My favorite thing I have made (lately)…
Happy Friday, friends! It’s time for another Nice To Meet You Link Up!
This time, link up participants were asked to each answer the same question with six photos:
I am cheating a little, showing 6 photos of one thing I made this week.
I’m a designer by trade, and spend a lot of time working with typography. I’ve always known I wanted to learn more about the history of printed type, and the past two weeks I’ve been doing just that.
I signed up for my very first letterpress class at the Visual Arts Center in Richmond. My teacher is the knowledgeable and patient Jason Taylor of Thousand Pound Press – and I’ve learned quite a lot from him already. I’m really enjoying getting ink on my hands and painstakingly arranging rows of lead and wood type to compose designs. The workshop smells deliciously of pigment and paper, and I could spend HOURS poring over the drawers and cases of letterforms and decorative flourishes.
Letterpress is no joke, y’all. Maybe I’m spoiled by having ultimate control over my type on a computer screen, but painstakingly adjusting the spacing between every letter by hand in a type tray is hard work! Having to be so conscious of every decision makes you connect to a design in a completely different way than I am accustomed to on a computer. Every decision is considered and intentional, rather than playful and improvisational on a screen.
This week I made my very first hand-typeset letterpress poster, of one of my favorite phrases. It may not be impressive or lovely – I have a LONG way to go and much to learn, but the learning this process is already making me think about my work differently, and opening my imagination for new projects.
And I’m a little proud for getting outside my comfort zone and trying something completely new. At some point, you have to go from always wishing you knew how to do something, to actually trying it out. So here’s to new adventures – the best is yet to come.
Now it’s your turn. If you have a blog and would like to join the linkup, here’s how it works:
- Post about the same topic: “What do you like to do at home?” with several original images
- Include our button and a link back to this page using this code in your post
- If you don’t have a blog but want to participate, answer with a list below or make a Pinterest board
and share the link in the comments - Follow at least 4 of the other host’s blogs
- There are PRIZES, Y’all.
The Link Up Participants:
Lauren @ Elleby Design
Erika @ Foxtrot Press
Ashley @ Bricks & Baubles
Lindsay @ Shrimp Salad Circus
Lianne @ A Content Housewife
Jeanette @ Artchoo
Ashley @ She Makes A Home
Suzannah @ Adventures in Dressmaking
Sentrell @ Suite Seven
Dani @ The Future Reynolds
Jenny @ House Full of Pretty
Haeley @ Design Improvised
Eva @ Build House Home
Wow! That’s a pretty neat project, to work with the actual type for printing–and I love that quote you chose!
I LOVE letters and your print says it all. I completely agree – the satisfaction of finally trying something is tremendous. well done!
This is SO cool! I was really bummed in college when I took printmaking that we neer got to work in type. What an awesome opportunity to learn! Thanks for sharing… your print turned out awesome too!!
Letterpress can be such a royal pain but it’s also so satisfying once you have the finished piece! I miss working with it. And I kinda miss the stress that came with it! Lovely stuff.
That is awesome – I’ve always wanted to try letterpress. Great print!
isn’t handsetting type AMAZING?! every time i go to the shop, i get so inspired and refreshed… having to print by hand is such an energizing experience for me. and i could also totally get lost in the shop for hours at a time… i really do hope to have my own press one day so that i can do just that. your poster looks awesome… and believe me, the more you print the more you learn… every time i print, i come away having learned something new.
Amazing project. I love the metal letters