The wonderful world of embellishments

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Ahhh, have you held a copy of Maggies’s Harvest by Maggie Beer? No? Really? You are seriously missing out!

This is one of our favourite books when it comes to embellishments and there’s no doubt about just how ground-breaking the case finishes were at the time this hardback was published in 2007, by those creative folk at Lantern (Penguin Books).

Why do we love it so much, let us count the ways…

Well, the case of the book is not only padded but is embroidered using cotton coloured burnt orange and a stunning turquoise. The stitches are sewn onto a linen-feel fabric, (wrapping the case boards) then screen printed and stamped with white foil. The book is a whopping 700+ pages and has been printed on the most gorgeous, cream-coloured uncoated paper. And, I guess you’d expect two satin ribbon markers in a book so large?

So how can one book afford so many fancy embellishments you ask? Often, that’s the offshore factor. Teamed with a large print run and a very efficient and vast team of hand-workers, these finishes that dress up books become a whole lot more cost-effective and manageable.

To press-pass, or not to press-pass, that is the question

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So often we are asked about the importance of visiting the offshore printer to monitor the printing process. There are a number of things to consider before you settle into your long journey to Asia and a few of them are:

- what is the colour content of my book
- did I send colour-match proofs
- have I selected a reputable printer
- are we dealing with a high-profile author.

Let’s face it, things can go wrong on press, that’s a given. We are dealing with machinery which can break down and often needs fine-tuning. But, if you’ve chosen the best printer for your project and have supplied colour-match proofs, then you should trust that the offshore printer will manufacture a product that meets or exceeds your quality expectations.

We’ve been on many a press-pass, but often only for very high-profile titles or titles designed using a special Pantone colours, with challenging black and white illustrations or halftones.

Why not cut corners? (round corners, that is!)

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There are many fantastic ways to make your book stand out from its neighbour on the bookstore shelves and one of those is to finish off with round corners.

This, traditionally has been used on children’s books as it adds a smooth edge and takes away the risk of children hurting themselves with pointy corners. But, it’s not just the safety factor that makes this manufacturing finish a popular one. Round corners now feature prominently on a variety of books from coffee table books, cook books, stationery items through to gift books and journals.