Have an AOK day!

The AOK brand evolved quickly over several e-mails. Michael and designer Cody Dingle at Michael Osborne Design (MOD) selected a different typeface for the AOK on each of the four card designs. Cody suggested the “chatty approach,” giving me an opportunity to express myself at length on the two standard-sized cards. My stream of kuhnsciousness was allowed to almost overflow its banks, as long as the linebreaks behaved.

Michael O. and I have engaged in an endlessly-escalating esthetic and editorial exchange (EEEEEX) since 1997. Neither of us feels we can ever “catch up” — and we like it like that. Having my stationery suite designed at MOD is Michael’s most recent in-kindness to me; in kind, I am writing the text for the Joey’s Corner yearbook.

My every everything was letterpress printed at One Heart Press. And, yes, Mohawk graciously provided the stock — in recognition of my ambassadorship for Felt & Wire. My real-life out-of-pocket costs for printing came to about $3,000, for business cards, letterhead, second sheets, envelopes, notecards, and notepads. And, yes, a major commitment for me. You could think of it as practicing what I preach — I think of it as delighting in what I write on.

One Heart printed my business cards four-up, which is to say, one each of the four designs. Trimming was a tad tricky, but Chad did not get mad. Chad was a champ … and my pal Val was the gal who calculated and calibrated my paper requirements. I selected four Strathmore stocks that I felt would have a slightly vintage persona and complement the classic typewriter ribbon color scheme: Strathmore Script Soft Aqua (in Wove and  Pinstripe Laid, both in 88dtc); Strathmore Pastelle Bright White (100c); and, Strathmore Writing Soft Gray (88cb).

Only one of the four designs on Pastelle would be able to keep its deckle.  We put the oversized card (2.25 x 3.5) with AOK in Chevalier in that position. This turned out to be My Favorite: minimalist, bookish, classic.

And then, to take the cards over the tactile top, John Held perforated some of the oversized ones – mostly with a single perf right above the text block at the bottom … but some of them show John’s, ummm, artistic biases. I love letting people choose which card(s) they want.

Tomorrow on Felt & Wire: A little look at my letterhead and second sheet. Monarchs, mon amour.

Photography: Crystal Chou (pronounced ciao) studies graphic design at the Academy of Art University in San Francisco. She has a website, and next semester she will have an MFA.