Lauren teaches on a Kelsey 5x8 press. Her studio is at her home and its one of those spaces I think of as a beautiful disaster. Walking in, the first thing I notice is all the paper strewn about. Various projects adorn the walls, desk and floor - letterpress, calligraphy, photographs. There's a large table for a workspace; its topped with all sorts of items used for the letterpress process (i.e. furniture, ink, composing stick, type) and, of course, the press itself. At one point she opens up a large drawer that is completely full of various envelopes. I'm such a stationary geek that I'm in heaven and instantly wish that I had a drawer full of envelopes.
We talk about paper and decide on the type for my project (Crane Lettra). Lauren makes me do everything except cut my own paper, which I loved because I really wanted to learn to do it myself. I was pretty intimidated but it wasn't as hard as I thought it would be - of course its easy to say that because I had Lauren there to answer my questions and tell me what to do. If I had attempted letterpress on my own, I'm sure I would have gotten completely frustrated and been yanking my hair out.
I set my type, mixed my own ink, and got to work printing cards for my grandmother. They are picutred below but my iphone doesn't do them justice. They look lovely!
I have started looking for my own press now and can't wait to start printing my own stuff. I hope to have everything up and running by January and I already have a very special first project in mind.
You can check out Lauren's goods here on Etsy.
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