Letterpress workshop at Dot and the Line

I LOVE letterpress.  I love the old-school style embossed finish, the beautifully engineered machines and hot foiling, well, common the name speaks for itself!  So, when I happened upon an introductory workshop around the corner from me on Leith Walk at Dot and the Line, I decided to give it a whirl.

Overview and Demo with Lou

Lou keeps the classes small, so it was just me plus one other, which means there is plenty of time for questions and no queuing.  After intros and a cuppa we got down to work, with Lou demonstrating how the letterpress is set up and the printing process.  We were using the Adana table top press which I immediately wanted to take home.

Lou's Adana table top press

Cases of letterpress type - that's where the terms upper and lower case come from!

Lou's demo using Gill Sans Light Shadowed font

Letterpress Lingo - Reglets, furniture and quoins

One of my favourite parts of the workshop was learning all the awesome letterpress lingo.  We started with a frame, called a chase and arranged our type on a composing stick, separating the lines with strips of metal lead. 

Geeky fact - Leading (line spacing) is pronounced led-hing not lee-ding!
The strips of lead are where the term 'leading' describing the distance of line spacing comes from. I'd always assumed it was pronounced lee-ding as 'in leading the way', but no it's led-hing as in 'lead piping'. 

Once done, we slide the composed text off the stick onto a metal tray called a galley.  We then tightly packed out the empty space with wooden spacers called furniture.  Smaller slivers of wood are called reglets and finally we use a quoin which is an expanding wedge to lock into place.

Composing stick with italic Times New Roman typeface separated by leading strips

Typeface packed out with wooden 'furniture'

My type is ready to print. I love all the wonderful letterpress terms.

The Adana Table top Press in Action

We cut out our bookmarks from come Colorplan cardstock with a kick-ass guillotine and got to printing.

The Finished Product

I chose the quote from Little Women author Louisa May Alcott 'She is too fond of books, and it has turned her brain'.

Bloopers

In my first attempt, I accidentally put my 'i' in brain upside down.  I kind of wish I'd kept it as it's cute and plays into the quote

The most common mistake is mixing up b's and d's or p's and q's, as seen in my classmate's quote from The Great Gatsby:

Cost

The workshop was £30 (concessions available) and lasted three hours.  Lou also runs other courses on screen-printing and book binding that sound fun.

DIY Letterpress

I decided to etch a scrap piece of brass with Edinburgh etch recipe and see how it would look when rolled through my Big Shot craft mangle.  I'm somewhat pleased with this first attempt.  It impresses nicely, and whilst it's a shame that the edge of the brass makes a line, I'd just choose to incorporate that into the design by picking a circle or cut shape next time.   I think inking up could be messy - I'd defo need a briar and guides to stop it going everywhere.  I've blurred some parts of my address to avoid nutjobs!

Polymer Letterpress Plates

An easier option is to make or buy a polymer letterpress plate.  They can be used with the at home kits such as this one demonstrated on YouTube. I do owe my buddy Danielle a massive apology though, as I thought these polymer plates might be the same as the polymer stamps.  Danielle gave it a go and in the process ruined her lovely stamp, so please don't make the same mistake folks!

Courtesy of Boxcar Press, the main makers of polymer plates

Embosser Seal Press

I think I'm going to get a handheld embosser seal thingy.  You can get the contraption, plus plates with your own custom design for about £35.  I'll keep you updated when I finally get around to ordering mine.

Courtesy of Stamps Direct