Meet the Designers Event...This Saturday

Images © and courtesy of Gingerly Designs

If you are in the Greater Vancouver area this Saturday be sure to come out to Gingerly in Maple Ridge for their Meet the Designers Event:

Saturday July 26th – 12:00-4:30 PM
Gingerly
11869 227th St, Maple Ridge

We'll be there with letterpress stationery, journals, and prints featuring new nature-inspired designs (not yet available online or in stores).

We'll also have some samples of our custom work on hand – so if you've been considering letterpress stationery for yourself, your business, or an upcoming wedding or event – come on down and learn what we can do for you. You'll be able to check out our samples, the papers we use, and ask us any questions you may have about our services.

Other designers participating in the event include:

Flight Path Designs
Lemonade
Track + Field Designs
Gingerly Designs
and others...

For more info visit:
http://www.facebook.com/event.php?eid=15395469378
http://www.gingerlydesigns.com/gingerlystore.html

The first 25 people to attend with receive a gift bag worth over $50 filled with goodies from Gingerly and participating designers (you know you want one...get there early!). And there will be free treats from Sweet, the cake shop across the street...Seriously, who can say no to cupcakes?

We have been pretty busy around the studio lately (hence the lack of new blog posts) and have been printing custom invitations for three weddings, business cards, a variety of personal stationery items, and a custom letterpress art print.

Last week I was so angry with our C&P press that I was ready to kick it (which would have been stupid, seeing as she is built of cast iron, and I would have clearly been the loser in that fight). Most of the letterpress printing equipment being used today is very old - this press in particular was built in 1911. This means that the equipment comes with flaws and problems caused by years of wear. My problem was uneven inking being caused by the rails on which the rollers run. The rails are more wavy than the Pacific ocean. No amount of taping or adjusting would solve the problem. Luckily I was able to find a printer in Florida willing to sell me a set of roller bearers, and also learned a trick involving the use of old photopolymer plates to even things up again. All is well again, but it was a frustrating time indeed. This business of printing is certainly not for the faint of heart or patience.

Have you joined our Facebook group yet? If not, check it out: http://www.facebook.com/events.php?ref=sb#/group.php?gid=9587009750 I'd love to see 75 members by the end of summer!

Happy letterpressing!

All the pretty horses...

© 2008 Sunlit Letterpress

The above invitations were printed over the weekend for a client putting on a horse expo this Spring. The invitations and envelopes were A7 size, and I printed the return address on the back flap of the envelope. I chose a very Spring-ish green to stand out against the fluorescent white stock.

This past Saturday my husband and I attended the opening wine + cheese for Gingerly, where our ready-to-wear line is now available. It was great to meet owner Megan and see her new store. She had lots of beautiful jewelery for sale (her own line) as well as handbags, stationery, accessories, etc. I picked up a few gifts for friends while I was there, so some birthday shopping is already done for the year!

This week I have a custom business card order to print, and lots of non-printing jobs to finish for my graphic design studio. I'll be spending more time at the computer than with the press.

Happy letterpressing!

Gingerly Opening & Got Craft

Image courtesy of Poppytalk, courtesy of Gingerly.

Gingerly opens tomorrow in Maple Ridge, hope to see you there! We're looking forward to it!

Also, we've just signed on for Got Craft?, a great art and fine craft market put on by Andrea and Rob at Lotus Events. Mark your calendars for May 4th - the market will be held on Commercial Drive in Vancouver (2205 Commercial). We attended the last Got Craft? in July of 2007.

This year there will be a media and retailer invite-only breakfast reception (which should be really fun) - the reception is being sponsored by Craft Magazine. Got Craft? will be the first craft market ever sponsored by Craft Magazine, so that is terrific!

It's not that I needed an extra "to do" item on my list, but what the heck, Got Craft? is worth it. Great crowd, great vendors, great organizers.

Happy letterpressing!

Off To the Shop They Go...

Though I hate to say goodbye to my little creations - the cards above are now on their way to Gingerly, a new store opening this weekend here in Vancouver that will be carrying the Sunlit Letterpress line. I hope they are a big hit for store owner Megan.

If you're in the Maple Ridge area this Saturday, be sure to drop by Gingerly to check out the grand opening!

This week I have to step away from the press a bit and work on some web projects for my graphic design clients. A number of my clients are government bodies or government-funded bodies, and so many of my projects have to be finished up and billed for March 31st. This leads to what I call "March Madness", and has nothing to do with NCAA basketball.

Happy letterpressing!

Random News & Updates

I am trying to keep up with the blogging, but sometimes it's so hard! I've had a very busy few days since my last post - some custom printing projects have kept me at the press, and some web work at my graphic design studio has kept me at the computer quite a bit. On the weekend I took a few hours to do something fun with a friend - shopping. Simple, wonderful shopping. I find that running a graphic design business and a printing studio tends to eat up a lot of my "fun" time on weekends, so sometimes I need to schedule in some me time. Anyways, it was good to get out and have a change of scenery.

For those who have contacted me about stores carrying my Ready-to-Wear stationery line in Vancouver, take note - Gingerly, a new store carrying local and Canadian designer accessories and decor, will have its grand opening on March 8th from 10am-6pm. Be sure to check it out - along with Sunlit Letterpress stationery, you'll also find collections from Filou Jewelry, Patina Leather Goods, Track & Field Designs, Gingerly Designs, and many more. Be sure to say hello to Megan, the shop owner:

Gingerly 11869 227th Street, Maple Ridge, BC http://www.gingerlydesigns.com/

In other news, I recently was interviewed by HOW Magazine for an upcoming issue on handmade design. Check out the July/August issue for a feature on Sunlit Letterpress! I am so excited to see it - it's hard to wait for Summer!

And finally, if you've been hoping to score some custom letterpress stationery for yourself, but were waiting for a deal, then be sure to check out Vitamin V's Wedding Feature mailing on Tuesday, Feb 19th - there's a promo in there from me to you!

Happy letterpressing!