The Stationers Guild

When I think of Crane – actually, Crane & Co. – I think of engraving.  I have visited their printing facility in North Adams, MA a couple of times and have always been fascinated by the artisans who create beautiful engraving dies and the craftspeople who use these dies to print Crane’s distinctive engraved stationery and custom  invitations.  Each year, I look forward to their their engraved  Christmas Tree which often  introduces their personalized holiday greeting card collection.  This year’s Classic Christmas Tree is just another example of Crane’s remarkable craftmaship:

Crane's Engraved Classic Christmas Tree

I think you will agree, that this year’s Christmas Tree is an outstanding example of Crane’s superior craftsmanship.  Each color on the greeting card requires a separate die.  Crane’s skilled printers must apply each color during a separate press run, careful to make sure that each color is  closely registered  to an adjacent color(s) to produce the finished design.   In this case, four separate press runs were required to produce this year’s colorful Classic Christmas Tree.

Peter Hopkins, Crane’s historian and Blogger, has made an instructional video that demonstrates the process of engraving.

Stationery, particularly fine stationery, is “touched” many times by skilled craftspeople.  The level of precision required to produce these beautiful holiday card designs is a tribute to Crane’s talented artisans and their love for fine paper.

For those of you wish to see Crane’s 2009 Holiday Card collection, please visit a stationery store in your neighborhood to discuss all of the customization features offered by Crane.