How to emboss a silver logo onto a leather portfolio?

April 11, 2007 7:29 PM

I need to emboss a leather portfolio (i.e., a fancy company binder) with a silver 3"x3" logo. What's the easiest way to do this with a 3-day turnaround?

I have the logo ready to go, as a TIFF or JPG file. I can buy the portfolio at a Staples or similar. Who can do the embossing for me? I only need one, unfortunately -- this is for a proof-of-concept sample.

posted by phonepimpster to media & arts (4 comments total)

You could try calling Leeds--they're a provider of those sorts of items. I'm not certain if they'll send you a sample with a custom logo or just something they have sitting around, though.
posted by dirtynumbangelboy at 8:33 PM on April 11, 2007

If it's just for show and does not have to hold up to real-life wear, you could use a thermal transfer foil such as this, substituting a clothes iron for the second heat-setting step.
posted by jamaro at 8:36 PM on April 11, 2007

You might call your local Christian book store. They often emboss leather Bibles with people's names, so they might be able to help you out.
posted by orangemiles at 7:25 AM on April 12, 2007

If it's the same kind of process as embossing and foil-blocking for book covers, I'd expect it to take 3 to 5 working days or maybe more.

Lettering is easier as alphabets can can be kept on hand to be stamped, but a company logo would need a die made, which would be done by a specialist subcontractor -- this will also make it very expensive as a one off if you don't go ahead with a larger production run.

Suppliers should have samples of previous jobs on hand, and may be able to Photoshop something together to show you how your logo would look.

Speak to the supplier as soon as possible to check for any issues with your artwork -- very thin lines or small lettering won't work well, and artwork needs to be one single solid colour.
posted by elliot100 at 8:22 AM on April 12, 2007