euro wood type

My good friend, Christopher Rouleau, just came back from a remarkable trip to Paris and among the things he brought back, were a set of vintage type. When he visited me a couple of weeks ago to share stories of his trip, he showed me the letters and I told him that he needed to print those stat! And without hesitation he inked up those beauties right then and there. Out of the four presses that I own, the letters would've only printed well on the Morgan Line-O-Scribe for two reasons: 1). it's the only press big enough and 2). it has an adjustable roller height. Apparently because the letters came from Europe, they weren't exactly type-high. They were in fact considerably higher. I knew the Morgan would come in handy :)

Check out more beautiful photo accounts of Christopher's trip to Paris here!

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totem cards

to·tem (noun)

Anything serving as a distinctive, often venerated, emblem or symbol.

 

There is something about this starburst shape that I love and can't seem to stop printing with. I once saw it referred to as a Slocum seal but haven't since found any more information about it. It's become my favorite go to piece when I'm printing on the Showcard press. Maybe it has something to do with how large the block is and how satisfying it is to roll an inked brayer over it. And no matter what colour it lays down, it always looks so, so good. Is it just me or do you also have something similar that you like to see in print? Is there something you have an affinity for and keep printing, drawing or painting?

 

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a new press! the Morgan Line-O-Scribe

Thanks to a former workshop participant, I got a heads up about a press that was for sale on Kijiji last week. It took me a whole five minutes to decide if whether or not I wanted it. I was a little surprised to find out that the press was still available after I saw how many hits the ad got. Presses are rare and usually snapped up before you even knew it was for sale.

I was happy to learn that this press, a Morgan Line-O-Scribe, was well-loved and used by its previous owner. But she was making room for a much larger press and I assured her that the Morgan was going to be in very good hands.

This latest acquirement brings my press collection up to four. The Adana Eight-Five, the Chandler & Price 6.5 x 10", the mini Showcard and now, the Line-O-Scribe. The main reason I wanted this particular press was because of it's size. The print bed is 14 x 22", which is double the size of my Showcard. What makes this proof press special to my collection is that it comes with an ink plate and rollers! This means that I don't have to use a brayer. I've only seen a couple of these types of presses online and they were without the ink train. Another great feature of this press is that you can adjust the pressure. This should come in handy when I'm using different types of paper and cardstock.

I was able to try it out the press a couple of days ago. I locked up some of my large wood type upside down and went to town. Oh, so much room to play! I'm looking forward to experimenting with woodcuts and large linoleum blocks.

And, seriously - I can't get any more presses. That is, until I move into a bigger space :)

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press facts

I love it when friends are on the look out for good things on the net for me. Thanks for the link, Chris!
Click on the image to be taken to the source.

a new press for snap + tumble!

Almost 4 years into letterpress printing and I've already owned 5 presses. I think it's only natural to either outgrow a press or want to collect them. I've fallen into both categories.

My first press was a find on Craigslist. I knew little about the different kinds of presses and what I was supposed to look for in one. I only knew that they were rare. So I snapped it up not realizing how antiquated it was. It didn't come with a chase nor any rollers. It wasn't long before I ended up selling it to someone who collects antiques and rents them out as movie props.

My second press was the Adana Eight-Five, which I still have. It's one of the two presses that I currently use in the workshops. Participants like the option of using two presses to see and feel what the differences are. This is the press that I taught myself the finer points of printing on. Also, at that time it was a perfect fit for my apartment and budget.

Next came the larger Craftsmen Machinery Co. Superior Press (6.5x10). I got this press because I started to get requests to print wedding invitations that exceeded the printable area size of the Adana. While searching for a larger press, I had my sights set on a C&P Pilot press. But I had trouble finding one and came to a CMC instead. Through my research I found that the CMC was a clone of the Pilot and users highly recommended it. So I went for it. I love this press. It gave me nothing but quality impressions, print after print.

The fourth press is my little darling Showcard Mini. This one, I have to admit, was just for fun. But the collector in me justifies that it's a different type of press from what I already have. It's like a proof press and needs to be hand-inked. This one is a keeper.

Recently, I learned that a C&P was available and grabbed it. This meant that I had to sell the CMC since I didn't have room for two of these kinds of presses. I put the word out to my contacts on Facebook and the CMC is now in the good hands of one of my past workshop participants. I'm so excited for her to start using it and seeing what she gets out of it.

Finally, I've gotten the C&P into the studio yesterday. It was a little bit of torture having to wait over a month for it to be refurbished. A top of the line press and from what I've already seen, it was well worth the wait.

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chandler & price pilot press

I've been wanting to share my good news for a month now, but wanted to wait until it actually arrived. New to the studio is a Chandler & Price pilot press. More to come on this. In the meantime, enjoy the 1970's C&P manual shared by Daniel Morris from The Arm (click on image).

class trip

Last Saturday I visited Don Black Linecasting as part of a trip that Akemi Nishidera from Kozo Studio kindly organized for her class. I've usually been there on my own but when I saw the invite, I quickly cleared my Saturday morning and decided to tag along. It's a little bit of a different experience to go with people who are just as passionate about letterpress. Harmonious "ooh's" and "ahh's" periodically came from myself and the other visitors as we passed by and inspected presses and type. Craig, Don's son, was on hand and answered all of our questions. He even demoed the hot foil machine which was always a mystery to me. On this particular visit, Craig had on display a variety of presses from Heidelberg's, Pearls, mini Kelseys, Showcards, and the biggest table top platen press I've ever seen. That's the blue one above with a chase measuring at 9 x 12, the Golding Official from 1913!

I had my wallet securely in tact and somehow didn't make any purchases. I was just happy to be around presses and folks who were deeply interested in Don Black's collection of all things letterpress. More photos here.

the kluge

A beautiful video about printer Nick Sambrato and his Florida shop called Mama's Sauce. And if that wasn't enough check out his interview (accompanied by gorgeous photos) on Grain & Gram.

playing with blocks

Just some experiments with my Showcard today.
Took one of those garlic mesh wrappers and laid it over an inked blocked to see what would happen. Turns out, it made a pretty mean blind impression.
Now to find some more textures to play with.

ps. I think this starburst block is just about my favorite thing.

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show and tell

A couple of weeks ago, I visited Don Black to say hello and to pick up a few items. None of which, included a press. Just until I was about to leave, Craig (Don's son) said that he wanted to show me something. The smile on his face meant he knew just exactly how I was going to react when he presented a Showcard press. It didn't take me very long to decide what a great find this was. There it sat, so unassuming, so small and flat, so perfect...so mine.

The last time I used a Showcard was at Kozo Studio. It definitely made an impression on me then because I've always wanted one ever since. I have fond memories of locking cuts into the bed and rolling an inked brayer over them. The ease and freedom to switch up cuts and type was a nice change from using the much larger models like the Vandercook. This of course also means less clean up time with no ink disk, rollers or cylinders to spend elbow grease on.

I don't plan to use this press for large runs. But I am eager to introduce my wood type to it and have them start playing with each other. My experiments so far resulted in kiss impressions, which is totally fine with me, as long as the colour transfers well. And though there doesn't seem to be a whole lot of control over the kind of print you get, it's even more of a pleasant surprise to end up with what you've got. Kind of like a Polaroid photo. The inconsistency is probably because of the hand-inking. Or, hopefully, with more practice I'll know just how much ink and pressure to apply to get even impressions from print 1 to 10. Once I've covered that, then registration will be the next thing to grasp. Till then, it's all play.

With a footprint of only about 2.5 ft x 1 ft, and a bed size of 8" x 12", the press is almost unnoticeable. I think of it as my darling press. So now, I'm up to three presses. I'm going to have to get a bigger place soon. Or head straight for the exit after I've done my shopping at Don's.

handy

I don't plan on having any technical issues with my press, but just in case, I've now got the manual on hand. Thanks to Boundstaff Press for providing the references!

The diagrams alone just pull on my heart strings.

letterpress curiosity workshop: hooked

The nice folks who came to the workshop over the weekend might've just turned into letterpress junkies by the time they left. Conveniently, I'm only a 5 minute drive from Don Black's so his shop would make a great next stop! There have been a handful of past LCW participants who've done just that and bought a press after taking the workshop. I'm glad to see the letterpress curiosity spreading as quickly as it has and that participants are now starting their own adventures.

letter love fridays

How's everyone's Friday so far? I'm just waiting on a couple of participants for the Letterpress Curiosity Workshop today and after that I'm off to the post office for some deliveries. Saturday is another workshop and crossing fingers for a good morning of sunshine for prime ink-mixing light! Sunday is a meeting with a lovely bride to go over details for her special letterpress workshop. She and her groom will be printing their own wedding stationery! If you or someone you know is looking to do the same, contact me for details.


If you follow me on Twitter, you've already heard that I got a new press. Above are some shots of my play time with the new addition to the press family. Update on that to follow!

Hope your weekend is filled with crafty goodness!

letterpress curiosity workshop: press + paper update

Over the holidays I re-calibrated the Adana so it could get some action in the Letterpress Curiosity Workshops. This means, each participant in a workshops will be able to use either press (which also means less idling and more printing time!).

There comes a certain satisfaction from tuning up the presses. With a little bit of elbow grease, both presses now operate ever so smoothly. A change of tympan and new grids on platens - the CMC and Adana are ready to go for the winter workshops.

Also new to the workshops are the availability of paper which can be purchased. A past participant suggested that I offer cardstock to participants to ensure they'll be using the right kind of paper to get optimal results. When participants register for a workshop, I send them details which outline a list of letterpress appropriate papers to bring with them. On the list is Somerset, Arches, BFK, Fabriano, Lettra, Maidstone and Canson. These are but a few that I researched and found to give excellent results for letterpress printing. I've now got packets of Canson in sizes 4.25x5.5 or 4x6 pre-cut for purchase (one packet of 20 sheets per participant while quantities last). These packs are to augment what participants already plan to bring, as 20 sheets will not be nearly enough to print with. So, I do suggest getting out there and immersing yourself in the cardstock aisle. But for some convenience, I've got the packets to offer.

I hadn't initially set out to offer paper because sourcing it on your own is part of the whole experience of letterpress printing. Every part of the process is integral to getting that fine print. Talking with the Wolfitt's representative, feeling the weights and textures of different types of paper, and choosing your price point are all good ways to get ready for the workshop. I'm of the mind that no technique, tool, material or part of the process is inconsequential.