Zeichen Press – Page 7 – Design & Letterpress for the people.

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?Yikes! 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:
Those Room & Board prints were sure worth all of the sweat I dripped on them last Summer!

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.

Poor thing!

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

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.

May 1, 2011
WATCHandSHAREcards

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

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.

Struck by nostalgia and surrounded by (more) kittens, I took it upon myself to recreate the magic moment of the earnest kitten:When 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:Now 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:

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:

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:

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

Oh, YOU again.

I’m not sure if he was gently�curb-stomped, or he bit into a fresh apple. Either way, he lost his front teeth.

October 8, 2015
Stamp-Lickin’ So You Don’t Have To

Do you fantasize about a service that would lick your stamps (and mail awesome cards to a list of people in your address book)??

YOU DO??

Have you heard of�Postable??

Did I mention that there are Zeichen Press cards in their line?? (NOT letterpress printed, BUT STILL.)Now there really is zero excuse to NOT send a card IN THE MAIL.

*Stay tuned:�Postable�will be adding MORE Zeichen Press cards this week.*

WAIT, I didn’t mention the most important part:

September 28, 2015
Groucho Marx + Turkey = FUNNY

Hoohoo!�I’m laughing already!

More for�RSVP:

September 19, 2015
WOOT.

Does Jen hate letterpress printing SO much that I have to create and license all of the art and farm it off to art licensing companies??

Maybe.

The latest for�RSVP:I know one thing for sure. ONE THING. Jen would�really�hate to print these multi-colored designs. She makes me live in a monochromatic world.�But see how I defy??�FIVE colors??

FIVE.

And now they want more cards! FINE.I’m such a rebel.

September 12, 2015
So NOT Letterpress

Tanek�demanded�a new website, and who am I to argue??�I just do what I’m told.

I designed/art directed it and the good folks at�Carney, made my wishes their command.Observe the fancy bells and whistles!

Rollovers… PDF Downloads… Video Portraits…

And observe what you WON’T observe: My own, personal,�Content Management System.It’s okay to cry. It’s beautiful.

September 7, 2015
Tradition Dictates So I Don’t Have To!

Did I even see Jen on her birthday last week??

Hmm, I don’t think so… But I still made her a card because my love for her just bubbles over and soils the stovetop with a sort of gravy that becomes crusty and has to be scraped off months later with steel wool and maybe a knife.

Whew!

That’s a lot of love!GET IT?!?! CAT-SUP???

Omg, it just doesn’t stop over here!

August 30, 2015
Put a Cat On It

Do you need to sell something? You do??

PUT A CAT ON IT.That sweatshirt is not to be worn ironically and can be yours for a mere $65.

But really, it’s not even realistic. What sort of galaxy is full of white kittens and multi-colored roses??

And where’s the wine and unicorn??

All of those adorable kittens in space DID inspire a graduation card. Don’t ask me why. DON’T ASK ME.

August 23, 2015
What’s A Gal Gotta Do??

Oh, *I* know!

No problem.

August 13, 2015
BE A WOMAN

Don’t tell Blockbuster Video, but I still have a VHS copy of�Alive�in my attic.�I just love survival dramas.�*I*�survived the heat last week, it was pretty dramatic… But I ate no one, despite feeling very�hungry. To celebrate, the Intern and I set some type.AND THEN I wrote/designed more cards for�RSVP, deadline is TOMORROW.�No big deal. Chosen card(s) just go into the Major Supermarkets.

August 2, 2015
ART Licensing

ART, I say!

ART!

RSVP�asked me for some new�art,�SPECIFICALLY for 16th birthdays, BUT stay away from the subject of driving?

Um, ok.

How about the subject of dog poop?I KNOW this is a derivative of MY OWN card.AND a card I made for ANOTHER Art Licensor.�Recycled Paper Greetings.

They also asked for some Wedding Cards… Maybe I’ll say something about flatulence, MAYBE I WON’T.

July 24, 2015