PaperSpecsGallery.com Presents: The Caffeine Box (Video)

Like Christmas carols and love for your fellow man, nothing has a shorter shelf-life than holiday-themed client gifts which tend to get lost in the yuletide deluge. That’s why Ellen Bruss Design (EBD) wisely sent their annual “thank you” present at another time of year, instead. This festive box/wrap combo not only stuns with beautiful gold foil, it comes packed with enough caffeine to ensure that their clients will be awake enough to appreciate it for days to come. (The sending of the gift box was aligned with the debut of the coffee in the marketplace.)

Even without sampling the delectable Marczyk Fine Foods coffee within, the recipient can’t help but quiver in keen anticipation the moment they see the golden wrap that envelops the package. Not only do we get a sheet of Antique Gold brilliance in the form of Neenah’s beautiful Stardream paper, but foil stamping on top of that!

“Many vendors don’t have the capability to do foil stamping on such a large scale,” explains EBD’s Tracey Chaney. “And there’s nothing like getting a large box with a custom foil wrap. People don’t get gifts crafted with such care every day, and we wanted ours to stand out.”

To watch Sabine Lenz discuss The Caffeine Box click here or on the video below:

It’s only after we’ve gotten over the pleasant surprise of that foil-stamping/metallized paper double whammy that we realize what’s actually been printed on that wrap. The words “Create,” “Stimulate,” “Motivate” and “Radiate” give way to the foil stamped phrase “May your cup runneth over” on the lid of the box itself.

This wording all hints at the surprises lurking inside — “our newly designed coffee bags from Marczyk Fine Foods,” Tracey explains. Those coffee packages offer further delights with clever names such as “Solidarity Blend” accompanied by appropriate illustrations — in that case an illustration of an upraised fist.

This is just the kind of whimsy we’ve come to expect from EBD, and the wrap itself feels like something that’s bound to end up on a cubicle or office wall, glimmering quietly there long after the intoxicating aroma of “Ammunition Blend” has become a distant memory. Our cup runneth over indeed.

Finally, hats off to EBD for designing a box that not only wows but also keeps the items inside precisely where they’re supposed to be even after shipment. With gift boxes, too often the lid promises a sumptuous meal for the eyes only to reveal a tossed salad upon opening.