Some print jobs can be pretty straightforward. Others demand a lot more of the process, often the finishing. We’ve recently worked on two, including college prospectus printing, for Suffolk New College, a brand new client, that sit firmly in the second camp. Exactly what we love!
One was a stud-bound swatch book, the other was an A5 landscape prospectus with a throw-out cover and some nifty, intricate die-cut circles. Both were printed on FSC-certified paper stock (of course).
Getting the look and feel right
When a new client comes on board it’s important to get things off on the right foot. Because you don’t get a second chance to make a first impression do you.
So rather than simply saying ‘send us your spec and we’ll get on with it’, we popped over to the college on more than one occasion. First time to talk about what they needed and how we could make both jobs as good as possible for their overall budget. Then we went back armed with samples and prototypes. Because there’s nothing worse than “that’s not what I expected” when your print turns up.
It’s one thing to read “soft touch laminate” on a quote, it’s quite another to hold it in your hands. To feel the paper, play with the throw-out cover and see how the die-cut circles worked meant the team at the college could properly make decisions with real confidence. We could tweak the details together before anything went anywhere near the press. And the finished pieces ended up just how they’d pictured them. All thanks to the face to face visits.
The swatch book
A swatch book needs to feel good in the hand. And it needs to survive being flicked through again and again and again. The Suffolk New College swatch book was a compact 75 x 150mm, with 4 cover pages and 16 text pages.
How it was made
We started with the college’s supplied PDF and sent them over a proof for approval before printing anything. Because this was a job printed on FSC paper stock, we double-checked that the FSC logo was there on the artwork, as supplied.
Once printed, the sheets were trimmed and the inner pages collated with the cover. Each book was then drilled, bound with a 5mm black plastic snap stud and packed.
The detail that matters
Stud binding looks simple, but the drilled hole has to be just right. Too tight and the stud’s a struggle to fit, which can lead to the paper being marked or distorted. Too loose and the whole book feels a bit ‘rattly’. So we took extra care over the hole size to make sure the stud would sit snugly, and the pages would still turn freely. Getting that detail right might not seem too critical but it’s exactly what means a swatch book can be handled day in, day out without falling apart.
The specification
Size: 75 x 150mm
Pages: 2 cover leaves (4pp) plus 8 text leaves (16pp)
Cover: 300gsm silk, 4 colour throughout
Text: 250gsm silk, 4 colour throughout
Certification: FSC, with the FSC logo on the artwork
The A5 landscape college prospectus
The college’s prospectus was a lovely, tactile piece: a 46-page A5 landscape brochure (210 x 148mm) with a throw-out cover and a die-cut front.
The throw-out cover
A throw-out cover gave the front an extra panel that opens out and delivers impact as the reader gets a big reveal before they even reach page one. On this job, the throw-out page was 5mm shorter than the main cover edge. It’s a small detail, but a deliberate one, as it makes the panel easy to find and open out. And it stops the edge of the fold sitting exactly flush with the trimmed edge, which could look untidy.
Soft touch and die cuts
The soft touch laminate of the outer gives that velvety, matt finish that makes you go ‘oooh’, and works so well on a premium piece of print. The front cover also features die cut circles and is creased and folded. Die cutting through a laminated cover needs to be absolutely spot on as the circles have to sit neatly against the printed design. Whilst creasing before folding matters too, because laminated stock can crack along a fold if it isn’t treated properly. A good crease keeps the finish crisp. And it’s exactly the kind of thing the prototypes helped us nail well in advance.
Binding
The prospectus was Perfect Bound with a strong, flexible spine that lies nicely flat, which lends itself perfectly to a sturdy cover wrapped around the block of text pages. Everything was bound flush to size meaning the cover and text are trimmed together for a clean, uniform edge.
The specification
Size: A5 landscape (210 x 148mm)
Cover: 6pp on 300gsm IQ, 4 colour throughout, with the throw-out on the front cover
Text: 40pp on 120gsm IQ, 4 colour throughout
Certification: FSC, with the logo on the artwork
Finishing: Soft touch laminate on the outer cover, die-cut circles on the front cover, creased and folded, PUR bound flush to size
Proofing first, always
We spent time with the client assisting and getting the artwork correct, then proofed. We only printed once the college had given the green light. It’s a simple step, but it catches problems early and helps keep everyone relaxed before the job goes to press.
Why FSC matters
We’re an environmentally conscious, sustainable printer operating out of our carbon neutral, fossil fuel free home and both jobs were FSC certified, using FSC-certified paper with the FSC logo on the artwork. For many organisations, particularly in education, retail and the public sector, FSC is now expected rather than a nice extra because it demonstrates their commitment and shows the paper comes from responsibly managed forests. The FSC logo on the finished piece lets readers see it too.
Planning something similar?
Whether you’re after a compact stud-bound swatch book or a prospectus with a throw-out cover and special finishing, the KNP team are always ready and happy to help with paper choices, finishing and production.
And if it’d help to see and feel things first, we’re always glad to visit with samples and prototypes.
Just give us a shout and we can talk through your next project.
