The decision is what still names the house after the mark is hidden. A repeated type rhythm, one shared margin, and a rule that returns in the same place are enough for a stranger to recognise the sheets as one office. A logo stuck on an empty card is not. While the mark is showing, that card looks finished. Cover it and the page goes blank except for the patch where the logo sat.
The plate is the same letterhead twice, mark covered on both. On the left, nothing remains but the patch. On the right, the left rail, the rule under the name, and the sentence are still there. That remainder is the identity. Put the mark back only after those three survive without it.
How to check it
- Cover the mark on a letter and on one screen, then list what is still in the same place. You want the margin, the rule, and the type sizes. If the list is empty, the sheet was only a logo.
- Read the type that remains. It should be the setting you already use when the mark is visible. A layout made only for the test does not count.
- Look at the cover itself. It is a flat patch over the official file, not a new symbol drawn in its place. If people recognise only the patch, there is no system under it.
.letter {
padding: 1.25in 1in 0.85in;
border-left: 3px solid #c0300f;
color: #16150f;
font: 400 11pt/1.45 Georgia, "Iowan Old Style", serif;
}
.letter .name {
margin: 0 0 0.75rem;
padding-bottom: 0.35rem;
border-bottom: 1px solid #16150f;
font: 400 13pt/1.2 Georgia, "Iowan Old Style", serif;
}
.letter .mark {
visibility: hidden;
}