Tag: small business

Product photography

~ Bess Paper Goods & Gifts ~ 1 Comment

I have a confession: almost every photo you’ve seen in my etsy shop or on my blog, Facebook page or instagram feed over the last two years has been taken with an iPhone. All my product photography, all those behind-the-scenes studio shots. I have professional editing software and know a few things about styling photos (former Art Director here, remember!), so things have gone well so far.

I do, however, feel something is lacking in my photos of prints and paintings. It’s a hard thing to capture the way a piece of art lights up a room to make the customer feel like it would be perfect in their own space. Since this is something I’m working on making more of (stay tuned for some exciting news in the next month or so!), I enlisted my dear friend and very talented stylist and photographer, Laura Houlihan of Laurels & Stars photography, for some help.

She has an incredible knack for creating gorgeous little vignettes throughout her home, so I knew she would knock this out of the park, but she even went above and beyond my high expectations!

Check out the photos below and pick up any of these prints here!

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Business Cards: The Sequel

~ Bess Paper Goods & Gifts ~ Leave a comment

It’s taken a few years, but I can finally admit that when I started this business I had no idea what I was doing. My previous letterpress experience had come from a fine art environment, where imperfections are talked away as a beautiful expression of the intrinsic nature of the medium (not that that’s not true—I love a good happy accident!).

But when it comes to someone’s business cards or wedding invitations, those little variances that make each piece uniquely handmade can only be so noticeable before they become intrusive. I probably started taking on commercial jobs too early, and while my prices at the time reflected that—holy crap was I cheap!—I do sometimes wish I had spent more time on technical skills before diving in head first.

Fast forward seven years and my skills are miles ahead of where they once were—but so are my standards. I find myself fretting over a tiny imperfection I wouldn’t have even noticed a few years ago… all the time.

So a quick email with a few positive words from a client is just about the best thing that can happen in a day, unless of course, a re-order comes in! This week, I’m super excited to be reprinting Meighan Newhouse’s business cards. It was only a year ago and they turned out pretty great last time (so much so that she says “I get SO many compliments on them! And I’m so proud to hand them out!”) and I think they’ll be even better this time around! Wish me happy printing!

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Debossed prints for Brain Mill Press

~ 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.

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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!

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

Stay Away From Crack

~ Bess Paper Goods & Gifts ~ 2 Comments

We had a tragedy here at 622 press about two weeks ago. I’ve been so stressed out about it, I barely spoke a word about it to anyone.

Bess has been put through the ringer in Bermuda, but nothing could be worse than a crack through one of two main joints (which create the pressure that makes the beautiful impression into paper). I had her all cranked up and off-kilter, trying to get a decent impression on an uneven printing plate. I knew what the awful sound was as soon as it happened, but I prayed “Don’t be broken. Don’t be broken.” as I opened the press back up anyway.

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This had happened once before, several years ago, so once I finished a mini cry session, I started searching for a cast iron welder in Bermuda. Welding cast iron is requires more skill and equipment than your average metal, as the surrounding material needs to be heated thoroughly to bond with the new weld. Last time, my superhero dad just happened to know a guy who fixed it right away. This time, I had to disassemble my press and send it off in the back of a junky car with a stranger.

It turns out the welder (the only result when I searched for a cast iron welder in Bermuda) didn’t have a kiln large enough to fit the top bit of my press into, so he ended up completely taking it apart—but don’t worry, he sent me a picture that looked like a pile of scrap metal, as though that would ease my anxiety. Several days (more than three times as many as quoted) and several hundred dollars (more than twice as much as quoted) later, Bess is back home.

I’ve been quite timid with her so far, but I’ve been able to get two projects finished since she’s been back, so it seems like things will be ok. I’m trying to take the whole experience as a lesson in mindfulness—a reminder that unfortunately has been sorely needed. Not only would I never have broken her if I had really been paying attention, but I also let ink dry on several pieces of equipment the week prior because I got distracted during clean up.