Score your bend lines. To get a shape to pop up as desired, you need to be able to define where and how the metal bends. Not surprisingly, you do this by weakening the metal (scoring, essentially) at the place you want it to bend. Using the hand card as an example, the fingers are articulated because they bend where the knuckle design is etched; not below, not above, but right at the knuckle where the metal is weakest.

3 ways to score. The photochemical etching process, at least with 0.01″ sheet steel, etches at 2 depths: half-way, or all the way. So we have 3 basic ways to plan where the metal will bend: half-way, all the way, or not at all. Let’s take a closer look:

1. Make it skinny. The metal will bend where the metal is weakest, and it is weakest where it is narrowest. Pretty straightforward, this.
2. Etch a score. By etching a line all the way, or even most of the way, across the metal, you thin the metal at that point, forcing it to bend there and not elsewhere.
3. Perforate. A variation of #1, perforation is a series of small narrow points. But the basic rule is the same: less metal = more bend.
4. Mix and match. Try some combination of the 3… maybe only perforate to half-depth, or make it skinny and scored.

Bend + bend + bend = break. Understand that bending sheet steel also weakens it, and repeated bending along a score will eventually lead to a break. Unfortunately, I learned this the hard way. As neat as the Hand + Eye cards are, that thumb can really only be well bent a couple of times. Then you have a thumbless hand.

Remember your papercraft. While there are many things metal can do that paper cannot, like hold a bend, metal cannot do everything paper can: without tools, you can’t fold it, roll it, or tuck a flap under another flap (think origami). Nonetheless, the history of papercraft is rich with technique that can be applied to metal. Start looking there for ideas.

Get samples. The biggest piece of advice I have is to get samples of the sheet steel, cut it up, play with it, bend it, destroy it. You won’t really know how the metal will behave during bending until you test it out for yourself.

That’s about it. Have fun, stay safe. If any of this is helpful to your project, please share your results with the class.

• How were they made? The cards were produced using a process called photochemical etching.
• Where did you get them made? The Hand + Eye cards were produced by Acu-Line in Seattle. There are other outfits around the country, but Acu-Line was the one closest to me. I was very pleased with the result.
• Will the metal cut you? The metal is thick enough that a flat piece with a smooth edge, with most normal handling, will not cut you. After the photochemical etching, the cards are deburred to smooth the edges, removing any metal snags. However, if you design the card with sharp corners, they are capable of scratching and poking, which is why rounded corners are recommended.
• How much does it cost? At the time they were made, these cards were roughly $1 each to produce, but that price appears to have gone up.

That’s the basics. Acu-Line, or some other outfit, is best able to answer production questions.

Tomorrow, I’ll post something more specific about designing for metal cards, especially the cool bendy stuff that gets three-dimensional.

When I designed the metal business card for Hand + Eye, I was also asked to come up with a special holiday design. Taking my lead from an old holiday papercraft, I designed a card that could pop up into a tree. By placing the tip of a pen at the center of the rings and pushing up, the stylized tree becomes apparent… apparently.

The photographer and craftsman Todd Schellinger asked me to design some metal business cards for his studio Hand + Eye. He gave me pretty broad creative license, asking only that it speak to the tradition of craftsmanship that he brings to each job.

Designing for metal presents many challenges and opportunities. I knew from the start that I wanted to make something that would transform from one state of being to another. What I ended up producing was a semi-articulated metal hand that could hold onto an envelope or an invoice.

Rude gestures are left to the imagination.

UPDATE: Since folk were interested in learning more about these cards, I put up some more information.