The Reason For It All
September 10th, 2009 § 7 Comments
So I went on this fabulous trip to Portland and San Francisco…alone. Why? Why would I go to such beautiful places without anyone to enjoy them with? The answer: letterpress. This was a letterpress vacation. I went to learn the craft, meet new people, and see a city (Portland) that I’ve been waiting to see for so many years. I wanted to share some pictures with you regarding the real reason for my vacation.
My first stop was the IPRC (Independent Publishing Resource Center) in Portland where I took my first letterpress class and practiced for several evenings. The press room was so great.


So lucky to meet Ellen, an amazing person in Portland whom I had the pleasure of spending a lot of time with. It’s so much fun traveling and meeting people. Here, we’re setting type.


I made about 100 of these little cards and lined the envelopes with this fantastic paper. I really like the end result!

Mid week I took a one-on-one workshop with Inge Bruggeman of Textura Printing, an amazingly talented artisan and equally impressive teacher. Her studio was heavenly. She helped me make a lot of fun goodies, which will remain secrets right now. :)



Back at the IPRC, locking type.

An example of someone’s work at the IPRC. So funny, I think.

My last stop was in San Francisco, where I took a class from Jordan Ferney, author of the great blog, Oh Happy Day!

All in all, it was a dream of a vacation. Gorgeous surroundings, new friends, perfect weather, and learning a ton all at the same time. Perfection.
wow Lauren, looks like you had an amazing trip! Loved all your photos from Portland as well… they made me homesick!!
I want that “you shitty cat” note card! : ) Looks awesome.
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