I’m in the process of designing a three-fold brochure: three columns on a page, back-to-back. The easiest thing, of course, is to use an existing template: pre-chosen fonts, pre-chosen colors, pre-set areas of text, pre-selected spaces for images. The choice then becomes simply a matter of creating text and choosing images. Most of the difficult work — of choosing color, font, typographical unity, flourishes, and so on has already been done. You write the text that fits your brochure (and you can’t write any more than fits in the template, so you know when you’re done). You pick pictures or images or graphics that fill the pages appropriately, and work with the concepts that you’re trying to get across to your audience (and if there are spots for twelve pictures, you’re not going to be throwing in fourteen apostles and an extra Last Supper). The template sets the boundaries, and no more shall come of this.
But then what?
How do you introduce your own levels and layers of uniqueness? How do you make the brochure your own? Is it made your own, just because it has your pictures, your text in it? Do you have to tweak it further for it to be yours? Should you make adjustments to the font or color scheme? Should you do as the web-publishing industry suggests, publish and revise (more likely, publish and forget?).
I don’t know that there are good answers to these questions, but I’m wrestling with them now. Mostly, this brochure is an existing template, unmodified by color or font or layout; it’s just my text and images plugged in where they appear to fit.
But it’s funny. I can see so many of my projects on display on these pages, all of which have taught me important skills, like how to build an Adirondack chair, or how to sew a little medieval-style belt pouch, or my work on the CNC milling machine, or the yarn-winder, or some of my bookbinding work.
Are you a reader of this blog? A teacher? A librarian? Interested in what I’m doing? Willing to help me proofread, edit, and revise my new brochure? Leave me a comment with your email address — I’ll send you a copy. You can tell me what you think.
