Cat on the Card

To David Leytus, the owner of Village Arts Press, stationery and greeting cards are more than just his business, they're his passion. Leytus's seven-year-old Valley Village, California, business started producing Jots greeting cards just over a year ago. In that short time they've garnered two LOUIE awards and graced the directory cover of last May's National Stationery Show.

Each Jots card design is the result of collaboration between Leytus and his high school art teacher, Ellen Vener, a multitalented artist who also creates ceramics and designs fabrics. She invented a special technique where an image is squeezed onto paper stock, leaving a raised imprint. "It's a Village Arts Press trade secret," Leytus said proudly, "our special sauce. I call Ellen 'The Queen of Squeeze.' "

To create the card illustrated in this article (see finished card on page 86), Leytus explained that Vener "experimented with full bodies and heads [of cats]," but that in the end, "we decided that just the head was more 'in your face.' "

"It's a mosaic of cut-and-paste elements of different squeeze-bottle images," Leytus continued. The final image is actually an amalgamation of several of Vener's attempts. It might include the whiskers from one image and the ears from another.

The cat was originally used on a Quick Note, the company's line of correspondence cards. When greeting cards were introduced, Leytus recycled the image onto the birthday card pictured here with a message that reads: "Felines, nothing but felines. Hope your day is purr…fect!" Leytus described the copywriting phase as another group effort with friends. "There is an equation to writing copy," he said. "What works best with Jots is a play on words, something quick and clever and very clean."

Once the artwork and copy are placed, the scanned image is taken to a pre-press house where the card is "built" on a computer and a background color is added. "In this case," Leytus said, "we went with orange, because orange reminds you of a calico cat." A laser copy is then printed out, and modifications are made before the card is put on film.

Leytus wants his cards to look silk-screened. He uses high-gloss paper and plays on the illusion created by matte and glossy finishes. "Anything that looks glossy optically comes forward and everything that's matte recedes to the background," he noted. Finally, the card is embossed. "Embossing makes it look like the original art. Running your hand over the card is like running your hand over the [original] art."

Final proofs are made of the film, which then goes to the printer, who creates a plate and puts it on the press. Jot's print runs are usually between one and three thousand cards. This particular card has already gone through a number of printings.

This card retails for $2.50, which Leytus realizes is not cheap. But he pointed out that all of its features increase its perceived value.

Leytus is constantly improving his cards, and always welcomes feedback from reps and retailers. "I'm not making product to sit in my warehouse," he explained. "I want to sell stuff that sells. I love the business, and I'm really proud of my product."