Holiday Printing

In what was most likely my last run on the letterpress before we move, I printed a small run of Holiday prints and cards. Now that the chilly winter weather is upon us, the garage “studio” is too cold for printmaking – not only do my fingers get chilly, but the ink won’t spread on the icy metal ink disk. For these prints, I set a lamp over the disk and lit a candle underneath, and aimed a space heater at the rollers for a couple hours to get the press warm enough to use.

twinkle holiday letterpress print

The prints are 5×7 on glossy card stock, nice for adding a little holiday cheer to a shelf or mantle.

letterpress peace cards

The cards are printed on Crane Lettra card stock, a luxurious thick paper with a nearly handmade texture that is lovely to hold. Because it is so textured, getting the ink to apply evenly is a challenge. I learned that many printers will dampen the paper before printing, settling the fibers to get a more even print. Due to the chill in my printing location, I opted to embrace the paper texture this round instead.

twinkle card holiday letterpress

None of my holiday “collection” this year are really limited to the holiday season, I think we can use a little peace and twinkle any day of the year.

The Twinkle print and card and the Peace card with the circle are currently available in a very limited quantity for sale at in Living Traditional Arts Shop.

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