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Incredibly Canadian Custom Signs

Being a Canadian Sign Company we thought we would pay tribute to Canada by showcasing our incredibly Canadian Custom Signs.  We think these custom signs we have created represent some of the great signs and symbols of Canada.  

14 Incredibly Canadian Custom Signs

 

1. Cottage Country

Canada has several destinations known as cottage country.  To hear what our readers think when they hear the word cottage be sure to read our post Custom Wood Cottage Signs And Making Memories.

2. Canadian Beer

This Molson Canadian Brewhouse sign is a montage of Canada. Not only it it all about beer, the brew’s name is Canadian, and it is surrounded by a maple leaf and is situated in the Air Canada Centre.

 

3. Canadian Moose

One of the many recognized Canadian symbols is the moose.  Because it is very recognizable this moose made a great landmark in terms of a findabilty and wayfinding sign.

4. Mounties

In Canada the Royal Canadian Mounted Police. otherwise known as the RCMP or the Mounties have always been a respected symbol of Canada.

5. The Great One

Wayne Gretzky is known as the Greatest NHL Player of all time, so this  Dimensional Restaurant Sign pays homage to his jersey number 99

6. Canada Goose

Although Eddie Bauer is an American company, they choose to represent their outdoor apparel company with a Canada Goose.

 7.  Harvey’s Hamburger Chain

If you live in Canada then there is a good chance you have the slogan “Harvey’s Makes Your Hamburger A Beautiful Thing” in the back of your mind at all times.

 8. The Beaver

As many of you are aware the beaver is a popular Canadian wildlife symbol. Enough said.

9. The Polar Bear

As another Canadian symbol, the polar bear represents The Great White North.

10.  Tobogganing

While we are on the topic of snow, we love our outdoor winter activities here in Canada. Tobogganing is tops here at The Sign Depot.

11. Niagara Falls

A natural wonder located here in Canada, Niagara Falls Ontario is tourist destination. It’s a place where everyone is looking to have a Barrel Of Fun.

12. The Loon

The loon is another Canadian bird that symbolizes Canada. So much so that we have it on our Canadian dollar which is otherwise known as “the loonie”

13. Tim Horton

Whether it you are talking about the man, the hockey player, the coffee shop or the campgrounds, the name Tim Horton is known coast to coast.

14.  The Maple Leaf

This sign located in The Sign Depot showroom is another combination of Canadian symbols.  It is all about the Maple Leaf and Maple Syrup.  Both items are definitely signs you are in Canada!

While these are custom signs are incredibly Canadian, we make so many other types as well.  Need more information about aquiring a custom sign from The Sign Depot? Then visit our CONTACT US PAGE.

HAPPY CANADA DAY EVERYONE! 

A New Landmark For Waterloo Region When St Jacobs Market Opens Its New Building

St Jacobs Market Celebrates Their New Landmark

It was last October when we wrote about Canada Am visiting the St Jacobs Farmers’ Market. Now the St Jacobs Market has more exciting news to share. After their landmark building was destroyed by a fire, they are now ready to unveil their new building this Thursday June 11, 2015. They will be opening the new market building to the public that morning.  For those who live in The Region Of Waterloo this is exciting news.  So much so that when The Sign Depot sign installers were putting the sign on the building’s exterior it managed to garner a bit of attention from the local media.

It feels familiar, but the new @stjacobsmarket isn't a 100% duplicate. Here's @DavidImrieCTV: http://t.co/Rk6d9Np2IY pic.twitter.com/4UcMCZPI0H

— CTV Kitchener (@CTVKitchener) June 4, 2015

Farm Market Signs

When it comes to Farm Market Signs there are several choices.  The St Jacobs Farmers’ Market wanted to ensure that the signage for the new building was highly visiable from various spots at the market.  To acheive this PVC letters were router cut and finished white.  The white letters installed against the red exterior of the building created a lot of contrast and as the image below shows, it allows you to see the new market building from quite a distance.

Tourist Landmark

The St Jacobs Farmers’ Market serves as year round landmark destination for tourists. People visit the St Jacobs Market by the busload, so ensuring they can find their way around the market is incredibly important. Whether it be building signage or wayfinding signs, having a points of direction or places to meet at a busy place like a farm market makes getting around a lot simplier for those not familiar with the surroundings.

Have you heard of the St Jacobs Farmers’ Market before? Did it inspire you to come to The Region Of Waterloo for a visit? Let us know in the comments! We want to hear about your experience there, or about any farm market you frequent.

 

Brewing Up Some Artistic Signs For The 3 Brewers Restaurants

It’s A Beautiful Day In The 3 Brewers Neighbourhood

The 3 Brewers, also known as Les 3 Brasseurs, are Canadian microbrewerey restaurants. Each location is unique and has a dedicated beer for the neighbourhood that the restaurant is situated in.  When they had a need for individual brand representation at each establishment, they came to The Sign Depot for a variety of custom artistic signs.

Artistic Signs As Demonstrative Drawings

While infographics are often used online, this demonstrative drawing serves as an step by step infographic of the brewing process perfected by The 3 Brewers.

As you can see from the image above, the graphics were hand drawn by the expert signmakers here at The Sign Depot.  After completion the drawing was placed into a custom fabricated metal frame and cnc cut HDU replica bolt heads were affixed to the piece. The distress finish completed the vintage look of the artistic sign.

Custom Crafted Beer Deserves Custom Made Signs

As mentioned earlier in this post, each location of The 3 Brewers has a one of kind beer created for that restaurant.  Naturally they wanted these specialty beers highlighted in each locale.  That is when a custom sign shop can play a very important role.  The signmakers crafted custom pieces for display and replication for each indivdual location.  Below are just a few of the charcoal art pieces that were created for The 3 Brewers.

Raise A Glass To Those Who Value Custom Craftsmanship

While The 3 Brewers are Brewmasters, The Sign Depot has a lot in common with them.

We both

• Hand craft our products
• Create high quality items
• Take pride in our trade

We raise a glass to all those who take pride in their work and say CHEERS to all those that value custom craftsmanship!

Do you think these traits are important as well? Let us know in the comments what the word craftsmanship means to you!

Best Campfire Recipes To Try Out At Your Cottage Or Cabin

Creating A Campfire For More Than Marshmallows

Now that the warm weather is here, many become weekend warriors and head for their cottage or cabin.  There are only so many roasted marshmallows that one can eat over the summer, so here is our list of the best campfire recipes for you to try this cottage season.

Best Campfire Recipes

Stock up on tinfoil and long bbq tongs, heavy duty metal skewers and oven mitts . It’s time to take campfire cooking to the next level!

Campfire Corn On The Cob

Leave the husks on your ears of corn and soak them in a bucket or cooler of water for an hour. Next with either use your long bbq tongs or heavy duty metal skewers (depending on grip or weight) to roast the corn over the open flame until the husk becomes a very dark brown.  Set roasted corn aside to let the steam to do the work and finish the cooking.  After that put on your oven mitts and remove the husks from the corn and serve.

Spider Hot Dogs

This brings a bit of fun to the typical weiner roast. Start by scoring cross or x pattern into the ends of the hot dog with a knife. You are begining to start the legs of the spider. Now slice into your scoring a bit but not too far into the weiner. You don’t want the legs to char and fall off.  Then insert your metal skewer into the hot dog and roast over the campfire.  As it cooks you will see 4 legs form on each end of the hot dog, because as the weiner roasts the ends begin to curl up.

Tacos In A Bag

Being that your are at the cottage/cabin chances are you plan on grilling some hamburgers.  Put a few extra on the grill and save the leftovers for this campfire recipe.

Start with a small bag of nacho chips (Doritos work best as their bags are foil lined and chips are flavoured already). Squish the bag a bit to crunch up the chips into smaller bite size pieces.  Next chop up your cooked burgers and taco toppings (lettuce, peppers, cheese etc). Open the top of the nacho chip bag, add the toppings, roll up the top and give it a good shake. Then use the bbq tongs to hold the bags over the fire so that the cheese melts.  Next set aside until the nacho chip bags are cool enough to hold. Slowly and carefully open the bags to let out the steam.  Then once the bag and toppings are cool to the touch, eat the concoction right out of the bag, splitting it down the side as you get deeper into the filling (or eat with forks).

Campfire Cones

Think of it as all the fun of s’mores in an easier to manage ice cream cone.  Begin with a sugar cone and fill with your sweet toppings, marshmallows, chocolate chips, caramel sauce, berries or any dessert toppings you like.  Wrap the cone in foil.  Use the bbq tongs to hold the package cone over the campfire to cook the ingredients.  After that, let it cool and unwrap this portable dessert.

Memorable Moments At The Summer Cottage / Family Cabin

We know that campfires are just one of the memorable moments at the summer cottage and/or family cabin.  Let us know in the comment section if you have traditions for your summer vacation getaways to the lake.  We want to know what makes it memorable for you.  You may even want to incorporate those memories into a custom cottage sign.

Our expert sign designers can craft a custom wood cottage sign with the text, colours and graphics that are personalized to your satisfaction. Visit our CONTACT US page for more information.

For additional Outdoor Living Ideas check out the One Big Outdoor Extravaganza post

How To Spring Clean Your Exterior Custom Signs

Curb Appeal

If you had a custom sign made, you want it to always look its best.  Spring is a good time to walk across the street from your sign and see if it adds to the curb appeal.  If there are some tweaks to be made be sure to give us a call.

What To Check When Evaluating Your Custom Sign

1. Damage – Whether it be ice damage, wind damage, sun damage (fading) or vandalism, if your sign has been damaged in any way it is best to get it fixed before further damage occurs.
2. Repair – If your lit sign has burnt out bulbs or malfunctioning LEDs then it is not serving it purpose to its full capacity. If you wood sign is showing checks (splits in the wood) then it requires immediate repair.
3. Surroundings – Has the area where your sign has been place changed at all, example new buildings added or a new landscaping design.  This could hinder your sign’s ability to stand out from its surroundings.  This may be a good time to think about rebranding if you decide a new sign is in order.

How To Keep Your Custom Sign In Great Condition

By following these simple steps you can extend the life of your sign.

If you have a plastic/acrylic blade sign

Give it a once over with some window cleaner or mild soap and water to remove any debris.  If it is lit have an electrician remove the sign from its casing first.

If you have a dimensional HDU foam sign

A light blasting from an air hose should blow off any dust buildup.

If you have a wood sign

• Twice a year wash and wax your sign. Use a mild dish soap and soft brissle brush (paint brush) to gently loosen surface dirt – follow with a though rinse with clean water. A light coat and buff with typical spray on car wax will help repell water and keep your sign looking good.
• Remove any weeds or vines that are crawling up your cedar sign posts.  They may look interesting, but they can do quiet a bit of damage to the finish
• After about 7 years (depending on sun exposure) bring it into The Sign Depot workshop for refurbishing. It will leave looking brand new.

We also suggest refraining from using a power washer to clean any of your custom signs.  The pressure could end up removing any paint or vinyl that is applied the to sign and could damage the sign material.

It Can Be All Fun And Games – Custom Promotional Products

Come On Down

When Heffner Toyota came to the expert signmakers here at The Sign Depot with the idea of creating a PLINKO game for them, it brought up memories of Bob Barker calling contestants to “Come On Down” during The Price Is Right.

Custom promotional products are a great way to increase brand awareness and take your marketing to the next level. As you can see this PLINKO game has already managed to garner a lot of attention.

#SecretProject from @TheSignDepot has arrived. We can't keep staff away from it. Play at upcoming sales. pic.twitter.com/IdXfPON0ap

— Heffner Toyota Lexus (@HeffnerToyota) March 26, 2015

Creating The Custom PLINKO Board

By having the PLINKO board custom built, lots of choice was available.  Height of the custom game, graphics for it and the text applied to it were all set to fit the clients’ needs. Take a look below to see how this project came together.

It began with CNC cut crezon, followed by a custom paint finish, vinyl graphics and acrylic pucks made to fit between the pegs of the PLINKO game.

We gave it a few trial runs here in the workshop.

Did this project catch your attention? Creating opportunities to raise brand awareness is what smart marketing is all about.  Keeping your company at the top of mind for potential clients and keeping everything fresh for loyal customers shows that your business is listening to what consumers want. Adding an element of fun to the mix gets them curious about the business and all that it has to offer.  Want to give the Heffner PLINKO game a try? Be sure to follow Heffner on twitter to see how they will be using this custom made promotional product.  For more information about custom crafted project for your business be sure to visit our CONTACT US page.

The Advantages Of A Custom Sign Shop

Working With A Custom Sign Shop

When it comes to creating custom signs, choosing to work with a custom sign shop has many advantages.  Below we have many reasons why custom sign shops are a great choice when selecting a sign service. Here at The Sign Depot our expert designers and sign makers are here to help with all your signage needs.

The Top 10 Advantages Of Custom Sign Shops

1. No Minimums – If you just need one sign made, we are happy to create a custom sign for you
2. Mass Sign Lots – If you need several signs created we are thrilled to do that as well
3. Designers On Site – Our sign designers can take your idea and design the sign around it
4. Supplied Artwork – Already have your design ready? We can work with that too!
5. Variety Of Materials – We can work with wood, metal, acrylic, and high density urethane. We work with the substrates that fit your needs and your budget.
6. Various Finishes – Our custom finishes involve paint and vinyl with lots of colours to choose from
7. Sign Permits – We are able to prepare the sign permit documents you require upon request
8. Free Quotes – Supplying our clients with free quotes with different price points helps them know their signage costs upfront
9. Refurbishing – Have a custom wood sign that needs sprucing up? We do that as well
10. Located In Canada – If you have additional questions we can be reached by phone, email or in person at our office in Kitchener Ontario

Whether for commerical or residential, architectural or artistic, personalized or company branded, their are several advantages when you choose to work with a custom sign shop.  Here at The Sign Depot we pride ourselves on being a full service sign provider, ready to assist you with all of your signage needs. We look forward to hearing from you soon!

How To Order A Custom Sign With INFOGRAPHIC

What Your Need To Know When Ordering A Custom Sign

There are a lot of steps involved when it comes to creating a custom sign for your business.  We decided to break down some of the importanct factors required for making a custom sign for your company.  These items will give you a basic idea of how timelines, materials, designs and budget factors into the custom sign making process.

 

 The Path To Successful Signage

Now that we have set you on path towards a successful sign package, be sure to set a course for full brand awareness.  Remember your sign is a 24 hour advertisement for your business.  The items in the infographic were listed to give you some inspiration, but remember to get input from an expert sign maker to ensure your idea will fit your budget and the signage needs of your company.

Sculptural Signs – Taverna Mercatto Restaurant Toronto

Ornamental Exterior Sign

Next time you are between two Toronto landmarks, Rogers Centre (formerly known as Skydome) and the Air Canada Centre, be on the look out for our latest work at Taverna Mercatto. Working with the design firm Office Bureau the restaurant exterior signage was manufactured to replicate ornamental metal. Unlike the mystery tunnel builder in Toronto, we know that you require permission and permits before you can begin building anything.

After approval from the Toronto Sign Bylaw Unit, the sign design for Taverna Mercatto was finalized and manufacturing of this ornamental sign began. Sculptural signs are eye-catching for both pedestrian and vehicle traffic and it was decided that a free standing sign would be a great focal point for this high traffic area.

3 Dimensional Projection Sign

The Taverna Mercatto sign was finished in black with 23K gold leaf highlights on this 3 dimensional sign and LED lit so it would shine both day and night.

Projecting off a lamp post, it is a very unique sign on the street. Choosing sculptural signs as a way to differentiate a business from other companies is a great choice especially in an area where there are several restaurants to choose from.  It is very inviting looking and that is important when attracting customers to a restaurant in a central tourist area.

Be On The Look Out For Additional Mercatto Signage

In addition the Taverna Mercatto sign we have been involved in other design elements for that location as well as some of their other locations.

 Window graphics and interior signage upgrades are also part of their signage package, all with the artistic look to match their current architecture.

Choosing to work with a custom sign shop for both your interior and/or exterior signs allows for a lot of choice. From size to materials to paint colours your business signs are a great way to take your branding to the next level.   For more information on how we can elevate your brand visit our CONTACT US page to connect with one of our expert signmakers.

Custom Signs And Booths For Trade Show Season

Stand Out At Trade Shows With Custom Signs For Your Booth

It’s a sign of Spring. The spring season seems to be the official launch of trade show season. Whether it be an industry only show like The Canadian Restaurant Show, a consumer show like The National Home Show or a vendor spot at an event like The Elmira Maple Syrup Festival we want your booth to stand out from the others.

The 3 Keys To A Succesful Trade Show

 The keys to a successful trade show booth are

1. Providing A Much Needed Service
2. Looking Professional
3. Being Memorable

If you can provide item number one on the list, the expert signmakers here at The Sign Depot can assist you with the other two steps.  Creating custom signs, crafting unique promotional items and manufacturing trade show booths are just a few of the things that we are very familiar with here. Below is an example of the booth The Sign Depot displays at trade and industry shows.

As you can see it is quite different than most.  The materials used represent the type of speciality signage we are known for and the examples show how unique each project is that we take on.  Even though it looks elaborate, it was fabricated for easy setup and tear down, which also makes for less wear and tear on the booth itself.

Designed To Fit Your Needs

If your business is participating at an upcoming event be sure to contact us first when it comes to your custom signs, booth requirements and display needs.  All it takes is a little edge to ensure that the show patrons leave with your company in mind.  We create designs with that fit with the needs of your brand and fabricate what you require with the utmost attention to detail. We look forward to seeing what the spring shows have in store for you and your business.