Fan, star, and round gift boxes — special-shape converting

Geometry families, not catalog barcodes

Fan, star, and round cases in the catalog are geometry families. They tell a buyer which silhouette we convert in Longgang. They are not stock SKUs with a barcode, a locked millimetre, or a colour you can reorder by nickname.

A JPEG of a competitor’s star, a festival still, or a 3D render is a mood board. It is not a die. We quote from a named silhouette plus inner span, or from a dieline. Without one of those, we will propose a close structure — we will not clone unknown knives from a photo.

• Name fan, star, round, or send a dieline.
• Inner diameter or span first; outer gift size second.
• Seasonal art still needs a structure lock before print.

Fan, star, and round are three dies

A fan box is a radial plan with unequal panels. A star is points, valleys, and a closing sequence that must not crush a corner. A round or oval well is a different knife family again. Calling all three “special shape” on one line mixes three tools.

If the program is a set — star outer with a round inner tray, or fan lid on a rectangular base — write each piece. Two geometries are two converting jobs even when they share a wrap colour.

Inner size and how the product sits

The product still owns the millimetres. Write inner diameter or span, and whether the object sits proud, flush, or recessed. A candle, a bottle, or a confection nest does not share one well.

If the well is round inside a star outer, that is two tools: the outer silhouette and the insert. Say whether the insert is paper tray, EVA, or wrapped board. Guessing the cavity from wrap colour wastes a sample round.

Wrap, grain, and assembly time

Special-shape wrapped gift boxes are usually grey-board cores with a printed or specialty wrap, converted in the same Longgang plant as rectangular folding gift boxes. The wrap must follow the panel plan. Grain that works on a lid-and-base can wrinkle on a star point.

Hand-assembly time is higher than a simple lid-and-base. That is converting reality, not a published price. Quantity band, knife count, and insert count move together. Do not ask this article for a site MOQ or a calendar promise.

Heptagon is a different family

A seven-panel folding gift box (七菱板) is not a round tube with extra creases, and it is not a star. If the buyer means heptagon, send that dieline and see the tooling article. Mixing heptagon with fan or star on one PO without naming both structures is two samples.

Catalog colour stories — kraft, pink, open-window seasonal wraps — are references. Board caliper and wrap map still belong on the RFQ.

Artwork that can actually wrap a point

Print on wrap sheets is in-house Heidelberg offset after Kodak CTP, same plant. Foil, spot UV, and lamination sit on a finish map. A social-media render of a gold star is not a foil plate. Digital mock-up is not a production sheet.

Send a dieline with bleed on every panel, including the underside of points that fold under. If artwork is not ready, lock structure first. Seasonal inks still need a named colour path — process, spot, or both — before we plate.

If the program repeats next festival with a new wrap only, say whether the knife can be reused. A colour change on an existing Taishan dieline is not a new silhouette, but a new insert still is.

Sample the silhouette before seasonal ink

A white or kraft-wrap structure sample answers whether the star closes and whether the product sits. That round is not a printed lot. Seasonal foil and process colour should wait until the knife is trusted.

If the buyer needs a printed sales dummy, treat it as a printed sample: CTP, Heidelberg sheet, then wrap. It still is not a container schedule. Do not read sample days as production days in this article.

Ship the sample the way the gift will be used: lid on, insert in, product or a sized dummy in the well. A flattened photo of an unwrapped board does not prove a fan fold.

What to put on the RFQ

Write the silhouette, inner millimetres, insert yes/no, wrap/finish map, quantity band, and destination. If you only have a retail photo, say so. We will not invent a certificate number or a stock SKU from the image.

Special-shape almost always means new knives unless you return a previous Taishan dieline. Returning a physical sample from last season is better than a screenshot.