We talk about craft in the modern sense, but when visiting their print floor you can really see the skills and techniques on show. The workshop is loud with the sound of pneumatics and machinery such as Heidelberg hard at work. And although print technology has progressed in many ways, it is also still very much a hands-on process, particularly when wanting to produce such unique pieces.
Colours are mixed by hand to create the perfect match on specific stocks. To our surprise our brand yellow starts life as a vibrant orange, but once it hits the paper, it takes its true colour.
The material, Colorplan Pristine White 1050gsm by GF Smith (350/700gsm duplexed) was selected for its tactile texture and high quality surface making it an ideal choice for both printing and foiling onto.
The concept of the wood grained effect was inspired by our office interior and surroundings, used as a new design element throughout the rebrand.
We wanted a subtle look for the foiled wooden pattern on the stationery and opted to test a white and a clear foil. Surprisingly the clear foil gave a slight yellow tint once applied to the stock, something we didn’t want, where as the white foil went on without a problem and looked clean and crisp. It pays to talk to your printer and use their knowledge to get the best outcome for your print. What you think it will look like is not always how it will come out, so their experience is invaluable.
Martin at Identity explains how they created the effect we envisaged…
“The wood grain was foiled onto the reverse using white foil applied with extra pressure in order to create the debossed effect. The logo was dropped out at the design stage, and was applied using a Pantone specific yellow foil to register into position. This ensured that the grain effect didn’t show through on the logo itself, whilst producing a ‘multi-level’ effect in the process.
The fronts were printed in a PMS Grey before also being foiled, but without a debossed effect. The fronts and backs of the cards were then duplexed together and left under clamps for quite some time to dry and settle down.
The edges were then coloured using a match to the new Hideout corporate yellow foil. This finishes the duplexed cards off to a very high standard”.
