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  2. GSM Blog – read more about print on paper. (Page 8)

The Skill of Designing Cardboard Packaging

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Packaging Die lines

GSM takes a look at how cardboard packaging formes are designed and prototyped. Plus die-making and how stamping is done... Cardboard packaging is everywhere and in a time when we are becoming increasingly aware of the need for sustainability carton board is an unsung hero. Recyclable, renewable and bio-degradable, pretty much everything plastic isn’t. Designing formes and constructing packaging using cardboard is a real skill. Even at it’s most basic, cardboard packaging is very complex. Developing a packaging forme often requires significant time in prototyping to ensure it constructs correctly. Once the forme is proven to work, the operator makes...

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The Lost Time Project – Will we ever catch up?

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The Lost Time Project

Disparity in pay between men & women within the design industry equates to a staggering 15.5%! Two kiwi creatives decided that if numbers weren't enough to initiate change, then maybe a more graphic approach would. The ‘gender pay gap’ describes the difference in median hourly earnings between men and women. This gap currently sits at 15.5% for the design industry. These confronting stats, along with their involvement in the exhibition ‘Present Tense: Wahine Toi Aotearoa’, inspired Alice Murray (associate partner at Pentagram) and Lauren Priestley (Creative Director at Redwood BBDO) to take action. They got together, over a Friday night...

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Labels – creating that ‘something special’ with Wausau

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13 spirits

The retail shelf is a highly competitive environment, nowhere more so than in alcohol & beverages. GSM takes a look at using labelling stocks as a component in creating that ‘something’ extra special. In issue 15, we featured BJ Ball’s new range of self-adhesive Wausau labels. The range, originally developed for the wine, spirits and beverage market, offers a huge array of distinct facestock options — including smooth, coloured & textured paper, metallic, fabrics, foils and even printable self-adhesive timber veneers. Auckland based Rapid Labels, who (amongst other things) specialise in producing labelling for the wine, food & beverage sector,...

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From Study to Studio – How to make the transition….

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GSM chats with Josiah Rees, 2020 Gold Pin winner at Best for student graphics. We ask the question.... What's it been like transitioning from study to the 'Real World'? Kia ora, I was born and raised in Ōtautahi, Christchurch, with a designer for a dad, Dad introduced me to InDesign at around the age of 14. Some of my earliest designs were the cover of my year 10, school leaver’s magazine and a logo, or two. Some of which my dad included in some concepts for his clients. From then on I was set on design and it was a...

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Best Awards Purple Pin Winner 2020 – Extended Whanau

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purple pin extended whanau

Despite interruptions, 2020 was a stellar year for the Best awards. GSM takes a look at the 2020 Supreme Purple Pin winner... The prestigious Purple Pin is the Designer's Institute of New Zealand highest honour in the Best Awards. In 2020, DINZ awarded it to Auckland studio, Extended Whānau, for their project, Ōtairongo. Extended Whānau created the work to promote and support the exhibition,  Ōtairongo, by kiwi sound artist Maree Sheehan. The Brief The brief was to design a visual identity for the exhibition. The design needed to reflect the aim of the artist. This was to interpret and represent...

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Gert Sellheim – Euro-Australian Designer

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Gert Sellheim

Ground-breaking Euro-Australian Graphic Designer Gert Sellheim was inducted into the AGDA Hall of Fame in 2019. GSM thanks Graham Rendoth for sharing his previously published story on the life of Sellheim... A European Start Gert Sellheim was born in 1901, in Estonia. At the age of 18, he enlisted and fought in the 1919 War of Independence against Soviet Russia. Following this, his family re-settled in Germany where he studied architecture. First in Berlin, followed by Munich, Gratz, Vienna and Paris. This exposed Sellheim to ‘classical’ architecture as well as avant-garde thinking in the form of the Bauhaus and Art...

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i_consignment & Harcourts partner together

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Harcourts i-consignment

For Digital In-House Printers—The Supply of consumables such as paper can be a headache — but Harcourts Gold Real Estate discovered a solution with i-consignment. GSM investigates... Harcourts gold are a busy real estate agency, servicing 5 offices and 90 agents. Their design team are responsible for the output of a wide variety of marketing materials. A significant amount of which they digitally print in-house. This provides both cost savings and improves time efficiencies. However, one of the challenges for an in-house printery is securing a reliable supply of consumables —with paper being a central requirement. Having experienced issues with...

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Pride in Print Award Supreme Winner 2020 – BeeNZ

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PIP Supreme Award winner

The Pride in Print Awards represent the pinnacle achievement for excellence within the local print industry. GSM takes a look at the 2020 Supreme Award Winner... Synergy—that special magic that occurs when everyone is in complete unison and the resulting outcome is greater than the sum of the parts. So, for a project that scoops a Silver at Best (2019), a Distinction at the AGDA Awards (2019) and the Supreme Award Winner at Pride in Print 2020 the word you use is—synergy. The Story behind the Honey A few years back, Katikati based honey producer BeeNZ happened to have a...

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Case Binding – how are hard-backed books made?

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case binding

At GSM, we've written a few articles on the various methods of binding. In this article we look specifically at the craft of case binding... Case binding is the method of binding ‘hardback’ books or documents. Unlike ‘softback’ binding methods, such as Perfect / PUR / Burst or saddle stitching, Case binding involves a significant amount of manual work. This extra work reflects the higher cost of this binding method. There are, however, many advantages with Case binding over the softback methods. Hardback documents can often be opened flat—which is not possible with a large Perfect / PUR or Burst...

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Compostable Courier Bags – Send Plastic Packing

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HCF courier bag

We all know that we need to reduce our consumption of single use plastics. But what are viable alternatives? Here's a new product that will send plastic packing! Here at BJ Ball, we send out a significant number of courier parcels per year. Like many businesses, smaller sized parcels make up the bulk of our outgoing deliveries. Historically, these went out using custom printed plastic courier bags - something we were not overly thrilled about. Wanting a greener solution, we put our feelers out through our global supply network to source an alternative. Here it is! The new BJ Ball...

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