Hippo Zodiac Badges

Tanel Veenre’s new Hippo Zodiac series stands out from all other series both in terms of design and materials. Popping pastel badges feature the brand’s soul animal, the winged seahorse, embodied as the twelve signs of the zodiac.

The Hippo Zodiac series was made in cooperation with Tanel’s long-time helper Hansel, who embodied Hippos as cheerful zodiac signs with his apt design eye. We asked Hansel a little about the work process:

What turned out to be the most challenging for you during the design work?

The most challenging part for me was finding the perfect illustration style for the Crowned Seahorse, as I wanted to preserve the magical and whimsical spirit of the Hippo as it is present in all the other collections. However, this time the seahorse is seen in 2.5D instead of 3D. Once I found the right style and base model for the Crowned Seahorse, the rest of the process was super fun as I got to play with different tricks and gadgets to transform the Hippo into zodiac sign. 🙂

Tell us a bit about the design process and the vibe of it.

I wanted the bright hard enamel colours to reflect a happy and playful design where one small badge is filled with many tiny details. I hope that discovering the small details on the signs will be interesting for the wearer. A zodiac sign always contains mystical energy, so even in this cheerful badge, I wanted to preserve the essence of the cosmic zodiac. And above all, I wanted it to be cute. 😀

Hippo base + added crown and wings

The story of tails - Pisces 🐠

Simplifying the design - Aquarius 💦

The first version of astrology cards

The final version of astrology cards

Whether you believe in horoscopes or not, these jolly horses add a nice touch to any look. High-quality badges do not lose their shine while wearing. The signs come on a stylish black card with a message to match each zodiac sign, making it a humorous gift too.