Usha — Brand Identity
Name, colour, type, and tone decisions for the Skincare Companion app. Everything here was decided by one person and documented in a living product brief.
The Name
Usha — Sanskrit for dawn. The first light, the moment before the day starts. It's used as a given name across South and Southeast Asian cultures.
As a French-born Khmer woman, I wanted a name that reflected where I come from. Usha has Sanskrit roots, it's used in Khmer, and it's easy to say in French — it sits naturally across the cultures I move between. It also maps onto the daily ritual at the heart of the app: the moment you start your day.
To everyone else it just reads as a clean, personal name. The meaning is yours to keep.
Logo Mark
Three concentric U-shaped arcs in deep cobalt blue, open arms reaching upward. A single terracotta dot floats above the inner arc.
The dot reads as a rising sun; the arcs read as both the letter U and a vessel holding the day. Whimsical, open, recognisable.
Wordmark: "Usha" in Platypi serif, weight regular. No orange on the wordmark — the mark and type unify in blue.
Colour Tokens
primary
Structural surfaces, headers, outlined buttons
primaryLight
Light backgrounds
accent
CTAs, active states, done pills, alert borders
background
App background
surface
Card and sheet backgrounds
text
Primary body text
muted
Secondary and placeholder text
Typography
Display / Headings — Screen titles, hero text, onboarding headlines
Know your skin.
Body / UI / Labels — Body copy, buttons, labels, inputs, badges
Track what you own. Use what you've got.
Onboarding headlines use weight 400 (regular), not bold. A deliberate tonal choice — sleeker, less forward.
Copy Tone
Personal and intimate. Declarative but not loud. Short sentences. No motivational-poster energy. The voice is a considered friend, not a wellness brand.
Welcome screen
Know your skin. Build your routine. Keep the record.
A quiet place to track what you own, build what works, and see how your skin changes over time.
Notifications prompt
Set a reminder.
A nudge at the right time makes the habit stick.