnel as well as the owners to make changes to specials, the menus, photos, and more, all with a simple internet connection. A huge asset indeed for such a fast-paced company.

The biggest hurdle with this project was determining the best way to organize the content. While every Dos Gringos has a happy hour, serves food, and pours tasty beverages, every location doesn’t offer the exact same specials at the exact same times. After doing some research and beating up a few layouts in house, we determined it would be most effective to post an all-inclusive specials page, along with some location specific tidbits that went into more detail… And judging by the analytics over the first couple weeks, it seems patrons are now easily navigating through the site to find the content they want.

All in all, we were able to have some fun with the design and content, and it was a pleasure bringing the new site to life. The hardest part was fighting off the day-dreams of being on the patio at Dos, munching some nachos, and sipping on some coronas. Damn distractions, no wonder it took an extra week to complete

Let us know your thoughts on the design and navigation in the comments below. We’re always open for a good rogering.