The Artforme of Letterpress
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Few industries have been disrupted by the internet more than the wedding industry.
From apps and websites to online photo galleries and Instagram (and we can’t forget everyone’s favourite – Pinterest), the internet has completely changed the way we interact with vendors, explore themes and get the word out, which is pretty obvious seeing as you’re reading about this on a website!
But here at HerCanberra we believe that while the internet rocks, holding something beautiful in your hands and feeling the texture of paper is a timeless pleasure that everyone can enjoy. We follow this passion by printing our quarterly Magazine, but when it comes to weddings, it’s hard to go past lusciously letterpressed stationery.
For Canberra-based letterpress craftsman John Steggall, his love of the art developed in the 70s.
“I started my apprenticeship in 1970 in hand and machine letterpress typesetting in Melbourne,” he says. “It wasn’t until the early 2000s that I was able to work with letterpress machinery again. I had been thinking about starting a letterpress printing business since the late 1990s.”
John Steggall
Artforme Letterpress Studio was established at M16 in Fyshwick in 2007 and has been supplying Canberra and the region with beautiful stationery for weddings and special occasions ever since.
If you’re unfamiliar with letterpress, it’s the technique of relief printing using an old school printing press on heavy 100% cotton paper. The polar opposite of modern e-invites, it takes hours for John to complete an order as he carefully orchestrates the entire process by hand.
“To have the press ready to print the first colour on an invitation would take about two hours,” he explains. ‘This includes making film from approved artwork, the printing plate, mixing ink and the press make-ready. Each colour is another pass through the press.”
Looking for a truly bespoke wedding stationery? Artforme offers complete design services, with in-house graphic designer Samantha available to meet with couples to discuss their style and ideas for an elegant custom design. With an enormous love for print design, Samantha is passionate about helping Artforme’s clients announce and celebrate their love with letterpress.
So what are some of the innovative ways you can use letterpress for your celebration?
Here are some of our favourites
DELICATE ACCENTS
BOLD DETAIL
SWIRLING SCRIPT
SUBTLE IMPRINTS
METALLIC HIGHLIGHTS
Be sure to catch John and Sam at UNVEILED The Event this Saturday 3 June at the National Portrait Gallery from 2pm-6pm. They’ll be on hand to chat all things wedding stationery and will have a generous range of samples for you to touch and feel!
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