Hemlock Printers is one of North America’s most advanced print shops, having won numerous awards and being named The most Environmentally Progressive Printer in Canada. Yet when they launched  NameTag™ Print Response Marketing, we decided to make the message as simple as a whiteboard sketch. Nametag™ combines the power of customized direct-mail with the sophistication […]

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When I bought my new MacBook Pro, I knew there would be a few necessary accessories, such as cable adapters. I needed two – one to help the new firewire 800 port talk to my old Firewire devices, the other to ensure my screen output could speak VGA. The Firewire adapter is made by a […]

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I recently completed a very fun project, the CD and package design for The Bent Nails, a band I have been involved with off and on for more years than I care to admit. I have always rather detested the classic ‘jewel case’, so I was eager to find a solution that was more compact […]

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In 1995, a young diver named Chad Pregracke decided to clean up the Mississippi River – armed with just one boat and a boatload of nerve. His organization, Living Lands and Waters, has since grown into a national crusade, with thousands of volunteers picking up millions of pounds of garbage from America’s waterways. Vancouver-based Hemlock […]

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You copy on both sides of the paper. You don’t print your e-mails. You pour reclaimed rainwater water through old coffee grounds. BUT YOU CAN STILL DO MORE!! Yes, until you consider how many grains of toner you waste on each and every letter you print, you are not worthy. Meet ECO-Font, by Spranq, which […]

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You’ve printed your brochure on 100% post-consumer recycled stock. Your factory buys energy from a renewable supplier. Your fleet runs on biodiesel sourced from oil that was only used to fry organic, locally-grown potatoes. Now it’s time to do your media plan. This is no time to hang up your green values, but where do […]

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Well, Dear Readers, I have managed to parlay my recycled office paper business cards into a coveted Applied Arts Advertising & Design Annual award in the category of best logo usage.  AA is a highly respected magazine profiling the finest design, advertising, photography and new media from across Canada and around the world. My cards, in […]

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The Sustainable Brands 2008 show was, like the industry it represents, sometimes a contradiction. Here, in no particular order, are my Top-10 observations on both ends of the green scale: 1. Coffee with all the right adjectives. It was nice to see a departure from the ubiquitous generic hotel swill. This selection by Thanksgiving Coffee […]

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When the public thinks of advertising, they often have a polarized point of view. 1. They hate advertising and it never works on them 2. They love and remember a certain ad and it’s usually a funny one. Yet not all campaigns are ripe for humour. So where is it most effective? Use humour to: […]

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If you wince every time you have to print a job on the skins of dead trees, take a look at TerraSkin™. Instead of using wood pulp, TerraSkin™ is manufactured from stone – 75% mineral powder held together with 25% non-toxic resin – in a manufacturing process that uses no water. The result is a […]

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