Cranky Pressman

{ LET LETTERPRESS BE LETTERPRESS }

2010-08-17T00:10:45-04:00

Tips on designing for the medium.

The mood took a turn for the worse and things got awkward when Keith Berger, the Cranky Pressman, took the stage at the recent Pecha Kucha Cleveland 8 event. As shown in this video, he lectures for over 6 grueling minutes about creating design and artwork for letterpress print production. It's like watching ink dry on paper.

Thanks to AIGA Cleveland for putting everyone through this experience.

{ Jennifer Daniel ~ Unicorn Groomer }

2010-08-09T20:55:37-04:00

¶ When I first discovered Jennifer Daniel's work I was struck by the concise wit and fantastic diversity of her portfolio which ranges from icons to illustration and information graphics. Then when our letterpress printing shop was recently called upon by Jennifer to print her new business cards my delight could hardly be contained to find out that Ms Daniel had diversified her business even further to now offering professional unicorn grooming services.

The project involved letterpress production of three business cards, each with a different illustration and typography. This is another example of smart work by the fledgling mythical services entrepreneur. Designers can create mix & match sets such as this when small sized pieces, like cards or postcards, can be ganged on a single sheet during the printing run. This is possible when the different versions use the exact same ink colors and printing specifications. Some designs may not be suitable for gang printing and graphic designers should speak to us before finalizing their artwork so we can advise on the the most efficient way to run the work.

Cranky Pressman created a duplexed paper where two different colors of stock are bonded together. Pop-Tone in Sweet Tooth and Razzleberry colors by French Paper Co. was used, each in 100 lb. cover weight bringing the finished weight of the card to a heavy 200 lbs. The card fronts were letterpress printed in 2 colors, Black and Rubine Red with matching Rubine edge tinting.

This is an close-up of the ASCII illustration technique used by Jennifer Daniel. It also shows how letterpress relief printing makes a physical bite impression or indentation into the paper surface. At actual size, although very beautiful, the bite is more subtle than it appears in this photo. Even the tiniest of circus flea can look quite extreme when magnified to gigantic proportions.

Of course good design thinking and technique can only take you so far. Luck can also play a part in any creative process and Jennifer accounted for this fact by including a special card in her project guaranteeing success, fame and fortune. We assume this is a big selling point with most pet unicorn owners.

See all the magic of Jennifer Daniel at her website:

http://httpcolonforwardslashforwardslashwwwdotjenniferdanieldotcom.com

{ ASS BACKWARD }

2010-07-30T01:41:34-04:00

Working with letterpress is not the same as working in CMYK or RGB. It calls for some backwards thinking.

¶ Tonight, July 30th, 2010 Keith (the Cranky Pressman) will be giving a presentation at PechaKucha Cleveland Volume 8. The title is Let Letterpress Be Letterpress - Tips on designing for the medium. In 20 slides and 20 seconds each he will try to give some useful information for designers creating work for this unique old medium. Alternatively he may just freeze up and babble some incoherent nonsense for 6.5 minutes. We will see, and hope anyone in the Cleveland area can make it out to what should be an interesting evening.

A sneak peak at some of the work included in the presentation after the jump.

Hand-set wood type poster by Mikey Burton.

Even though most design and artwork for letterpress production is created digitally, you still should consider the quirky imperfections of the relief printing process.

Some of the techniques that letterpress is well suited for include patterning and inkless blind impression as shown in the example above.

Decorative line illustration printed in 2-color letterpress on Lettra cotton paper stock.

Die-cutting, typography printed in 2-color with blind impression patterning give letterpress its unique tactile quality.

Hand-Cranked Social Media

2010-04-24T23:55:19-04:00

¶ Getting along with others is not easy. Relationships require all that commitment of personal time, attention and effort, even when not particularly in the mood. But it’s the price you must pay if you want a bridge foursome.
Online social networking is just as difficult. The searching, writing, posting, commenting, uploading, tweeting, retweeting and even retweeting damn retweets is as labor intensive as hand-setting 12 point lead type.
This recently completed letterpress project for Shadow Works depicts the big search and social networking websites as clunky old apparatus. Having plodded along for a while now with twitter, facebook and the like, I appreciate the comparison. Even though it’s made on a computer, the best social networking feels hand crafted by an actual person who cares.

Continue reading to see the whole Shadow Works series and a list of this old letterpress printer’s feeble attempts at social networking.

Shadow Works series designed by Ray Marrero and illustrated by Kyle Confehr

~ Cranky Pressman on social networking so far ~

facebook. The Pressman off the clock and away from the shop shares art, design and cultural bits and pieces that catch his eye. It’s a hobby.

twitter. Thought it was a load of nonsense at first but now seems more like friendly banter than useless yapping. The insight we gain is invaluable. Hope our blabber is likewise.

flickr. There isn’t a single thing not to like about flickr, except maybe that we only ever get around to posting a small sampling of the work we produce for our creative customers.

posterous. How the hell does that thing work? E-mail in all your crap and it’s perfectly formatted in a blog post! If only everything were as easy. Nonetheless, this old guy still can’t keep up with the postings.

tumbler. One of the reasons our posterous has been neglected is we had to try the tumbler. So simple I have no idea what it’s purpose is but am throwing pictures on it until I figure it out.

delicious. Maybe I haven’t tried hard enough, but our delicious network is sadly lacking. Collecting the bookmarks just need a few more contacts.

LinkedIn. This link is to my personal LinkedIn page. Yet again it’s a halfassed attempt on my part. However, I’m thinking it should be at the top of the list of priorities for both myself and the Cranky geezer.

We are working on a concept for a Cranky Pressman LinkedIn page that would be of interest to designers, art directors, illustrators and other creative professionals. If you have any ideas let us know in the comments.

The SOCIETY of ILLUSTRATORS

2010-03-05T16:10:19-05:00

~ 52nd Annual Exhibition ~

Cranky Pressman is pleased as Punch to have our piece included in the current Society of Illustrators "Annual Exhibition: Illustrators 52". The work we call 'Old Creative Juices' was created by our old friend the talented and witty David Flaherty. Cheers Dave and congratulations!
Founded in 1901, The Society is a creative industry and New York institution. The annual show celebrates outstanding illustrative works in three categories; Sequential and Uncommissioned, Book and Editorial, as well as an Advertising and Institutional exhibit where our letterpress print is featured. Opening reception for the Ad category is tonight, March 5, 2010 at the museum’s galleries in New York City’s Upper East Side.

Production notes and copywriting for the piece after jump.

Old Creative Juices was mailed to graphic designers, art directors, illustrators, photographers, advertising agencies and design studios throughout the country. The copywriting on the back reads:

At his age, the Cranky Pressman is at peace with himself. Never again will he possess the most newfangled technology in town. After all, letterpress printing was invented hundreds of years ago. He's a tad slow, overweight, and at times stubborn, but can help take your graphic imagination places even a supercomputer cannot. That's why creative folks (who seem to get younger every day) still enjoy working with letterpress. And ultimately, that's what keeps the Cranky Pressman going because once you cease to be relevant, you just fade away.

Letterpress printed 3 over 2 on our house 100% Recycled Stock, 110# cover weight, with low VOC vegetable based inks.

David Flaherty website • The Society of Illustrators

{ LETTERPRESS WEDDING INVITATION JOBBERS }

2010-02-10T22:41:03-05:00

¶ After a slow season in 2009, wedding plans and bridezillas are again moving ahead at full force. Letterpress printing orders are up and love is in the air mixed with the smell of ink cleaning solutions. Cranky Pressman has devised a Standard 4-Piece Invitation Set that offers designers a lower-priced option for any invitation projects on tighter budgets. These packages will be available soon for online ordering along with additional separate pieces for more creative options. In the meantime, 2010 prices are set and we are cheerfully taking orders and quoting projects by e-mail or at 800-433-1288.

Download Standard 4-Piece Invitation Set Template (PDF/Adobe Illustrator)

Notice to Brides to Be! Cranky Pressman is a trade letterpress printing shop serving professional graphic designers. We only work from properly prepared digital artwork files and do not offer design or artwork preparation services. A list of qualified invitation designers can be found at the end of this post.

Following are a few of the wedding invitation jobs we’ve created in past years. Continue reading for additional examples.

Charming hand drawn illustrations create delightful invitations for a New York City wedding. Designer Laura Koo. 2-color letterpress printing on Lettra Pearl White cotton paper stock.

Garden theme plays out beautifully across the various pieces of this wedding invitation set. Designer Sarah Champlin. 3-color letterpress printing on Lettra Fluorescent White cotton paper stock.

Warm autumnal invitation design for an October wedding. Designer Emily Moody. 2-color letterpress printing on Lettra Pearl White cotton paper stock. Return address is printed in 1-color on envelope flap.

For custom invitation design we recommend these talented companies:

Sarah Marie • Super Fine Design • Kramer Drive • Carli Dottore

~ Call Cranky Pressman at 800-433-1288 for all letterpress printing services ~

{ FREE LETTERPRESS CALENDAR }

2009-12-30T16:35:08-05:00

HAPPY NEW AND IMPROVED YEAR!

¶ Not ones to complain... Oh wait, I suppose we are. In that case it has to be said, 2009 was a year of epic awfulness that everyone, except the fat cat bankers, is happy to see the backside of. About the only good thing I see coming out of the mess will be stories of the Great Recession that will bore kids to tears for generations to come.

In all honesty, Cranky Pressman did okay but things could have been better. It was quite clear that budgets were tight, designers were pushing for work but clients were holding back. Not surprising. On the bright side we produced some fabulous work for our customers and appreciate every single piece.

So in a rare moment of positive thinking we present our second annual self-promotional calendar. If ever there was a time to put the past behind and prepare for the work ahead it is now. We hope everyone has a great and prosperous new year. We also are interested in your thoughts on 2009 and outlook for 2010 so will send a free letterpress calendar, like the one pictured above, to the first 50 people who comment on this post. Details after the break.

How was your 2009? Send us your impressions of the year and/or your predictions for the year ahead in the comments section of this post. We are particularly interested in your professional or work-related stories but will send a free calendar to the first 50 people who post a relevant comment of any kind.

Those who comment should also e-mail name and mailing address where the calendar is to be sent. We will enter the information in our mailing list for occasional future letterpress mailings unless you specify not to. Everyone can be assured that we will never sell or share your details with anyone. Free calendar offer is only available to U.S. addresses.

This year’s calendar design was done by Joseph Hughes of Northcoast Zeitgeist All images and production are 100% Pixel Free created using only existing cuts, ornaments, metal and wood type around our print shop. We thank Joe for his hard work.

Finally, when the time comes be sure to keep our Letterpress Calendars in mind to create your own 2011 designs.

~ Here’s to a better 2010 from Cranky Pressman ~