Blog

Restaurant Signage

Having produced work for Smokinly Good BBQ at their Tewkesbury site before, another set of requests came in to produce signage for the Cirencester restaurant and diner that is currently being fitted out.

On arrival, the shopfront had already been painted in a glossy black, and the windows had been covered to hide the construction underway inside, whilst still promoting the business with logo stickers dotted all over the paper coverings and an A frame with the current menu.

Matte black ACM panels had been prepared back at our own workshop and routed to fit the recesses above the door and large windows to either side. These were swiftly fitted in place to give a more complete look to the shopfront whilst the fit out continues.

Inside, there was more ACM prepared, cut lettering and logos to go on the walls – a large feature wall constructed from burnt timber, and also a simplified logo to go above the kitchen door.

Details of the current sites and food services can be found on their website and updates and more information can be found on their instagram and facebook feeds.

Garden Centre Revamp

After producing a few signs and a banner or two in previous seasons, we were approached by Kemps Garden Centre, to help update some of the signage around the shop and grounds.

A big update was in progress, with changes being made to the entrance and exits, as well as the general flow around the site. This was a huge undertaking by the centre team and Green Genie Landscapes, who have been busy building structures, arbors, seating areas and new landscaping.

After a quick conversation, it made sense to visit the centre and have a walk around with the owner and staff, to make sure that all of the areas were updated in the same styles and materials, keeping a uniform look to the entire store rather than different materials and displays.

Using a variety of materials and substrates a wide range of signage has been designed, produced and fitted, ready for the new season.

  • Entrance – large ACM composite panels depicting sunflowers and the logos of companies on site.
  • Car Park – general signage for car parks, assembly points and deliveries amde using a mix of ACM and Correx.
  • Entrance – Wrapped ACM logo panel with routed ACM lettering, fixed with 20mm standoffs above the main entrance. Self-adhesive vinyl on shutters directing towards the new entrance. Wrapped ACM logo panels with arrows and entrance directions.
  • Plant Area – High tack self adhesive vinyl applied to plant benches to divide the areas and give an easy guide to the plants and their positioning. Large ACM panel highlighting the specimen plant area at the back of the centre, which was often missed before.
  • Main Shop – Correx signage and hanging sigs showing directions to the Cafe, Toilets and Tills. Frosted vinyl on the full height glass doors for safety and to reduce glare.
  • Forget Me Not Cafe – Frosted vinyl on the doors again, as well as double sided logos on the windows.
  • Outside Seating / Cafe Overflow – Large scenes printed onto banner material and framed by a ‘living wall’ really brighten up the area and can be changed seasonally with ease.

Chess Boards (2.5D)

When approached with a request to produce bespoke chess boards, each with different themes, bases and surrounding images, the ability to print in multiple layers to create a 2.5D effect with our large format flatbed just had to be put to use.

The original specification, to produce one off chess boards using a variety of themes that could then be customised with images and text specific to each order, did get simplified, but the end result of the boards produced were absolutely stunning.

Produced using multiple layers of white ink and full colour prints, with the addition of multiple layers of clear coating in various positions, the boards had an amazing finish once completed. An additional option with the multiple layers of clear coating is that different areas of a print can have matte or gloss finishes, and be raised in a number of profiles and heights.

The photos really don’t do the finished boards justice, and certainly do not show just how tactile the raised marquetry designs were, completely surpassing both our client’s and our own expectations.

Diner Signage

Just a few bits to showcase some of the initial work produced for Smokinly Good BBQ at their Tewkesbury site, which opened earlier this year.

Everyone involved in the family run business is hands on, looking after everything from building floors, walls and tables, to sourcing and preparing products, running front of house and social media channels, and a whole lot more besides.

Matte black ACM panels were prepared to fit the recesses above the doors to two adjacent workshop units that became the deli and bar. These were swiftly fitted in place to give a more complete look to the frontage whilst the fit out continues.

Inside, more ACM panels were used – matte white cut lettering and flames were mounted on the large wall constructed from burnt timber plans, and also cut self adhesive vinyl logos to go on the huge smoker, fridges and even on their bins!

Details of the current sites and food services can be found on their website and updates and more information can be found on their instagram and facebook feeds.

Tips on Preparing Artwork for Print

Tips on preparing artwork for print, helping us to save delays in production and reduce expensive setup costs and / or reprints.

Files & Formats

CMYK or RGB?

Use CMYK (Cyan, Magenta, Yellow, Black) for print, as RGB (Red, Green, Blue) is used for screens. (CMYK or RGB)

Resolution?

Ensure your images are a high-resolution 300 DPI (dots per inch) for good print quality; as anything below 200 DPI may not be acceptable.

As a guide, most images meant for screens are 72dpi. Although they look crisp and clear on screen, that does not necessarily mean they will reproduce well in print. (Resolution / DPI)

File Format?

We can accept and work with the majority of modern design file types. Though it is best to save your finished artwork as a high-resolution PDF. (PDF)

If this cannot be provided, please package all relevant artwork and elements and send it to us as a zip file instead. (ZIP)

Fonts and Images?

Embed all fonts in your PDF or outline all of the type. Images should also be embedded or the individual files should be supplied.

Bleed and Trim

Use 3mm bleed on all artwork edges to ensure edge to edge print after trimming. This helps prevent white lines or images being cut short.

Keep essential information at least 3mm from the trim edge to prevent it from being cut off. (Bleed, Trim & Safe Area)

We hope that these tips on preparing artwork for print were useful, if there is anything that we may have missed or could make clearer, please do let us know.