Among the Daisies

I carved some new linoleum blocks and did a test letterpress print on a vintage document. A piece of vintage music had the lyrics "Among the Daisies" and fit my floral theme perfectly.

 

Makeready Collage

I did this collage using letterpress makeready. Makeready is what happens when you get ready to print something new. I use scrap paper to get my colors and position correct on press. You can get all sorts of interesting patterns and overlays on the scraps. Sometimes it's one big mess, and sometimes the results are save-worthy. 

Welcome to 2022

It's a new year and I'm committed to posting more often on my blog. I wanted to post earlier but our electricity was out New Year's Eve and as a result, we had no internet for the past week. I actually spent the time reading books instead of surfing the web. 

So we start 2022 late. Here's the month of January from my 2022 calendar. 

Stay tuned for a new collage project...

Valentine's Day

 Happy Valentine's Day

Shades of Blue

 I did this collage using a bunch a letterpress scraps and various papers in shades of blue.

Beautiful Letterpress

In my wandering on the web, I came across letterpress books by British artist Julia Humfress. She has printed 3 books highlighting wood type and I was lucky enough to be able to purchase the 3rd book. The books are beautifully printed and bound in a limited number. (Book 1was completely sold out but I was able to buy the digital version of Book 2 and while nice, definitely not the same as having the original letterpress version.)  The book is really tactile with rich colors. If you love letterpress, definitely worth having in your collection!

Here are some highlights of the third book which may still be available on Julia's website https://www.woodwordsletterpress.com/ She also has prints available and you can see images from the first 2 books

book front

opening page

my favorite spread

back cover

2021

 Happy New Year!

 Making my Christmas card

Carving the Linoleum Block

On press

My finished card for 2020

2021 Calendar

 I finally finished my 2021 calendar and it's for sale in my Etsy shop.

Calendar cover

January thru April

May thru August

September thru December

New Letterpress Print

I did this cactus print for a custom order and now have it for sale in my shop.

I seem to be terrible at keeping real cactus alive so I purchased the faux ceramic ones from Etsy seller Woggie's Place.

New

New letterpress cards in my Etsy shop.

Welcome to 2020

My calendar for 2020. Letterpress printed from my hand carved linoleum blocks and available in my Etsy shop. Images include a leaping bunny (in honor of the bunnies in my backyard), an Owl duo (because I like owls), and a little mouse ( for Year of the Rat and the mice living in my garage who watched me print)

January thru April

May thru August

September thru December

Tag 85

Tag 85 uses patterned papers in black and tan with a letterpressed piece in the middle.

Tag 85

Fly Away Birdie Tag

Today's tag uses a piece of a vintage document, doily paper, and a bird cut from a letterpress printed image.

Tag 58

Japanese Inspired Tags

Oh my gosh, I'm so behind on my 100 tags. I only have 3 and a half months and still 50 tags to do! But I have been busy collaging this week. I've completed 4, Asian inspired tags.

Tag 51 uses a vintage Japanese illustration and document with hand made papers.

Tag 51

Tag 52 uses an image of a Geisha from a vintage postcard, a piece of a vintage document, and hand made papers.

Tag 52

Tag 53 uses vintage documents and a letterpress printed tea pot.

Tag 53

Tag 54 uses vintage documents, hand made papers and a letterpress printed fan.

Tag 54

Tag 46

Tag 46 uses a postcard postmarked 1905, a letterpress printed bird, a piece of a vintage document, and hand made papers.

Tag 46

Song Bird

Today's tag uses vintage music in the background. I hand-colored a letterpress printed bird and added hand made Japanese paper and gold rubber stamps.

Tag 36

New in the shop

New cards are in my Etsy shop! Unicorn notes -  letterpress printed from one of the images used in my 2017 calendar.

New in the Shop

A new card for my Etsy shop. This image was inspired by the cactus plants I have on my windowsill. I have them in ceramic pots and am trying not to kill them. The card is letterpress printed from my hand carved linoleum blocks in black and green ink.

New in the shop

Hot Off the Press!

I finished my 2017 calendar just in time for the LA Printer's Fair last weekend. All of the images are from my hand cut linoleum blocks. This year's images include a a cowboy boot full of flowers, a set of Russian matryoshka and a bear in a turtleneck sweater.

Even though I carefully sketch and plan, things change as I start carving the lino blocks. One of my sketches started out as a dala horse and ended up as a unicorn, featured on the month of January. The bear started out in a scarf and was re-carved in a sweater. The calendar is letterpress printed in a limited edition of 30. It's for sale in my Etsy shop here.

2017 Calendar

January thru April

May thru August

September thru December

The linoleum block and printed page for January