A Summer’s Day

August 2, 2015July 24, 2015 ~ Bess Paper Goods & Gifts ~ Leave a comment

I sent August’s Card Club subscription early to make sure it left Bermuda before Cup Match week since the whole island is in vacation mode well before the actual holiday.

There was no real theme this month aside from pulling cards in my favorite late summer colors of turquoise, poppy red, oranges and gold. This lucky subscriber also received the very last “Life is a series of moments” card in stock, and the very first sparkle “congratulations” card in this color scheme. Lucky her!

As always, to get in on the action, simply shoot me an email or purchase a subscription here. The next installment will be packed up early as well, so sign up today!

Limited edition watercolor & letterpress prints

February 23, 2015February 23, 2015 ~ Bess Paper Goods & Gifts ~ 4 Comments

Lately I’ve been feeling artsy with a capital A. I think it’s a reaction to the heavy production cycle I just finished, but I’ve had the urge to get my hands dirty for a few weeks now.

I’ve also been experimenting with creating limited edition prints with some of the new printing plates I created for the new collection (catch it here if you haven’t seen it yet!). I had sketched out the overall design of each print, I just couldn’t seem to find the right color combination to make them jive. I actually printed a few in silver and a few in gold, but didn’t love them… and then I had the idea to keep the ink neutral (black and white) and use bright watercolor washes for the backgrounds!

The white ink ended up being a little more transparent than I expected, but I still really love the results. And I love how each one is absolutely unique—the cross between painting and print really speaks to me right now.

I printed 14 of each design and they’re available as a set of three in the shop—enjoy!

Debossed prints for Brain Mill Press

February 18, 2015February 15, 2015 ~ Bess Paper Goods & Gifts ~ 1 Comment

Last week, I received an email about a rush letterpress job for a Wisconsin book printer. They were releasing a new publication and wanted something special for customers who pre-ordered the book.

I only had a few days to create the print, but luckily, they were flexible on the design, so I was able to use some of the vintage lead type I have in the shop, and they were very interested in the idea of a blind deboss, which means no waiting time for ink to dry. (Plus, inkless prints are a bit cheaper than regular ones, since I’m using fewer supplies and save quite a bit of time without inking and cleaning the press.) I’ve written about creating an impression before, and this design was absolutely perfect for creating a deep, sharp deboss.

I shuffled my schedule around a little and was able to complete these in time for their newsletter last weekend! Scroll down for more about the book and to see my bio!

Interested in a custom print for your corporate or personal life? Shoot me an email, let’s see what we can come up with!

For the hard days

January 23, 2012 ~ Bess Paper Goods & Gifts ~ Leave a comment

Some days are harder than others. On the hard days, I usually skip blogging because I’d prefer to keep the energy I’m putting into the world positive. But today I decided to harness that energy into putting together a little collection of encouragement for your own dark days.

Since I’m not feeling too chatty, just click on each image to see more from each vendor—here’s to a better day tomorrow!