can anyone suggest a design for awkward looking van?

[Brian Hays]

Sure that’s a van Peter? looks like a Tonka Toy! :lol1:

[John & Dawn Roddick]

My curiosity got the better of me and I had to check out this van on the net. It’s made by Aixam and there is a full range of these crazy lookin things from a minivan to a pickup and a chassis cab. Just think what an advert it would be for our business, especially when I don’t think it does any more than 50 MPH!!!

Dawn

[Andy Gorman]

I’ve done a few of these and found that the vinyl doesn’t stick particularly well. Ended up cleaning it with some cellulose thinners. Wasn’t a painted finish so didn’t harm the surface.
Horrible plastic things.

[Peter Normington]

big g was that on the sides or the back?
peter

[Andy Gorman]

I’m referring to the doors only. The company I do these for fit their own catering units to the chassis. The doors seem to be a very glossy, bendy plastic. I know they’ve had some trouble getting paint to stick to it.

[Steve Broughton]

Here pete have a look here on the subject of flowers and vans :lol1:
http://www.uksignboards.com/viewtopic.php?t=6925

[Peter Normington]

Thanks for the comments Guys,
Big g, I presume you do Towabilities units. I do a lot of catering units for one of their competitors!. They often ask me to look at Towabilities web page and come up with “something better”!

I really could do with a flower image though, the one on the van is from an Ingram disc and it really is naff, any sugestions?

[Steve Broughton]

Pete get a flower from the florist, take a pic with a digicam, drop the background in photoshop or similar and print.

[Peter Normington]

Thanks for the advice Steve,
I do know how to do that. But with all due respect, I thought the purpose off this forum was to help each other as proffesionals. All I am asking For is an Image of a flower to save me time and the customer money.
Ive been in this biz for a while and I could go out, hire a photo studio, and a photographer, but I dont think the client would want to pay for it.
I dont have a suitable image on any of the discs Ive paid good money for.
Just asking for a bit of help.
Peter

[Steve Broughton]

quote PETER NORMINGTON:

. But with all due respect, I thought the purpose off this forum was to help each other as proffesionals. All I am asking For is an Image of a flower to save me time and the customer money.
Ive been in this biz for a while and I could go out, hire a photo studio, and a photographer, but I dont think the client would want to pay for it.
I dont have a suitable image on any of the discs Ive paid good money for.
Just asking for a bit of help.
Peter

OK Peter keep yer hair on :lol1: I too have as you say “discs Ive paid good money for” and if I had a copy of the flower you were looking for and I were to put it up here that would be copyright theft, check the small print on your disks (just ask Brian Hays he’s bollocked me before on this) true you could go out and hire a photographer for an image of one flower as I could have done with the roses image but as you say this would have entailed higher costs to the customer, as I like many others had a digi camera lying around I decided to do it myself, I bought a 15 quid tripod from Argos, pinched some large sheets of paper from a printer friend and did it myself. Surely if your customer is adamant on having a gerbera on the vehicle then they could easily supply you with a bunch?
Yes the purpose of this forum is to help each other as professionals, would professionals steal images from another professionals work i.e. image disks, I’m sure you’d take a dim view of another signmaker using your artwork?, if you are hell bent on getting an image then I have attached some websites where you can download images for a small fee.

http://www.istockphoto.com/
http://uksign.fotopic.net/
http://www.sxc.hu/
http://www.comstock.com

You might try a search on Google Images for gerbera, I did and it came back with around 14,000 hopefully there’s something there that may be of use to you.

[Peter Normington]

thanks Steve
I wasn’t loosing my hair, havn’t got a lot to loose!
will try the websites, I dont mind paying a fee, and would not encourage copyright theft. But if another member of the forum had a royaltyfree image available, then I would perhaps be able to offer something in return.
Talking of copyright, we all probably have a disc with corporate logos on them, do you pay royalties when you use them? or do you advise the customer to obtain permission? And then keep a copy of their permission to cover yourself?
What I mean is, if a firm makes contraband jeans they are still up for prosecution even if they are making them for someone else to sell.
Peter 😎

[Peter Normington]

Thanks Steve, customer chose a flower from one of the websites you reccomended,
Here’s the finished van and also the shop front.
Peter

---

Attachments:

[Andy Gorman]

S’agood one Peter. That goldy/yellowy mega is a horrible background colour to work on but it makes the flowers stand out a treat. Good choice, going for white flowers. Do you find that the doors on the mega bend and buckle like mad when you’re squeegeeing the vinyl on?

[Peter Normington]

Thanks big g
know what you mean it’s like trying to apply vinyl to jelly
peter

[Nicola McIntosh]

hey, like the flowers pete!! they turned out really well!! 😛

as big g said it’s an awful colour to work on, but they look fab!! 😀
only c/c i have, would be the telephone numbers & (tara’s kerning) 😉 great to see your posted work!! 😀

Nik

[Peter Normington]

Thanks Nic,
cc always welcome, Can you be more specific on the phone no and the kerning?
Peter

[Carrie Brown]

Turned out great Peter 😀 I agree the vehicle colour is not the best in the world but it adds to making the vehicle stand out from the crowd. The flowers stand out very well and I like the balloon o’s (word? 😮 )

Carrie 😀

[Nicola McIntosh]

peter 😀

sorry should have replied in more detail, tel.no it’s too spaced out between the three sets of numbers, tara’s kerning just brought in a small bit, so it does not look too lost & spacey!! 😛

Nik

[Peter Normington]

Thanks Nik
Phone number was as customer wanted, kerning on taras I thought was ok, bit subjective this one, but the customer loved it.
(customer was a pain in the bum) gave them what they wanted (almost)
By the way the background on the shop sign was done in reflective to get close to the van colour
Peter

[Jill Marie Welsh]

I woulda used those weird indents as flower pots.
Painted em right in, then made digi print posies.
What a fun vehicle.
Love….Jill

[Peter Normington]

Hi Jill
I would have gone down that route, and suggested it to the customer. When we first saw the van.
Great Minds think alike!
Peter

[Bill Dewison]

Nice result Pete! 😀 That van looks mighty weird (vehicle wise), it reminds be of the 3 wheeler the Dutch have just started making. 😎

Cheers, Dewi

[Steve Broughton]

That came out pretty good I especially like the way you’ve cropped part of the flower image from the sign, nice to see it done like that and I wish more would rather than fighting to get an image to fit. Got to agree with Nic on the kerning though way too wide a ‘ s 😮 just looks wierd and I’d either have brought in another font or made “Tara’s” a bit bolder.