I love me some letterpress printing. According to the New York Times, this type (hahahha!) of printing was basically rendered obsolete in the 80s when desktop publishing came into its heyday, but is enjoying a revival among a growing group of devotees.
It is still a specialty craft. But at the San Francisco Center for the Book, nearly 30 percent of the 300 workshops offered this year are letterpress classes, many of them added in the last few years.
“Letterpress is like the new engraving,†said Kitty Maryatt, director of the Scripps College Press and an assistant professor of art. “It looks different. It feels old. It’s tactile. People love that. It is the romance of the impression of the letter pressed into paper that people feel good about.â€
This is a good thing for those brides- and grooms-to-be looking for invitations with a classic feel. Goosefish Press, which designed and printed the beautiful paper creations you see above, creates distinctive custom invitations, response cards, and more using old school techniques.
As an aside, that gorgeous green ink is totally stimulating the envy center in my brain…would that I had stumbled upon Goosefish, say, four months ago.
The invitations for my second wedding were letterpressed; I approved the slug in person before they started printing. I was fascinated by the printer and the shop, it was like something out of another century past.
Those printers are fantastically interesting, Kai Jones. It’s becoming quite the hobby, if the popularity of classes is any indication. If I had the dough, I’d take Goosefish’s class, because once it’s completed you can rent studio time to do your own projects.