Pressing Onward

“You should try letterpress,” my husband said. This was his solution to the rather expensive black-and-white printing estimates I’d received so far.

If plain old copies are spendy, letterpress will be totally out of my price range, I thought. But, I contacted the three companies he forwarded to me anyway. The first: doesn’t do postcards. The second: isn’t taking new projects. The third? . . .

. . . Amazing, supportive, kind, instructive, inspiring response! The printing cost compared closely to the other printers, but it would be in color, on luscious paper, and pressed like a real piece of art!!

Egg Press (insert hearts here) took my design, worked with me to smooth it out for the plate (see image below), and printed gorgeous two-sided postcards. You can see the dent of the press in that top picture, right? You can feel it too!

Katelyn worked with me at Egg Press, and when I went to their super-cool studio in an old warehouse overlooking the train tracks in NW Portland, she gave me a tour: opening a vault door, leading me up wide wooden staircases through a cold and dim warehouse, sliding back a huge heavy iron door to reveal:

http://www.schoolhouse.com

http://www.eggpress.com

the polymer plate for my card

a brightly lit, exposed brick studio filled with presses and work spaces, ink and paper, binders and cutters, and people — artists and designers and press operators. People whose talent would easily intimidate me but who were all so nice I tried to come up with a reason why I needed to stay there all day.

I am so proud of this 4×6 postcard, and so grateful for the supportive experience I had with Egg Press and Katelyn. You’ll see a picture of her in my next post. I’m taking part in a writing event Egg Press is hosting. You can join me if you want. More soon!

In the meantime, if you have messages you need to send to politicians, organizations, or agencies, this bold, patriotic blue letterpress postcard will catch their eye! (You can shop for them here: www.etsy.com/shop/CarrotCondo).