What are Flower Essences?

Balance, a brand of bottled water, got their packaging redone recently. If you google "balance water" and go to images you'll see the improvements made to look of the label. But what the heck are Flower Essences? The water is tasteless and has zero calories - like most water. Drinkbalance.com states that Flower Essences serve as homeopathic remedies to everyday stresses. I remember when it was funny to sell bottled water in the grocery store. Is this really where it's evolved to? It's a liquid placebo. I understand that you need to give your customers an emotional experience to stand out and get repeat purchases. But really? Water placebos? I'm happy with my Brita filter. But that's just me. Here are the links to the story in Package Design Magazine and the Balance water site: http://www.packagedesignmag.com/content/blue-marlin-creates-refreshing-new-packaging-balance-water, http://www.drinkbalance.com/#

Method Designing

I came across an interesting article from Package Design Magazine called Design as Theater. It's basically about incorporating personality into brands that will personally and emotionally connect with consumers. Based on what I've read so far from other sources, it seems like the idea of giving brands a personality has been understood and practiced for quite a few years. However, this particular article explains the actual method of putting these ideas into practice. Check it out at http://www.packagedesignmag.com/content/design-theater?page=0%2C0