Kate's Point of View

This past weekend I had the pleasure of taking a letterpress class. Our teacher, Brian, was really calm and patiently walked us through the history of letterpress and let us dig through his supplies to craft our perfect business card. (Interesting fact: the terms uppercase and lowercase are in reference to how type was initially stored. The capitals were in the upper case and the smaller letters in the lower case.)

Once we had each piece of type in place and ready to go, we were ready to start printing.

This post originally appeared on Kate’s Point of View. © Kate. All rights reserved.

A few classes in an I have finished my first screenprinting project. This has been a test in me letting go a little and trying not to be so anal. I know that my first run is very beginner, but I’m still pretty pleased with myself. Some photos from class at DIY Printing:

This post originally appeared on Kate’s Point of View. © Kate. All rights reserved.

Two nights ago was the first time in a while that I felt myself get really jazzed up and creative. I took my first screenprinting class at DIY Printing, courtesy of the lovely Wonder Boy, and it was awesome. There are five of us in the class and I was struck that everyone in the room was there for a love of creating.I love taking classes and reading about new things so I can learn more. I’ve always viewed my obsession with school and classes as a product of a love of learning, very much in line with what I saw my grandmother have. Now I’m wondering if her constant acquisition of new skills and hobbies was an opportunity to create and if I’m striving towards that same unreachable goal.

It might not sound much different but it gives me focus. Broad focus, but still.

I’m not taking sewing lessons because I like to learn about sewing. I think I end up cursing just about every time I sit down at the machine do and there have been more than a few tears. Holding a stack of napkins I’ve made. Looking at an ever-growing pile of baby bibs. It’s rewarding.

It’s tangible.

I work in a field where you can’t touch and feel what I make. (I guess you could touch my computer screen, but it would lead to fingerprints and me being angry.) When I print a photograph, I can point to something I captured. When I give someone a cake I decorated, I can point to what I did. When I make a piece of jewelry, I can hold it in my hand and show it off.

I have five more weeks of classes and during that time I’m going to be creating two projects. Three if I can work it out right, I’m a little overwhelmed by the possibilities. The teacher is giving us just enough instruction to get us started but not so much that we know exactly what we’re creating. It’s liberating.

My screenprinting instructor

Screenprinting vacuum table

This post originally appeared on Kate’s Point of View. © Kate. All rights reserved.

It’s so cool to get to experience an art form and gain an appreciation for what it really takes to make something by hand. Last night Wonder Boy and I enjoyed some glass-blowing lessons. I’d taken some previously and loved them so was pretty pumped for the class. I don’t know if Wonder Boy knew what he was in for, but he definitely had a great time. You know something is good when hours later, randomly, a person keeps announcing how fun something was.

And now begins a recap of the evening that can be taken so wrong.

When I took my first glass-blowing lessons, I was unable to blow hard enough to create my globe. A teacher ended up blowing for me. So, last night when we approached blowing, I was trying to psych myself up. Turned out, we worked in pairs. Wonder Boy blew my glass and I blew his. When it was my turn, I really went for it. Maybe a little too much? I blew way too long and hard. True story. The teacher was all alarmed. “Didn’t you hear me say stop?!” When I realized what I’d done, I broke into a terrible giggle fit and couldn’t stop laughing. Turns out that all I did was hook Wonder Boy up with a big glass. Because that’s what we were making – glasses. (I have some regret about not sticking to my guns and making a bud vase…) I was assured that my glass could hold a beer, which was my main concern. Wonder Boy’s can hold at least two.

You’re welcome.

This post originally appeared on Kate’s Point of View. © Kate. All rights reserved.