Local AIGA Branch Tours Boxcar Press

Posted on March 7, 2012 by Anthony Allen

Boxcar Press started off February with a tour group from the local branch of the AIGA. These tours are a great opportunity for us to not only show what our company has to offer, but also helps us encourage and inspire people to pursue designing for letterpress projects. The group size consisted of about seven graphic designers. They showed great interest in the process from design to platemaking all the way to finishing. Everyone enjoyed watching the printers at their windmills and rubbing their fingertips over the impression in the paper. As letterpress continues to grow in popularity, we find graphic designers who visit are more knowledgeable about the craft than just a couple of years ago. A big thanks to these designers for stopping in!

Boxcar Talk With Bill Paulus

Posted on March 6, 2012 by Rebecca Miller

When he showed up on the printing scene in 1962, Bill Paulus was armed with attributes that are a trifecta of the trade: common sense, passion, and a laser-focused 24 hour workday attitude. Fast forward a half a century later and you’ll find that Paulus happily occupies a letterpress menagerie in the Atlanta, Georgia area. And life has never been peachier.

Read on to get the full story on Bill!

PASSION FOR PRINTING I am Bill Paulus, born in 1950 in Zanesville, Ohio. I began my career in printing in the last days of June, 1962. Only have a high school education, according to establishment quid pro quo. In reality, 50 years of O.J.T. while attending the school of hard knocks.

INK IN THE BLOOD Like it or not, (and I did not like it.) I was conscripted by my mother and stepfather out of economic necessity.

LETTERPRESS MANCAVE I have a private letterpress shop, letterpress studio, or letterpress mancave (choose your preference) in the basement of my home located just a stone’s throw (no pun.) from Stone Mountain Park in Metro Atlanta, Georgia. Equipment, or toys, to date: 1917 vintage 10 x 15 C&P New Series hand feed; 1930’s vintage 10 x 15 Kluge Automatic; 1954 vintage 10 x 15 Heidelberg Windmill; late 40’s / early 50’s vintage Miehle Vertical V50; 1917 vintage Intertype linecasting machine; 1960’s vintage Ludlow Typograph; 1920 vintage 34 inch Challenge Diamond power paper cutter; 1940’s vintage Challenge floor model paper drill with round corner attachment; 1954 vintage Rosback auto stitcher; and a 1936 vintage 14 x 20 Baumfolder.

PRINTING LEGACIES The Late George Lilienthal, Donald Mathis of Zanesville, Ohio, and Ben Franklin.

DESIGNED FOR PRINT My forte has always been printing production in the areas of letterpress (my first love), offset, flexo, diecutting, embossing, and foil stamping.

FULL TIME FUN From 1962 until 2009, I was printing full time. During this time, a day variously consisted of 12, 18, 24, 36, 48, or 72 hours. There were a couple of times I was printing one way or the other seven 24 hour days non stop. Take note: The word “work” has not been mentioned. I was having too much fun to classify what I was doing under the category of “work”. Adding to it all, if I was moving printing equipment, well, that was fun in overdrive.

PRINTER’S PRIDE The many letterpress and offset printing production awards ranging from honorable mention to best in category presented by peers in the graphic arts industry. Also, a period of 44 years of moving printing equipment without any kind of mishap.

BOXCAR’S ROLE They have provided an alternative to corrosion prone magnesium plates, created a very useful web site, provided free equipment manual downloads, and, best of all, provided customer service that is second to none.

SHOP TIPS

Always have clean hands and a pure heart.
Safety is always the first priority. Period!
Never, ever lose a customer’s order.
When moving printing equipment, never yank or jerk; be slow and methodical, using common horse sense, and never place your body or body parts in a pinch or crush zone.

WHAT’S NEXT As health permits: Keep on learning. Print. Connect the Intertype to the gas line and cast my first line of type on it. Print. Also build up the Ludlow and cast my first line of type on it. Print. And just for kicks and grins, seek out some of the still living pundits, who in the 60’s and 70’s were chanting “ Letterpress is dead,” and rub their haughty noses in the face of the letterpress renaissance. (Recreation?)

Big thanks to Bill for letting us take a sneak peak into the mind of a fellow letterpress aficionado!

Boxcar Ventures Out

Posted on March 1, 2012 by Cathy

It’s always a happy experience when we meet our customers at shows and conferences. However, we get particularly excited when we can come to your place and meet you in your creative space!

Recently during winter travels, I was able to visit two customers in the Boston area. It meant navigating the Boston subway and bus system but it was such a kick to visit and get a tour from women printers and entrepreneurs, Smudge Ink and Albertine Press.

Shelley Barandes of Albertine Press is in Somerville, Massachusetts in a warehouse that also houses not one, but two chocolate companies. That is the aroma you smell when you follow the signs that direct you to her space. She has a large, open studio with plenty of natural light for printing and finishing.

I admired her Vandercook where her printer Matt was working and her Heidelberg windmill, not to mention seeing a pilot, a cutter and some tabletops. On occasion, Shelley will teach a class to spread the love of letterpress, but not as often now that she has a pre-school daughter. Shelley is busy!

A bus and another warehouse later, I was able to a have nice visit and tour with Deb Bastien and Kate Saliba of Smudge Ink. They are in Charlestown, Massachusetts along the waterfront. What amazed me was the quantity and variety of presses our customers have. I lost count of presses at Smudge after five. Smudge Ink actually has a long history tied with Boxcar Press and we feel like we’ve grown in this business with them.

They have a nice blend of letterpress with offset and everything was printed in gorgeous, vibrant colors (you should see their shelves!). Everyone was hard at work while I was there and yes, I took note of their polymer plate recycling box.

While my visits were brief, it was special to see these talented ladies and where they find their creative energy. I was impressed above all at how they have built their businesses and thrive. And I especially appreciated their warm welcomes on short notice. Our Boxcar doors are always open should you ever want to reciprocate and drop in here!

Boxcar Talk With Nina Interlandi Bell

Posted on February 29, 2012 by Rebecca Miller

Like Nina Interlandi Bell from Tweedle Press, deep dish pizza got its start in the Windy City of Chicago, where people know their dough. Like an artisanal slice, her printings are filled to the brim with flavorful creativity. Whether you get the tried & true cheese style, a smorgasbord of meat toppings home-run, or the more well-honed and inspired artichoke and basil, Nina’s letterpress work and these pizza pies never fail to delight.

Read on to find out more on the commanding and captivating Nina Bell.

THE NATURAL PRINTER I’m a a graphic and web designer, letterpress printer, paper maker, and lover of nature and local/organic food, with a dash of rock and roll. Also, I want to be a cowboy.

FOR THE LOVE OF LETTERPRESS When my husband (iHub, also know around the shop and our house as “Minister of the Office Of Fun”) and I got married 5 years ago, I helped to design and assemble our invitations. I had them letterpress printed by a local printer, and knew when I saw them that I wanted to learn how to do it. I took several series of classes at Columbia in Chicago where I learned to work with cylinder presses, type, and plates, and also helped out up at the Platen Press Museum in Zion where Paul Aken taught me my platen press chops. I wouldn’t necessarily claim one particular moment of insight when I realized I wanted this to be my full time job, but everything just sort of coalesced: my lifelong love of paper and desire to own a card shop, all my years of experience with graphic design, my (apparently) genetic desire to be a business owner, and the fact that I love to get dirty and tinker with dangerous equipment.

PRINTING LEGACIES I knew when I saw the miniature empire that Jen from Starshaped Press had built that it would be possible for me to do what I envisioned. I wanted the flexibility of creating my own schedule, the satisfaction of having people choose to spend their hard earned money on beautiful things that I design and print for them, plus the ability to take time off for kids when I need to (which will be March, 2012!). Paul Aken too, of course, without whom I would never have acquired any of my equipment and who I credit with helping me move closer to accepting imperfection. Still working on that.

THE DESIGNER & THE PRINTER I do everything! My career experience has been 11 years of graphic and web design, and I’ve been printing for the last 4 years. However, I didn’t actually go to school for any of this – my music degree was supposed to help me be a recording engineer for when my band got famous, but that didn’t work out so well. Luckily I have always been a designer at heart, and creating show posters and websites for my band ended up giving me the experience I needed to land real design jobs. It all looks very intentional in retrospect.

THE DAILY GRIND Usually I end up procrastinating on big design jobs because getting over that initial hurdle of inspiration is so intimidating. Once I’m up against a deadline and have assured myself that there are no other “important” internet tasks for me to complete, I usually end up staring at the blank screen for a while. Once something gets me into the zone – it could be an image, a piece of text, or a color combination – then there’s no stopping me. Coveted episodes of TV on the DVR be damned! I can remain glued to my computer, despite iHub’s desperate attempts to force me to “relax”, for a very long time indeed.

FULL TIME PRINTER BY DAY, CREATIVE CHAMP BY NIGHT Just about. I still do a bit of freelance design work here and there that is unrelated to Tweedle Press, but most of my time is spent working at the shop. It has been a slow transition from my full time design job to what I’m doing now, but I’m very lucky that the owner at my previous company let me step down my days there gradually as Tweedle Press got busier. I’m still only making about half as much as I was when working full time at my previous design job, but I’m lucky iHub is so darn supportive and the business is growing every year. Continue reading →

Feeding on the Offset Press

Posted on February 28, 2012 by carrie.valenzuela

The offset press starts feeding, first gulping air then feeding delicious text weight sheets.

Hunting In the Type Drawers

Posted on February 27, 2012 by Rebecca Miller

Here at Boxcar Press, it’s not all about the photopolymer. People shouldn’t be surprised to know that Harold has a secret room with California Job cases and type cabinets. Some have never even been unwrapped.

So many of you can understand the feeling, then, when we get a chance to pull out drawers and search through for treasures. I am partial to the larger wood type and the ornaments. We hope you enjoy a few of the ornaments and type we find.

These two images are sending the silent message that we should go get a cold one and a jumbo burger – loaded!

The other one is our salute to the military with insignias from the United States Marine Corp, United States Navy W.A.V.E.S (anchor with propeller) and the United States Coast Guard.

Boxcar Talk With Travis Friedrich

Posted on February 23, 2012 by Cathy

The man behind the up and coming Parklife Press, Travis Friedrich, lets us in on the things he can’t do without, his insatiable love for letterpress, the curious journey of his beloved C & P, and his vintage paper cutter.

Friedrich carved out a few minutes to tell us about the things that keep his rollers inked.

(photo credit: Annemie Tonken)

EAST OR WEST, LETTERPRESS IS BEST I grew up in Oregon but have lived in North Carolina for most of my post high school life. I’m 31 now. Although my college degree is in engineering, I’ve always loved print and design. I enjoy making grilled cheese sandwiches, watching tennis, playing ping pong, drinking fancy cocktails, and printing with headphones on.

(photo credit: Annemie Tonken)

INK IN THE BLOOD I’ve enjoyed printmaking since I was about 13 years old — although it was mostly linoleum cuts and a little bit of lithography early on. It wasn’t until about 2005 that I learned about letterpress. At the time, I was living in Portland, Oregon and working at my first post-college job as a mechanical engineer, but I wasn’t wild about what I was doing. I came across a letterpress shop not too far from my apartment, and I thought how cool it would be to be doing something like that rather than sitting in front of a computer all day. By the end of that year, I was very seriously considering trying to find a way to make printing my career.

STUDIO WITH SOUTHERN CHARM Parklife Press exists in a cozy studio at my home. It houses a C&P 10×15, a C&P 12×18, and a 123 year old Challenge paper cutter. My favorite thing about the studio is probably the lax dress code.

PRINTING LEGACIES Aside from two days of a community college letterpress class (I couldn’t stick with the 2 hour commute required to stay in the class), all of my letterpress education has been “virtual.” The Briar Press discussion boards, the Letpress list-serve, and Boxcar training videos have been invaluable.

DAILY GRIND Most of the design work I do is for wedding clients. I start by asking for as much info about design preferences and inspiration as the client can give, then I put a few initial first drafts together for the client to look at. At that point, the client inevitably loves my least favorite draft, and we go from there, tweaking and refining. It’s amazing though how often I end up loving the final design and am glad that I was pushed away from my initial preferences.

FULL TIME FUN I’m definitely both a designer and a printer. I split my time pretty evenly between the two. I’ve been doing it full time since shortly after I started in 2005, and I’m certainly amazed that I’m able to do this full time. The cubicle job that I had after college was not that awesome. During that time I remember mentioning that I’d love to have a print studio at some point in my life. But I definitely didn’t think it would happen so soon, and I didn’t think it would be a career.

BOXCAR’S ROLE The speed and ease with which I can order and receive a plate is huge. As for the plates themselves, my tiny studio appreciates that Boxcar’s plates take up so little physical space and I love how easy it is to trim, alter, and reposition them. It’s much more flexible than other plate systems.

PRESS HISTORY My first press was a Kelsey 5×8 tabletop, which quickly frustrated me. After just a few months I upgraded to the press I still use — a C&P 10×15 Old Style. I was in the bay area at the time, and came across a guy who had been storing an old press in his warehouse for years, and I bought it from him—despite the fact that I knew I would be moving across the country three months later. Transporting the press to NC from California was not easy, but it was totally worth it—I love that press.

SHOP TIPS Occasionally, take on a job that you’re not sure you can pull off.

WHAT’S NEXT The new Parklife Press website just went online in early February and folks really seem to be liking it. I designed and printed a bunch of brand new invitation designs and re-photographed everything. I also added a bunch of new business content.