The difference between a regular lobby sign (also often referred to as a reception or office sign), and a custom lobby sign, can be quite a lot. Sure, we often create very dynamic and impactful signs that are very simple and don’t require too much to them. Some simple dimensional lettering against a nice wall with some standouts can be all it takes. The standoffs just help the letters ‘stand-off” from the wall, as you might assume, and give the sign another layer or dimension. That extra bit of pop is sometimes all it takes to really make a sign look professional.
In other cases, some of the signs we make are very complex, made with multiple layers, from very high-end materials, and can feature interior or backlit lighting. Even just a higher quality material can take a sign up a notch and give it a very professional look.
Even the installation process can be complicated. Capella needed to have their sign mounted in a way that didn’t require putting holes in the wall. There’s a drop ceiling in their offices so we had to mount a special wall cable system where we mount to the top of the wall and then hang steel cables, suspending the sign in position.
In the example above, with simple dimensional letters mounted to a wall with standoffs, you can make your sign look very high-end just by opting for brushed gold for brushed silver. Obviously, not every business is going to be a good fit for this option, but for some businesses, it might be the perfect fit.
Recently, we made a sign for Capella Flavors, a company located in Carlsbad, CA that makes flavoring drops for food and beverages. They have a very wide variety of flavors, which can be used in an infinite amount of combinations and pairings. If you have some extra time, we invite you to take a quick look at their website to see what we mean. The selection is quite astounding.
For a company like Capella, that deals with a wide variety of flavors and colors and imagination, a simple dimensional letter sign wouldn’t be the right fit. A brushed aluminum or brushed gold lobby sign might be a better fit for a law firm or jewelry store, respectively. But a flavoring company needed something special.
In the pictures in this article, you can see the lobby sign that we made for them. It’s very colorful, with lettering that transitions from black to red as the letters continue from left to right. There are also colors of white, then tan and then a brushed aluminum layer in the back. Adding multiple layers in this fashion not only increases the visual attractiveness with multiple colors, it also keeps adding dimension as you stack layers on top of them.
The back layer is made from 1/2” thick PVC, which was then finished with brushed aluminum on its face, and painted matte black along the edges. On top of that a tan layer was stacked, which was made from 1/8” thick PVC. The next layer on top of that, the white layer that serves as
a border around the lettering in their logo, was made from 1/4″ thick acrylic. And the final layer, stacked on top of that layer, is the actual Capella letters, which were made from 1/4″ clear acrylic. Using our high definition printer, we printed the black to red gradient onto vinyl, and applied it to the clear acrylic. When pieced together, it makes for a visually stunning sign that matches their branding and the products that they sell.
If you have any questions about custom lobby signs, or any other kind of sign product or service, just give us a call.
Written by: North Coast Signs – 760-536-5454