Tag: studio

Keeping up with Bess the Press

~ Bess Paper Goods & Gifts ~ Leave a comment

Hello blog readers! I’ve been doing a bad job of keeping you up to date lately… a long post just seems intimidating these days! Please make sure you like us on facebook to stay in the loop: http://www.facebook.com/pages/Bess-the-Press

A couple cool things are happening over on that other website: I tried my hand at live micro-blogging this weekend. I had a lot to print and thought it would be fun to give my followers a more real-time experience of what printing is like. Along the same line of thinking, I photographed the process and posted the pictures as well. I hope that explains a little more about the process of printing—don’t hesitate to ask if you have any questions!

Among the things I made this weekend is a beautiful stationery set for a Madison woman named Masarah. She’s been a fan for more than a year now and it always nice to collaborate with someone who has an appreciation for what you do. Her cards were simple and elegant: with her name blind embossed using lead type. As always, don’t hesitate to get in touch if you’re interested in a custom piece of your own!

You’re it!

~ Bess Paper Goods & Gifts ~ Leave a comment

Get it? Tag! Loopy post-workday humor aside, I’m excited to share the latest re-purposed scrap piece to come out of the studio! I’ve been printing furiously lately, and that means lots of test sheets full of letterpress goodness. I’ve always loved traditional hang tags, so I thought they’d be perfect. Just one set available now (they take a while to cut!), more soon! Enjoy!

Mr. Mucca

~ Bess Paper Goods & Gifts ~ Leave a comment

Last week I had the pleasure of attending a Design Madison event featuring Matteo Bologna of Mucca Design. I actually had the opportunity to see Matteo speak several years ago when he was a visiting artist for NOWhere at UWSP, but didn’t go. I almost always seem to find a reason to skip speaker events, but when I do make myself attend, I leave inspired and refreshed. Note to self: Force self to get self’s butt off the computer chair and out into the world!

Mucca is a very professional, diverse, award-winning design studio, and yet Matteo is surprisingly approachable and authentic. The studio’s work is beautiful and inspiring, but Matteo’s thoughts on design are what really stuck with me. For instance—when’s the last time you heard a designer say “I don’t beleive in logos?” Instead he believes in creating an environment of sorts—take design a step further than slapping a logo here and there by employing secondary and tertiary design elements on all surfaces to design an experience.

I did get a little jealous when Matteo spoke about his relationships with his clients. Of course they’re never perfect, but it was pretty amazing to hear about the value his clients place on design, that they understand design is good for business, not just something they have to do because it’s just what you do. He also got to be one of ten featured designers to create an anniversary cover of Italian GQ—another thing to be jealous of: all-typographic covers!

Honey, I’m home!

~ Bess Paper Goods & Gifts ~ Leave a comment

DSCF0197The press is here! In my house! Everyone say it with me, “FINALLY!” My parents loaded up the back of the truck one (last, maybe?) time and hauled the press, one type cabinet and supplies down here a week ago. I spent the day setting up and was printing by Sunday night! I’m really pleased with my new workspace—the smaller of the two bedrooms in the old part of the house, you’re welcome, Mike—it’s big windows and fresh coat of paint make it such a bright place to work. I’m still figuring out the best arrangement for all the furniture in my tiny room, but here’s how I’ve got it worked out right now!

DSCF0199It took me much much more time than it should have to get those shelves level, but I fit all of the cuts I currently have in rotation! Paper storage in the clean white shelves, type cabinet is just to the left of the frame of the picture.

The studio

~ Bess Paper Goods & Gifts ~ Leave a comment

Ever since I fell in love with typography and letterpress in college, I knew one day I’d buy a press. One day meaning when I had a house to put it in and the time to do it (ok, so maybe just the former).

Then came craigslist. The boyfriend, he is addicted, and he found this press under an hour away from where we live. With everything I needed to start a studio. Plus type. For cheap. How is this possible? Well, of course because I had nowhere to put it. Then the most surprising part of this whole enterprise, my parents were easily sweet-talked into letting me take over half their basement. I had a studio!

just after she moved into the basement (left) and with her second inking (the first one was a bit of a disaster)
Bess, my press: just after she moved into the basement and during her second inking (first successful print — the first one was a bit of a disaster)

A very dirty studio. A studio covered in dust and bugs and 120 years of ink and solvent (mixed with dust and bugs of course). I bronze-brushed every square inch of the press (ok, only the important square inches, but it works, doesn’t it?) and have been slowly but surely going through the process of taking every compartment of type out, cleaning it in denatured alcohol, drying it and putting it into a clean type case.

dusty type (no bugs in this drawer at least), a toad who thought a freshly washed type drawer would make a nice home, delicious squeaky clean lead type.
Top: the drawers of type. Bottom, left to right: dusty type (no bugs in this drawer at least), a toad who thought a freshly washed type drawer would make a nice home, delicious squeaky clean lead type.

Then I had to figure out the whole image thing. The only image I had ever letterpressed before I made with a solar plate, which didn’t create a deep enough impression, wasn’t mounted at the right height and was generally a total and complete pain in the ass. Thanks to briarpress, I found boxcar, and later Owosso Graphics.

While boxcar does beautiful work and many many letterpress artists swear by their photopolymer system, I like Owosso for two reasons. 1) The initial investment is significantly less (as in less than 10% of what it would have taken to start with boxcar’s system) and 2) There’s something wonderful about working with wood and metal, materials that have been used in this manner since this method of printing was invented, that photopolymer plates simply can’t match. Since then, I’ve also found they have great customer service (as in they call you if they’re unclear on your order—a real person, not an automated anything) and a super quick turn-around. GO OWOSSO!