How can I find new types of print publication styles?

March 4, 2006 9:33 AM

I want to design a print publication to advertise my company's services, but I'm really looking for something different. I'm looking for a web site that will show me a variety of different print publications (brochures, newletters, etc.) as well as their formats and dimensions, just so I can get an idea of what is out there.

I realize they have samples of print work at a print store (which is really the next step), but really I was hoping I could get some idea of what is possible beforehand. I found the Designers Toolbox, which has standard foldings, but it doesn't have dimensions. I am somewhat interested in the 6-page Accordion style there, if anyone has dimensions for that, let me know. Really though, I am most interested in suggestions of web sites with ideas, photos of cool examples, dimensions of common foldings, advice about what stock to use, and really any advice about print design that you could provide.

posted by banished to media & arts (7 comments total)

www.modernpostcard.com They can send you a sample packet of their line of printing services. I have used them and been happy with them.
posted by 45moore45 at 10:57 AM on March 4, 2006

Ditto on Modern Postcard. Great service.

Banished...can I assume you are new to designing brochures and the like? I assume you have the appropriate software for such things? A proper offset printer is not going to appreciate you handing him a Word document or something like that.
(Not a snark...there just seemed to be a bit of the novice in your question.)
posted by Thorzdad at 11:28 AM on March 4, 2006

i hate to get all meatspace here, because it's not the answer you're looking for, but i'd try the design section of your local bookstore. there are lots of books out there that showcase the vast variety of print design possibilities - David E. Carter's "Big Book of..." series comes immediately to mind, but there are more, far too many to name. If you're averse to sunlight, though, here's at least start.
posted by ab3 at 11:33 AM on March 4, 2006

... and i agree wholeheartedly with Thorzdad. In fact, cnce you've looked around and found the format you think might fit your project, please, please go to a professional agency or freelance graphic designer to make the project come to life. Ask for and take that person's advice - there is a great deal of human expertise that only an experienced design professional can provide. You and your potential readers/customers will be much better served in the long run.
posted by ab3 at 11:38 AM on March 4, 2006

If you have a printer you use regularly, it would be a good idea to talk to them before you start. They can give you samples of similar projects they've done before, different paper stocks, ink colors, etc. AND they'll tell you exactly how they want you to lay it out with regards to margins, bleeds, file types, etc.

I would recommend using an actual print shop and not a place like Kinko's. They can help with design, too. It might be a better idea to just hire a designer to do it, but if you're budget's low, help from the printers should be enough to make something simple, tasteful, and not painful to look at.

My super-basic advice for print design: keep away from clip art, and pick a maximum of 2 fonts and stick with them. One of those two fonts is not Comic Sans (oh, you laugh, but it took us years to purge that ugliness from our office for good).
posted by ruby.aftermath at 11:50 AM on March 4, 2006

Ban Comic Sans
posted by Thorzdad at 11:52 AM on March 4, 2006

Hehe. I've seen that, Thorzad, thanks. Luckily, the main perpetrator has been gone for a while. It's been mainly re-designing all of the brochures (and grant proposals! argh! how did we ever get any money?!) created during her tenure.
posted by ruby.aftermath at 12:06 PM on March 4, 2006