Letterpress Printing

Wonderful Rare Things

2012-01-30T14:02:00.000-08:00

Wonderful rare things from Glasgow designer, Chloe Harrison, at Studio Gnu. Come forage, and meet a range of Scottish wildlife fit to hang above the fireplace of your tower house.

Loved this design when we first saw it and knew it would look fabulous letterpress printed - and of course it does! The stock is Colorplan 540gsm Bright White and is printed in two colours of ink, black and gold.

Burns Night Celebration

2012-01-25T04:59:00.000-08:00

Today we celebrate the anniversary of the birth of Robert Burns, Scotland's national bard (1759-1796). In his short but full life, Rabbie penned some of the world's greatest poetry and left a legacy of literary treasures which will be recited and pondered over at tonight's Burns Suppers.

Merchant Soul asked us to produce a very fine invitation and menu for a Burns Supper to be held in Edinburgh.

The stock is a bonding of Cranes Lettra and Colorplan to give a weight of 650gsm. The beautifully soft Lettra has a verse of one of Burns' most loved poems, "My Love Is Like A Red, Red Rose", blind debossed. The invitation text is then letterpress printed over this in grey.

The reverse of the card is Colorplan Cobalt and employs the thistle and rose symbol, cleverly entwined.

Then let us pray that come it may,
(As come it will for a' that,)
That Sense and Worth, o'er a' the earth,
Shall bear the gree, an' a' that.
For a' that, an' a' that,
It's coming yet for a' that,
That Man to Man, the world o'er,
Shall brothers be for a' that.

The Whisky Bond

2012-01-13T08:01:00.000-08:00

The Whisky Bond is a creative factory with shared values of independence and innovation at its heart. Opening in April 2012 it will be the new home for Glasgow Sculpture Studios as well as many other artists, designers, filmakers and creatives. Follow @whiskybond

Kerr Vernon designed this eyecatching promotional card. In a wee drinks mix, we letterpress printed The Whisky Bond card on Beermat Board, which gives a lovely crisp impression.

Toothpic Nations

2012-01-11T02:00:00.000-08:00

Here's a stack of glowing business cards for Rebecca Lai, of Toothpic Nations.
Rebecca says, "Toothpic Nations is a theme e-shop that promotes and sells contemporary design products by independent Asian designers. Our launch theme is 'stationery' and we aim to bring unique, functional and well made products to the U.K. market.
As you can see from the website, logo and card design, the style is quite simple, minimal and bold. There is also a fun element to the business name and logo design which is also reflected in some of our products. Find us at www.toothpicnations.co.uk"

We letterpress printed the cards on Colorplan 540gsm, two sheets of 270gsm Pristine White bonded together. This weight is ideal for double sided printing. The finishing touch is edge painting in the same ink colour as the OO!

And here's Toothpic Nations own blog entry on these beautiful business cards.

Five Gold Rings

2012-01-07T16:55:00.000-08:00

Artist, Helen Voce, seized the opportunity to send this seasonal card, combining a popular Christmas symbol with that of the forthcoming Olympic Games, and asked us to produce this card for her.

Helen writes, "The design was very simply a connection between the five rings of the Olympic logo and the Twelve Days of Christmas carol. 2011 was the only year I could do it so I went for it and was keen to find a specialist who could produce the desired effect I was looking for - Glasgow Press! I packaged the card in an envelope which had 'On the fifth day of Christmas, my true love gave to me....' on the outside."

Helen gave precise instruction regarding impression depth on the symbol and text, and after our usual meticulous tinkering we achieved just what she was after in gold foil on soft Cairn board.

Montessori Education

2011-11-17T16:10:00.000-08:00

The Edinburgh Montessori Arts School "supports and encourages discovery, problem solving and creativity, developing children’s self esteem and confidence through freely chosen, enjoyable pursuits. Each child’s abilities are refined and their powers of expression enriched."

The school's logo evokes the positive ethos of Montessori education whilst conveying its imaginative approach and enthusiasm for life.

We were pleased to print a business card for the school, designed by Janey Boyd at Mamook Graphic Design.

The stock is Colorplan from GF Smith, a duplex of Fuchsia and Bright White at 540gsm.

On the white side, we letterpress printed two colours of ink, one of which we matched to the Fuchsia board. The swirly sun logo and the aphorism, "inspiring young minds" are blind debossed.

We foiled the school logo on the fuchsia side in a clear gloss. Bright, vibrant and stimulating!

Barter

2011-11-07T13:01:00.000-08:00

It was good to be involved in the print side of this excellent project with designer, Tess Wood. The stock is Cairn Craft, the ink is black and the Barter project sounds like a lot of fun!

High Class Work Done On Premises

2011-11-02T14:34:00.000-07:00

Two historical photographs of the Govan Printing Works;

the former name of today's Glasgow Press.

This is a treasured picture of our premises, taken in August 1933. The front is a stationery shop where orders are placed for all types of printing. At the back is a well furnished caseroom, quiet and comfortable. Adjoining this is the busy printroom, resonating to the sounds of printing presses and the chat of printers and finishers. Although none of today's staff were actually there in the 30s, the shop didn't change for decades and I can give a pretty accurate description of how it was.

Outside, the main signage for the shop reads, "Govan Printing Works. High Class Work Done On Premises". The biggest window sign declares, "Printing Is Our Business" and another sign alongside reads, "Stationery, Bibles and Hymnaries. Leather Goods." A banner display advertises "Swan Fountpens and Inks."

Inside the window, which extends down to floor level, there are rows of shelves displaying books. From my own experience, I'd say these will be sales and purchase ledger books, cash day books, receipt books, order books, slim boxes of waxy deep blue carbon paper, diaries, notebooks, scrapbooks, typewriting paper, autograph books, stamp collector's albums, envelopes, writing paper in Albert, Duke, Post Quarto and Foolscap, and so on.

Hanging in the window are displays of postcards and what looks like lots of pictures and photos around the bottom of the window - maybe scraps? This is summer time, but by October these will be replaced by calendars which will also be strung up and held by bulldog clips inside the shop, like clothes on a line.
On the outside wall between the shops, there is a glass case which displays samples of printed cards, for which you may place an order, Madam.

Next door on the right hand side you can see the 'L' of the Lyceum Cafe on the sign and on the other side, the sign says 'Records' and there's sheet music in the window and, I think, I can see a violin.

The second photograph is dated August 1939. We're on the brink of war but things are still looking dandy. The Lyceum has just had a makeover in the latest Art Deco style. On our other side, the music shop is now a Dairy, boasting "Finest Value in Ham, Butter and Eggs" with a banner advertising HP Sauce. Look at the first floor above the Lyceum - a pretty birdcage is suspended in the window.
The top half of the shop window is covered by a large poster advertising "High Class Printing of All Descriptions - Let Us Quote". The poster also proclaims "Wedding Stationery; A Speciality", and there's a phone number! Is it Govan 306? Our no. now is 0141 237 3032
Ticket Writing is another service offered; Tickets, Posters, Showcards, summat else I can't make out, Pelmets, Displays.
Wonder what happened to Swan Ink which was so prominent? In later years, Quink was the Ink for your fountain pen.

What a glorious shop, full of neat and tidy boxes containing: sealing wax, newspaper wrappers, balls of string of various strengths, tapes and ribbons of varying lengths, ink pads, rubber stamps, rubber bands, rubber fingerettes, rubber erasers, paper spikes, gums and glues, laundry pens indelible, lead pencils erasable, china markers, fountain pens and selections of nibs, scalpels and guillotines, paper clips, eyelets, staples and paper fasteners, raffle tickets, strung tags, dance tickets, correspondence cards, calling cards, condolence cards, celebrations and invitations, acceptance and regrets, in memoriam . . .

RM - Ramsay MacFarlane

2011-10-29T00:18:00.000-07:00

The personal business card of talented freelance designer, Ramsay MacFarlane, is a fusion of classic design and modern flair. In Ramsay's own words, "as people increasingly stare at pixels on a screen, printed promotions can have a more personal and lasting impression.As well as graphic design, material choice and printing methods are equally important in creating print; from business cards and product packaging." All sentiments with which we would heartily agree.

Stock is a heavy duplex 700gsm of Colorplan pristine white and ebony. We letterpress printed in dense black ink to the white side and foiled Ramsay's signature logo in glossy black foil.

A Wooden Tree

2011-10-26T03:27:00.000-07:00

Creativity is abounding in this beauty, designed by Adam Wilson of fourcolourblack for textile artist Kirsty Anderson of A Wooden Tree. Now, your delectable purchases will be enhanced by a lovely personalised swing tag.

A very thoughtful choice of stock made this a pleasure to print. Cairn Board is recycled stock made from 100% pre-consumer waste and as can be seen at 700micron, gives a deep, crisp impression. It's available from Paperback in a nice range of colours - this one is Almond. We mixed a rich brown ink and letterpress printed before drilling the hole in the tag.

All That Jazz; Award Winner

2011-10-20T16:14:00.000-07:00

"The 2011 Chairman's Award for Design goes to Glad for Nottingham Jazz Business Card."

An excellent result for Glad Creative, with whom we've had the pleasure of working on a number of pieces, including the award winning business card for Nottingham Jazz at the recent Roses Design Awards.

The prestigious Chairman's Award demands high standards on every count. Chairman Jack Renwick said "this was the piece that I remembered most throughout the day's judging ... the choice of stock was the icing on the cake."

And the stock was . . Colorplan by GF Smith, Mid Green at 540gsm weight. The face of the card has a buckram emboss and the reverse is a plain finish.

We letterpress printed the business card in black ink on a Heidelberg Platen to the strains of Duke Ellington on the gramophone, of course.

Printers' Pie part 1

2011-09-27T15:48:00.000-07:00

Dan Snr. of Glasgow Press writes, I admit to having a weakness for pies – Scotch, steak, macaroni, apple, rhubarb, gooseberry, raspberry, cherry – yes, you've got it, give me anything encrusted in a nice-tasting pastry and I am hooked! So, last week I was in heaven when I heard our neighbour had given us four 'buckets' full of 'pie' in which I could indulge myself.

For an explanation we need to go back to pre-computer days – the 1940s and beyond: I was an apprentice compositor with a company called Gilmour&Dean, of Fordneuk Street, Bridgeton, Glasgow. It was a fairly-big outfit who did quality colour work and had 'quality' customers, including a few large carpet manufacturers (who needed colourful, patterned carpet leaflets). G&D also printed for India Tyres, Babcock&Wilcox, and so on.

As an apprentice you'd be given the job of 'dissing' (distributing) Founders' type back into the proper box of the proper case. Founders' type was bought in from the typesetters, as against that produced in-house, e.g. linotype or monotype which would be melted down after printing, and re-used.

When 'dissing', you had to know the layout of the typecase, and be sure that the typeface and size matched what was already in the case, before 'dissing' the job.
Printers' Pie would come about if there was a mix of different fonts in the case or, more spectacularly, if you pulled a typecase out of a frame too far and spilled the contents onto the floor.

Caserooms were generally 'library-like' quiet, and a case of type spilling was not something that could go unnoticed. I don't recall this happening too often – but when it did, there would be loud cheering and jeering and stamping of feet from the unsympathetic fellow compositors – and even louder and more sensational if they learned that it was a case of 6-point Spartan.
Our foreman, who suffered from ulcers and had a perpetual worried look on his face, would be quick to try and calm the situation before the works' manager should happen past.

So, this is Printers' Pie; the result of an upset case (which might take a month to put right), or it may be a 'galley' of type going the same way as the case – scattering across the floor. Which leads me on to my four buckets of Printers' Pie – not for eating – but, strangely enough, something which I found very satisfying.

I enjoyed the nostalgia of going back to the 'setting-stick in hand' days and the dusty, real-feel of lead-type as against 'knocking-out' letters on a computer keyboard.
Wonderful as the computer may be, and is, there is nothing like a bit of Printers' Pie to cheer up the day.

Tasting Notes

2011-09-16T01:42:00.000-07:00

Whisky Tasting Notes are always a delight to typeset. We especially love the enchanting, lyrical quality of those from Bruichladdich Distillery on the Isle of Islay.

Their Celtic Heartland bottlings are described in this special card which we foil blocked in silver onto Plike.
Plike is a unique range of paper and board from Italywith the unusual surface texture of rubber.

Would you like to have a sample? Then, please e-mail or message us and we'll send one to you . . sorry, just the card, not the whisky.

Blown Away . . .

2011-09-12T13:04:00.000-07:00

It seems appropriate, as gale force winds rage round our printworks today, to feature a postcard we printed showing how good letterpress print and hotfoil looks on 100% windpower papers.
The paper is a fusion of Strathmore Grandee (bordeaux purple) and Strathmore Writing (natural), both available in the UK from GF Smith, bonded to a plump weight of 514gsm.
The gusty old North Wind is blowing with all his might in three colours of ink and on the reverse a silvery smooth foil shows how well suited these papers are to our fine craft.

Top of the Class

2011-09-07T03:12:00.000-07:00

This invitation to attend a reception at Morrison's Academy reflects the fine tradition and exceptional qualities that makes Morrison's one of the leading independent schools in the UK.

Designed by Kayak, the card is a duplex board at 540gsm weight. The bright white side is letterpress printed deep red ink on the white side. After some research, we were able to source a perfect shade of foil for the bokhara red side to incorporate the school colours.

Communications Over the Wire

2011-08-31T02:32:00.000-07:00

A cleverly creative business card communicates the services offered by Wire Media. Designed by Everyone, we letterpress printed in black ink onto both sides of a chunky 700gsm duplex Colorplan stock - bright white to citrine - from GF Smith.

Wayzgoose On The Waverley

2011-08-29T14:33:00.000-07:00

There's a fair bit of traffic flowing past our printworks. This grand lady is The Waverley, the world's last ocean-going paddle steamer. We snapped her as she passed at 7 minutes past 10 this morning on her last voyage of the summer season.

A trip on The Waverley was a favourite choice for the annual Wayzgoose of many of Glasgow's printing companies, as it offered all the components of a great day out; entertainment, refreshments, splendid surroundings, beautiful scenery and a convivial atmosphere.

It takes a hefty bit to maintain such a vessel as The Waverley, and she is in need of a bit of support to tide her over the winter months. So, along with Glasgow Press, you can keep her afloat by making a donation here and keep the printers happy for many long years to come.

Brand Spanking Pocapoc

2011-08-25T16:52:00.000-07:00

How's this for a great idea from Pocapoc Creative? Order business cards in a thick 540gsm Colorplan board of Pistachio and Bright White. Get a big whack of them printed in ink to match the pistachio with a complementary colour of wild west logo featuring cowboy with lariat, ready to lasso plenty of clients, on the reverse.

Then take them home and set about them with your own personalised rubber stamps and ink pads.

Great fun and very effective. Brand spanking!

Hollywood Comes to Town

2011-08-23T20:20:00.000-07:00

World War Z is being filmed in Glasgow this month with some of the action being shot next door to our printworks in The Big Shed.
One of the stars of the movie sauntered by to take a look at some of our letterpress print work. He was very impressed, as was our devil, who looks well chuffed. Awright, big man.

Diane Robertson; d r d

2011-08-22T01:19:00.000-07:00

Always nice to print a set - in this case, business card and compliment slip for London based designer, Diane Robertson. drd's creative approach offers a fresh, professional look that will help a company stand out above its competitors.
This is reflected in the agency's own stationery, printed on Colorplan stock from GF Smith.
The business card is a bond of Bright White to Smoke, 540gsm. drd's logo is foiled in white and the reverse of the card is letterpress printed in an ink mixed to match the Smoke side, as is the compliment slip.

Ssssssmoke

2011-08-17T15:14:00.000-07:00

Smoked Salmon from Scotland is appreciated and enjoyed around the globe. This little card, with rich coppery foil applied to pearly grey stock, celebrates the Scottish smoked salmon scene. Tuck in!

Rosemary Carr; Good to Know

2011-08-15T02:00:00.000-07:00

It's the fine detail that makes this business card for Rosemary Carr outstanding. Design is by Taxi Studio and paper from GF Smith.
White and silver foil is applied to amethyst Colorplan and letterpress printed in co-ordinating inks to bright white, with an eyecatching logo in silver foil.

Rosemary Carr sends compliments via a crisp Colorplan sheet, letterpress printed in two colours of ink with the signature silver foil trademark. Beautiful design, and very good to know!

Kenny Macalister Hall

2011-06-28T04:54:00.000-07:00

Kenny Hall is a graphic designer working for a variety of clients, large and small, developing identities, brands, advertisements, corporate and promotional literature, packaging and websites.

We letterpress printed Kenny's business cards on the mouthwatering combination of Colorplan Mandarin to Vellum with a mandarin ink mix. Enticing design. slurp.

Joshua Middleditch

2011-06-14T03:03:00.000-07:00

Joshua Middleditch is a young graphic design student from Yorkshire who was nominated in the D&AD student awards, 2011.

For his personal business cards, Joshua chose Colorplan Triplex 810gsm, Bright White outers with Emerald Green in the middle.

We letterpress printed two colours of ink, grey and green, to front and reverse of the card.

The high level of talent we see in today's student designers gives us cause to look forward to the future of print and design.

Mi Suny; Solar Power

2011-06-10T04:08:00.000-07:00

We enjoy working with Mark Foster, always an interesting and innovative graphic designer. He contacted us to discuss the creation of a business card for Mi Suny, producers of solar powered mobile phone chargers.
Mark's final design replicated the product on one side and maintained the company details on the reverse.

The stock is Colorplan Triplex, made from 3 x 270gsm weight boards in a sandwich of Pristine White, Medina Green and Ebony.

The Ebony face has a blind deboss and a gloss black panel overlaid with silver foil and a white foil for the company name.

The Pristine White side is letterpress printed in black and green ink, with careful attention to registration!

Finally the cards were diecut with an oval hole punched at top right.

And here's the solar powered mobile charger itself!

The Printer's Devil of Glasgow Press

2011-06-09T03:54:00.000-07:00

Long, long ago when Dan Snr. of Glasgow Press was serving his time as an apprentice Compositor, he attended a weekly class at Glasgow's printing college in Cowcaddens.
His college scarf with the Printer's Devil emblazoned thereon, is a family heirloom - one that we still fight over in the cold winter weather.

As children, we were a bit scared of him and remember various apprentices - printer's devils themselves - frightening us half to death with tales of devils hiding amongst paper cuttings or waiting to jump out on us from ink cupboards!
Nowadays, we're more freaked by him shifting type or moving paper from where we just put it down.

The Printer's Devil is part of our heritage. His contribution has kept our levels of quality printing, service and efficiency super keen, so we've decided to give him a well deserved place as our emblem.
He'll be loving this extra notoriety. Watch your back!

Debbie Smyth; Textile Artist

2011-05-31T02:47:00.000-07:00

We letterpress printed these amazing cards designed by Dave Sedgwick for innovative Textile Artist, Debbie Smyth.

The stock is a Colorplan Triplex 1050gsm with ink mixed to match the turquoise middle layer. Holes were then punched through this weighty board, ker-pow!

Love the design, love Debbie's work, check it out - it was a beauty to make!

Scottish Design Award: Stationery

2011-05-25T14:37:00.000-07:00

This amazing design for Shannon Tofts Photography from Size Design received the Award for Stationery at the Scottish Design Awards this month http://bit.ly/lifkKb

This was a technically challenging task. The stunning T/camera logo required a number of print runs to achieve depth and detail.
Firstly, a solid image of the camera with scant detail was printed with a light impression. The next plate, with additional camera detail, was applied with a heavier hit, printing black on black.
Finally, grey text was printed.

Letterheads are printed on crisp Colorplan 135gsm pristine white and the business cards are a very smart Colorplan Triplex 810gsm, pristine white to ebony to pristine white.

Turner & Moss Photography

2011-05-17T06:55:00.000-07:00

A very fine business card for Fine Art and Landscape Photographers Turner & Moss
Designed by Amy Turner, the stock is Colorplan Duplex of ebony and pristine white.
White side is letterpress printed in black ink and a butterfly motif is foiled in glossy black to the ebony.
This beautiful card has all the elements - excellent design, quality stock and expert print - suitable for photographers of Turner & Moss's calibre.

Grid Lines

2011-05-10T13:24:00.000-07:00

Here's a business card that will make you look twice. Name and contact details are contained within the grid in a smart, concise style.
Designed by Ben Mclaughlin for photographer, Theo Simpson, the business card is letterpress printed, face and reverse, on weighty bright white.

A Marriage of Design and Craftsmanship

2011-05-04T02:06:00.001-07:00

The marriage of excellent design and fine craftsmanship results in many beautiful pieces, one of which we feature from our archive, as a memorable record of a joyful day.

We letterpress printed the invitation in black ink onto Colorplan duplex 540gsm in a variety of colours.

Blue Water Networks

2011-04-29T15:38:00.000-07:00

And so the wedding razzmatazz is done, what's next? The honeymoon of course!
The romance of a royal yachting holiday is captured perfectly in this classic business card of weighty Colorplan, letterpress printed ink of turquoise and slate with gleaming foil on the reverse.

Blue Water Networks is a new and exclusive satellite airtime provider for yachts.
"Exclusive" is the key word here, which is why the client chose beautifully crafted business cards over cheaper, mass-produced options.
The design is by Jane Ink and a subtle, turquoise foil has been used to give the logo just the right amount of glamour for the Mediterranean sunshine.
Visit Blue Water Networks to find out more.

Illustrious Royalty

2011-04-26T14:48:00.001-07:00

In the week of the Royal Wedding, Glasgow Press is delighted to feature a remarkable portrait of their right royal highnesses, captured in stunning likeness by London illustrator, David Janes.
So, we didn't print William's wedding invitation, but this beauty - letterpress printed in two colours ink on bright white Colorplan 540gsm - more than makes up for that.
A few words from the illustrator himself . . .

Charles & Camilla laughing as they are driven through the flames...
A promotional mailer which was sent to 500 publishers, magazine and newspaper editors and various art directors.
Each card had a cocktail stick attached to the back, so if you wished you might reenact the scenes from December last year.
http://poisonpenportraits.blogspot.com/2011/03/letterpress-postcards.html
You may peruse and purchase some wondrous wares on the website of Mr David Janes.

studentdeal@ glasgowpress.com

2011-04-12T04:27:00.000-07:00

Students, your time has come. It's the season of deadlines and presentations and, everyone's favourite event, the grad shows. Time to showcase your talent and we're here to help!

Swoon prospective clients and employers with letterpress printed business cards on high quality duplex board.

For spring 2011, Glasgow Press is offering a special student deal from 15th April 2011 till June 15th 2011 inclusive.

You can team up with colleagues, flatmates, friends and even the guy/gal you've not spoken to all year to take advantage of this great offer.

Order the same stock, ink colour and quantity to get your cards at a fantastic rate.

Take a look at prices on the grid to see the savings you can make when a bunch of you order at the same time!

Your design can be as simple or as creative with text, images, hand drawn or vector. as you like as we'll print from photopolymer plates.

Artwork should be just one spot colour per ink colour.

TECHNICAL SPECIFICATIONS

85 x 55mm business card

Printed on one side (unless 2 colour can be one colour ink on each side)

Paper: Colorplan 540 gsm from GF Smith

Cost includes a basic pantone colour

or additional £15 per pantone mix

Our favourite way to receive artwork is as press ready pdfs, ideally with all fonts outlined. All colours should be pantone spot colours

All orders placed as one must be on the same paper stock and with the same colour(s) ink

14 working days for turnaround

EMAIL your requirements or for more info to studentdeal@ glasgowpress.com

RUN DOWN

Ok, so here's a full run-down of how the offer works. If you haven't got any friends, let us know and we may be able to hook you up with some folks on a press run.

2 FRIENDS

1 letterpress ink / 0 (one sided card)

200 total cards (100 of each version) for £218.40 (£109.20 per person)

400 total cards (200 of each version) for £247.20 (£123.60 per person)

2 letterpress ink / 0 (one sided card)

1 letterpress ink / 1 letterpress ink (two sided card)

200 total cards (100 of each version) for £314.40 (£157.20 per person)

400 total cards (200 of each version) for £300.00 (£180.00 per person)

4 FRIENDS

1 letterpress ink / 0 (one sided card)

400 total cards (100 of each version) for £256.80 (£64.20 per person)

800 total cards (200 of each version) for £315.60 (£78.90 per person)

2 letterpress ink / 0 (one sided card)

1 letterpress ink / 1 letterpress ink (two sided card)

400 total cards (100 of each version) for £379.20 (£94.80 per person)

800 total cards (200 of each version) for £454.80 (£113.70 per person)

6 FRIENDS

1 letterpress ink / 0 (one sided card)

600 total cards (100 of each version) for £303.60 (£50.60 per person)

1200 total cards (200 of each version) for £409.20 (£68.20 per person)

2 letterpress ink / 0 (one sided card)

1 letterpress ink / 1 letterpress ink (two sided card)

600 total cards (100 of each version) for £453.60 (£75.60 per person)

1200 total cards (200 of each version) for £577.20 (£96.20 per person)

8 FRIENDS

1 letterpress ink / 0 (one sided card)

800 total cards (100 of each version) for £385.20 (£48.15 per person)

1600 total cards (200 of each version) for £518.40 (£64.80 per person)

2 letterpress ink / 0 (one sided card)

1 letterpress ink / 1 letterpress ink (two sided card)

800 total cards (100 of each version) for £562.80 (£70.35 per person)

1600 total cards (200 of each version) for £716.40 (£89.55 per person)

Shipping costs not included.

Any questions? Get in touch at studentdeal@glasgowpress.com

A FEW RULES

We reserve the right to remove or amend this offer at any time.

You must be a full time student at a further / higher education institution in the UK to take advantage of this deal.

Shipping is to one nominated addressee or contact us for additional shipping rates.

Partners SMR

2011-04-06T15:21:00.000-07:00

"In a world dominated by digital, print to us is the unsung hero of the media world. At Partners SMR we're passionate about paperstocks, printing techniques and finishes which is why we went to Glasgow Press for our new business cards. Foil blocking, GF Smith bonded card, letter pressing . . . our new business cards have it all!" Simon Meadwell, Managing Partner

This card, designed by Partners SMR, is a beauty and lends itself to all sorts of lovely configurations.

Diecutting leaves behind a beautifully sculpted board.

We love being partners in bringing great design to life!

Fair the Fall of Songs

2011-03-28T15:26:00.001-07:00

We were honoured to be involved in the production of this hauntingly beautiful work by Richard Skelton of Corbel Stone Press. The CD wallet is Colorplan 350gsm with a buckram emboss and was printed blind on our Heidelberg platen and diecut. 'Bright is the ring of words, when the right man rings them. Fair is the fall of songs, when the singer sings them.' RLS

Well, Hello!

2011-03-23T02:51:00.000-07:00

Loving this snappy and vibrant business card from Cloud 9, a design agency specialising in developing your marketing efforts to make a real difference to your business. Immediately catching attention with its unusual shape - 55x55mm - the personalised text on the front conveys a friendly confidence, just right for business.
Stock is Colorplan Duplex 540gsm from GF Smith. The Hello is foiled in white. It took quite a bit of expertise to achieve the large bold lettering alongside the small fine text.

The reverse is a mandarin ink mix to match the front and a warm grey, letterpress printed on to the soft, fibrous paper.

Jane Ink

2011-02-21T14:21:00.000-08:00

Business cards for Jane Ink, "the place where ideas are literally put down on paper in black and white and technicolour to find the most professional and creative marketing or branding solutions for your company." Jane's business card captures her talent in a succinct and effective way. The stock is 540gsm - a sheet of white and a sheet of black fused together. The white side is letterpress printed in black ink and the beautifully fluid "J" is white foil on black board.

Paula Carter, Project & Event Management

2011-02-17T01:22:00.000-08:00

Mixing ink to match colour of board is a simple but highly effective way of creating a business card which makes impact on sight of face and again when turned to reverse. Paula Carter chose Colorplan Duplex 540gsm, bright white to purple, and we letterpress printed to the white side in two inks, one matching the purple and the other a few tints lighter. The result is a quality business card that gives you confidence in the project and events management services offered by Paula Carter.

Valentine Greetings

2011-02-14T00:16:00.000-08:00

February 14th, St. Valentine's Day, is the one day of the year that we get soppy and join the ranks of the many letterpress afficionados who are joyfully 'letterpressing love' into the world.

So, here's a loving greeting to you all, letterpress printed on textured white board in lipstick red ink.
Hope you got plenty of cards to go with the flowers and the chocolates. Let's keep the printers busy and we hope all your Valentine dreams come true.

Spoon

2011-02-11T09:16:00.000-08:00

One of these days we're going to make our way out east to Edinburgh for a visit to some of the fab restaurants.

This is a great set of 2 colour letterpress printed advertising postcards. Printed on Colorplan 540gsm paper, these charming illustrations were designed by Eighth Day Design.

These are delicious and conjure up all the tasty treats from the Spoon kitchen!

Method

2011-01-31T13:02:00.001-08:00

Dutch Greyboard is a 100% recycled product with a high caliper to weight ratio. Smooth white foil coupled with rough natural fibres illustrates a blend of contemporary and traditional style. Which sums up nicely the beautiful range of fine boutique furniture from Method Furniture.

Tinker Tailor

2011-01-19T08:57:00.000-08:00

Graham Gilhooley of zero7zero4 wanted to showcase children's wear designer Tinker Tailor with a high quality letterpress printed business card. Printed one colour ink to face and two to reverse on Colorplan 540gsm Pristine White, the design is fresh and brimming with charm.

Creative Diversity

2011-01-13T09:58:00.000-08:00

An amazing design from Graphical House on behalf of The Alpha Fund, Channel 4, results in a beautifully crafted piece of work.
Letterpress printed two colours ink to both sides of Colorplan 700gsm (GF Smith), the design demanded dedicated determination to achieve bang on registration and indulgent depth of impression.

A Hogmanay Greeting

2010-12-31T10:36:00.000-08:00

A Very Happy and Prosperous New Year To All!

Wishing you health and happiness in 2011 and fun with letterpress printing too. We're looking forward to producing your amazing design in the coming year.

Vignamaggio In The Flowering Month Of May

2010-12-28T12:41:00.001-08:00

A grapevine winds its way around this invitation and tiny insects crawl over the soft, soft, soft Somerset Velvet 300gsm, letterpress printed in burgundy ink. Enclosed in its fat, lined envelope, this is just what anyone would love to hear drop through the letterbox on a dark December morning.

Season's Greetings

2010-12-24T12:57:00.000-08:00

"Season's Greetings!" (get it) from Visual Vanilla, white foil on Colorplan 350gsm bright red.

It's been a long run up to Christmas Eve but at last we get to hang up our aprons and enjoy a bit of festive cheer. Not that we haven't had a great time making some sparky wee Christmas cards over the past couple of months, but it'll be good to have one day off to enjoy some festive fare and sit by a roaring fire.

Santa Claus stopped by this morning and him and auld Dan discussed where best to invest their fortunes in 2011 before Santa set off on his annual round the world trip.

You can't beat the traditional Christmas combination of red and gold wishing all a Happy Christmas in languages from across the globe from Kayak.

Hope Santa's good to you all - maybe you'll get a John Bull printing set in your stocking. Have a great holiday and see you next post.

GIO Festival III

2010-12-10T11:54:00.000-08:00

The Glasgow Improvisers Orchestra's annual festival of free improvisation and collaboration is celebrated at the CCA Glasgow this weekend.
GIO Festival III promises a full programme of exciting musical performance with innovative and groundbreaking work for all to enjoy. Designer, Sarah Tripp, asked us to letterpress print postcards for the event. Printed on both sides of Colorplan 540gsm pristine white, inks were overlaid to excellent effect, with crisp impressions and vibrant colour.
We litho printed the accompanying A4 posters on Colorplan 12ogsm.
Fabulous design that echoes the energy and excitement of musical improvisation.

Mix And Match Ink

2010-12-07T12:02:00.000-08:00

Mixing ink to match colour of board is a simple but highly effective way of creating a business card which makes impact on sight of face and again when turned to reverse.
Paula Carter chose Colorplan Duplex 540gsm, bright white to purple, and we letterpress printed to the white side in two inks, one matching the purple and the other a few tints lighter.
The result is a business card of regal quality that commands attention and will be retained for future consultation.

Anchors Aweigh

2010-12-06T11:01:00.000-08:00

Edinburgh restaurant The Ship On The Shore offers the finest ingredients, passionately prepared and finely presented. Graphic designer Ramsay Macfarlane sought to represent this high level of quality in the latest of his projects for the seafood restaurant; a voucher cheque in a presentation wallet.
Imperial Blue Colorplan 350gsm with a pebble emboss from GF Smith gives an imposing weight to the wallet. The nautical logo is foiled in regal gold. Two semi-circular slits are diecut in the underside to hold the voucher in place.
Fine design and quality stationery is quite enough to entice us to drop anchor next time we're sailing by the shore at Leith.

Everyone

2010-11-25T14:46:00.001-08:00

Designer, Dino Squillino, visited a few weeks ago and took photographs while we worked to make his beautiful cards.
And here is the finished result. Bronze foil gleams on heavy white Colorplan; a business card of quality and contemporary beauty.

bonnyday

2010-11-22T00:57:00.000-08:00

A bright yellow O bounces this business card bang into the centre of everyone's attention before drawing the eye to the subtle black lettering of bonnyday Designer, Dean Pannifer, has chosen a dense black Colorplan 540gsm from GF Smith with text and logo executed in black and yellow foils. Unusual dimensions of 45 x 85mm add another little element to make this a card you're bound to remember.

And On The Eighth Day

2010-11-09T03:42:00.000-08:00

How many times have we wished for an eighth day! If we were to visualise an eighth day, we reckon it'd look something like this beautiful business card from Eighth Day Design of Brighton and Edinburgh.
The design agency want their card to feel as good as it looks and this is ably achieved with a delicious Colorplan duplex board of Bagdad Brown 270gsm to Mist 270gsm, supplied by Messrs. GF Smith.Letterpress print to the front and foil to the reverse in rich glossy brown results in an elegant business card that is quite simply, timeless.

Letterpress Impressive

2010-11-08T09:48:00.000-08:00

It's a great pleasure to produce interesting, creative, energetic, innovative design - and so, for your delectation and delight, we showcase a collection of music-themed quiz cards, encased in a nostalgic cassette cover.

In this collaboration with designer, Kerr Vernon, we employ various print methods, including letterpress print, foilblocking, diecutting and a wee bit of nifty hand finishing.

Inside the case you can engage with letterpress print hands-on and test your musical knowledge with the cryptic visuals on the enclosed six cards.
Stock is GF Smith Colorplan which gives a fine impression and is available in a wide range of colours and embossings.

WARNING: the pic below reveals some of the answers - so if you don't want to know, look away now, send for your own pack and play the letterpress game.

Take This

2010-10-26T02:06:00.001-07:00

Take this as a sign of creativity and excellent taste. A business card printed on heavy 540gsm Colorplan by GF Smith in a fine combination of letterpress ink and a blind deboss marks it as one to watch. Beautiful design concept and execution by Ally Pugh of 1982creative.

A Creative Environment

2010-10-21T04:13:00.001-07:00

The Forest is a creative environment, and it certainly shows in their very attractive business cards, created from Colorplan by GF Smith.
The board is duplex - in this case 2 x 270gsm. Each Forester has a card of their own colour, ranging from bright red, to forest green to bokhara red and so on, bonded to pristine white.
Colour side shows personal information in white foil and the white side is letterpress printed in black ink.

Dino Drops By

2010-10-11T04:01:00.000-07:00

Good to welcome designer, Dino Squillino to our workshop the other day. He took a coupla pics of his beautiful cards in the making.

http://www.weareeveryone.com/blog/letterpress

Hubbub

2010-10-08T05:23:00.001-07:00

Set in a former Victorian Shipbuilders' Chapel, Hubbub Cafe Bar is a haven of excellent food and a relaxing atmosphere in London's Docklands. You can see it's an establishment of fine taste from the Hubbub business cards, foiled and letterpress printed on GF Smith's Colorplan Duplex 540gsm - Vermilion to China White. And besides that, it's our cousin's place, so of course it's great.

Classic, Green, Clean Impression

2010-10-05T06:56:00.000-07:00

This is a smart little business card, letterpress printed on recycled stock, Cyclus Offset.

Made from 100% post-consumer waste, Cyclus is available in 300 & 350gsm, powerfully communicating your green credentials.
Cost to the environment and to your purse is greatly reduced, whilst this excellent stock produces a classic, clean letterpress impression.

KVGD

2010-09-29T13:35:00.001-07:00

A time intensive print run, but well worth it for spectacular KVGD branding for Kerr Vernon.

Quite a treat to letterpress print the 4 colours ink plus black onto Colorplan 540gsm Cool Grey by GF Smith.

Sforzando!

2010-09-23T12:02:00.000-07:00

This exciting piece was performed by Glasgow Press on a Heidelberg 'Grand', in a style best described as sforzando, yet andante.

Martelato (Italian term: 'hammered') accents highlight the beauty of the musical notation which was received warmly by plump paper, Flannel 120gsm.

Wolf's Lairs

2010-09-20T01:45:00.000-07:00

Cracking idea from the designers at Smiling Wolf.
Triplex board, 270 each board adding up to an abundant 810gsm . . . alternate three shades in the bonding process, so each card has varying colours face and reverse . . . letterpress print your effective design in black for a business card that's a howling success.

'Tis The Season

2010-09-13T05:45:00.000-07:00

And so the year rolls round and we are on the cusp of autumn after a fine summer of Scottish sunshine. This is the printers' Christmas season, as orders come in for party invitations, at homes, greetings cards, menus, place cards, concerts, special events at country houses and city hotels.
A card is the perfect way to greet friends and family and those with whom you've done business over the past year; an excellent example of which is this design from Deep, letterpress printed in two colours on Conqueror Laid 350gsm.

Heartfelt

2010-09-13T05:43:00.000-07:00

A charming Christmas sentiment, letterpress printed to good effect on Colorplan 540gsm. Pop it in a matching envelope - custom made sizes available and lined in any colour, if you wish.

Happy New Year

2010-09-13T05:41:00.000-07:00

A New Year card is just the thing if you find yourself so busy in the run up to Christmas that you don't manage to get the cards written and posted to your friends around the world. Instead, send greetings at your leisure in the holiday week between Boxing Day and Hogmanay!
This personal card is letterpress printed on Somerset Velvet 300gsm.
Sorry to bring this up so early in the season, but now is the time to dream up a magical design to showcase your talent and bring you prosperity in the dark winter months of January and February!

A Day At The Races

2010-08-04T01:09:00.000-07:00

An exciting lineup in the starting stalls as this smart invitation is set for the next stage of today's grand race to the finishing line . . .
The going is good to firm and results in a splendid invitation forecasting a great day out at Ascot Racecourse, July 2010.

Designed by MHG, this is a combination of letterpress printing and silver foiling on a smart triple sandwich of bright white to ebony to bright white, 810gsm.

No need to gamble with stock of this calibre and the skill and expertise of the printers of Glasgow Press means a safe return is always guaranteed.

The Turn Of A Page . . . Nothing Beats It!

2010-07-16T06:43:00.000-07:00

Soft paper or crisp, leather, ink, curious endpapers, notes in margins, all these and more make books delightful! In the week Dr Bill Bell, of the University of Edinburgh, warned that books may not survive in the electronic age, Glasgow Press is pleased to report active promotion of the book, from printing and binding to lending (even to Adrian) and pledging always to read a book on the subway home.

Today, we welcome twins, Calum & Beth, to our printshop where they engage in a spot of bookbinding; sewing sigs, guillotining and foil blocking on the hand platen. They have promised to write and illustrate stories in their books, which we have promised to read.

As a special treat at the end of their day as print devils, we shut them in the ink cupboard for half an hour in the dark where the real Printer's Devil lives. heh! All part of the author's experience.

Seep Deep

2010-07-14T16:12:00.000-07:00

Business cards by DB Studio for Remedial Massage Therapist, Andrew Aitken are soothing just to look at. Letterpress printed on Colorplan Duplex Natural to Claret, 700gsm, the ink seeps in as deep as the smooth strokes that ease away your aches and pains.

where's Andrew's number? been sitting here so long, I've a cricked neck. . .

Our Guests Today . . . Syd Sharp & Jim Currie

2010-07-08T00:55:00.000-07:00

We welcome a couple of illustrious guests to our printroom today, Mr Syd Sharp and Mr Jim Currie. Syd and Jim started their printing careers in the early 1960s when the city of Glasgow had a thriving print trade and letterpress was king.

Serving their time as apprentices in Aird & Coghill and The Glasgow Numerical respectively, they worked for many of the mighty traditional printing companies, the majority of which have now sadly gone.

Syd and Jim also lectured for many years at the Glasgow College of Building and Printing where they passed on their boundless knowledge of letterpress and hand book-binding to another couple of generations of printers.

We hear some great tales today, from the Music Engraver who insisted his was the only job that would always be safe in the advancing world of print technology to the wild wayzgoose outings on a ferry down the River Clyde. Hope to share more of these stories at a later date.

Thanks again for stopping by Gents, for your teaching, your advice, and your tales - see you again soon.
p.s. they thought our stuff was great!

Fearless

2010-07-05T06:45:00.000-07:00

We had a lot of fun producing another amazing design by taxi studio.

Clean lines of pristine white foil proclaim contact details, and match the reverse of a Colorplan duplex 540gsm weight board, bright red to bright white.

Letterheads, Compliment Slips and Business Cards all feature the world's most fearless creature, the honey badger.

Packing a good letterpress-style punch, he's reproduced here in three inks; red, grey and black.

Appreciate

2010-07-01T04:08:00.000-07:00

World Cup football and the buzzz of the vuvuzela (making you really appreciate the drone of the bagpipes) means South Africa is ever present on our minds this summer. Reminded us of a beautiful card we made for Jenson8 and designed by Taxi with inspirational words from Nelson Mandela.

"It is better to lead from behind and to put others in front, especially when you celebrate victory when nice things occur. You can take the front line when there is danger. Then people will appreciate your leadership"

Foiled in striking white on bright red Colorplan 540gsm.

Down The Lane

2010-06-24T16:16:00.000-07:00

Detail of Sauchiehall Lane on a rainy day. Original cobblestones, bit of tarmac and the dreaded double yellow lines.
From the front windows of Glasgow Press, we look out over a busy and varied world. Most of the time we are working too hard to gaze, but on the odd occasion that we do, we have witnessed some strange and interesting events. Particularly down the lane. A lot of stuff goes on down there, a lot of stuff.

Below is a view of Victoria Chambers from Sauchiehall Lane. That's us on the second floor of the red sandstone tenement.

It's Natural

2010-06-17T00:54:00.000-07:00

For many a long year, we've used reliable Dutch Greyboard for bookbinding, backing of pads, packing, coasters for mugs of hot chocolate and, in the modern age, mousemats.
We must confess, it's just been part of everyday life and we've hardly given it a second thought.
Now, in the 21st century, it's come into its own, as designers utilise this versatile stock in many creative ways.

Designer, joynevada matched the natural fibres and warm feel of Dutch Greyboard with the natural fibres of the cozy products of felted wool company, Fuzzystuff.
A perfect blend and into the bargain, this is a 100% recycled product with a high caliper to weight ratio giving a fine letterpress print impression.

Business cards, presentation packaging and promotional materials are letterpress printed pantone 341 on Dutch Greyboard 1150 micron.

Glasgow Press Printer's Mark

2010-06-15T02:20:00.000-07:00

Our mark is based on the 'sign of 4' which has long been used by merchants to mark their wares. The sign of four was an outgrowth of an early Christian symbol, Chi Rho (XP), standing for Christus Rex in Greek letters; this was simplified to a reversed '4' in Medieval times.
We combine this with the 'orb and cross' which is one of the alchemical symbols for antimony, a key ingredient in the metal used for moveable type.

If you're interested in the history of Printers' Marks, more information can be found here:
http://www.gutenberg.org/files/25663/25663-h/25663-h.htm

Bloom

2010-06-10T00:08:00.000-07:00

Everyone who looks upon this card falls in love with it. Designed by Graphical House for florist Lotte & Bloom, it has a tranquil and understated beauty.

Text is kept to a minimum, letterpress printed in green onto Colorplan mid green with buckram emboss. On the reverse, elegant floral etchings are portrayed in the same green ink on real grey.

Coming Up Trumps

2010-06-07T16:19:00.000-07:00

Have you received your invitation to a one day site specific art event by Artist, David McCue? http://www.davidmccue.co.uk/

Not if you're Donald Trump you've not.

We letterpress printed these in ink as black as the Earl of Hell's waistcoat and a fiery hot red foil onto Colorplan Natural 700gsm.
A visual record of the contentious issues currently being played out by man on the sands of wild and beautiful Balmedie.

Golden Couple

2010-05-28T14:59:00.000-07:00

Mark and Veronica wanted to incorporate their initials as a design motif throughout their wedding stationery.
After a number of try-outs, they settled for the simplicity of letters and ampersand in 'Cezanne'.

We foil blocked in metallic gold on milk white laid 300gsm for invitations, order of service booklets, and thank you cards.

This M&V has a timeless beauty as elegant as the bridal couple themselves.

Little Boy Blue

2010-05-18T18:52:00.000-07:00

Congratulations to Mummy Pin, Daddy Pin and Baby Pin!

This quirky birth announcement is letterpress printed with soy ink on soft, 100% cotton 300gsm board. Pure as a new born babe.

Perfect Projection

2010-05-07T03:55:00.000-07:00

Health, wealth and an enormous sense of well being are just some of the emotions conjured up by this smart business card designed by our friends at Projector Brand Communications. Crisp, clean white foil makes the text jump right out of the page.

Ink is mixed to match the orange of Colorplan duplex 540gsm and text on the reverse is letterpress printed in orange and black.

Love is Blind

2010-04-30T14:44:00.000-07:00

From a full spectrum of colour to no colour at all. This deep deboss has an elegant aspect, quite fitting for one of Scotland's oldest lace mills.

We had a great tour round the mill - loved the cranky old looms with their click-clacking racket. Just like our own noisy printroom, minus the overpowering scent of eau d'ink.

"The Purest and Most Thoughtful Minds . . .

2010-04-23T15:33:00.000-07:00

. . . are those which love colour the most." John Ruskin

A feat of painstaking endurance resulted in this fine little colour card.

Printed from a single plate, black went on first and the plate was moved into position for each colour thereafter.
Challenges included board warping due to so many press passes, but a bit of t.l.c. set it right in the end.

You almost feel you could dip your finger deep down into the ink splat.
Our printer's devil is, of course, responsible for the 'e' which mysteriously crept into one of the colour names.