design.vecreal.com / workshop / V valley · round 6
Brand reference · workshop · round 6 · 2026-05-12
V valley · round 6 — hybrid R4-Bh (wider outer + valley y=32 + stroke 12)
Narrowed to 4 options: R4-A baseline + R4-B + R4-Bp1 + R4-Bw. The three finalists differ on three independent axes (valley depth, outer silhouette, stroke). Operator preferences land on a diagonal none of the finalists hit — the hybrid R4-Bh combines the best elements.
Three axes, three preferences, one hybrid
| Axis | R4-B | R4-Bp1 | R4-Bw | operator pref | R4-Bh hybrid |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Valley vertex y | 32 ✓ | 33 | 33 | 32 (from B) | 32 ✓ |
| Outer top x | 10 | 10 | 9 ✓ | 9 (from Bw) | 9 ✓ |
| Stroke at top | 12 ✓ | 11.14 | 12 ✓ | 12 (preserve) | 12 ✓ |
| Apex y | 49 | 49 | 50.27 (extended) | 49 (V height preserved) | 49 ✓ |
R4-Bh geometry: outer x=9 (wider — Bw character), apex y=49 (unchanged
from baseline — V height preserved), inner top at (21, 14) giving stroke 12 at
top, valley vertex at y=32 (R4-B depth), curve dips to y=31.36 (R4-B character).
Slope math: outer slope (49−14)/(30−9) = 1.667; inner slope
(32−14)/(32−21) = 1.636; difference 0.031 = 1.9% taper
(effectively invisible, same scale as R4-A's 2.4% inherent taper). Stroke at valley level =
12.20 (1.7% INVERSE taper — legs settle slightly wider at the bottom, reads "grounded" not
"thinning").
Silhouette: 46 wide × 38 tall — same height as R4-A, ~4.5% wider. Legs less steep than original (slope 1.667 vs 1.75). V reads slightly more "open" / spread, which is consistent with the institutional-polish direction surfaced in the brand audit (less aggressive chevron, more open institutional embrace).
Section A · Locked rev-10 system reference
Single row showing the locked rev-10 system (Bold + -0.04em + V 0.66em + dot 0.23em). Every variant below renders against this baseline.
Section B · Five-finalist set at 80 px
R4-A baseline plus three round-5 finalists plus the new R4-Bh hybrid.
Section C · V geometry isolated — five variants, no markers
Strip wordmark context. Compare valley depth (B/Bh same; Bp1/Bw deeper), outer silhouette (Bw/Bh wider), leg stroke (Bp1 thinner), and overall V proportions.
Section D · Five finalists stacked at 140 px
Display-size compare. The differences between B/Bh (valley depth & silhouette width) and between Bw/Bh (apex extension) read most clearly at this scale.
R4-A ⇄ R4-B ⇄ R4-Bp1 ⇄ R4-Bw ⇄ R4-Bh at 140 px
Section E · Hybrid close inspection — R4-Bh against its parents
R4-B (parent for valley depth + apex), R4-Bw (parent for wider outer), R4-Bh (combines). The hybrid reads as wider than B and shorter than Bw — sitting between them.
R4-Bh hybrid against its parents at 140 px
Section F · Small-size readability — 24 / 32 / 48 px
Five variants at favicon / sidebar / breadcrumb scale. Width differences (Bw, Bh) are sub-pixel at small sizes and shouldn't break legibility.
| 24 px nav / sidebar | 32 px breadcrumb | 48 px body | |
|---|---|---|---|
| R4-A baseline | ecreal. | ecreal. | ecreal. |
| R4-B | ecreal. | ecreal. | ecreal. |
| R4-Bp1 | ecreal. | ecreal. | ecreal. |
| R4-Bw · Path B | ecreal. | ecreal. | ecreal. |
| R4-Bh · HYBRID ★ | ecreal. | ecreal. | ecreal. |
Spec summary
| Variant | Outer x | Apex y | Inner top (L, R) | Valley y | Curve dips to | Stroke top → valley | V silhouette | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| R4-A | 10 | 49 | 22, 42 | 32 (sharp) | n/a (sharp) | 12 → 11.7 (2.4% taper) | 44 × 38 | production baseline · sharp inner |
| R4-B | 10 | 49 | 22, 42 | 32 (rounded) | 31.35 | 12 → 11.7 (2.4% taper) | 44 × 38 | R4-A + all 5 vertices rounded · minimum disturbance |
| R4-Bp1 | 10 | 49 | 21.14, 42.86 | 33 (rounded) | 32.35 | 11.14 constant | 44 × 38 | parallel + deeper valley + thinner stroke |
| R4-Bw | 9 (wider) | 50.27 (extended) | 21, 43 | 33 (rounded) | 32.35 | 12 constant | 46 × 39.27 | Path B · wider + deeper + apex extended |
| R4-Bh ★ | 9 (wider) | 49 (unchanged) | 21, 43 | 32 (rounded) | 31.36 | 12 → 12.20 (1.7% inverse) | 46 × 38 | HYBRID · wider + R4-B valley + stroke 12 + apex preserved |
Recommendation R4-Bh hybrid. Hits all three operator preferences: wider
outer silhouette (Bw character), valley depth y=32 (B character), stroke 12 preserved
(A/Bw character). The 1.9% slope difference between outer and inner legs is invisible at
scale — same scale as R4-A's 2.4% inherent taper. The 1.7% inverse stroke shift (12 at
top → 12.20 at valley) reads as "grounded" rather than "thinning."
Trade-off to be aware of: V silhouette becomes 46 × 38 — same height as
R4-A but ~4.5% wider. Legs are slightly less steep (slope 1.667 vs original 1.75). The V
reads slightly more "open" / institutional embrace than the original tight chevron. The
brand-audit framing supports this direction (institutional polish over construction-grit).
If R4-Bh feels too spread, fall back to R4-B (preserves
original 44 × 38 silhouette + valley y=32 + corners — minimum disturbance to R4-A).
Call R4-A | R4-B | R4-Bp1 | R4-Bw | R4-Bh and I lock the V geometry +
regenerate assets/wordmark.svg with Inter Bold text-as-paths in one atomic
pass.
Vecreal · brand workshop · 2026-05-12 · v-valley round 6 (hybrid)