Letterpress
Invitations
Professionals
Seating Charts
That’s right. We named our press. If boys can name their cars, and their motorcycles and their trucks, and whatever else it is that gets named, then I can name my letterpress. Brad came up with the name – we lovingly think of her as a chance at freedom – not that our lives are anywhere’s uncomfortable – but this little printing business of ours is, Lord willing, going to explode, and we will be able to enjoy a thriving home based business for both of us… That’s the long term goal at least.
I spent hours setting type last night. Because it is my first time navigating through a type case, finding where each letter is was a little more time consuming than it will be in the future. I only purchased 6 cases of type, and I think this one has lots of potential in the wedding industry. It’s called Park Avenue, and I have it in 14 and 24 pts. Some of the type is pretty worn, which is the real reason a few of the letters did not impress well. I am going to have to give them all a good soak and scrub – I am hoping that most of the build up is old ink, and not the type wearing down beyond use.
I do not have rollers yet, but I’m impatient. So, instead of waiting for my rollers, we chose to brayer up the text by hand, and try and get an even coat of ink that way. Hence some the text is more inked up than others. This won’t be the case once the rollers arrive.
One of the things I know I am going to struggle with is not overdoing the amount of ink. With stamping, unless it was a brand new ink pad that had been over-saturated, I really could never have too much ink. This is so different, and the amount needed seems so small….
We printed on our “house paper”. I spend a lot of time choosing which paper we would keep on hand for the majority of our projects, and have invested in an inventory of Crane Lettra paper – designed for letterpress. It is 100% cotton, and has an incredible feel to it. I bought co-ordinating envelopes in standard sizes, and have stock in both their pure white and ivory colours.
I’m excited. Really, really excited. We should be working on “real” projects in the next few days, as our plates come in, as well as our rollers.
Today was the day, and after seven hours of work (let me clarify, not MY work) the press is in place in my garage.
Planning to move your press on Victoria day weekend, when you need to get across the border is not the best idea. It was unfortunately the only day that worked for everybody. We got in line on the bridge around eight this morning, and the line was already 2/3 up the bridge. Glad we didn’t leave it any later in the day. When we arrived at the museum Jeff and Cyril were in the process of loading the forklift in.
After getting the forklift in, it was time to get the press on it. The press was in a storage room, and a false wall had been built to separate it from the gallery. Part of the wall had been removed to allow for the press to come out. But whoever had designed the wall had expected the press to come out straight, and we were taking it out kind of sideways. The flywheel had to come off, and it was a tight squeeze.
After the press was through the doorway, the only thing left to do to get the press to the doorway was to navigate it through the main entrance. Brad had checked the I-beams a few weeks before, so the garish cracking sound we heard rumble through the museum when we rolled out of the gallery was unexpected. I fought off a panic attack as my engineer husband and his millwright calmly placed plywood on the floor to disperse the weight. Problem solved, with only a minor divot in the floor where we crushed the wood underneath the carpet, and the press was to the door.
I was so thankful to have guys who do this sort of thing for a living helping with this move. I was totally unconvinced that their slings were actually going to hold the weight of my 2100 pound press. I was nervous. Jeff was kind enough to show me the weight restrictions on the sling – sweet 4500 pounds each. I was able to breathe, and let the guys do their thing.
Seeing my letterpress hanging above Brad’s head was a little crazy… I was so glad to see it finally resting on the truck.
The trip back across the bridge was uneventful. The commercial lane wasn’t too busy, and with only a minor delay regarding the paperwork, the press was on it’s way home. Reversing the process after pizza was all that was left to do, and now my press is sitting in my garage, ready to be cleaned and used! So exciting. An incredibly long and tense day, but without any true hiccups. I can not wait to get going on my Chandler and Price 12×18 platen press!!
Sabrina was at the London bridal show that I attended, and we had a great conversation on the phone a few weeks later. Her fiance lives in London, but she lives in Brantford. I am flattered that clients are actually willing to drive and do some long distance phone calls to work with me, when they have more local options.
Still trying to nail down a color scheme, but knowing that the dresses are taupe, Sabina asked me to work with some neutral invitations. I wanted to give her options that way, and can still change things up a little as we finalize the invitations.
