• METRO home found us!

    It was only a matter of time because we were standing outside their office.

    METRO home is a new special section in METRO. The cover of this months issue is intriguing and frightening. It might be a photograph of a bedroom/torture chamber. What’s behind those curtains?metro-home-cover-grabYikes! This room comes with shackles and nightmares.

    Urban Living Manifesto sounds really serious. Do people really take themselves that seriously?? Two words for them: settle. down.

    Oh, but here’s something cheerful - it’s about Zeichen Press:metro-crop-full-page-spread-grab
    Those Room & Board prints were sure worth all of the sweat I dripped on them last Summer!

    fran-in-the-sweat-shop

    May 4, 2011
  • Goodbye Craftstravaganza 2011

    I was right in the middle of a dream where both of my eyeballs were, curiously, weeping blood. This was, of course, followed by an intense search for a public toilet and, AS USUAL, the only available toilet was in a high-traffic area of the Southdale Mall.

    Thank God Jen called and woke me up. But not before I reluctantly (why do I always do it??) sat my bare bottom on the toilet.

    If I’ve learned anything in my life it is how to be wrenched from a sound sleep and into a car in under 5 minutes.

    It’s not pretty but neither is childbirth.

    Jen and I stopped for our traditional latte at the May Day Cafe and then it was onward to the State Fairgrounds. The Fine Arts Building was our cold and unwelcoming host, its huge doors left open to remind us that April can be just as cold as November.

    I’m sure the whole building was full of crafty-goodness but unless tables were set up on the way to the bathroom, I wasn’t going to see them. For eight hours, I did observe the folks running the Burlesque of North America table. They are screen printers – a craft that I have always had a crush on. Anyway, despite the sweetness of their prints, they were just as freezing as us.

    burlesque-worker-cold

    Poor thing!

    Our big experiment for this year’s fair involved a QR code

    qr-code-token

    that led to our latest Watch and Share card.

    It was successful. If you measure success in terms of wishes and smiles. Which I do.

    zp-craftstravaganza-booth-2011

    May 1, 2011
  • WATCHandSHAREcards

    Dynamite magazine was full of hard-hitting news for kids growing up in the 1970’s.dynamite-magazine

    But the best part of the magazine were the centerfolds. I wanted the Hang in There! poster so bad. It would have looked sweet on my closet door – right next to my Jackson 5 poster.

    jackson-5

    Struck by nostalgia and surrounded by (more) kittens, I took it upon myself to recreate the magic moment of the earnest kitten:hang-in-there-pamWhen I was all done forcing the kittens to perform adorable stunts, it was time to make videos of people reading Zeichen Press cards.

    Let me explain: Beneath various cards in our online shop, there will be a link to a video of someone (it could be you!) reading the card aloud. Why? Because even the lazy and the ne’er do wells have a right to Zeichen Press cards.

    April 2, 2011
  • A Grateful Robot and a Ladies Night Out

    My grandma kept a drawer-full of greeting cards in her buffet. An entire drawer, devoted to spontaneous correspondence!

    What a woman.

    She also kept plastic on her sofa and carpet on her kitchen floor. She really wanted to protect her furniture and linoleum.

    The Thank-You Note is a classic greeting card and should be the foundation of any collection. Receiving a thank-you note in the mail is a little bit like finding money in last Winter’s coat or a good hat in a snowbank.

    Let’s write one together!

    First, choose a card:grateful-robotNow on to the writing… We’ll break it down into 5 easy steps:

    1) Begin with a greeting: Dear Aunt Shirley,

    She loves to hear her name because cats can’t talk.

    2) This is the meat of the note and notice there is no appetizer. This is a “note” not a letter. Cut right to it: Thank you so much for the medical marijuana! If the gift from Aunt Shirley was cash, do not mention it. Speak instead of her “generosity.” Thank you for your generosity!

    3) Say a little bit about how you use or will use the gift: I smoke it everyday!

    4) Mention the last time you saw Aunt Shirley and hint at a future meeting: It was lovely to see you at Uncle Bob’s funeral, I hope to see you again before your funeral!

    5) And scene: Love, Fran

    Oh, and here’s another card that will be added to the line:the-only-rule

    February 22, 2011
  • Franstravaganza Part II

    “It is finished.” She gasped as she crumpled to the cold, concrete. It was, by all accounts, glorious. The work would outlast the artist and elevate the art form to new and dizzying heights. 

    But she, exhausted and covered in ink, was oblivious. To her, this was nothing more than an exercise. A functional and fleeting piece, it would be handled roughly and discarded by Springtime.

    Um, so, that poster for Craftsravaganza is, like, done:

    craftstravaganza-poster

    February 14, 2011
  • Franstravaganza!

    There are a couple of things going on around here:

    1) Our fax machine is spitting out orders faster than we (jen) can fill them.

    2) We (I) are (am) making the poster for this year’s Craftstravanganza.

    Just to make my load fair, I listen to a recording of screaming children while I work.

    I think it really shows:

    craftstravaganza-layout-export_1

    Today, I will put ink on that – it will be so spectacular there won’t be a dry eye in the room. (I’ll be the only one in the room.)

    February 13, 2011
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  • Pantone 801 Uncoated Period (Periodo Azul)

    Remember how I promised that when my painkillers wore off, I’d make a card based on The Lung Collapsing Event? It turns out that I only needed them for a couple of days and flushed the rest ~ DON’T GET ANY IDEAS ~ and then I made this breakup card:i love you like a collapsed lung.801

    September 28, 2014
  • #AmericanMadeMSL AND The Land of Counterpane

    Recovering from a collapsed lung is the perfect time to learn all about hashtags.

    Thank you, lung!Land of Counterpane

    I obsessively tweeted and nagged everyone on Facebook. I’M SORRY EVERYONE.

    Wait, #HelpMe.

    It’s been a trending/not-trending rollercoaster-week for Zeichen Press…trending 11screen grab trending 4screen grab trendingtrending.15YOU MUST REALLY BE SUFFERING!

    But may the best (wo)man (named Fran and Jen) win. Did I mention that you have to vote 6x every day through October 13th? And did I mention that my doctor told me that my other lung will collapse if we don’t win??american made finalist badge

    PS: I made a new Mother’s Day card…thankless job.period

    September 26, 2014
  • Voting is a Good Thing

    Running for student council vice president of my Freshman class was so stressful! Our platform was twofold:

    1) Instruct — and therefore unify — our class via a comprehensive Class Cheer: “Nine-tee! Nine-tee! Ninetyninetyninety nine-tee!!! YAYYYY!!”

    2) Oh, I guess it was only a onefold platform…

    NEEDLESS TO SAY, votes were cast, and I won. It was a real nail-biter.AboveAverage

    SPEAKING OF VOTING, you can finally start voting for Zeichen Press here!martha stewart american made logo 2

    And you can (and should!!) vote 6x per day! SIX TIMES. PER DAY.

    September 15, 2014
  • Attack of the Spontaneous Pneumothorax!

    Yikes! That sounds scary!

    Lungs are not supposed to collapse, but that’s what makes life so exciting! Sunday mornings could be all jejune French toast and bacon, OR they could be all ambulance and emergency surgery.collapsed lung discharge papers(I was just as stoic as the woman in the above illustration while they performed my surgery. Eyes wide open, no tears.)

    Life is so full of twists and turns!Fran lung collapse

    There is nothing like having your very own chest tube — my aunt said it was my friend. And indeed it was! My little friend with a one-way valve who caused me nothing but suffering. After just two days, the doctor pulled my friend out of my chest — and again, like the woman in the illustration: I was stoic, with eyes wide open and no tears.

    I’ll write a card about this as soon as my painkillers wear off.

    September 10, 2014
  • We want to be more than just friends with: Portobello Road and Rags

    Portobello Road and Rags -> 4 Dock Street Edgartown, Martha’s Vineyard, MA

    ANOTHER profile in that special series dedicated to bringing our readers biased reviews of shops that carry our goods.

    Great. Now I HAVE to go to Martha’s Vineyard.portobello road.rags signageBut I’ll do it for you, reader, because I’m a giver. A GIVER.

    Will residents of Martha’s Vineyard embrace Zeichen Press cards? Will they clutch them to their breast while weeping tears of joy and relief?? WILL THEY??carly simon

    Oh, Carly Simon! Let us both wear our overalls, place one of our feet delicately upon a fieldstone wall, and laugh and laugh while we read Zeichen Press cards that we (you) bought from Portobello Road!

    Yes, LET’S.portobello road interior inside portobello road

    September 6, 2014
  • American Made… FINALIST!

    Zeichen Press is a finalist for Martha Stewart’s American Made contest. 

    YOU HEARD ME.

    american made finalist badge

    The Grand Prize is $10,000 and Martha legally adopting the winner. Alexis is so tired of being an only child. Remember when I told you to SHARE the American Made Zeichen Press page on Facebook and twitter??

    WHY?

    BECAUSE I’M ACTIVATING MY SOCIAL NETWORK TO EARN A FINALIST SPOT!2014 wildcard bannerHelp!

    And don’t worry, I’ll be harassing you on Sept 15th to vote for us…

    Here’s the script they gave me: The judges have named me a 2014 @AmericanMadeMSL Awards finalist. Support & share my work to get involved! #celebratethemaker

    September 1, 2014
  • American Made!

    We make things!

    We live in America! 

    martha stewart american made logo“American Made spotlights the maker, supports the local, and celebrates the handmade. The program is made up of people and communities that have turned their passion for quality craftsmanship and well-designed goods into a way of life.”

    A WAY OF LIFE.

    BAM.

    In order for Martha to notice Zeichen Press (umm, she should really just ask Alexis about us) YOU need to SHARE our American Made nomination page with all of your Facebook friends and twitter followers:

    • Step one: Click this link.

    • Step two: Scroll down a teensy bit on that page.

    • Step three: Click button that looks like this:american made share buttons(WARNING: The above image IS NOT AN ACTUAL BUTTON, MOM)

    • Step four: Follow instructions.

    PS: I love you.

    PPS: Deadline is Friday! NO BIG DEAL.
    August 27, 2014
  • Ode to Jen

    Merry Jenmas, everyone!

    MY dog must have been confused, she left birthday presents for Jen on my living room floor last night? Oh, Millie…Millie-wearing-a-wig

    Thomas Edison’s quote is so true: Genius is one percent inspiration and ninety-nine percent spray bleach.dont step in the birthday present I made for you

    August 26, 2014
  • Adiós Diablo

    I had a pretty big realization when I was 23. This revelation came as I was drifting off to sleep and caused me to sit straight up in bed.

    CRUELLA DE VIL = CRUEL DEVIL!!!CRUELLA DE VILHow could I have been so blind for so long?!

    No matter. Here’s a card.going going going gone

    August 23, 2014
  • Oh, that old saying!

    You know what I’m talking about??

    Read the card out loud for full effect.the saw that woke the sherpas yak

    August 14, 2014
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