A Subtle Message of Love

Remember that one post about 'blind impressions'? Here is a card I made with that technique.

It is called 'A subtle expression of love'. (Seemingly random words when spoken aloud sound like "I LOVE YOU".)It was inspired by too many games of MADGABS* at my friend Cindy's house a few years ago.

Details: Is is a flat A2 (4.25x5.5) card, printed in colorless ink on smooth white 120 lb. paper, and of course paired with a 'Persimmon' Paper Source envelope

**madgabs game explanation  "...set of unrelated words. When you read them aloud, they sound like familiar phrases, names, places etc. For example, "Europe Lace Score Mind" sounds like "Your Place Or Mine" once you say it out loud."

I think the card is perfect for Valentines Day or just an excuse to say, “I hope you can see how much I love you.”, “Am I making myself clear?”, etc. 

Oh, and about flat cards, folded cards kind of bug me, soooo much paper which I feel obligated to fill up. My handwriting is TINY, so that can be a LOT of writing. I like a flat card, you can leave a quick note on the front with the image or fill up the back if you have a lot to say. Usually I only want to write a few lines. A flat note is perfect for that. 

Embrace Civilization!

Egads man! Are you a troglodyte? No civilized person should ever have to write their own address on an envelope. Sure you could use those self adhesive address labels you get from the Easter Seals (insert the sound of barking sea seals here) or from some other group looking for a donation. (We got some just the other day and there was also a DIME in there. Suckers! I now was 10 cents richer and had a whole bunch of ugly address stickers, and I am not donating anything to them. I already have my favorite places to support.) 

Ok, well, the point is...personalized note cards! I love them. I love to give them as gifts. I write VERY small, so I like a smallish card so that I don't have to write FOREVER to make it look moderately filled up. Sure sometimes I like some ornamentation, but my favorite kind just have the name on the card, and the address on the envelope. 

I truthfully feel that every refined person needs some. To send off a quick note, etc. Everyone will give you more cachet with personalized notecards. It adds a level of sophistication that is really so easily attained. And of course, to have your personalized note cards done in letterpress...even more class. Oh, really, how have you gone so long without some? 

These are just 2 simple ones that I had handy. One of mine and one from a set I had made for a friend. Pick a size and paper that reflects your personality. 

Contact me a.s.a.p. and let's get you some personalized notecards made. 

Simple Wedding Invite

 My Good friend asked me to print her Wedding Luncheon Invitations. This is a classic style that I pretty much used for my own wedding invites. I love clean and simple lettering for the information part (there is nothing more bothersome that not being sure of the date and time because of a fancy font). With Pretty fonts for the names. 

I usually NEVER buy vector art, but I really wanted a Peony and didn't have the skills at that time to make my own so I bought it. I was not sorry. I loved it. She loved it too. 

The name font is Jane Austin I think. 

I used Crane's Lettra, fluorescent white, all cotton paper and Papersource Papaya A7 envelopes. The Invites were 5X7 in size.

Sadly, I didn't even get to go the the party because of a prior commitment. I was being filmed for a TV show about my genealogy. The Generations Project.

p.s. you might note that the envelope in the photo is a little small for the invite. You are right I didn't have any A7 papaya around any more, so I just stuck a 4 bar in. I'm sneaky like that. 

We (heart/Utah) Trees

This post is print related, BUT not letterpress related.


Here are some ads that I have put together for the Utah Community Forestry Council. They are being published in the American Society of Consulting Arborist's newsletter The Consultant. I like combining trees and design, because they are my favorite things. 

Let's talk about why I like these designs. 

1) I am WAY into the shape of Utah looking like a heart when it is tipped. I have been wanting to use it for a LONG time. 

2) The first ad features spruce needles which are the state tree. 

3) The second ad features my arms. Yup, that's me. My husband (a professional photographer) took that photo a few days ago on our way in to work. It's much harder than you would expect to make symmetrical well shaped 'heart hands' around a fir tree.  Spruces have branches (or at least should) all the way to the ground, so you can't really do this shot with a spruce tree. Alas. 

3.5) I think my arms look buff! 

4) Also, I tried to keep the words to a minimum. Mission statement and website. Does it make you want to check out the website? I hope so. I think we will have a whole campaign around the we (heart/Utah) Trees. 

Do you like trees? Do you LOVE them? 

Retro Geny

 My friend Genevieve moved into a new house just before the holidays and so I printed her a holiday/moving card. She likes retro stuff and the house is from the 50's, so I designed the card to evoke retro ornaments and font. 

Oh, and Buckeroo is their dog, his whole name is The Adventures of Buckaroo Banzai Across the 8th Dimension. I loved the movie too, but i've never named a pet after it. 
Details: Mohawk superfine paper, with COOL GRAY 9, and a red ink. Remind me to talk about overprinting sometime...ok, I guess I will do that now. Letterpress ink isn't so thick that you can print over some other printing and have it not show through, so if you don't want (for example, the string showing through the red balls) you have to not print the line where you want the balls to go, it makes for some pretty funky plates, and some TIGHT registration! 

Hell's Orchard

 I made these cards for Hell's Backbone Grill. They want to have an orchard, so I made these cards to sell for the proceeds to go towards it. You can buy some if you go there to eat, and not only get some cards, but help support local agriculture. 

The food is really, really good.

My friend Kendall helped with this project by getting all the envelopes for a thousand notecards. Sheesh, that's a lot of notecards to print. 

These were printed on Cranes Lettra (100% cotton) paper, PEARL WHITE. I like envelopes from Paper Source best. This set has chartreuse envelopes. 

I have no idea what color of ink I used to match. I think I started around PMS 611, then monkeyed with it until I liked the match to the envelope. 

The photo makes it look a little more yellow than in real life, but it is a very yellowy-green. 

The Blind Martini

 So when you print with either NO ink or a COLORLESS ink (aka tint base), it is called a 'blind impression', because you get an impression, but no visible ink. Comprenez-vous?  


Since I learned about it, I love to use it for special effects. Take for instance this soirée invite. While my husband was taking photos for me, I made him give me props for how sexy it is that the martini glass is a blind impression. 


This is for a party that I gave for my birthday one year. I love mocktails (because I don't drink alcohol, but I love the idea of cocktails) and I love to have little parties. It is my considered opinion that you create the 'mood' of the event from the get-go, with your invitation. Sure e-invites are easy and free, but who saves those for a scrap book, and wouldn't you get WAY more excited for a party where you got a real invitation? I know I have a bias. 

Details: Mohawk paper - (I think) it is nice and thick with a super smooth finish. I used basic white envelopes.  Inks: Gray, green, and blind.  Ink (BTW I have a hard time spelling gray and/or grey because I lived in England for a while AND I have cousins with the last name of Grey. I can just never get the spelling right), probably COOL GRAY 9, PMS 383, and tint base. The font is called Mistral. I use it a lot.