The Art & Practice of Typography / A Manual of American Printing, Including a Brief History up to the Twentieth Century, with Reproductions of the Work of Early Masters of the Craft, and a Practical Discussion and an Extensive Demonstration of the Modern Use of Type-faces and Methods of Arrangement

by Edmund G. Gress

LETTERHEADS AND ENVELOPS

Page [111]

Standard sizes—Single leaves and the folded note sheet—Official envelops—Folding the sheets—Printing on fourth page—Society stationery—Ruled sheets seldom called for—Paper and typographical treatment of letterhead and envelops should have relation—Style of professional stationery seldom changes—Simple, neat, refined typography—Color seldom well used—Styles furnished by lithographers and steel-die printers—Work along standardized lines—A letterhead one form of advertising—Two tones of type-face for much copy—Elaborate treatment seldom advisable—All matter in one group—Blank space a factor—Brief copy—Use of a decorative device—A harmonizing border—A meeting announcement—Suggesting an architectural panel—Appropriate to the business—All lines of same length—For a general store—Resetting of a “brick” letterhead—Too literal—Injection of individuality—Something different—Attractive club stationery—Typographic neatness—A copperplate letterhead—Two distinct groups—Italic on a heading—Inclosing type matter in a panel—A line border finishing off the edges of a letter sheet—A spot of decorative color—The cross-line panel—German treatment—Notehead by a book typographer—Humor—Envelops a convenience—Its purpose and use—Advertising possibilities—“After five days return to”—Medieval character—Bringing out the business—An envelop corner that is artistic—Elaborate treatment.

BILLHEADS AND STATEMENTS

Page [119]

Suitable and dignified type composition—Should correspond in style to that of letterhead—Standard sizes—Allowance for head portion—Window envelops—Change in arrangement—Billheads of a quarter of a century ago—Features of the average billhead or invoice—Composition of a billhead—Transforming a letterhead into a billhead—Classic typography—Typographic art and good taste on a billhead—Stationery of a book dealer—Printing on colored stock—Lower part divided into columns—A decorator’s stationery—Business stated in firm name—Credit bills—Use of the statement—Other forms used in business.

PACKAGE LABELS

Page [123]

Effectiveness of an attractive package label—Good clothes and the package—Selection of wrapping stock—Appreciation of neat wrapping—Druggists excel—The art of making a good impression—Twine, gummed-paper tape, corrugated board—The printed label as a spot of attraction—The wrapping paper as a background—Two labels of contrasting treatment—Stronger label striking—Labels not usually seen at close range—No standard size—Stock that pastes easily—Hand lettered labels as studies—Italic with a decorative quality—A label design with no border—Suggestion of Italian art—Closely-spaced black-toned lettering—Artistic quality and interest by means of typography—A study in black and white—The Aldine combination—Border, decorative device and lettering in the same key—A label design that could be improved—A Goudy type arrangement—Label with address printed in—Stock labels should be studied.

BUSINESS CARDS