Personalizing Packaging!

      Ok small business friends this post is to impart some DYI wisdom and tricks to make a statement with your packaging.  We all love getting something in the mail and being pleasantly surprised by what we find.  Obviously, we all want our customers to have that same feeling so here are a few easy and affordable ways to achieve a unique look and keep the same look in your branding.

      One simple way is to buy linoleum and linoleum carving tools and make your own stamps!  For beginners linoleum is available in a white rubbery, easy carve variety.  If you opt to use these you might want to consider backing it with a piece of wood so it stamps more consistently.  You can also use MDF board which is a particle board used for block printing and is available for cheap at any local hardware store.  MDF is similar to wood but still easy to carve and doesn't require a wood backing.  For color we simply used regular ink pads but if you want to pack a bigger color punch you can also water down acrylic paints as well.  If DYI isn't your thing, you can also get stamps made very inexpensively at select places such as mail/ shipping stores or by ordering them online.

     Another exciting way to add some personality to your packaging is by playing with foiling or adding labels.  This blog has a great step by step tutorial for foiling to add some shine to boxes, business cards, and bags!  http://thedesignercoop.net/2012/02/youve-been-foiled/  Many craft stores offer a few different color varieties other than just gold or silver toned foils.  Many online packaging services offer labels that you can print your own design on but you can also print your own with a few simple supplies.  This blog has a tutorial on printing and transferring your own labels!  http://thepaintedhive.net/2012/02/magic-decal-transfer-tutorial-with-free-printables/

     The pictures in this post feature our personalized stamps using easy-cut linoleum and ink pads on simple cardboard boxes.  One thing we found was that the pigments in the ink pads aren't strong enough for the lighter colors to show up on the cardboard so we ended up only using darker colors.  The next round of boxes will have the watered down acrylic paint for the color to allow for more vivid colors in a wider color range.  We hope the tips in this post have inspired you to get creative and save a little money on your packaging!  As always, thanks for taking the time to read!