In the design world, a project like this doesn?t come along that often. If I had to guess, I would say once in a blue moon. On a day-to-day basis, designers spend most of their hours on revisions, layout, production, image retouching, all of the mundane tasks of graphic design that no one really talks about. Ahh, these are the things designer dreams are made of. So when a project comes along that has the potential to be super creative, to break you out of the formatting rut you?ve been in, you run through the office, do a little dance, shout for joy, then dig in. This is the kind of project that makes designers who they are, the type of project that pushes you over the creative breaking point, that destroys your confidence and sanity, and then, when you?ve hit rock bottom, you get ?the? idea. The career saving, sanity rebuilding, confidence boosting idea that makes it all worth while (kind of). That?s the kind of project the Intrigue brochure, folder and inserts was.
First, a little background. Intrigue is a new line of packaging papers, labels and boxes by Wausau Paper. This is a new area for WP, and the promotional materials needed to be competitive in this high end, sophisticated market. The promo pieces also had to showcase WP papers, and demonstrate how different paper types handle 4-color printing. And, of course, send out the all important ?green? message. Easy, right?
This multi-functional piece went through several life changes before it settled on the brochure/folder/insert combo. In its first life, this promo was meant to be a simple, 4-page brochure that acted as an introduction to the Intrigue brand and capabilities. But over time, we realized that this piece needed to have a larger purpose, it had to tell WP?s story, introduce the Intrigue brand, the various lines within the brand, the capabilities of each line, and be customized to each customer. Kind of a daunting task. But with some brainstorming, research, a bag or two of M&M?s, and a little soul searching, the Intrigue Multi-Functional Brochure (IMFB, as we?ll call it from now) was born.
The IMFB showcases three different paper selections. The brochure/folder cover had to be sturdy and hold it?s form well. It basically has to be an impenetrable fortress. So we settled on the Intrigue? Folding Carton Stock in White (18 pt). It was printed with 4-color process with a custom die cut for the cover and folder. It also features an antique gold spiral binding. The inside pages needed to be a little flashier than the cover, so we went with the Royal Laid® in Natural (80 lb Cover). The Laid finish helps to reinforce the ?green? message, and showcases one of the hottest paper trends for 2009: texture. Also printed with 4-color process, the rounded corners add another design element to give it that little extra somethin? somethin?. The inserts demanded that they be strong and durable, since they will have to endure being taken in and out of the folder over and over and over again. Royal Resource® in Brilliant White (130 lb Cover) was the perfect match. This sturdy paper in bright blue-white beautifully shows off 4-color process and can stand up to even the roughest hands.
What is next for the IMFB and Intrigue? Soon it will be hitting the fine packaging market, and we are confident that it will go far. In the future, we have dreams of using the IMFB to showcase even more WP papers and printing techniques. Call it the IMFB 2.0. Perhaps a web site with up-to-date information is written in the stars? Who knows, maybe some day you will see Intrigue tweeting away, or maybe it will have a blog of its own. When you have such a fantastic product, and the service and brand power of WP behind it, who knows where life will take you.
