letters of appeal – part 3

A couple months ago, I shared with you two of the letters of appeal I designed for the University of Oregon 2011-2012 fiscal year (view them here and here) so today I thought I'd share the third.

This particular letter was sent out late spring and a continuation of the visual theme I developed in the preceding fall and year-end mailers.


While using the same angled band of bright yellow color from the fall mailer, this time I also added a stripe pattern and used it along the edge of the page to give it a bit of spring flair.


I incorporated photos from last summer's shoot (with David Loveall) into a side bar on the front of the letter. On the back, I echoed the horizontal tagline treatment by using panoramic shots, creating a pleasing contrast to the front.

The first of this fiscal year's mailers has already been sent to the printer and development of the subsequent mailers is in full swing. Stay tuned for updates on those later this year.

trying something new

I'm always excited when I have the opportunity to try something new, as was the case with a recent project for the University of Oregon's Founders Societies.

The request was to design a suite of materials that was simple yet classy, elegant yet understated. No problem, I love doing just that.

Oh, but wait – did I mention that the request was also to include engraving and custom lined envelopes? Hmmm...I had not done either of those types of projects before but sure, no problem! It's all about pulling together the right team, and I knew exactly whom to ask.

The complete suite included executive letterhead, personalized flat cards, lined envelopes, a parking pass and a mailing enclosure for the parking pass.

Initially, it seemed like getting all these elements produced might be a bit of a challenge but after partnering with Brown Printing, we figured it all out. First we had to find the perfect paper that would stand up to the engraving, yet be just the right shade of creamy white, so we chose Crest paper in Natural from Crane, one of the country's oldest and most prestigious paper companies. For the envelope liner we chose a sparkly Stardream (Onyx color) to create a nice contrast and tie in with the black engravings.

Brown printed the taupe color and the watermark, which was a custom ink mix. The logo on the back of the envelope was blind embossed, then everything was shipped up to Washington to be engraved by a master engraver who actually used to work at Crane Paper – small world!

Back in Portland, everything then had to be die cut, converted into envelopes and then the paper liner inserted and glued. Phew, quite a few hands have touched this project but in the end, it looks absolutely gorgeous!