Catching the Stor Fisk (Big Fish)

When Swedes want to enjoy the beauty of their nation’s coastline or enjoy aquatic recreation (or, quite possibly, the 19 hours of sunlight they receive on the summer solstice), Björkemölla, a small fishing camp in Pukavik, on Sweden’s eastern shoreline, offers a popular destination. However, Bob Burnett, proprietor of Spring Valley Signs (Farmington, PA), had never heard of it when he received an email with a request for a price quote from the resort’s general manager, who included a logo and PDF image of Björkemölla’s entrance.

Never inclined to turn away an interested customer, Burnett’s shop eagerly took on the job. Martina Weeks fine-tuned the design using SA Intl.’s FlexiExpert software and created the template with Roland DGA Corporation’s Camm1Pro cutting plotter. Using Swiss hand chisels and gouges, Spring Valley’s fabricators fashioned the panels from 18-lb. Sign•Foam and fastened them together with 3M™ high-bond glue. Burnett’s team decorated the 3 x

4-ft. sign with artists’ acrylics and Sherwin-Williams exterior latex before highlighting the letters with 23k, surface goldleaf. For safe transport across the Atlantic, Spring Valley ensconced the sign within several inches of bubble wrap.