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Origami Printer "Hydro Fold"

 

Christophe Guberan, a third-year student from the industrial design program at ECAL in Switzerland has created the Hydro Fold.  “The idea is to give shape to paper through the simple use of water, adapting an existing printer to control the phenomenon. This experimental approach allowed me to explore new avenues of research,” explains Christophe. This project utilizes a printer, a simple sheet of tracing paper and water to create a transition from 2D to 3D.

Here's my card... Duct Tape & Glitter

Check out these bad boys! Duct Tape & Glitter is a brand spankin' new design shop in Wichita, Kansas. I love their name and their beyond killer business cards.

They were printed at Studio on Fire. You simply can't miss or forget these cards. They sport a super sexy PMS Rubine Red - the DT&G signature color. Each side is letterpressed in two colors and the front-side has an added blind hit of their logo pattern. Two sheets of Neenah, Classic Crest, Solar White, 110 Cover were duplexed for a superb, sturdy card and the added thickness made for effective edge painting. Press checks were done by email as the job rolled through the Studio on Fire presses. Check out the DT&G Blog to see the process photos.

Duct Tape & Glitter is the team of Luke Bott, Dominic Flask and Roger Strunk. These guys have a gift of mid-century aesthetics and beautifully,visual problem solving. They specialize in branding, illustration, print and interactive.  I got to chat with Dominic and ask a couple questions. Here is how it went...

Duct Tape & Glitter is a new endeavor for you all. Can you tell us about that and where the name came from?  Duct Tape & Glitter as a studio came about kind of organically. It started with Roger and I working together on a few freelance gigs on the side and discussing what might happen if we opened up a studio of our own. Just as we were really getting serious, Luke approached us and wanted to be a part of what we had going on. Within a month we had a portfolio assembled, our identity established and the doors open at our studio space. The name is something that references the type of work that we do and how we approach each project. We build versatile, dependable, long lasting solutions for our clients that are as pretty as they are functional.

We just love the craftsmanship of Studio on Fire's printing. How did the process of working with them go? Any inside details about the card you'd care to share?  Working with Studio on Fire was great. They handled everything we threw at them with ease and were ultra-professional during every step of the process. They kindly informed us about potential results with the almost full coverage backs of the cards and recommended we use the 110lb Neenah, Classic Crest stock for the best results with that much ink.

Was the Classic Crest your first choice of paper?  Studio on Fire recommended it. We initially asked for Crane's Lettra for it's personal touch and they noted that the Lettra would have more of a tendency to be splotchy when printing high coverage areas. We went with their recommendation for 110 Cover, Neenah, Classic Crest and couldn't have been happier.

What type of work do you look forward to the most?  What we really enjoy doing is working with clients who are as invested in their business as we are in design. There is nothing more satisfying than working together with a client to solve real problems, and that only happens when everyone is passionate about what they are doing.

What's your favorite color?  Pink, of course! But seriously, right now it's PMS Rubine Red. Seeing Studio on Fire match that color perfectly was glorious. It's shiny, friendly, warm and inviting all over the place.

Want your very own DT&G business card? Send your address to [email protected] and they will drop one in the mail to you.

How to make a Fold Sing

Everyone is talking about this magazine cover. It seems to be all over the twitterverse. And for good reason, it's amazing! I will be ordering up one for my "keeper" file. It is a true feat of paper engineering, thought, creativity and mathmatics. Feast your eyes and hands on the cover of the November issue of German design magazine, NOVUM. They commissioned PAPERLUX to design and produce this cover. It is made up of 1,000 faceted, colored and registered score lines. They can be folded and bent along these scores to shape the cover into geometric fun. The cover says  - "play with me". Watch the video below to see the "Making of the Cover".

Here are some details about the project.

• 48,000 print passes
• 6 different colored covers created by changing the sequence of the cmyk inks - no new plates were utilized
• 1,000 scored triangles

 

 

 

 

 

Dandy of a Roll: A Visit to J.J. Plank's

J.J. Planks has been the world's leading provider of dandy rolls and watermarks for the papermaking industry since 1907. The craft of making watermarks and dandy rolls has not changed much since then. Stepping into the guts of their shop is a walk back in time. Open flames, solder and acid are everyday tools of this age old craft. And although they have tried to modernize, they continue to return the the handmade way to create the quality needed for fine text and cover papers. It is always a favorite desitination while on our Neenah Paper mill trips with customers.

The tools Plank's use in the shop are handmade right there. Like this soldering iron. Each is unique and beautiful with a angle or edge that is appropriate to the idiosyncrasies of the user's hands. Fathers teach sons the craft and work along side eachother. Some even 3rd and 4th generation.

Watermarks come in shaded, wire or combinations. Above is a shaded mark. The wire is debossed on the mesh to gather the fibers on a forming roll of  wet paper. Once dry, the resulting mark on the final cut sheet is a darker/opaque mark on the paper.

A wiremark is made by soldering the logo or type treatmentwire mark onto the mesh of the dandy roll. The dandy roll is a very long cylinder that runs across the wet end of the paper machine. In a wire mark, the paper fibers are slightly displaced making the area readable when held up to the light.

Texture can be imparted onto paper using the a dandy roll. Above you see a detail of the dandy roll used for Neenah's Classic Laid. Individual wires are hand turned with a plier to create this distinct finish.The wonderful world of paper science. Thanks, Dave Plank for the fascinating tour.