love her but leave her wild

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 printed with the Line-O-Scribe Morgan press

wood type

12 x 18"

available here

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i wanna do bad things with you art print

 

True Blood is over and I'm a little sad about it. But I think things wrapped up pretty neatly on the series finale. I couldn't help but print this baddie up for the occasion. Now available in the shop!

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letterpress signage for Cultural Hotspots project

For it's inaugural year, an initiative called Cultural Hotspots will be featuring the south area of Scarborough by celebrating culture, art and community. I was invited by craft maven Kalpna Patel to participate in her window installation project "Please Come Again" which transforms an unconventional space and brings it to life through the lost art of visual merchandising and striking displays.

 

Say Yes and Ask Questions Later

If you aren't familiar with Kalpna's work, get to know it - it's inspiring. I was both honoured and scared straight when she asked if I would create an installation. I loved the idea of this gallery of storefronts coming to an area that hasn't ever been mined for art installations before. I'm always griping about living so far out east from the downtown core where all the cool stuff happens. So the opportunity to do something that I've never done (and have always wanted to), and the chance to work with an ace in her field, and bringing some craft to an area nearby are all the reasons why I jumped in with both feet. 

 

The Big Idea

The storefront that I was assigned to isn't really a store. It's the Crossroads Business Improvement Area office. What these folks essentially do is market, promote and revitalize businesses in the area, which in this case is between Victoria Park Avenue and Warden Avenue. Kalpna came up with the concept of creatively displaying names of businesses along that strip. It was a simple and effective idea that gave both purpose and meaning to its storefront.

 

The Process

As a letterpress artist, I was excited to execute the vision. For this project, I knew I had to get type that was larger than what I owned. It's not often that I get to work on things larger than 5x7", so this was a treat. I selected various fonts with serifs and a  gothic trade and sizes between an inch and a half to 3 inches in height for visual interest. The primary press used was the Morgan Line-O-Scribe flatbed which has a bed size of 14x22". For the smaller signs, I used the Mini Showcard press. This was all very fitting because these antique machines were originally used by small shop owners to print temporary point-of-sale signs. The business names that were printed were, for the most part, selected at random. Other names, Kalpna and I just really liked the sound of regardless of the business type and its current state of operation.

 

The Community Notice Board

The BIA asked if I could help address their promotional flyers situation. Up until the installation, they would tape announcements of events to their windows for passer-bys to read. But it looked plain, scattered and a little untidy. I decided to create a notice board disguised as another piece of storefront signage. It's simply a corkboard covered in felt and "Crossroads of the Danforth" hand-painted in a fashion reminiscent of old-school signage. The board is now prominently showcased with the dual purpose of either displaying the business name or a collection of flyers neatly arranged.

 

Big Ups

This project was a hell of a lot of fun to work on. I only have big hugs and thanks to give to Kalpna for trusting me to see it through. She was a huge help in the actual installation. I brought the supplies but she brought the know-how.

My hope is that people who come upon the window stop, look, read, wonder and smile. The display will be up for a month, so if you are in the area (or even if you're not), have a look-see and please do check out the other window installations created by fellow artists. Each of them are truly unique and a sight to behold!

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type broadsides

Some more new prints that will be available at the Gladstone Flea this Saturday! Small type specimen broadsides of Gothic Trade and Bodoni in 60pt. These were printed with the Morgan Line-O-Scribe with lead and wood type. Each are editioned and limited in quantity. 

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new to the shop: gothic in gold

We're knee deep into September and it's always a weird time for stationers. It's not close to the holidays but we're already thinking about it and brewing up festive designs. So, to give myself a break and some breathing room before Christmas arrives, I've created a new small line of cards for the interim! 

These are the Gold in Gothic correspondence cards featuring my beloved gothic wood type and the newly acquired, News Gothic Condensed type. There were inked in gold and printed on the mini Showcard press. You'll also notice the new suave black and pink blush cardstock! 

These darlings are only available for wholesale orders. If you'd like to place an order (15 cards minimum per style) please contact me at 'snapandtumbleletterpress@gmail.com'. 

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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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Friends Rony Mikhael and Todd Neilson (who both also happen to be very talented graphic designers) dropped in over the weekend for the Tabletop Letterpress workshop. They had some fun with wood and metal type and set to task on the presses. I have to say that they ended up with some beautiful prints.

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lovers rock

It's no big secret that I am a big Sade fan. Have been since I was 16 years old. No Ordinary Love is just one of those timeless songs. In 2001,  the band came out of an eight year hiatus and I attended her Toronto performance. Fast forward another ten years, and she released Soldier of Love. And that was my second Sade concert in 2011.

My latest print is the title of her fifth album, Lovers Rock. I handset my favorite gothic wood type in the mini Showcard and mixed a light beige I call 'sand'. The second colour is a Process Blue mixed with Transparent White and I got something that I call 'sea' and it looked like glass on the palette. Pretty, right? That colour was laid on top of the beige for the second pass. I wanted to stop there but also wanted to experiment with a third colour, gold, for the top portion of 'lovers'. I took one of my misaligned prints and made the third pass on the press. You can see the results in the last photo. I love the two prints equally.

The limited edition Lovers Rock print is now for sale here. The three colour print will also be for sale (only two available) at a discount because of it's misalignment, just email me if you're interested in this one.

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I keep forgetting what a nice colour brown is. I need to incorporate it into my work more often. I'm also enjoying this colour palatte - raspberry, cream and brown. I got to play with it over the weekend. Hope to show you the results soon!

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sending love

Happy Valentine's Day, friends.

Hope it's filled with all things sweet.

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