Step-by-step: Traditional airbrushed lettering
Jersey-style truck lettering, with its gradient blends, custom-designed lettering and chrome effects, has much of its roots in race car lettering and rock-and-roll… Read More
Articles
Sign panels and substrates at work
Sourcelist: substrates Aluminum composite material/ACM 3A Composites USA Grimco Laminators Inc. Mitsubishi Plastic Composites Nudo Products Inc. United Industries Engraving materials Duets by… Read More
Tips & Tricks
Bond Styrofoam with Great Stuff foam sealant We often make interior signs, displays and props from extruded polystyrene foam, often called Styrofoam. We… Read More
Tom Bowen
Shop name: Plainfield Signs Shop size: 2400 sq. ft. Age: 62 Staff: Three plus Tom and Sue Graphics equipment: Roland SP540 printer/cutter Roland… Read More
Using swatches, patterns and tiles in Adobe Photoshop and Illustrator
Do you ever wish to add a texture or pattern to letters or graphics? Maybe you’ve never really needed them, but with a… Read More
Creating a theme and a package for an ice cream parlor
We have an extremely fun job currently in progress in our shop. A regular client of ours recently asked us to work up… Read More
Effective design creates a powerful first impression
Recently, a new restaurant opened up near my office. It had been vacant for almost ten years, and people were very excited for… Read More
What’s it cost to produce this 12-by-16 entrance sign?
Materials: 4 sheets 2-in. HDU board: $1600 CNC cutting/routing: $660 1-in. PVC board: $240 2X6 pressure-treated stock: $150 Paint: $100 Hardware and miscellaneous… Read More
Design Clinic: Take a break and have some fun
Ever since I was in grade school, my interests seemed to center around color and design. I am a visual type of person,… Read More
Design & Price: Truck lettering
In every issue, SignCraft gives a few sign makers an imaginary project. We ask them to do a sketch of the sign they… Read More
Erik Dickson
Shop name: Erik Dickson Shop size: 2500 sq. ft. Staff: Erik and Cheryl Dickson Age: 56 Graphics equipment: Gerber 15- and 30-in. plotters… Read More
John Liptak
Shop name: Liptak Signs Shop size: 1000 sq. ft. Age: 62 Graphics equipment: ShopBot 4×8 CNC router 30-in. Graphtek plotter Online: www.liptaksigns.com This… Read More
Finding a market for laser cutting and engraving
Cutting letters and graphics for signs is a natural for the laser, but there is a lot more work out there for the… Read More
Letters
From satellite dish to stained glass window Dear SignCraft, Recently a pastor asked my help in turning a large discarded satellite dish into… Read More
Mark Yearwood
Shop name: Yearwood Design Works Shop size: 1700 sq. ft. Age: 55 Graphics equipment: Graphtec and Roland cutters FlexiSign sign making software Photoshop… Read More
Periandros Damoulis
Shop name: Senior designer at House of Signs, Frisco, Colorado and launching Periandros-Design.com Age: 54 Graphics equipment: Vectric Aspire Autodesk Artcam Pro Autodesk… Read More
Shop Trucks
Send us a photo of your shop truck today at signcraft@signcraft.com or to SignCraft, P.O. Box 60031, Fort Myers, FL 33906. Read this… Read More
Vince on stripes and lines
Vince Balistreri was in his early 20s, doing custom paint work in a body shop, when he first tried his hand at pinstriping…. Read More
Tips & Tricks
Try a two-tone blackboard I’ve used a two-tone blackboard many times to add a subtle logo to signs like this. I use greenboard… Read More
Before and after: The details make the difference
It’s been said “the devil is in the details”—and this is painfully true in sign design. Those details can make the difference between… Read More
