I just had an epiphany: not everyone likes typography as much as I do! For those of you who enjoy pictures more than words, I’ve been working on stationery sets featuring animals and inanimate objects. Available so far: Wisconsin, pineapple, bee, butterfly and seahorse. Leave a comment on this post or vote here to add your favorite!

Several months ago, I received an email titled “Special Request” from someone I had never met. It was a producer from a local production company asking to film in my studio. Fast forward two months and here I am, spending six hours with a three-person video crew documenting the process of printing invitations for a conference they put on, and now I finally have a sneak peek of the final product. Check it out here! Oh, and in case I didn’t mention… here’s where it aired (ahhh!):

There’s nothing more valuable to an artist trying to make it than a truly supportive patron. Not only do they support you financially by buying your work (always important!), they boost your confidence and remind you that what you’re doing is indeed worthwhile. If you’re really lucky—like me—they also invite you to fabulous dinner parties and introduce you to their fabulous friends!

My favorite client ordered a set of stationery for each of her closest friends and family. It was a great collaborative experience in which she told me a little about each person’s personality and I designed a monogram or image just for them. I thought the pineapple card might be rather popular, so I printed extras and they’re also available here!

I thought today was an appropriate day to share a collaborative project with one of my favorite wholesale clients, Driftless Studio. Owner Anne is a photographer and writer as well as a shop owner, so as you might be able to tell, she’s also supremely creative. She’s one of those people I love to work with… the kind that say, ‘I love this and this, can we put them together?!? And make it red and blue?’ And to that I say, ‘of course! I’ve been thinking about that for ages!’

The result is this awesome Wisconsin in winter card that has proven quite popular this season. I never did get it into the etsy shop, but shoot me a message and I’d be happy to get you some!

I hate the holiday rush as much as anyone (Christmas décor in July? Really?), but when you’re working with retailers, they’re ready to see Christmas cards by September or October, so I’ve had my collection printed for a couple months. I love Halloween too much to bum rush it with holiday announcements, but for all you early birds who have your cards in the mail by December 1, here you go!

Last year’s holiday cards were mostly hold-overs from 2010, but this year I’ve created a number of new designs. Find them all in the shop and keep up with the latest and greatest on facebook. And don’t forget to pick up some gift tags while you’re there!

A woman I work with at that day job of mine has been hooking me up with awesome vintage cuts lately! Her boyfriend’s family happens to collect all kinds of antiques, and as will happen when you’re buying auction lots, has ended up with a fair share of vintage letterpress goods. Both of these cuts needed some work, but I finally invested in a Dremel a couple weeks ago and got them into printable shape in no time!
Wisconsin cards are available in the shop, bull is only special order at the moment, but don’t hesitate to get in touch if you’re interested. And if you have any printing plates laying around, send ‘em my way—you’ll get some free cards out of the deal!

A couple cool things are happening over on that other website: I tried my hand at live micro-blogging this weekend. I had a lot to print and thought it would be fun to give my followers a more real-time experience of what printing is like. Along the same line of thinking, I photographed the process and posted the pictures as well. I hope that explains a little more about the process of printing—don’t hesitate to ask if you have any questions!

Among the things I made this weekend is a beautiful stationery set for a Madison woman named Masarah. She’s been a fan for more than a year now and it always nice to collaborate with someone who has an appreciation for what you do. Her cards were simple and elegant: with her name blind embossed using lead type. As always, don’t hesitate to get in touch if you’re interested in a custom piece of your own!

The process is simple: choose your letter, choose your color and choose your quantity. A set would make a great gift, so keep them in mind for the person who has everything this holiday season!