Eat, eat, eat.

You have to walk off all those extra calories somehow, so we decided to come up with some off-the radar spots you might want to explore. So that’s what brought you to my blog.  But I need your help. We only had room for 15 spots, and didn’t even get outside of Manhattan.  Please join us and share your favorite places throughout the New York City area.

Write a comment and tell us where you like to hang out, relax, or gather your thoughts for another round.

THE CHALLENGE
Monaco Lange was determined to do something great, but if you’ve ever done an invitation for a nonprofit, you know the challenges they faced.

• Keep it under an ounce so you can take advantage of the presorted postage rate
• Include a reply card, sponsor card and return envelope
• Be ready to handle a flood of last minute sponsors that need to be listed

So what can a designer do to keep an invitation elegant with heavy-as-possible stock and a concept that makes recipients 1) want to donate, and 2) be excited to attend the event?

THE SOLUTION

Together, Monaco Lange and Symmetry rose to the challenge in the most creative way possible. Monaco Lange leveraged the award show theme by designing the invitation to look like an envelope from the Oscars.

It was a brilliant solution for an organization that wanted to communicate prestige. Besides that, it was just plain fun to open. It had this neat little tongue that slides into a die cut on the front of the invitation. When you open it up, it feels like Hollywood. The bottom panel drops down to reveal the details of the gala and all the inserts sit neatly in the middle.

Symmetry helped Monaco Lange surprise the critics when it came to paper stock. We did a number of mockups until we settled on the 80# smooth card stock that enabled people to write on it without smudging.

Best yet, we kept it to an ounce which enabled them to take advantage of the presort postage rate. We also did it 2-color, which further minimized costs without sacrificing on elegance.

We knew the piece was a winner the minute it left our pressroom, but the real proof came this year when the client asked us to do the same concept all over again.

BEHIND THE DESIGN:
Monaco Lange

Want to be the next featured designer? ? Working on an invitation for your nonprofit’s gala? We’ll make you a star.

THE CHALLENGE
Clarity was tasked with promoting the site at an annual food show, which coincidentally preceded the Superbowl by a few days. But standing out amidst the mix of materials at tradeshows is almost harder than finding a bathroom at one of those events.  And did we mention the piece was going to be 3″x 5″?

So how do you create something unique enough to work? Clarity, an interactive software developer in Chicago decided the answer was a QR (quick response) code. It had all the attributes Clarity needed to cause a stir on the floor.

1. They have the sparkle of a new technology.
2. They’re easy to use —sparing text-weary fingers from having to key in a URL.
3. They’re fun to use — like unwrapping a present and finding a surprise inside.

THE SOLUTION
If you’re going to pass out a little 3” x 4” anything at a convention, you better make sure it’s unique. The folks at Clarity succeeded in this area through a cool little piece with a hot new technology — QR code. Symmetry was there to problem-solve throughout. How do you actually create the code? How much information can you fit into one? What kind of press will you print it on? Do they really work? What’s more, Kraft wanted to maximize their tracking and research findings. That meant we had to use a digital press and print the code with variable data and with specialized software, so each card had a different QR code.

It was a case of printer and marketing company collaborating in fairly sketchy waters because of the time frame and high expectations over at Kraft. But by kickoff time, Kraft could see the game plan was a success. We think the folks at Clarity chose well in going with a QR code. If you want to experience the beauty of QR for yourself, use the image on this screen. It’ll lead you straight to Kraft (and maybe even a recipe for dinner.)

BEHIND THE DESIGN:
Clarity Consulting

Want to talk about using a QR code in your next project, or be the next designer to be featured in Talking Shop? Scan here.

THE CLIENT:

THE CHALLENGE:
The folks from the distillery asked Michelle from Phixative to design an impressive holiday card that gave each of their 19 brands the top shelf treatment. That meant showing all the bottles. Plus it had to feature the William Grant & Sons name prominently.

That in and of itself was a tall order. The real twist was that the piece still had to be small enough to mail economically and because they really wanted to share their cool concept with the world (wouldn’t you?), the per-piece cost had to be low enough to send to their extensive mailing list. Oh, and did we mention that the time frame was tight? Especially for a piece of this nature—after all, you can’t push back Christmas.

THE SOLUTION:
It seemed like a pop-up was the ideal solution, but it had to work in a standard 12” envelope rather than a custom size. (Those take weeks to manufacture and are costly.)

Here’s how we went about doing it. We printed the whole card using four-color process on a satin stock using an overall matte aqueous finish. Next, we applied a spot UV gloss coating to the bottles. The two finishes contrast each other and the bottles appear separated from the background with a glossy effect that looked good enough to drink.

Then there was the matter of the William Grant & Sons logo—how to make it prominent without simply giant-sizing it? We opted for a tasteful gold and black foil stamp to help the company name stand out in an elegant and sophisticated way.

On the back, we featured 8 cocktail recipes for their most popular brands. It was a nice touch that saved the client the cost of printing an extra insert (plus all the related postage and fulfillment charges.) The recipes also gave the card staying-power by making it something people would keep in order to refer back to the recipes. A pop-up that has people coming back for more rounds—how’s that for giving a client more bang for their buck?

BEHIND THE DESIGN:
Michelle Gorenstein from Phixative

Want to be the next featured designer? Got a topic you’d like to see featured? Let’s talk shop.

The Challenge:
Creating a folder that has the look and feel of the redwood from the Napa Valley wine tanks.

The Solution:
We used 4 color process and satin aqueous on a textured stock, debossed and foiled stamped the logo to create the look of burned wood.

Behind the Design
John Kneapler Design

Want to be the next featured designer? Got a topic you’d like to see featured? Let’s talk shop.

Client

The Challenge
Create a high end elegant invitation for the opening of their retail store on Melrose Place in LA and be assured this would not end up in the trash with the junk mail.

The Solution:
Triple mount a 3 layers of stock to produce a thick invitation.  That wasn’t enough to guarantee opening. We then converted the matching cover stock into an envelope with a die cut button and string.  Who would toss this?

Behind the Design
Brad Bowder – Tracy Paul

Want to be the next featured designer? Got a topic you’d like to see featured? Let’s talk shop.

Client:

Challenge:
Create an exciting invitation for the release of ICE JACKET an accessory for keeping Champagne cool.

The Solution:
Produce an invitation that had the “cool” look of the ICE JACKET

Behind the Design
Michelle Gorenstein, Phixative

Want to be the next featured designer? Got a topic you’d like to see featured? Let’s talk shop.