When thinking about exhibition displays, consider our gorgeous fabric stands. Lightweight, easy and quick to assemble, lovely to touch and wonderful to look at.
Here, have a look at a video of how easy it is to assemble one of the large fabric backdrops.
Until 31st January you can make great savings on some of the range available.
2.3 x 5 m, Fabric cover and frame, 1 for £719 (was £919)
5 working day delivery
Assembled size(mm): 5000(w) x 2300(h)
All fabric displays are dye-sub printed on 260gsm 100% ‘Stretch’ polyester. Full colour print on both sides. Washable at 30º with everyday detergent. Fire retardant and fade resistant. Fastens with zip. Supplied with aluminium frame and carry bag
Orders must be approved by 6pm, Friday 31/01/20. Prices include delivery but exclude VAT and any design costs.
I am an old duffer and I’d like to talk about the old days. Many people who have done the same job for many years, like I have, enjoy talking about how things used to be done and the many colourful characters they knew, many of whom may not be around any longer. In my case, I have been a professional graphic designer for over 30 years and in that time I have seen a great many changes, most of which are technology driven. My industry and profession of course is not unique in this respect. I count myself fortunate however to have learned my trade before the advent of the Apple Mac, especially as I was young enough to adapt once computers came to the fore. There are many things which I don’t really miss of course – running out of Ks on a Letraset sheet, trying to unblock a Rapidograph, paying for a sheet of CS2, stuck in a hot darkroom for hours on end, but creating and presenting a rough Magic Marker visual that left room for the client to use their imagination to fill the blanks was one of my favourite occupations.
The nature of my job has meant I have had dealings with many highly-skilled professionals and trades people – Illustrators, photographers, finished artists, magic marker visualisers, copywriters, typesetters, lettering artists, photo-retouchers, film planners, proof-readers and press operators. Just a few of the specialists we use and have used over the years. All of those tasks are still part of the process but only a few of them are regularly undertaken by human beings these days.
Now I’m not casting any judgment on whether that is a good or a bad thing. Many tasks within the print trade for instance used dangerous chemicals. I well remember a friend of mine who’s breathing was severely affected by constantly inhaling print solvents and I also remember a former boss and a great mentor coating his desk with the dreadful Spray Mount, without giving his health a second thought.
The change within my industry has however been incredibly rapid. New technologies that were widely adopted in the ‘70s and right though to the late ‘90s have now been superseded. As a consequence people who trained and became specialists in particular parts of the design and print process became irrelevant in a relatively short period of time. Some retrained only to find their new job, once again, quickly outdated. I’m fortunate in that, whilst my occupation as a graphic designer has been chipped away at with the advent of online templates and access to cheap and free powerful design software, the essential part of what people want from me IS the human touch.
I find it deeply poignant that within some areas of the print trade a person will have put their heart and soul into an apprenticeship, become an expert, enjoyed their job and their workmates and workplace, only to have the rug pulled out from under their feet by the introduction of a computer or machine that can do the job better, quicker and of course cheaper. That is progress of course and that is unavoidable and in many ways it is a good thing.
Compression of time scales doesn’t seem to mean we have more time though – we find we merely get on to the next thing sooner and cram more tasks into a day. The time we save, in my view, would be better spent recovering your faculties so you can fulfil your next task refreshed. Cheaper doesn’t seem to mean more money in the average pocket – it just seems to mean sustaining dividends to shareholders and investors. OK, I know economists will tear my thoughts to shreds here but today’s free-market society was sold to us as ‘it will give you choice and reduce prices’. The choice we have been allowed is undeniable. However, is it preferable to be forced to regularly choose who you buy your water from or how you invest your pension when it matures or compare your car insurance against a multitude of insurers? I’m not sure life is ‘better’ in that sense. It used to be so much more simple and I would argue there’s possibly a good case to suggest this pace and this ocean of decisions we are forced to navigate can affect our mental health. Life used to be relatively simple didn’t it? I suppose I’m trying to say that not ALL progress is necessarily good.
I love being a designer but my other love is music and writing songs. I wrote a song a couple of years ago called Making Progress, which I perform in my duo, Milton hide. It is an unashamed lefty old duffer’s rant against the modern, commercial, free-market world, and virtual world. Despite the unapologetic luddite sentiment and ‘rantiness’ of the song, I am quite proud of it and I am, perhaps surprisingly, optimistic. I do believe a healthy cynicism is slowly creeping into many minds and that a significant number of us will start to defend the best and most important parts of our lives – the parts that define us as human: family, relationships, art, music, exercise – whilst at the same time, utilising technology to enhance these things further, for instance staying in touch with friends and relatives, using interactive maps on walks, exploring art and music.
Who are Hailsham Creative? We are husband and wife team, Josie and Jim Tipler and we are fortunate to now be able to work from a home office surrounded by gardens, art and musical instruments. This helps us no end with our creativity.
We are not just creative with regard to the Graphic Design and print, our creativity spills over into all aspects of our lives. Josie is a visual artist, a painter. Our Studio, as well as containing computers and drawing boards, has easels and painting tables. Jim is a musician, and has performed with different bands over the years so, as I am sure you can guess, the Studio also hosts guitars. Lots of guitars.
We now write and perform music together as the folk duo, Milton Hide and are about to embark on another exciting project – recording our first full album. This involves a substantial financial investment and we have launched a Crowdfunder campaign to help raise the funds. Running our own business has helped us to work out the costs and benefits of the project and our graphic skills and access to print resources help us to create a professional image for Milton Hide.
Our friends and those we meet through art and music are often talented, creative people themselves. For the forthcoming album we will be working with several other musicians and are commissioning artist, Helen Bryant to paint an image to be used on the cover artwork.
The T Shirt above is one of the many rewards we are offering for those donating to our Crowdfunder Project and features a design by Jim using a lino cut by Josie. You can find out more about Milton Hide on the website (by Hailsham Creative!) on www.miltonhide.com
Milton Hide Logo – computer design in the style of a wood cut
Editable poster template for advertising Milton Hide gigs featuring photography by Elizabeth Doak
CD cover design for the EP, Little Fish, featuring a painting by Josie Tipler
The storm raged, the wind gusted and a poor old tree wrapped in ivy came crashing down across our lane, bringing with it electric cables, telephone lines and our fibre broadband line. Working at the end of a quiet no-through country lane, we know from past experience that getting our fibre and ‘phone line repaired is not going to be an urgent priority. The communications between different departments of BT is slow and regulation hoops must be jumped through before any actual physical work can start. Luckily, we have a wonderfully supportive local community so we unplugged our computers and toddled round to a neighbour’s farm office to weather the storm until service was resumed.
The electricity was back on by the end of the day but sadly a power surge had taken out several pieces of electrical equipment – including the cat’s calming plug in diffuser! But both cats and dog were reasonably happy, they had radiators to snuggle up to and weren’t bothered at all by not being able to upload selfies to Facebook or Instagram. They stayed at home to look after things while we were kept company in our new temporary studio by the adorable if slightly pungent Bertie. He had the ability to read minds – I merely had to think about opening the packet of biscuits for him to suddenly appear on my lap.
Two weeks later, and after 2 days of work by some very pleasant OpenReach engineers, our broadband and phone lines were reinstated and we moved back in … to our NEW studio. We had taken the opportunity to move things around so we aren’t sitting in full sunlight all day and having to keep the blinds drawn. We managed to carry on our day to day business with no interruption to service – the only thing that had to be cancelled was a gig we were to be playing on the night of the storm.
Many thanks to Peter and Jackie Appleton of Primrose Farm. And Bertie.
Sometimes it’s the little things that make us return. Or decide to do business again.
Often, it’s the unexpected gesture that keeps us coming back. The complimentary digestif.
A small gift in the mail.
Or just a simple thank you.
This year we’ve made it even more affordable to say thanks and spread some festive cheer. Fast&Festive Christmas Cards are printed digitally onto 350gsm silk art and supplied pre-folded. Or for larger quantities, Premium Silk cards are an even thicker alternative and supplied flat, ready for folding. Envelopes available for just 5p each.
Or why not treat your customers to something extra? Our range of calendars and wallplanners have something for everyone.
the cat’s calming plug in diffuser! But both cats and dog were reasonably happy, they had radiators to snuggle up to and weren’t bothered at all by not being able to upload selfies to Facebook or Instagram. They stayed at home to look after things while we were kept company in our new temporary studio by the adorable if slightly pungent Bertie. He had the ability to read minds – I merely had to think about opening the packet of biscuits for him to suddenly appear on my lap.
Two weeks later, and after 2 days of work by some very pleasant OpenReach engineers, our broadband and phone lines were reinstated and we moved back in … to our NEW studio. We had taken the opportunity to move things around so we aren’t sitting in full sunlight all day and having to keep the blinds drawn. We managed to carry on our day to day business with no interruption to service – the only thing that had to be cancelled was a gig we were to be playing on the night of the storm.
