On Menus...

 It's rare to see a hand lettered menu these days. Business owners have a ton of options when it comes to pre-fabricated menu boards, many of which do not require the expertise of a sign industry professional. The changing nature of food service also discourages those potential clients from committing to a menu that is a) difficult to change, and b) lets face it, more expensive. Still, some clients have tried the other options and are now ready to invest in the benefits of a hand lettered menu. 

    I remember the first hand painted menu that grabbed my attention; it was at Cassell's Hamburgers, located in the ground floor of the Hotel Normandie in Los Angeles. I believe it was painted by Colt Bowden although I don't have a source to verify this. I ordered a hamburger (this was before I began my studies to become a sign painter at LATTC) and sat at the counter, admiring the decor of the establishment which made me feel like I was in an old movie. Gazing around, my eyes kept coming back to the red blue and black lettering on the menu behind the counter. I was noticing the material it was made from - the gloss of the letters and slight anomalies in character structure told me it had been lettered by hand. I admired the tactile quality of the paint and marveled at the neat arrangement of the information that allowed my eye to move through it effortlessly. They also had a printed version of the menu folded at each place setting so I took one with me to study. I couldn't fully believe that the whole thing had been painted and designed by hand. The burger was excellent too by the way.

    I began thinking about menus more and noticing which ones were hand painted. Some of my favorite spots had them! I'd simply never noticed before. I liked going there because they were consistent, both the quality and the fact that they always had the specific dish I liked to order. I associated them with comfort, not only because of the food, I realized, but because the menu itself was always there, its character greeted me like an old friend. Recently I visited two of those places and was dismayed to find they had gotten rid of the old hand painted menu boards and replaced them with sterile digitally printed menus. Somehow the food tasted a little different to me as well...

    Laying out and painting a menu is a lot of work. Luckily the final assignment in the first semester of Sign Graphics at LA Trade Tech was to lay out and paint a menu, without using a computer. There is a journeyman trick for spacing the items, which I have included from my school notes. Normally we paint signs that have light (1 word) to heavy copy (5 + words). Menus, even simple ones, have over a dozen words and numerals, and many have hundreds. It is important to format the information in a way that is easy to read, because the business and the customer both depend on the menu to sell the product. It must be accurate and attractive to the eye. It must be invisible, yet also prominent. What I mean is that we expect to see the options and prices integrated with the surroundings. A menu must carry the character of the establishment without being attention-seeking; its purpose is solely to inform.

    Here are some menus I've done, with varying levels of proficiency. For panels, tape them off with masking tape then sand the interior edge with fine grit sand paper. Then you can use a 3-inch cotton roller to fill in the panel background. 

How to Prepare MDO Plywood Sign blank - Doc Guthrie's method

Intended for sign tradespeople, this entry can also be useful for illustrating to clients what their sign is made of and how much time goes into preparing a quality product. Additionally, a traveling tradesperson can share this information with a client who might wish to prep their own sign blank, for the purpose of cost or time efficiency. The whole process including dry time takes about three days.

    MDO stands for medium density overlay - it is the type of plywood used for exterior signs and is more than sufficient for interior signs as well. "Medium density" means the plies are compressed tighter and adhered with stronger glues than your average cheap sheet of plywood. "Overlay" refers to the smooth sheet of paper that is glued to the face of the plywood. It can be purchased single sided (paper only on one side) or double sided. Common thickness options are 1/2" and 3/4". I use 1/2" for signs that are to be mounted on a wall and 3/4" for signs that stand alone, e.g. A-frames or sandwich boards. Specialty lumber yards carry MDO - Home Depot and Lowe's do NOT.

step 1) Cut and sand the edges of the plywood.

Straight lines can be cut by running a circular saw along a ruler clamped in place, see photo. Put a scrap of wood between the clamp and your sign face so the clamp doesn't dent the face.

step 2) Spackle the edge - Seals the edge and keeps moisture out

We use Crawfords brand vinyl spackling paste in California. In dryer climates sandable silicon caulk works better. Apply using a 1" spackling knife and smooth it with your fingertip. Once all the edges are coated let dry 24 hours.

step 3) Sand and dust the spackled edge. It should now be smooth and dry.

step 4) Prime BOTH sides of the board;

Dunn Edwards Evershield water based primer is the best primer to use. Oil based primer is an option as well, see notes above.

I put the primer in a paper cup and pour it on the board laid flat then distribute it with a 4" short nap cotton roller.

I always start with the back of the board first. Roll parallel stripes the length of the board, then roll perpendicular to that, then roll diagonally from both directions, using decreasing pressure each time you change direction. This will give you the smoothest primed finish. Using the edges to handle the board, flip it immediately on to "paint cones" and run the roller along the edges, making sure they are completely coated in primer as well. Then I repeat the same 4-direction process on the front of the board. Time to let dry another 24 hours....

But wait, we need to clean the roller pad so we can use it again. Save excess primer by using your butter knife to "cut the cob"

also use it to scrape primer from the cup back into the can.

Rinse the pad in cool water until the water runs clear, then spin it on this mechanism into a bucket to dry it out..

Now you have a clean roller you can use several more times

step 5) Enamel background; here are the tools I use. For a single-sided sign you only need to coat the one side with enamel.

I start by using blue painters' tape to remove the excess cotton fuzz from the shure line 3" cotton roller,

Then I use my butter knife to fill my dixie cup with background enamel..

Now that my paint and my roller are ready, I pour the enamel in a zig zag pattern across the front of the sign and work the roller across it, one direction at a time. I pause once between directions to also coat the edge, then do the final direction, removing excess buildup around the edge and leaving a very smooth enamel finish to dry 24 hours.

Following these steps will give you a professionally coated and sealed sign blank that will last many years outdoors.

Disposable Memories '22

 

Continental Divide Sumer '22

 

Faces

 

Ice capades

 

There is more to life than just Sign Painting