The more society immerses itself in digital ephemera, the more a dedicated bunch of designers embrace the use of tactilely pleasing materials and hand-crafted techniques. And if you can get your clients good and soused with a special handmade gift come the holidays, well that’s just the icing on the cake.
For Christmas 2015, Cult Partners brought all of these qualities together to create a handsomely appointed package of “Pear eau de Vie,” an extract from biodynamic pears grown in Oregon’s Hood River Valley that boasts 40% alcohol by volume.
Before we “hit the bottle,” though, let’s enjoy a pleasing aperitif: the label itself.
Even before printing, the 100% cotton Crane’s Lettra label has that hedonistic feel of fabric. After it’s been 3-color letterpress printed by Oakland’s Reb Peters Press, however, you’re treated to even more textural temptations, particularly the background behind the pair illustration that looks and feels so soft you could use it for a pillow.
“We wanted it to be textural and luxurious,” explains Cult Partners’ Jeff Hester. “The cloth-like label completely wraps the bottle like a warm winter jacket, and it has a modern abstract holiday theme.”
But that handcrafted feel doesn’t end there. The label was then fastened around the bottle with candy-cane-striped string that was tied by hand, a hand-waxed seal holding everything in place.
All of which makes the finished product resemble a magic potion pilfered from the Hogwarts lost and found – a mysterious vial to be treasured as art object even if you decide to forgo the 80-proof experience inside. (Please design responsibly.)
