I’m pretty fascinated by letterpress. I pore over photo-filled blogs of beautiful designs, and Heart Fish is one of my favorites. I ordered a custom print of the word “BLISS” and was so happy to see that Hijiri posted photos of her process.
Bliss is, of course, a very fun and happy word, but it’s also the last name of my better half (and some day – but not any time soon – my last name). So, it has special meaning, and I can’t wait to frame and display this print.
You can see all of the photos at Heart Fish.
As a side note, I’ve recently come into about 100 pounds of small, movable metal type (a 5 gallon bucket full). I’m not sure what to do with it yet. Any crafty-types out there with project ideas?
Tags: blogs, letterpress
Hand-set type can be displayed beautifully in a type drawer. I’ve seen the drawers go for $20-50 at antique stores, filled with type, and displayed on walls, no two are alike!
I’ve also been known to give unique gifts — spelling out the name of individuals who I was gifting with the old type. These gifts have been quite well-received.
Lastly, and almost unrelated, the reason we call our capital letters “upper case” is because, back when typesetters and printers used this hand-set type, the capital letters were in the drawer above the little letters — or in the upper case. The little letters, the lower drawer, the lower case. Now I’m sidetracking.
Lindsey LaTour reply on May 29th, 2009:
I am now officially on the hunt for a type drawer! Thank you! I love the idea of personalizing gifts. I spent some yesterday time digging through the piles picking out just the right letters for a few people I have in mind.
And I never knew that about “upper case” and “lower case.” How interesting!