Elle
B
Belle is our dreamboat, beautiful 1965 Redball Heidelberg Windmill that can twirl and whirl and crank out some serious paper.
The sight & sounds of her running are absolutely magical.
And, as she is a more modern gal, she self-feeds the paper with grace and some serious air power. So, basically, she’s a beauty and a beast!
HEIDELBURG Windmill
BUILT IN 1965
LD GIRL
O
Old Girl was our very first press and has a very special place in our hearts!
She is an "Old Style" Chandler and Price platen press cast in Ohio in and around 1889. She has some serious curves!
We acquired her from a retired master printer who had amassed a swoon worthy collection of print and bindery machinery spanning two centuries.
She’s our go-to girl for blind impressions and anytime we need a little help with creasing & scoring.
Chandler & Price 10x15
Circa 1898
ittle Girl
L
Little Girl was our 3rd addition to the family and she is solid gold (figuratively speaking of course!).
She is a 1910 8" x 12” Chandler and Price platen press that has been been retrofitted with a souped-up honeycomb heat plate that allows for printing of metallic and pigment foils (as opposed to ink).
She’s usually covered in a confetti of sparkly foil dust (also called slag, but that doesn’t sound as pretty) and brings a lot of bling to our world!
Chandler & Price 8x12
BUILT IN 1910
at april
F
Fat April was a rescue press that was soundly stuck in an Arlington, VA basement for 50+ years. A sleeping beauty, she still sported the print lockup of her last press run in the 1950s - a Smithsonian newsletter for "The Lichenologist's Society"
It was quite an extraction and involved a lot of butter. We're kidding about the butter! But, we did have to remove quite a bit of house trim and several doors to get her out!
She was christened “Fat April” by our 12-year-old apprentice, who was awarded naming rights after his heroic efforts at blocking traffic while we winched her out. He misread her cast patent markings, gleefully declaring that they read “FAT April” misreading the actual “PAT. April 12 1887”.
As all were fairly punch drunk from exertion at that point, it was the funniest thing we had heard all day. So, of course it stuck!
Chandler & Price 10x15
BUILT IN 1924
iss pearl
M
Miss Pearl is our svelte Golding Pearl #11 improved coming off the assembly line in 1911.
She is just so darling & dainty, weighing in at about 700lbs depending on the day (we don’t like to get too specific). We adopted her from a lovely local artist who had run her own letterpress business for a time.
She can often be found around town at local wedding shows giving people a glimpse into the art of fine paper and usually a fun keepsake they can take away.
Golding Pearl #11
BUILT IN 1917
PRINTERS DEVIL
Flynn
see our work
An apprentice in a printing establishment who performed a number of tasks, such as mixing tubs of ink and fetching type. Notable writers including Benjamin Franklin, Walt Whitman, and Mark Twain served as printer's devils in their youth.
osley
B
Bosley, like Belle, is a Heidelberg Windmill, albeit slightly older.
He’s part the rat pack generation and could give Frank Sinatra a few pointers with his moves.
He handles all of our studio die-cutting and occasional scoring.
Heidelberg Windmill
BUILT IN 1952
iley roo
R
Riley Roo was another rescue press that was hours from being hauled off to the landfill! Can you imagine??
He is a 6"x 10" Pilot Tabletop Press and just so cute it hurts.
He needs a little TLC to get him print ready, but may have a future in our studio as a teaching press.
As he is a bit less dangerous to operate, we may offer some workshops in the future – stay tuned!
C&P Pilot
small but mighty
ordon
G
Gordon is our visiting press. He’s a 5”x8” Kelsey Tabletop model and belongs to a dear friend and incredibly talented local artist.
We ordered him some squishy new rollers, and got him all spiffed up for his next chapter.
2020 extended his visit a bit longer, but we cannot wait to see him settled into new home.
Until then, he’s a keen observer of all the happenings of his much larger cousins.
Kelsey Tabletop
1920's EXCELSIOr
R. Vandy
M
Mr. Vandy is a crotchety old Vandercook No. 1 Proof Press.
We’re not certain of his origins because whenever we ask, he grumbles about all of the newfangled machinery he’s surrounded by.
When he decides to cooperate and be a team player, we use him for test prints with typesetting or larger format deboss items.
