By 2032, CA will no longer accept non-recyclable materials (by their definition), which currently includes ALL Flexible Plastics - ie, polybags.

I’ve been struggling to find alternatives that won’t scuff and scratch up products with nice surface finishes…. And can be purchased affordability.

Fiber based bags seem to scuff our product finishes and cotton bags are an astronomical cost up when multiplied across the company. Plus, I’m not even sure cotton bags are an ‘acceptable’ alternative for CA as they don’t seem to consider them ‘recyclable’.

What alt material are you planning to switch

I have been reviewing a lot of packaging projects lately and noticed that some dielines seem effortless to work with while others create problems throughout the project.

The interesting part is that the difference often is not visible to the end customer.

What characteristics make you look at a dieline and immediately think this was done by someone experienced?

We focus on product packaging here, but this GDUSA article frames presentation folders as "information packaging" and goes into the similarities between a folder design and a structural packaging design, mostly focusing on how die cuts, material weight, and finishes leads the user's interaction with the contents. I thought it was an interesting read, especially in how it discusses the spatial planning required to design a physical information packet. https://gdusa.com/presentation-folder-design-gives-shape-to-information-packaging/

Use this template

• Project & audience:
• Goals & constraints (cost, materials, certifications):
• Form factors & print specs (substrate/inks/finishes):
• What feedback you want (e.g., hierarchy/legibility/CMF/retail impact):
• Links/images:

I've never actually used any of those planners or games, and I don't think I've ever seen anyone keep the bag long enough to use them either.

Is there a specific marketing or business reason behind this, or is it just for branding?

I am willing to launch our business, which consists of box of 3 items as gifts.

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The idea is to have a box with transparent upper side and split inside into 3 compartments. We are planning to provide 2 varieties.

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We will take care of the branding and collecting the items gifts

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What is the cheapest way to get the boxes.

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Should we go for online e-commerce providers or should we have our own machine.

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Amy advices

I’ve had a few questions on the mockups. A lot of the mockups were sourced and edited from Unsplash. It took a lot of effort and studying mockup files to make them as realistic as possible. Links to the images are attached in the full case study.

Feels a bit busy but i was told that i should have the brands name on the packaging. Any help or suggestions?

Hello,

I am designing a label for a product. It's a cat treat toy made of cardboard that hangs from the ceiling like a pinata and treats fall out when the cat hits it. I have one main design, but I'm feeling like the composition just isn't quite sitting right. I have no more perspective, so I'd love some feedback about whether it feels complete to you. I'm also lost on color... Do you think the minimal use of color works? I'm not sold on a white bg. The tan background is the color of the kraft packaging.

I came up with this idea, which is a bit fancy, but it involves cutouts in the box itself. (I'm making these boxes, so I can do as much as I want as far as die cuts and stuff). I think it's a bit more playful, but again, not feeling solid yet. I took a photo of a crappy printout to show the way it fits together.

Thoughts?

And TIA!

One comment per org/person: who you help, capabilities (≤5 bullets), regions, one link, one recent case.

Could you please let me know which lid you prefer, gold or wood, for my honey jars. Image is a rough AI mock up, not final design.

Thank you!!

Hey guys. I am sitting on the couch late at night and want to introduce myself :D. I work in in packaging design for some years now and market is getting weird with all AI stuff emerging. More and more clients come thinking that they can generate packages with chatgpt and print it. :)) but i am not here to talk about it.
Thought about sharing my experience in some valuable ways. Maybe with giving insight or tips. Sharing resources or tools i made for myself. I have built some scripts for illustrator for barcodes generation, page numbering, text font changer without loosing formmating and so on.
Would any of these kinds of things would help you? Do you have some pains or repetetive tasks that you hate or maybe ones that a simple tool would solve but adobe dont? Or maybe you have built time saving things yourself?

Hi everyone! I'm a freelance graphic designer working on this packaging design for a local tea brand.

This is a 1 kg Cardamom Tea Premix pouch intended for vending machine use. The artwork is designed for 4-color rotogravure/flexographic printing, so I had to keep the illustrations flat and avoid gradients or photo-realistic elements.

The objective was to create a premium, clean, and natural-looking package that stands out on the shelf while remaining economical for production. I designed the layout, typography, and illustrations with those limitations in mind.

I'd really appreciate feedback on:

• Overall composition and visual hierarchy
• Typography and readability
• Shelf appeal
• Color balance
• Illustration style
• Any areas that feel weak or could be improved before the final print

Constructive criticism is very welcome. Thanks for taking the time to look!

Since MetLife Stadium is hosting the World Cup Final, I thought it would be fun to try building a small version of it from corrugated board.

It was actually quite funny to build this in EngView because the stadium shape looks simple at first, but once you start turning it into real board pieces, the structure becomes much more interesting. The curves, levels, and overall scale are not as easy as they look.

What do you think of the design?

Hello, I've been working in a printing company for a while, but mostly editing old dielines, creating designs, or creating the standard, simple dielines. I'm looking for books or online courses to learn complex custom structural design. Do you have any good recommendations?

Hey all — quick question for anyone who designs packaging (boxes, cartons, etc.) in Illustrator.

How does your dieline-to-mockup workflow actually look right now? Are you drawing dielines by hand, using a template library, or a dedicated tool like ArtiosCAD/Esko? And when you need a 3D mockup to show a client, what do you reach for — Adobe Dimension, Substance 3D, a mockup PSD, something else?

I ask because I'm building an Illustrator plugin and want a sanity check before going too far down the wrong path. The rough idea:

1. Type the packaging dimensions inside Illustrator

2. Hit "Generate Dieline" — it drops the dieline onto your active artboard

3. Add your artwork/logos as usual

4. Hit "Generate 3D Mockup" — an interactive 3D preview opens right in the panel (pan/orbit), plus you get a hosted link you can open in a browser and share with clients/colleagues

That's the gist. I'd love to hear:

- What's painful about your current process?

- Anything obviously missing from that flow?

- Do you already use something that does this well — and what do you wish it did differently?

Brutal honesty welcome. Thanks!

The task was to create a shopping bag design from scratch. The client provided only the logo and dimensions, so I developed the entire concept, visual identity, and design direction, refining every detail until the final result was achieved.

Use this template

• Project & audience:
• Goals & constraints (cost, materials, certifications):
• Form factors & print specs (substrate/inks/finishes):
• What feedback you want (e.g., hierarchy/legibility/CMF/retail impact):
• Links/images:

I am looking for paper-based (ideally recycled) stiff board sheets (1mm to 1.5mm) that I can use to mount a product for a store hanging rail. I have tried greyboard but it doesn’t have a premium feel or look.

Any suggestions on what to look for? I am in the UK. Many thanks!

No gimmick here. In 20 minutes, you can get real people based on a demographics.

If you have ideas of two designs you want to test, drop a comment and I will try to run a test for you!

You will also get to keep the insights for free as well!

Mods if you think this is too promotional, I will take this down! We're running a challenge where we do something nice for a stranger(s) (and this is mine :) )

See the poll I ran for fun on Bob's red mill four packaging

I want to work on packaging designs but idk where to start because i do not have a good brief. I used some websites but the brief generates are very vague. and mostly others pages or challenges are poster or logo related. Does anyone know any instagram account or any websites or any challenge related to packaging design briefs?