Color Calibrations

for in-house printing

Without a doubt, the questions we get most often are regarding printing.  We do most of our printing in-house and have since our inception ten years ago.  

Many stationers are going the route of investing in an awesome printer and handling all their printing needs within their own studio.  There are so many advantages to being able to control this integral part of your production process yourself, but there can also be some major drawbacks.  Learning the ins and outs of your printer’s personality, what types of paper it likes and doesn't like, how long it takes to complete projects, etc. is all a major learning curve, but nothing compares to the learning curve of color adjustments.  

Have you ever printed something straight from Illustrator or Photoshop and it looks nothing like your digital file?  The colors are all wrong, they're muted and muddy, reds are browns, blushes are orange and dark greens are black.  Know that frustration?  This course will walk you through making color adjustments specifically for printing in house and will walk you through adding adjustment layers, running test prints, identifying issues and correcting them.  

Full disclosure, we will NOT be handing you the exact solutions for your very specific printer problems. Odds are, you have a different printer, a different computer monitor, a different paper… even a difference in the weather can change how your prints come out! What we WILL do is walk you through the same questions and best practices we go through for any in-house printing project that we do ourselves. We want you to walk away from this course with the tools and the confidence to troubleshoot any printing issues that come your way, no matter the specific circumstance!

Just because everyone else is doing it, doesn't mean it's a good idea for you.  Learn to tune out outside preasures and make good decisions for your business in the long term.

Maybe you’ve been in business for a while and you’re interested in adding new offerings to your business. Maybe you’ve just started dipping your toes in the water and can’t decide between a few different product paths. We’ve all been there. As a business owner, you have to make these kind of decisions as you move forward and continue to grow, but the decision can be harrowing — nerve-wracking and intimidating!

Jenny Sanders will be joining Victoria for an in-depth conversation about products and when (or if) to carry them.  We'll go through the questions you should be asking yourself when considering carrying product, what your answers should be and whether carrying products is the right move for your business. 

What do we mean by product? Product examples could be selling prints, a semi-custom line, greeting cards, ribbon, handmade paper, etc. But they don’t have to be physical products either, you might be considering offering services like mentoring, workshops, or branding consultation. For example, when Victoria decided to begin Prep School, a purely digital product, she went through the same thought processes we talk about in this course! We'll walk you through the process and behind the scenes efforts of what goes into researching, creating and carrying a product line.  

Products

Venue Illustrations

Historic museums, exotic castles, nostalgic homes — our clients put a lot of thought into the venue of their event. Dreamy venue illustrations are an excellent way to acknowledge their efforts add a personal touch to any project you create.

In this course, we're going to learn to illustrate a venue two ways: the hard way, and the easy way. We'll be learning one and two point perspective and learn how to illustrate a building the old fashioned way: with pencil, paper, ruler and eraser. Although this is the time consuming route, it's always important to know the technique before you learn the shortcut. During the second half of the course, we'll learn to do it the quick and dirty way so you can spend less time illustrating and more time creating.

I'm all about working as efficiently as possible and getting work done as quickly as possible while still maintaining the integrity of the work.  Sometimes, this means creating and accepting shortcuts.  I have zero shame in utilizing these shortcuts, but the best way to learn a shortcut is to make sure you understand the long way first. 

We're so excited to open up registration for Semester III courses!  

We also have our past two semesters available for registration so you can get started from the beginning!

use coupon code 'early20' for 20% off all courses, including the class passes!

we'll only be offering the 20% off through September 4th, don't miss out!!

Who doesn't love botanicals?? Timeless and classy no matter the medium, we love incorporating botanical artwork into our work and our office space (have you seen our temporary wall mural?).

Traditionally, botanical sketches are very detailed and precise. These make for beautiful drawings and paintings, and we absolutely love them! 

In this course, we will explore a more whimsical interpretation of line botanicals. Victoria has been doing a version of this style since her art school days, for everything from botanicals to anatomy. We'll be learning how to loosen up a bit and create botanicals with loose movement and imprecisions. She'll walk you through how to embrace imperfections in your piece and stylize your botanical drawings. 

We'll use both pen and brush to explore this style so you can see how it can apply to many different mediums. 

Next up for our Semester II courses, we have Time Management!

Whether you run your own business from a studio, balance a full time job with a side hustle and family, or anything in between, knowing how to prioritize your time is integral to running your business effectively and getting things done.

Learning how to prioritize, eliminate, stay on task and delegate is life changing - it certainly was for me! Going from working 80+ hours a week to working 36 or less and taking the month of December off gave me the energy and drive I needed to build my business and stay sane.  

I've gotten a lot of questions and feedback from students about the difficulty they face in finding enough time in the day to do all the things they need to do. In this course, we'll get into the nitty gritty of necessity, learn how to prioritize our time and tasks, and get more done in a shorter period of time. 

As with all the other Semester II courses, registration will open on December 12, with class materials becoming available on January 13th!

 

katie szadziewska

@paperbowlondon

"I've just watched the "no such thing as a bad client" bonus video and, despite my initial skepticism on the subject it's really made me rethink...

I had a client early this year who I deemed a nightmare - I told anyone and everyone about this client and how terrible the process was from start to finish. It really knocked my confidence.

Now, with the benefit of hindsight, this wonderful bonus video, and some fabulous clients, I've been able to take a step back and reconsider... What could I have done better? Was I simply passing the blame to the client when I could have managed the process better? What steps have I take with the clients I have enjoyed working with and how do I implement that with new clients? All tricky and thought provoking questions!

Thank you for challenging how we think as creatives, it's so refreshing being pushed to think more closely about business, client handling, and the design process."

- Katie

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We'll be walking through our semester II course lineup over the next few days!  First up, one of our creative courses for semester II is Watercolor II

Watercolor II

Our first watercolor course (aptly named Watercolor I from Semester I) focused on color theory and understanding the colors and paints you're working with. With this second step in Watercolor II, we will be building on our previous knowledge, moving on to more color mixing as well as understanding how different base shades mix together.  

We'll be mixing custom colors to match Pantone or printed shades, perfect if you're a calligrapher mixing ink to match a clients invitation.  We'll also look at how to mix custom ink for dip pens. 

As with all the other Semester II courses, registration will open on December 12, with class materials becoming available on January 13th!

If you haven't already taken the first Watercolor I course, but think you might want an introduction or refresher in color theory, registration is still available for Semester I courses through till June 2017! 

Get in early for Semester II registration!  We're opening up pre-registration for Semester II courses on Cyper Monday!  Use coupon code 'cybermonday' and get 20% off all Semester II courses, including the Class Pass.  

Semester II courses will open for full registration on December 12th

PRICING FOR CREATIVE BUSINESSES II

Our second semester pricing course will dig a bit deeper into the world of pricing.  We'll look at specific pricing examples in two industry categories:  custom calligraphy projects and building a pricing sheet as a paper pusher (i.e. stationer).   Pricing for custom calligraphy projects will include large scale quotes, wedding vows, family crests, large menus, large seating charts, etc.  We'll talk about how to price your time as well as the cost of product for these situations in addition to building your pricing as a calligrapher and the different pricing structures that are available.  The second example we'll get into is pricing paper, printing, assembly details, and your time as a stationer to cut down the time it takes to get quotes to clients and ensuring accuracy in  your pricing. 

CREATIVE: WATERCOLOR II

Following up our watercolor I course (color theory), we'll be moving in to more color mixing as well as understanding how different base shades mix together.  We'll be mixing custom colors to match pantone or printed shades, perfect if you're a calligrapher mixing ink to match a clients invitation. 

CREATIVE: CYANOTYPE PRINTING

Cyanotype printing, invented in 1842, originally had its origins in reproductions, specifically blueprints (hence the name) but also can produce gorgeous cyan or prussian blue prints.  We'll learn about the process and create botanical prints!  

 

CREATIVE: DESIGN BOARDS FOR CREATIVES

Following up our Sketching for Creatives and Establishing Your Creative Process courses in semester I, we'll be doing a course in design boards and how to utilize them in your own creative process to hone in on and communicate design scopes to clients.  Further narrowing your creative process allows for less time doing the back and forth with clients as well as reducing the amount of time spent with too many ideas flying around.  Design boards help both you as the creative, as well as your client, keep the end design goals in mind, stay focused, and work more efficiently.  

 

TIME MANAGEMENT

Learning how to prioritize, eliminate, stay on task and delegate is life changing - it certainly was for me.  Going from working 80+ hours a week to working 36 or less and taking the month of December off gave me the energy and drive I needed to build my business and stay sane.  In this course, we'll get into the nitty gritty of necessity, learn how to prioritize our time and tasks, and get more done in a shorter period of time. 

BRANDING 

In a creative market, branding is king (or queen, but she's a hereditary queen, so the king doesn't outrank her.  Theres a little monarchy humor for you).  We'll look at how to go about branding your own company, how to define your brand style, define your market and how to brand for it, and how to design for yourself (we're our hardest clients!).  We'll utilize design boards and sketching, working through our own creative processes.