Jabberwockey Hockey League (JHL)....The Wrap-Up.

[sparkychewbarky]

'Twas brillig, and the slithy toves...

Were diggin' some WOCKEYHOCKEY!!

As a kid, I was never a big fan of Lewis Carroll.

'Alice in Wonderland' kinda creeped me out...

And Tim Burton's movie based on the Carroll "classic" was a complete mess. (Johnny Depp's 'MadHatter' was a complete miss).

However, Carroll's story, and Burton's movie did contain some interesting and compelling characters.

"Enough to fuel an entire hockey league?", I wondered.

Perhaps; and so I dusted off the old vorpal drawing tablet, went to work, and snicker-snack...

Introducing, the JABBERWOCKEY HOCKEY LEAGUE.

You'll notice that the first thing I did was to intentionally mis-spell the word 'Jabberwocky' so that it would visually have the same "ey" ending as "hockey".

For a league crest I borrowed heavily from the "Alice in Wonderland" typeface, to give the crest a Burtonesque feel.

I couldn't get the font into my old G4, so I traced all the letters and made my own alphabet.

Thank goodness that it's a very forgiving style.

I gave it a Hallowe'eny feel by using orange, black, grey and vintage white as official JHL colours.

Probably the best thing Carroll wrote was the actual "Jabberwocky" poem.

It's full of non-sensical words that somehow make sense.

It's a wealth of phrases that could have some marketing use...

I've decided to start with a 6-team league. Expansion is a future possibility.

The teams will be based on the following characters...

The Cheshire Cat, The White Rabbit, The White Knight, The Red Knight, Alice, and of course, The Jabberwock.

As for the fictional home towns and cities in Wunderland (Carroll's "Wonderland" and Burton's "Underland" combined), I pulled up a list of places in England and used whatever sounded good with the team names. Apologies to my English co-CCSLCer's, but I've never been to any of these places.

So, the teams will be...

-The Cheshire County Cats

-The Isle of Wight Rabbits (get it?...Wight Rabbits?)

-The Hartland Red Knights

-The White Knights of Bishop's Castle (it's a CFL thing)

-The Oxford City Saints

-The Tavistock Jabberwocks

Hope you enjoy it.

First team up will be the Cats.

[GotPixels]

Can't wait to see these. Love it already.

[Guest darkpiranha]

Cannot WAIT to see each one of these. And I totally missed that it was Sparky who did this at first. I was thinking, "Cool, someone else is also committed to producing a full line of merchandise for their concept." Seriously, if you start putting these up on Etsy or CafePress or wherever the kids are making online t-shirts nowadays, I'd buy some Highlander's gear two minutes later.

And if it's a "CFL thing", shouldn't both of those teams actually be called the Knight Riders?

[FGM13]

Sparky, you never cease to amaze me.

[LAWeaver]

Honestly, my first thought wasn't Alice in Wonderland, but the Jabbawokeez dance crew that wear the white masks. Then again, I don't even know a whole lot about Alice in Wonderland.

http://t0.gstatic.com/images?q=tbn:ANd9GcToHIr88ZtwOjXf1eZtpTdCjxNYVXLGBcP6XPGLowx7FyqycpL0

[sparkychewbarky]

Can't wait to see these. Love it already.

Thanks GP

Cannot WAIT to see each one of these. And I totally missed that it was Sparky who did this at first. I was thinking, "Cool, someone else is also committed to producing a full line of merchandise for their concept." Seriously, if you start putting these up on Etsy or CafePress or wherever the kids are making online t-shirts nowadays, I'd buy some Highlander's gear two minutes later.

And if it's a "CFL thing", shouldn't both of those teams actually be called the Knight Riders?

You took it to the next level of that "CFL thing" with the Knight Riders suggestion. I got a real chuckle out of that one.

Sparky, you never cease to amaze me.

Nice. Thank you.

Honestly, my first thought wasn't Alice in Wonderland, but the Jabbawokeez dance crew that wear the white masks. Then again, I don't even know a whole lot about Alice in Wonderland.

http://t0.gstatic.co...PGLowx7FyqycpL0

Is that plural for Jabberwocky?

[Guest darkpiranha]

Seriously, though. I'm a Canadian, born (but not raised) in Nova Scotia, but stuck in Houston, TX. I want some Highlanders t-shirts, hats, etc. I especially want the "OCK EH" shirt if it exists in real life. And I'd love a t-shirt that's deep blue (like the third of your sig icons,) with the red and gold logo. The roundel version of the logo is cool too.

Anyway, make it happen. Post links if you've already made it happen and I just missed it.

Thanks in advance!

[sparkychewbarky]

Back to Wunderland...And, now for the teams.

The Cheshire County Cats

The phrases "Cheshire Cat" and "Grinning like a Cheshire Cat" originated in the rural district of Cheshire County, so, it was a no-brainer that their hockey team in the JAB would be called the "Cats".

As much as the Cheshire County-ites love their ice-hockey, it's rugby that has given the area their sporting identity.

Their almost-perennial national champions were famous for their striped unis.

I used that striped-rugby-look along with the Cat character to create the C.C.C. logos and uniforms.

I really tried NOT to use a humorous/fierce animal head logo...but couldn't do it.

I'll have to ask for a mulligan on this one because the C-Cat IS basically a humorous/fierce animal head, and it's the only HFAH logo in the league.

I promise...

The 3rd straight-on logo was my first attempt. It was a little too friendly, so I "fierced" him up a bit.

I contorted him into the letter "C" for the secondary. (separated-at-birth from the Van Canucks "C"?)

Instead of striping the entire sweater, I just striped the middle, to leave a little breathing room for other stuff.

The Isle of Wight Rabbits

The Isle of Wight is a popular resort area in Wunderland.

It used to be the industrial centre of the nation at one time, with the Wight Watch Co. being one of the biggest employers.

Today it's home to a huge Arts community, with the Steampunkers being the most prominent group.

I borrowed from that style to come up with the Rabbits logos and uniforms.

The Cats & Rabbits have a great rivalry and games between these two teams are truly events.

Good luck getting tickets...

And, as usual, I try the logos out on some merchandising ideas...

Up next: Knights vs. Knights

[sparkychewbarky]

Anyway, make it happen. Post links if you've already made it happen and I just missed it.

Thanks in advance!

I'm working on it darkp.

I'll def let you know, but it could be awhile. Busy.

Thanks for the comments and interest.

[Guest darkpiranha]

And now I want JL merch. How come sportslogos.net doesn't have a button on every post that says "Make t-shirt from this concept"? But for now, I guess I'll have to wait until you have time to do it manually...

Oh, and the captain's C on the Rabbits needs to be the endless spiral.

[GotPixels]

Rabbits! Love that design.

[nas1787]

Both of those Rabbits logos are unreal, great job.

[Whittier S]

Both are fantastic. I feel like a touch of brass colour is needed for the Rabbits. If you did that, you might get some steampunks interested in real merch.

[Guest darkpiranha]

Both are fantastic. I feel like a touch of brass colour is needed for the Rabbits. If you did that, you might get some steampunks interested in real merch.

Agreed. As the quote goes: "Steampunk is what happens when goths discover brown." - Jess Nevins

[Dbroalexander]

Ok the leagues logo, is amazing. I love that it features the J, the H, and the L.

I. Am. Amazed... and that rabbits logo? ughhhh so good!

[sparkychewbarky]

Oh, and the captain's C on the Rabbits needs to be the endless spiral.

I feel like a touch of brass colour is needed for the Rabbits.

A spiral for the "C", and brass-and-black (or copper and black).

I like both those suggestions. I'll give them a shot. Thanks guys.

[sparkychewbarky]

I feel like a touch of brass colour is needed for the Rabbits.

Oh, and the captain's C on the Rabbits needs to be the endless spiral.

Here you go...

I initially wanted to go with black and vintage white, but Whittier's suggestion makes perfect sense for a "steampunkish" theme.

So black and metallic brass it is...

And the "spring C" idea from darkp is a unique touch.

Thanks guys.

[Guest darkpiranha]

Stunning.

[RoadBat]

wow... these are amazing. If only real teams put so much thought/effort into their brands....if only.

[undead]

Great stuff! Keep it going, please!