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10 Design Ideas to Pour Creativity into Your Homebrew Beer Labels

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They say you shouldn’t judge a book by its cover. To that, well, we say…then why is that the reason we pick up a book while browsing through a bookstore?

We joke. Obviously, great quality separates average from good and good from great, whether we’re talking about a book or, in this case, a well-made beer. For hobbyist brewers who are bottling the fruits of their labor for the first time, a custom homebrew beer label is one of the best ways to wow your friends and family or surprise them with a unique gift.

Custom homebrew beer labels are an effective way to grab someone’s attention. They illustrate creativity, and they’re a great way to have fun with your product. But where do you start with designing and creating homebrew beer labels?

Here, we’ll explore various design ideas for showing off your homebrew and showcasing some creative ideas to create labels that are sure to raise a few eyebrows. So whatever the occasion, let’s get designing!

Funky Brewing beer bottle and glass of beer on a table.

What Makes a Great Homebrew Beer Label?

The best thing about a homebrew label is that you can have fun with it. Since you’re not selling it, you can put just about anything you want on the label. That means no complicated beer label requirements and no concerns about copyright infringement when making fun parody labels. With so many options to choose from and so few limitations to what’s possible, homebrewing labels are an opportunity to let your imagination run wild.

That said, there are a few things you should consider when creating a homebrew beer label. Your design should still be visually consistent, convey an idea or a theme, and have the restraint to put just enough without making it too cluttered.

To that end, some more specific initial tips include:

Using visuals and colors to communicate the flavor profile of the beer
Maintaining a consistent tone and color palette
Keeping the design uncluttered, using “just enough”
Capturing the overall spirit of your brew

Hops on Pop homebrew beer with creative label.

10 Design Ideas for Homebrew Beer Labels:

Now, here’s the hard part. Getting creative.

For some people, creativity comes easily, naturally flowing out of their fingertips. But others struggle in this department, which is OK! And understandable! Everyone has different strengths. Something to keep in mind if you doubt yourself: brewing beer is its own kind of art form and creativity.

Moreover, this is a good opportunity to get friends and family involved in the creative process. If you’re not confident in your design abilities, why not ask your artistic friend to help out in exchange for a case of your brew?

Nonetheless, how do you create a label that brings smiles and invites even that friend who doesn’t really like beer to give it a try? Here are 10 tips to get you started.

Hand-Drawn: A hand-drawn beer label is, by definition, unique. It’s a simple and elegant way to showcase your creativity. In particular, hand-drawn is particularly effective for beers with a more artisanal vibe.

Vintage Design: Vintage is in these days. A vintage beer label design gives your beer a classic and timeless look, calling back to classics like Old Milwaukee or the original Budweiser. Because of that, a vintage design is excellent for traditional beers such as lagers or blonde ales.

Minimalist Design: It takes confidence to be subtle. A minimalist beer label design can stand out with its simplicity, showcasing the beer's name with a bold color scheme.

Flavor-Inspired: This might seem obvious, but a beer label that shows what’s in the can or bottle is always a reliable and effective design style. For example, that dynamic citrusy hazy double IPA, you just concocted? Your label might include imagery, colors, or outright photos of oranges or lemons.

Metallic Labels: Maybe you’ve created a beer you’re incredibly proud of and want to market it as a more sophisticated style. A beer label with a metallic finish adds a bit of elegance, creating a more upscale feeling.

Comedic Labels: *clears throat* — “Give a man a beer, and he wastes an hour. Teach a man how to brew, and he wastes a lifetime.” Ba-dum, tish! Anyway, you get it. Homebrew labels are the place to put your dad jokes, puns, and anything else that might not fit on a more professional label. It adds levity and fun to your brew and works great for more lighthearted beers.

Abstract Design: As you experiment with new brews, sometimes you strike gold. An abstract design is an intelligent and effective way to create a label that matches the uniqueness of a brew. In other words, get your Jackson Pollack on.

Bold Typography: There’s a reason they say fortune favors the bold. Eye-catching and bold typography is a cool and smart way for beer labels to showcase brews with a more assertive flavor profile.

Artisanal Design: Put a lot of love and care into a brew? Try an artisanal design, which helps illustrate a beer’s quality. In particular, this design style works well when you want to create a more homemade or rustic feel.

Graffiti: Graffiti is like tattoos — timelessly cool. If you’ve got a beer trying to break the mold or feel edgier, a graffiti beer label is a great idea. Maybe you’ll tap into that rebel inside each of us.

@doingshitwithrocky homebrew beer bottles with funny labels.

What are the Different Types of Homebrew Beer Labels?

Great design doesn’t stop when you put down the pen. It’s vital to understand the type of material on which your homebrew beer labels will be printed. Depending on the material, the entire look and feel of a label could change.

For designing custom homebrew beer labels, there are several materials to choose from. Here are some of the most popular options:

Matte Labels: The classic choice. These will proudly display your color choices and graphics without distortion.

Silver Labels: Print on a silver label for reflective sheen. This is great for trippy designs or ones that need a little extra oomph to make a statement.

Don’t forget to consider the right shape for your custom beer label as well! Will you go round, oval, rectangular, or die-cut? There are pros and cons to each. Since homebrewers don’t need to put legal information on their labels, you might make a label for the face of the bottle to save some time on designing a full wraparound. But don’t let the requirements stop you from designing something that truly speaks to your creation.

Design Homebrew Beer Labels with Stomp

At the end of the day, your label is entirely yours. You can make it as silly or as detailed as you like; there’s no pressure. In either case, you spent a lot of time perfecting your homebrew, and your labels deserve the same treatment. Maybe you’ll take a bold approach and print a radiant design on a silver label. Or perhaps you’ll make something simple and classy.

Even if you’ve never designed a label before, Stomp is here to help your homebrew beer labels be the best they can be. Our nifty design tool makes creating your labels a breeze, and our design team is standing by if you need help putting on the finishing touches.