on the press mondays

The first of a new series (I hope) of blog posts about the daily life of a letterpress business. And to start us off:

No rest for the press!  I returned (triumphant! I might add) from the Gift Show on Friday, and immediately started working on the custom jobs that had been piling up...these are birthday announcement/cards for the President of Saint Michael's College.  1300 of them, to be precise.  I finished the printing and final trims last night, and today am sorting and shipping.      

And yes, I know it's Tuesday.

keeping busy

I'll be in New York this weekend for the New York International Gift Fair.  I'll be sharing a booth on Pier 92 with good friends Albertine Press and Carta, Inc.  Stop by the piers to say hi!

picture perfect

Oh, it's been much too long since my last post.  More peeks coming soon, but for now: these clouds were just unbelievable.  This is definitely the most picture-perfect sky I've ever seen!  

here we are again!

Meet me in Brooklyn, tomorrow!  I'll be sharing a booth with Albertine Press again this year--let's hope the rain holds off a few more days.

it's time!

It's been a whirlwind month, and now I'm here!

Three days + eight fine ladies + two fine gents = a pretty spectacular booth (in my humble opinion!).

Come visit the Ladies of Letterpress at the National Stationery Show (booth nos. 2256-2258): Thomas-Printers, Ink & Iron, Hazel & Violet Ink, Pistachio Press, May Day Studio, Paper Mill Designs, Dandy Lion Press and Flywheel Press would be glad to see you!

pictures of the day: april 5

It was a beautiful, beautiful weekend. I know because I spent five minutes sitting on a chair (and eating a peanut butter + jam sandwich) in the bright sunshine in front of the studio. And then I went back to work. It's pretty rare that I get a weekend off from workshops, and rather than spend too much time relaxing, I spent it catching up on printing samples to bring to the Stationery Show next month.

This morning I cleaned up a bit, and started mixing more ink--and took some photos for a sneak peek!

mmm...pomegranate green tea.

more quirky love notes

 

new styles and colors of last word notes

 

mixing up big batches of ink

and tying up the forms when I'm done!

So posting might be a bit light for the next six weeks or so, but I hope you're all enjoying the sunshine!

internet convolutions

Woo hoo!  One of my BINGO Books is on the etsy front page right now.  How did I find out, you might wonder?  An email notification of a comment posted on my facebook wall, in response to an automatic "My Etsy" posting.  Sometimes the internet really astounds me!  

repeat-repeat-repeat

I just saw these and thought...wow.  I think I'm in love.

letterpress Dice Print - Delta Geminorum

Letterpress Dice Print - Chi Velorum

via UPPERCASE journal, images courtesy Stukenborg's etsy shop

hearted!

I know it was a few days ago, but Valentine's Day in Montpelier is one of the best things ever.  This year, the Phantom trekked all the way out to my little studio...and we can't bear to take it down!

so much, so fast: story in pictures

Being a printer (and my own boss) has its ups and downs: I sometimes go two weeks without a day off, but I get to make pretty, pretty things that will make people gloriously happy.  Or in this case, make a birthday surprise that much more surprising.  

 
That's Saul, my apprentice for the month, working on the big beast.

 Going into the press for the third time!

Getting the second pass through the gocco!

Registering for the second color!

Lovely!

Just waiting for assembly!

Those are CD sleeves for my dear friend and local rock star Sara Grace.  It was her birthday a last week, and her partner (as a surprise) had the singles from Sara's album-in-process professionally pressed, and designs finalized by Bridget at Brand New Key, and finally printed letterpress and gocco at May Day Studio.  Sara also got a three-week, all-expenses paid trip to Amsterdam, with three shows booked in advance.   All this came together in less than ten days...and we're all thrilled (and exhausted)!

so here we are at the beginning...

...of something completely new and promising.  I'm so excited about the things to come (and things to do! and things to share!) this year.  Thanks for being along for the ride.

I wish you all the best and brightest of new years.  Cheers!

holiday time!

The Paper & Chocolate Crew!

It's here again...Holiday Fair time!  And so I hope you'll excuse the light posting, because I've been working like a busy bee behind the scenes.

Paper & Chocolate!  Design Hive!  Touch of Vermont!  BCA Holiday Market!  Hope to see you four times over! 

P.S. Only two more days for the online sale...get your holiday gifts early!

studio sale!

It's time to clean off the shelves!  

I'm working on some new styles for the holidays--and letting you reap the rewards!
25% off all Journals

Now through November 25th!

it's been awhile

and I've been chugging along behind the scenes, and trying not to feel guilty about ignoring my blog.  There'll be some real posting soon, but in the meantime, I'm loving:

Ampersand Duck's post about the Common Press reconstructed in Australia.

The interview with Penguin designer Coralie Bickford-Smith on Design Sponge.

The 100 amazing prints in the Vandercook centenary bundle --which just arrived in my mailbox.  That's my contribution above!

anniversaries, and taking the time

Do you ever have those days when you really, really need to get something done?  And instead of going the easy way, you end up spending three hours fitting together tiny pieces of metal together?
That was my yesterday.  And I am totally and completely in love with the results--the way all of the border pieces work together, the pale mint green ink, the size and weight of the lines--but it pushed back the Fort Can advertising posters another day.
You see, it's been just over a year since I called up a couple of artist friends, and talked them in to sharing studio space with me and my printing presses.  So we're having a party!
It's also the first time that I'll be showing in the gallery--it's a really big deal, and I have a series of prints in mind for the show. They're still in my head, so I'd better get back to work!

makin' art

Every time I walk into the printshop, I'm confronted by art. It's inspiring to see the two artists I share studio space with making and doing and experimenting and starting over when it goes bad.

It's a constant challenge: am I an artist? a crafter? a designer? a business owner?

All of the above?

Last week I got the chance to really create something out of nothing, and not think about pricing, or product shots, or checking the ink color with a client--be an artist, as it were. It's the one-hundredth anniversary of the Vandercook printing press, and I lucked into a spot on the poster exchange. I put it off until almost the last minute...this artist is a real procrastinator.

My idea was to tell my Vandercook story--make it mine. Here's the first color setup, on the press.

Pulling proofs: I have a soft soft for palimpsests.

And now a question for you: how do you balance the not-for-profit creative process with the need to make rent every month? Any suggestions?

workshop mania!

It's your lucky day!
Introduction to Letterpress--at May Day Studio, Montpelier, VT

The cool touch of decades-old metal type. A firm two-handed impression roll for a copy proof. A deft transfer from composing stick to imposing stone. A gentle tap of the planer. Two quick twists of the locking key and the chase with form is secure. The press is inked, the guides aligned, the chase slips into position, paper is correctly placed and your very first impression is ready to print.

Participants set type, lockup and print on a Chandler and Price Pilot and a Vandercook SP-15--we'll be printing limited edition notesets, as well as posters! Each participant will leave with 15 cards and envelopes, and 5 8-1/2 x 11" posters as lifetime keepsake of their first letterpress experience.

Choose Saturday, August 8 or Sunday, August 9: 10am-4:30 pm. Cost is $100, includes materials and a sandwich lunch. Advanced registration is requested; payments can be made by cash, check, or credit card (in person and by phone).

works-in-progress

more re-bound journals:

photoshoot on a rainy afternoon:

brian + moose, sewing away:

front page

It's so rare that I'm actually on the internet when anything exciting happens!

Thanks to Stacia and Carmen for being lookouts!

summertime slow-down

After the last few months of wedding-invitation-madness, website re-design, and craft-fair-palooza, I've finally allowed myself a day off. (Pictures coming soon-ish, of course.)

So this morning I've been editing photos and rocking out (to this and this). So please forgive a bit of self-promotion:

I'm making a concerted effort to update the etsy shop with all the goodies I've made--and debuting some new stuff, too. Clockwise from top left: new letterpress printed papers, new broadsides, more travel journals, and a new line of BINGO books.