Paper Parasol Press Blog

letterpress cards galore!

Daily Candy love!

March 9th, 2010

DailyCandy

A few weeks ago, I got an email from an editor from Daily Candy for an interview and yesterday morning I was thrilled to see my dose of daily candy featuring Paper Parasol Press!

Check out full feature here .

Thank you for the kinds words and support on this and to Daily Candy! It’s amazing how many people subscribe to it! I had people at work come up to me and congratulate me and even random emails.

In other news, I printed out my new business cards last night and lo and behold, I don’t like them. Well, they alright. I am a bit of a perfectionist and now I am wondering if I can have time to reprint. I have A LOT of them though- lIke 1000. I figure I can pass these out at craft fairs, since they go so fast!

my inner cowgirl….

March 2nd, 2010

came out and designed and printed this card:

Sweet to Boot, size: 4bar, 2 color letterpress

Sweet to Boot, size: 4bar, 2 color letterpress

Not only do I think of the cowboys and gals of the Wild West when I see boots, but Patsy Cline with a rhinestone and fringe cowgirl dress singing her heart out. This sweet little card can be a love card, thank you card, or just a “gosh-darn-it, you’re simply wonderful” card. The inside comes letterpress printed with a horse shoe and read: I’m lucky to have you.

I have lots of new goodies waiting for me to score and fold, so stay updated! I may not release all designs and printing till May, but the line is currently up to 19 designs and looking to hit 24 in the next week. Right now I am working on some holiday cards for 2010 – trying to stay ahead of the curve. I figure since there is still snow on the ground it may put me in a holiday frame of mind.

Have a lovely night, ladies and gents!

retro wedding

February 10th, 2010

I’ve been in the same relationship for six years (where did the time go?). We are not in a rush to get married and if we do so, I think it would go the unconventional route – wedding in Iceland, getting married in a state that allows same-sex marriage, city hall during lunch break… The options are limitless. There is one thing, however, I want at my wedding – good design sensibility and a retro tone. Save the Date invites are the first impression and first impressions are meaningful. I had that in mind when I designed these save the dates. We would also like a photo booth at our wedding (that’s for sure) and film (film, is that even still around?). Combining my favorite elements: design, fonts, retro/vintage feel and a photo booth strip I came up with this:

RetroSavetheDate_1

you can see the layers of the print in the detail
It’s passed through the press three times – the first being a super transparent/blind emboss, then with a medium transparent white, and gray

RetroSavetheDateWP1

RetroSavetheDateWP_4

Hello, blog!

February 7th, 2009
Hot off the press!

Hot off the press!

Alright, we are really gettin’ the ball moving now that the blog is FINALLY up! The past two years have been a disorganized mess around here. First, I started with a web domain that I wasn’t quite sure about. Decision making happens well into the night when my brain is functioning at about 15%, so the name did not dawn on me until later. “But I wanted paperparasolpress, no paperparasol.net!” When I realized I no longer wanted this web domain I already wanted to redesign the website anyhow. Then, it was getting a line together – as I teetered back and forth between screen printing and letterpress printing. Being a pretty lousy screen printer, I chose the later.

A little background: I tend to gravitate towards things that seem to be going out of fashion (or, a revival among certain groups) or are not the most conventional ways to make a living.  “That is a dying art – study graphic design,” “Is it really worth it? All that work?” Was it worth majoring in Illustration and going to an art school? Was it worth buying an 80-year old, one ton machine? Yes, because I am able to combine the two things I love: illustration and letterpress. The two make a happy marriage and with the technology of making polymer plates, I am able to translate my illustrations to the press without much complaint.

I hope to share my love of both letterpress and illustration on this blog. It can’t wait to pack it with inspiration, process, ideas, and even a little frustation when need be, but for the most part, there is already enough negative stuff out there, so this will act as a happy place. Visit back for art giveaways as well! If you cant’ wait ’till then, visit our online shop.

cheers and thanks for reading!