Author: Bess Paper Goods & Gifts

Light

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The days are getting longer. Every day this week, I’ve gotten up with the sun and every morning I’ve sent a little thank you out into the universe for letting me wake with such joy. It’s funny how each year, just at the point when you think you just can’t stand the dark and the cold any longer, winter releases its grip and almost overnight it’s spring. I’m so thankful we had a short and mild winter, I’m not sure I could have held out much longer this year.

I’ve been working on a series of prints to celebrate. It’s a small reminder to myself to take a moment to be grateful, to enjoy what nature has to offer, to see the beauty in everything around me. Wake up five minutes early tomorrow morning, before you’re rushing to get ready, while your world is still quiet. Really look at your surroundings, take them in and be grateful for them. The world is a beautiful place.

Ring Me Sometime

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Whether a big chunky cocktail style or something more subtle, lately I’m obsessed with rings! When it comes to jewelry, I’m always more interested in quality design than high end materials. Not that I’m going to turn down gems, but I’d rather have a well-designed crystal ring than a boring diamond one. Here are a few unique pieces I’m loving at the moment!

Quartz double ring by Adina Mills Design.

There’s not much I don’t love from Bario-Neal designs, but these simple stackable beauties are great! [photo courtesy of Style Me Pretty]

The Mobius Ring from Spies Jewelry.

Granule rings from Hannah Bedford.

Loved ring from St. Kilda.

I found this beauty via pinterest and I can’t seem to find its original source. So gorgeous!

NOW here

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No, that’s not ‘no where’ it’s ‘now here’ (see what they did there?). And “here” is obviously the UW Stevens Point’s art department. I’m heading up today for the annual conference featuring presentations by visiting artists and designers, workshops, portfolio reviews and alumni presentations (that’s where I come in). If you’re in Wisconsin, head up for the public presentations tonight and tomorrow night, stop by for dinner, or you could probably find us at Guu’s later this evening. (Does Guu’s still exist? I’m so old.) Have a great weekend!

New Embroidery

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Sorry guys, I’m officially out of clever puns for posts about embroidery at the moment. But I have been stitching furiously!

I think my stitcher’s block earlier this month stemmed from not having an image of the final product in my head before I began. So lately I’ve been creating free form designs—no drawing on the fabric before hand, no tracing a sketch. I’ve been experimenting with new stitches and techniques, all the while just adding whatever I feel like in the moment. I love the way they’ve turned out, expect more of these in the future! Of course, these are all available here.

New Wood Type

~ Bess Paper Goods & Gifts ~ 8 Comments

Since my plate maker increased prices at the beginning of the year, I’ve been trying to get creative with the plates I have and use more moveable type (something I’ve been wanting to do anyway!). I have lots of beautiful quotes on my to-do list, but I don’t have enough characters in my larger typefaces to print an entire quote. Thus, I’ve been on the hunt for complete sets of wood type for a few weeks.

I can’t tell you how frustrating the search is—90% of what I find is ridiculously expensive “curated” collections of a few characters pulled from full sets to spell “LOVE” or “FAMILY” so someone can set them on a shelf. Why anyone would ruin a priceless set of vintage wood type to make a knock-off of something found at Hobby Lobby is beyond me.

Imagine my relief when I found Virgin Wood Type, a company making brand new wood type for letterpress printing in western New York. The undertaking must be a labor (lots and lots of labor) of love for proprietor Bill and I can’t even explain how ecstatic I was to find his work! Watch how it’s done here. I just ordered a small set to try it out and I’ve already picked the first full font I’m planning to buy if all goes well. Stay tuned and if you can, support Virgin Wood Type!