Pasta prints // Dawn Tan

These divine pasta-lovin prints were designed by super talented foodie illustrator Dawn Tan and printed at the Hungry Workshop studios. The process through her photos is gorgeous to watch and I share the enthusiasm when she speaks of the magic of letterpress. My kitchen wall demands that beauty of a blue one!







See/read more over on Dawn's blog. Then go and get yourself a print here

Print of the day : Studio on fire

Although it's actually halfway through autumn now here, the weather has been amazing and feels much more like spring... thus celebrating summertime style is still relevant down under. Especially when there are such adorable letterpress prints to make it so!

Another fabulous piece by the clever folks at Studio on Fire. Get it here.

Zed and Bee // The Collection

Last weekend, design super-sisters, Zed & Bee showcased their new collection of invitations at the Tate Gallery, Sydney. I posted about their bespoke designs back here so was very excited to hear of new things in the air. I couldn't make it to the event sadly (sniff sniff) but on seeing the pictures just sent over, I am smitten all the same.



The collection is designed for the more budget savvy folks who still seek the elegance and detail of a bespoke piece. Through clever little features like the adjusting of only one letterpress plate, Zed and Bee have created a whole array of gorgeous solutions. These below were my very favourites - shimmery and elegant to the core.... and isn't the photography styling divine too?! pat on the back ladies. Beautiful work!



The full collection will be available for perousing on their website from next week.

Stationery Fix // Moglea

As with this time of every year I watch the blogs showing off the latest treasures of the National Stationery Awards with all consuming eyes (and a little bit of envy at the lucky folk who get to go... one day!) This year I was especially taken by the lettering and letterpress work of a new letterpress studio called Moglea. Simple and cleanly designed cards of lovely with envelopes to boot.

Vinyl Letterpress Printing // The Hungry Workshop

Today I discovered a wonderful printing project by the very talented duo at The Hungry Workshop - a print made from a laser cut record for an exhibition about record sleeves! How perfect!!



I love it when people get all experimental with age old techniques and so this struck a chord (aswell as the fact that my lovely husband has one hell of a record collection and doesn't know quite what to do with them all!) This video shows how it's done. The printing plate below is almost as gorgeous as the prints - I hope they've framed it somewhere!



(I have also been admiring for some time these these sketchbooks and target coasters made for Raleigh Paper. Those colours. Awesome!)

Dear blank

I had many a chuckle over at the Dear Blank site when I discovered it awhile back... and today I was even happier to see that Sapling Press have converted some of those chuckles into real living letterpress letters.



(found via Design Crush & Design Work Life)

Print of the Day > Physical Fiction

What makes this fox ever more fabulous is that it is printed using letterpress... but with lego pieces!
Sadly this one is out of print but see others for sale here (& read more about the process here)

The Coasters // Parliament of Owls

Drooling over all the horribly good design work over on For Print Only this morning and came across this coaster set by the clever ladies at Parliment of Owls.



This fine little set of 4 was designed as a promo piece for Cranky Pressman letterpress printers to show off their new die cut shapes. The characters, Edna, Cranky, Mr. Snogglebaum, and Adelaide & Mr. Pistachio are the senior citizens of beach community living — The Coasters! I love the little profiles on the back with corresponding cocktails. Cuteness!



(even cleverer if you're a print nerd like me is that it only prints with two inks... & a new green is born in the overlapping! Ahh, printing is a magical thing)

Turns out there are a number of other mighty fine coasters around the place too... a couple more to make you thirsty...



+ 'Lets Screw' set by Black Dog Press



+ Studio on Fire coasters printed at an AIGA event

(I've now added 'print coasters' to my list of Gocco pursuits for this year)

Christmas love // The Wooden Truth

We were lucky to get lots of love from afar in envelopes this christmas. A particularly special one was this 12 days of Christmas card from my dear friend Ellie. It was printed and designed by The Wooden Truth in Lewes, UK (the beautiful town of my last workplace).

(images below via The Wooden Truth)



They seem to be a fairly new company from what I can gather but am looking forward to seeing what other paper treats they come up with in the future (I don't think i'll ever tire of woodblock letterpress. yum indeed)

Wedding Stationery Wonders // Mitchell & Dent

The last couple of days I have been buried in work and have only just climbed out... so the third installment comes only today (sorry for this)... but it is well worth the wait because the wonderful work of Perth based, Mitchell & Dent is creative and fun and fresh and beautiful (phew!)... with such a tailor made feel making no two the same style.

The lovely Angela answered some of my questions... 

What do we like most about designing wedding stationery?

As graphic designers we recognised there was a gap in the market for really interesting, creative wedding stationery. We have noticed a shift in the way that couples are treating their nuptials. People are tending to abandon traditional formalities and are embracing more fun, informal weddings that are reflective of the couples personalities.



Creating wedding stationery where we can have fun and participate in some of the merry making is such a joy. There's nothing nicer than a couple saying that their wedding suite reflects them both to a 'T'.



What are the most challenging aspects?
The most challenging aspect would be scheduling the letterpress invitations as it's a very manual, hands on process. There are many different elements that can affect how a letterpress job will print such as humidity, ink consistency, registration etc. We're quite particular on the standard of work that leaves the studio so we need to make sure we keep on top of every little detail. The final results are always well worth the effort.



What is your design and printing process? 
We currently have 12 stationery suites that are available in both letterpress and printed options. We also offer custom designed invitations if someone has a particular theme in mind. Once we have all of the wedding details we will customise the chosen wedding suite and send through a PDF proof to check that it's all good to go. Once a design is approved we schedule the printers for the standard suites and if it's a letterpress suite we send the electronic files off to get the blocks made. We trim and score the paper stock and mix any ink colours if a custom colour is required. We make sure to schedule printing time when the studio is quiet as it requires a steady hand and lot of concentration, which is why we leave this in the capable hands of our printer Duncan.

In terms of timing we like to allow about 4-5 weeks for letterpress stationery and 2-3 weeks for printed stationery.

Thankyou ever so Angela...  

Check out their adorable shop of prints and delicious things also

Wedding Stationery Wonders // Hammerpress

For the first of this weeks wedding stationers, I'm really excited to be showcasing some of Hammerpress' damn fine looking letterpress invitations all the way from Missouri, US.

One of my favorite stationers of all time, Hammerpress, has just revamped the wedding section to their website and the work is so original and so stunning! A very passionate Matt, was lovely enough to answer a few of my questions:

What do you enjoy most about designing wedding stationery?
Aside from getting to create new and beautiful things on a regular basis, our favorite thing about designing for couples is when we get to hear how well the invitations were received by their guests. The best is when nobody mails the rsvp card back, they just call to let the couple know they'll be attending and that they're keeping the card because they love it so much. That's the ultimate complement for us.



What are the most challenging aspects?
I think the most challenging part of what we do is working with limited budgets and tight schedules. We'd love to engage in the full depth of the design process with every couple and give them an absolutely unique work of art for their stationery as a result. But we wouldn't be able to do that for long and still feed our families (not to mention maintain some semblance of sanity).
Actually, its that very challenge that led us to create our Archive Collection. we feel really good now about being able to offer couples beautiful designs that have already been developed and are ready to be customized with their ink, paper and envelope preferences. its a perfect solution for people wanting creative letterpress wedding invitations but who are on a tighter budget and/or timeline.



Briefly, what is your design/printing process?
We specialize in letterpress printing which is basically a relief printmaking process where raised type and imagery is pressed into the paper. the result is a tactile printed object that people really seem to connect with and cherish. because of our extensive experience with letterpress, our creative process is tailor-made for it. We're able to avoid many of the common pitfalls that designers not familiar with the process fall into as well as exploit some of the inherent limitations of the process to come up with fresh and unexpected solutions....

When developing a custom design for a couple, we initially meet to discover their tastes and get a feel for their vision for the day. After we have a strong sense of what they're looking for, we get down to business sketching and usually end up presenting our 2 favorite directions for them to choose from. They choose and we revise based on their feedback. Its a good process and we've found regularly that our couples feedback during the revision part of the process makes the design even better and gives them real ownership of the end result.



Big thankyou Matt... see more gems on their website! 


[all images by Hammerpress]

Maps glorious maps // These are the things

I've always wanted to own a beautiful big map but have never found one that quite hit the spot... until today. This is just the loveliest of prints from Ohio based company 'These are the Things'. It's screenprinted in 4 colours and what a great colour combo it is too. Funnily enough it turns out their little company/shop began as a result of them being on a map hunt and finding nothing either... so designing their own instead. What clever sticks!


& this lil letterpress one is a winner too

Tokketok Letterpress

Beautiful cards by Joke Vande Gaer of Tokketok, from her studio in Portland. The embossed notecards are such a great idea and so beautifully done... mailboxes all over the world would be much happier if everyone owned a set of these.

& the world cup inspired cards..


My favourite though are the 3 colours of wrapping papers... don't those presents look exciting already (even with nothing in them)?

Uh oh!

Jessica Hische has just put her wonderful drop caps in her shop as letterpressed limited prints... i must say my initials are a fine pair are they not?! tempting, very tempting!!

Ampersand obsessive // Bespoke Press

I am a bit in love with this print from the talented folk at Bespoke Press. Ampersands are beautiful little creatures (oops, characters) and this is the first ever print of one I've seen that actually does them justice.

If you're at all interested in letterpress you also have to watch this video that shows them making the print... ahhh, a land of inking letters is bliss!

Hammerpress // Lotteria art prints

Hammerpress have a unique and wonderful style of letterpress... layers of bright colour and leftfield imagery... These new Lotteria art prints are especially good (you can buy them individually too)

These two new cards also caught my eye... love their clinical-ness!

Fugu Fugu Press // cute cards

ahhh... these are so cute!

Egg Press // Personal stationery

Egg press are now doing personal letterpressed stationery... how very cool is that? I think I'd write letters everyday if I had these... mmm, dream dream dream!!

Chewing the Cud // stationery

I must have been hiding under a rock to not have spotted the wonderful world of Chewing the Cud until now... I knew about their beautiful fabric wrapping but had never until today seen their letterpress stationery. Love love love this telegram!

Telegram holiday cards

Toast letterpress card, Let's Ketchup card, Wheelie like you card