Bamboo Paper

Our friends at the Favini paper mill in Italy pioneered the use of alternative fibres. In the 1990's Maggie Philbin on BBC Tomorrow's World (...do you remember that?) introduced the original Favini ecological paper Alga Carta and the mill has continued development of other eco-products over the last thirty years.

Tree Free has been setting the standards for papermaking with zero impact on forestry for more than twenty years. Now with an improved recipe and a refreshed range that includes a new 380 gsm weight ideal for tags, cards and packaging, Tree Free uses 75% Bamboo Fibres with 25% cotton linters. Both are renewable annual crops which yield high quality fibres giving a natural tactile finish to the paper and excellent printability. 

To complete the story of sustainability, Tree Free is recyclable, biodegradable and made using EKOenergy from a hydro electric power station. Tree Free carries the FSC™ certification, even though like the name implies it has no impact on forests.

It is available in two shades, Bamboo Natural and Bamboo Cream. If you would like one of these lovely swatches, please email me: justin@fennerpaper.co.uk

https://www.favini.com/gs/en/

Posted by Justin Hobson 25.03.2024

Rathfinny Vineyard Map

Husband and wife, Mark and Sarah Driver, established the Rathfinny Wine Estate in 2010 on a working arable farm with the express intention of producing some of the world’s finest quality sparkling wines. Today, the vines cover 600-acres of the Sussex South Downs and is set to become one of the largest single vineyards in Europe. Pentagram devised the brand strategy and visual identity.

Visitors to the estate are supplied with this map, which gives directions and points of interest about the vineyard and countryside. This publication is designed by London based studio UTILE.

Click on images to enlarge

The finished size is A6 (148x105mm) folding out to A3 (297x420mm) and is printed offset litho in four colour process.

Above and below images show the map-fold...

The choice of paper for this project is an interesting one! The original choice was to use a synthetic paper as typically, with the British weather, paper maps get wet and the paper falls apart. However, synthetic papers are basically plastic and it does not fit with the vineyard's environmental policy. The solution is a clever one! It is produced on a 100% recycled (post consumer waste) label paper called Trevi manufactured by the Reflex Paper Mill in Germany. So, I hear you ask, why is that so clever? Well, this label paper is manufactured with what is described as 'Wet Strength' (WS) and is manufactured with the addition of chemicals which improve the tensile properties of the paper both in wet and dry state by crosslinking the cellulose fibres with covalent bonds that do not break upon wetting. It basically mens that it doesn't fall apart when it gets wet. These papers are generally used for label papers where the label is required to come off in one piece in the recycling process. It is also the same technique that is used in facial tissues, which stops them falling apart when you blow your nose, unlike toilet paper, which falls apart. This looks and feels like a totally normal sheet of paper but when it gets wet it will hold together, much better than a normal sheet of paper - it's the perfect choice! 

Click on images to enlarge

Above and below images show both sides 

The design incorporates these superb woodcuts, which look perfect on the neutral white shade of the paper.

Click on images to enlarge

The paper is called Trevi Recycled 80gsm which is manufactured by the Reflex paper mill in Germany and we are pleased to be their UK stockist and distributor.

Below image showing front and back covers.

Design is by UTILE. Creative Director on the project is Nicholas Duggins and the designer is Sammy Taylor. Printing is by Identity Printers with Paul Martin handling the project.

...and just in case, I gave the map a total soaking in the sink and it holds together perfectly, just as promised!

https://rathfinnyestate.com/

https://utile.studio/

http://www.identityprint.co.uk/

Posted by Justin Hobson 18.03.2024

Beaming

This is a really lovely piece of sales literature designed to work as a handout or a mailing piece. It has a lovely quality feel and is produced with high production values which show throughout.

Beaming is an established Internet Service Provider for businesses across the UK. They deliver reliable voice and data services and provide ongoing support ...and they're not afraid to say that they think they're the best!

The finished size is 210x128mm, portrait and the content is 12pp. Below is a birdseye view showing the way that it opens in the conventional way...

...and the below image shows the way the 8pp inner "text" concertina's into a 4pp "cover" which has been formed by parallel creases.

 ...and below is the parallel crease which forms the spine

Spine, as below (without the inner pages concertina'd inside)

The flat size is 210 x 760mm and below shows the outside, spread flat...

...and the inside

The material chosen for the publication is our Omnia in 200gsm and is printed offset litho in CMYK. For those readers not familiar with Omnia, it is an uncoated paper with a surface treatment. What this means is that it feels like an uncoated paper but because the surface treatment minimises 'dot-gain', the print result is much more like that of a coated silk or gloss coated paper. You can see the result - the solid red looks so vibrant and the tactile quality really works with the illustrations. Omnia also has a high bulk, so although this is only a 12pp it feels much more substantial.

It is a simple format and because it has been produced and finished superbly, it is beautiful. The publication is designed by Playne Design who have studios in London and Hastings. Creative Director is Clare Playne. The excellent printing and finishing is by Pureprint.

https://www.beaming.co.uk/
https://playnedesign.co.uk/
https://www.pureprint.com/ 

Posted by Justin Hobson 12.03.2024

Jobs from the past - Number 172

Regular followers of this blog will know that my first post of every month is a "job from the past" so that I can show some of the really good work from years gone by - this project is from nine years ago.

GSA x Drygate 2015

Click on images to enlarge

Drygate Brewing Company is a craft brewery based in the east end of Glasgow and they celebrated their first birthday on May 29th 2015 marking the occasion with a small-batch birthday brew. Working with D8, who had also created the brand identity and packaging for Drygate's core range of beers, they partnered up with graduates of The Glasgow School of Art to create beautiful hand-wrapped, individually designed and signed packaging.

The six Glasgow School of Art alumni are: Fran Caballero; Rae-Yen Song, Isabella Widger, Paul Flynn Brady, Alice Hoskins and Matthew Bainbridge.

D8 worked to create unique packaging that would also reflect Drygate’s philosophy and values. The brewery believes in open, fearless brewing to achieve the exceptional, and the spirit of collaboration has always been one of their main characteristics.

There were 350 editions of six hand-signed artworks. Each is printed offset litho onto our Offenbach Bible 60gsm. The sheets are then hand wrapped around the 750ml bottles, sealed with a branded roundel and a tag held with string is tied to the neck of the bottle to secure the wrap.

The project was featured on the packaging design website the Dieline ...
"The idea is perfect for a birthday beer, allowing beer enthusiasts to open the gift of an amazing brew! The illustrations used on the “wrapping paper” are incredibly special and unique, coming from artists in the community, and they offer variety and individuality among the limited amount of this exclusive libation. The concept can also expand and be used for future brews, utilizing the same bottle style and different artworks, designs, and ideas for the outer wrapping"
http://www.thedieline.com/blog/2015/6/1/drygate-limited-edition-packaging

Offenbach Bible is the perfect paper for this project, as it is light enough to be easily wrapped around a bottle, has an almost 'tissuey' feel and yet prints amazingly.

Creative direction and design is by D8 and the project was handled by Stephen Cappello. The bottle wraps are printed by J Thomson Colour printers, based in Glasgow.

All in all this is a most engaging piece of branding and packaging. A superb creative solution, beautifully executed and printed.

https://drygate.com/
https://d8.uk/
https://www.gsa.ac.uk/
https://www.jtcp.co.uk/

Posted by Justin Hobson 04.03.24

Life In Ukraine by Sergiy Maidukov

The War in Ukraine reaches a depressing second anniversary tomorrow. Illustrator Sergiy Maidukov has been recording his experiences of the invasion over the last two years. Including previously unseen black and white sketches, it is a snapshot of his life in Ukraine, written in both languages.

Click on images to enlarge

This is the latest in the UNSEEN series by c-ll-ct-v-ly. Founded in 2015 by Mark Leeds and Duncan Johnson c-ll-ct-v-ly is a London based Design and Research studio working in all media and especially editorial and moving image. As a studio project. they publish these limited edition magazines, using unpublished, reordered, remade, refound or newly created artworks. They are a quick-fire collaboration between the studio and a range of creatives ...an easy consumed, visual hit.

Click on images to enlarge

Size is A5 (210x148mm) portrait, saddle stitched. The "cover" is made using strips in the same colours as the Ukrainian flag (Colorset Solar 120gsm and Colorset Midnight 120gsm. There are 16pp of text (8pp on Colorset Light Grey 120gsm and 8pp on Gardapat Kiara 150gsm) plus another two thirds height insert (above) in Colorset Solar 120gsm.

Above shows the centre spread which is printed on Gardapat 13 Kiara 150gsm. For readers not familiar with GardaPat 13, it's a fully coated paper but it really does have a dead flat MATT surface. There are many papers on the market which profess to be matt - some which incorporate the word matt in the name, but aren't! Apart from the high quality matt surface, this paper has an extraordinarily high bulk - this 150gsm text with a thickness of 195mics. If you would like to read more about the bulk, you can read it HERE.

All materials are digitally printed using an HP Indigo digital press and the results are superb, beautifully showing the artworks. As many readers will know, many materials have to be "Sapphire Treated" to work successfully on HP Indigo presses, however the text (Gardapat 13) is printed without sapphire treatment ..and it's superb! The Colorset has been sapphire treated and as you can see from the below image, it is printed in white ink, which looks amazing...

The excellent printing and finishing, including the white ink and also the black wire used on the saddle stitches (below) is by WithPrint who are based outside Bristol in Rooksbridge.

Concept and Design is by Mark Leeds. Illustrations: Sergiy Maidokuv, Typography: KTF Rublena (https://kyivtypefoundry.com/about), Unica PanEuropean,

https://c-ll-ct-v-ly.com/ 

https://with-print.co.uk/

Posted by Justin Hobson 23.02.2024

New award winning innovation in paper

As regular readers of this blog know, I always try and write objectively about the industry rather than just always about our products. This piece of news from the world of sanitary paper caught my eye and I thought I should let you know about it...

Up to now, recycled toilet paper has been made from graphic waste paper. This not only needs to be laboriously cleaned before being reused but because less paper is being used in general (because of digitisation) it is becoming increasingly scarce and expensive. German manufacturer WEPA is making the most of the fact that, alongside this, online shopping is generating more and more waste paper from packaging, and has developed the first sanitary paper made from recycled cardboard packaging and corrugated cardboard - what a brilliant idea!

This innovation was awarded not only the Blue Angel mark (Fenner Paper holds Blue Angel certification which I have written about this before HERE) but also the German Ecodesign Award for sanitary paper innovation – presented by German Minister for the Environment Steffi Lemke. 

Federal Minister for the Environment, Steffi Lemke (centre), presents the German Ecodesign Award to Andreas Krengel, member of the WEPA Management Board (left), and Patrick Schumacher, Director of Marketing & Business Development at WEPA Professional. Photo: Sandra Kühnapfel © IDZ

At the award ceremony in December their innovation Satino PureSoft was honoured with the German Ecodesign Award. This highest national award for ecological design is presented annually by the Federal Ministry for the Environment and the Federal Environment Agency in cooperation with the International Design Center Berlin. 

Congratulations to WEPA for winning the award and by best practice, using the world's resources wisely. Thank you. 

You can read more about the award here:

https://www.satino-by-wepa.com/en/latest-news/news/german-ecodesign-award-2023-satino-puresoft-wins-highest-national-award-for-ecological-design 

https://www.satino-by-wepa.com/en/satino-puresoft

https://www.bundespreis-ecodesign.de/en

 Posted by Justin Hobson 12.02.2024

Jobs from the past - Number 171

Regular followers of this blog will know that my first post of every month is a "job from the past" so that I can show some of the really good work from years gone by - this project is from ten years ago.

Big Book Parade 2013

This is the invitation to the showcase of new books from Harper Collins. Billed as 'The Big Book Parade', the function was held at the Crimson Bar at The Soho Hotel in May 2013.

Click on images to enlarge 

The size of the invitation is 145 x 975mm which concertinas down to 145 x 195mm. It uses our Modigliani Candido 260gsm, which has a "feltmark" texture similar to that of a watercolour paper which gives it exactly the right feel working with the beautiful illustrations of Brett Ryder (Heart Agency) commissioned to reflect the wide and diverse range of titles 'on parade' at the event.

Design and art direction is by Zoë Bather.

The invitations are printed offset litho in four colour process, machine creased and hand folded. Print was handled by Alan Mountain at Forward Print (sales@forward-print.com)

https://harpercollins.co.uk/
https://www.zoebather.co.uk/
https://www.heartagency.com/

Posted by Justin Hobson 05.02.2024