It was pretty exciting to print my first letterpress job on the weekend. I designed and printed these lovely letterpress “Save the Date” for a Toowoomba couple. They’re printed on Spicers Stephen 330gsm Chilled White with 2 colours (one being the blue and one being the blind impression with a spot of transparent ink).
This is our lovely new letterpress being moved into its new home!
If you follow me on Twitter you will know that a while back I found and re-home this 1950’s Heidelberg Windmill Platen Letterpress. I have been busy spending my weekends getting her back into order and finally she is ready to print again. More details to come soon!
These free little Binding Guides from Design Resources are a fantastic little piece for graphic designers who are just starting out. They show a simple overview of what the options for binding are, what sort of page numbers you can do for that particular binding type and the price range you can expect to pay.
They are great for established designers as well to use to show your clients the different options that maybe available to them for their printing project. Clients are often bamboozled by our big words, so this visual explanation is perfect to make them understand their options.
If you want a copy for yourself be sure to visit the link above, and don’t forget to give a little tweet out to these guys for such a fantastic resource.
Business cards are an important part to any business, small or large, no matter what the industry. They are a fantastic way to break the ice at new meetings and they allow the receiver to keep them for future reference. A business card is also a great way to show the personality of the business and the card owner.
As Graphic Designers, we love to create business cards all day long, and we love to do them in various shapes and sizes but, is that really good for you and your business? Does the size of your business card really matter? Here are some reasons why we thinks it better to keep your business cards to a standard size.
Storing your cards.
Most people keep cards they collect either in a wallet or a business card display book. This enables them to view the cards easily for future reference. Most of these holders are designed to store standard size business cards, so when your is an odd shape, or too large/small, it makes it hard for the receiver to store and keep your card easily.
Necessary information.
Information is the most important thing about a business card, it’s the reason they were created. Your card tells people who you are, what you do, and what you can do for them. Using a business card of standard size ensure that all your necessary information fits onto your card. Most cards nowadays hold your logo, name, title, contact number, postal address and website. In some cases you may need a double-sided card to fit all this information on.
Readability.
Having a business card that is smaller in size, means you need to reduce the size of your font (typeface) which in turns makes it harder to read. Using a standard size card allows enough space to have all your information listed and at a reasonable size for people to read.
Logo design is often one of the first times a small business will come in contact with a graphic design studio. People are often shocked to learn what it costs to design them a logo. So I thought it would be a good idea to give you some of the reasons why its important to see your logo as an investment for your business and to understand why they cost as much as they do to create them.
It’s important to get your logo right from the start, it’s the first impression people get of your business. Your logo can tell people a story before they have even had contact with your business. It might tell them things like your business is large, small, fun, serious or even more so it may show them exactly what it is you do. Another good reason to budget well on your logo design is to ensure it has longevity. You want it to be able to represent your business for many years to come, this helps with strengthening your brand and enables people to become familiar with it. Your logo should look professional. You want it to show your customers that time and thought has gone into its design and that it represents your business effectively.
To design a logo there are a few more steps than people often realise;
- Research – this is one of the most important steps. Understanding your business, your competitors and how you want your business represented
- Sketching & Brainstorming – getting the ideas down on paper and seeing if they work in the first instance
- Designing on the computer – normally taking 3 or 4 of the strongest sketches and transferring them from paper to computer
- Final Design – amendments to the selected logo, refinements, colour selections and more amendments
So while there are many online options for getting logos at $99, I think it’s important to look at all the points above and to understand why quality logos take time and money.
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