CLIENT
Honor is a high-end women’s clothing brand led by designer Giovanna Randall in New York, NY. With no detail left untouched, every aspect of the brand aims to deliver luxury and sophistication. Honor translates the twentieth-century heritage of an old-world atelier in a wearable, visceral fashion.
BRIEF
For their Fall 2013 fashion show, Honor asked RoAndCo to design a unique invitation that reflected the inspiration of the collection, which ranged from colorful gem stones to 1990s party culture, while also grabbing the attention of the fashion industry—all within a tight timeline and budget constraints.
APPROACH
Using fluorescent pink vinyl in place of typical card stock, we foil stamped the bold text-based artwork in neon pink to create a fresh and striking invitation. The combination of neon shades and unusual materials made for a piece that was eye-catching and memorable.
PRODUCTION LESSONS
Working with vinyl proved to be a complicated process. At first, we had issues with sourcing the exact material we needed in New York, as the suppliers did not have enough in stock to produce 2,000 invitations at the desired dimensions. We began by testing both blind embossing and foil stamping on the material. Blind embossing was not very successful in showing the details, and each foil brand reacted differently on the vinyl. After a few weeks of experimenting, we finally found a foil brand that adhered perfectly to the vinyl and achieved the desired effect.
Judge’s Comments
I was drawn to this project for a few reasons: 1) Pink on Pink; who does not love that. 2) the materials used took a lot of experimentation to get this look; it’s not easy to predict the result until you do it. It stood out from all the paper based designs we judged; you are just drawn to it and when you touch it—it feels like an event in the making. 3) The type is simple, but perfect for the project. It has great POP and relates to what you might see at the actual fashion show. 4) Reminded me of a touch screen but in print. — Pum Lefebure
Seemingly impossible to conceive (and even more difficult to reproduce on a reflective medium like printing), this piece manages to pull off something I never thought possible, much less even considered—fiber optics! It’s a hot stamp on day-glo plastic material. That’s all! See how the edge of the plastic material catches the light and makes that edge virtually illuminate? Well, the designer realized (somehow) that when you simply hot stamp onto the material, the typography and artwork TOO would become a fiber optic transfer pontn for light. Just sitting on the table, this humble little piece of design literally SCREAMED at you from across the room. It kept shouting, “pick me up! Pick me up!” All the judges kept going back to examine this more closely and wondering about it. I personally must have gone back and examined it a dozen times with wonder. I think this piece would have won the award for the “most fingerprints” (from fondling) in the show. — Art Chantry
This piece is radical for reasons completely opposite of our co-choice. This piece is ingenious due to its use of materials and process to achieve a novel and electric outcome. The use of two never before married materials—pink fluorescent vinyl and foil—make for an eye-popping execution. Applying heat to a heat averse material like vinyl is quite innovative. RoAndCo Studio have achieved a unique and energetic piece. — David Dodde
Unexpected material and print method. I mean, if a designer came to me and said they wanted to foil stamp on vinyl, I would have laughed, said they were crazy, and doubted it could even be done. But here it is—foil stamp on vinyl, and the result is incredible. Playful and elegant. — brad murph
