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Recently, we visited an old friend of Smudge Ink who invited my girls to his farm to meet and bottle-feed his recently acquired baby goats. They were adorable (the goats), and in addition to feeding them, my girls also got to meet two donkeys and a former competition horse named Copernicus (an elegant old fella!).

The visit to see the animals was sweet, fun and very much enjoyed by the girls, but my personal interest was in touring the structure John built to house all his impressive array of printing equipment.

See, a few years back John spent some time at Smudge Ink learning to run and subsequently running our Heidelberg Windmill while our print shop manager at the time (and current new-mom-extraordinaire), Sanya Hyland, was on sabbatical. It was a win-win: we needed the help and John was interested in a short term gig to learn how to run the press. To say that John is a letterpress printing "hobbyist" would slight his knowledge and interest in the craft. From the volume of equipment he houses in his beautiful outbuilding alone one would assume that this is his vocation ... but nope, he does it simply for the love of printing.

I've been eager to see the building ever since John told me about it. In my mind, I imagined the tidiest and most attractive print shop I'd ever seen, and the reality lived up to my expectations! The walls of the upper story are lined with presses, an antique paper cutter, type cases, a drill press, and a book press.

There is a desk towards the back covered with found imagery (each piece will eventually be printed), and a table as you enter the space that displays several years worth of projects. To name just a few, these pieces include family holiday cards, social stationery, napkins from a recent college graduation brunch and (most charmingly) a bound copy of a book that was written by John's son when he was about 10. 

You're partially taken back in time, partially just delighted that there are people out there preserving this art form. I especially loved exposing my girls to a place besides Smudge Ink that has taken something decidedly "old world" and made it relevant today.

That said, if you ask them about the visit, they'll sooner mention the baby goats ("Awwww! They were soooooo cute!") before they mention the print shop, but that's okay with me ... the goats were pretty awesome too.

Thanks John!

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THE GOOD. So many great things happened this month! First, we hired two new fulfillment assistants. We've all been pinch-hitting to fill orders while we searched (and searched) for the right people. It took us a few months, but Erin and Molly were definitely worth the wait. Both are talented creatives (see here and here) who get our quirky sense of humor and have the positive attitudes to match. We are so glad they are part of the crew! Second, the summer outing was a hit! It’s been one thing after another so it was nice to hit pause for a day and talk about things other than work. And last but not least, we got another press! Lovingly named Athena, she is truly glorious. Margaret got her up and running yesterday and the new chugging and hissing sounds are music to our ears. She's really going to help speed up our production time.

THE BAD. We're in the middle of reorganizing our space and it is a MAJOR pain. Basically, we’re moving our inventory from one room to another. But first, we had to clear out and rearrange big (and heavy!) furniture, computers, and equipment to make the layout more functional and have room to install brand new shelving. I don’t even want to think about how many boxes of cards, stacks of wrapping paper, and piles and piles of stuff we’ve lugged. The 99% humidity and 95 degree weather wasn’t doing us any favors either. It hasn’t been fun but I know we’ll be able to utilize the space better once we get through this messy part.

THE UGLY. Given the aforementioned humidity and heavy lifting we basically look like this. Yikes.

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For this year’s summer outing, we headed 18 miles outside of Boston to the historic town of Concord. We spent the day walking the famous paths of the American Revolution and cooling off in the shady beaches of Walden Pond. Eric kicked it off by doing some extensive research at the Visitor’s Center (really, he didn’t have the heart to turn down any of the 60 brochures handed to him by the older gentleman manning the information desk).

(image: Eric fills in as designated tour guide and feels confident we're headed in the right direction)

(image: listening to the audio narration of the first battle of Independence)

With map(s) in hand, we made our way to the Old North Bridge where the “shot heard round the world” was fired. The walk itself wasn’t very long, but in the 90+ degree heat, we retreated to the former mansion of Major Buttrick from circa 1910 (aka the souvenir shop) for some lovely 21st century air conditioning.

(image: April's smiling because next stop is lunch)

We made a lunch stop at Main Streets Café, followed by a most necessary ice cream run at Bedford Farms next door. Choosing which ice cream flavor to get was probably the most challenging part of the day. What’s in Moose Tracks? How about Mississippi Mud? Ack, the pressure! I’ll just get a scoop of Vanilla, please. Unfortunately, inhaling an ice cream cone and taking photos are two things I cannot do at the same time. So you’ll just have to trust me that everyone was looking mighty happy at this part of the outing.

(image: playing dice and feeling bada** in the high school parking lot)

(image: checking out the replica of Thoreau's cabin and exploring the deeper meanings in ... Pokémon GO)

(image: sign marking the original site of Thoreau's cabin)

After being instructed we were a good 14 minutes too early to enter the parking lot, Deb taught us how to play Left Center Right as we waited for Walden Pond to open. Then we planted ourselves on a breezy nook at the far end of the pond, stopping by a replica of Henry David Thoreau's 1-room cabin and its original site on our way. To Ryan’s chagrin, the weak wi-fi signal made it impossible for him to catch any Pokémon.

(image: the shady side of Walden Pond)

For the rest of the afternoon, we lazed away on the beach, some of us dozing off and others dipping in their toes, most missing Sarah (who was sick at home), and all enjoying a day off work. Thanks for a great time, April and Eric!

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A couple weeks ago, we welcomed Athena to our family! She came rather unexpectedly as we hadn’t been actively looking to bring in another press. Then we caught wind that Bill and Andy Schell in Jamaica Plain were looking for new homes for their Heidelberg Windmills. Curiosity got the best of us, and soon we had Margaret and Deb scouting it out. It was pretty much a done deal at first sight (and test run).

With so much else going on, we were really fortunate to have Margaret work with Mike Andrejewski to spearhead the logistics of moving the press, or rather press-ES. Yup, Margaret had placed dibs on the second Heidelberg, Athena’s sister. The process took the better part of three days from start to finish during which Margaret would pop back in the studio covered in grime and with a huge smile on her face. Read on for Margaret's highlights of the move ...

The main challenge of this move was getting the presses through this (not so roomy) doorway. 

Taking the clutch arm off is pretty simple but that still did not create enough clearance. We ended up having to remove the whole table base, and the only way to do that is to disassemble the front of the machine. That base is as heavy as it looks.

We spent the next day figuring out how to get both presses down two stairs outside the building’s front entrance. Mike brought a heavy metal plate that he propped up with big wood blocks in order to extend the first stair out over the second. With the palette jack, we wheeled a press out on the makeshift platform which then allowed us to come around to the front to pick it up. Mike is a maniac in the fork lift. He just plucked the press up out of the doorway while turning sharp (and backwards!) in order not to fall off the curb and then just, nice and easy, set it down on the flatbed like a boss.

We fork lifted and chained the presses onto the flatbed, and they were on their way!

Thank goodness we had a wider entryway over at Smudge HQ! We rolled Athena right into the press room and placed her in her new home. 

I was psyched to help out with this process. I learned a lot from taking them apart and putting them back together. It's incredible how well and relatively simply these machines are built. Here's to another 50+ years of printing!

Shout out to Bill and Andy who generously gave us these presses and put up with the ordeal of us trying to get them out of there! Happy retirement, and I hope you're reading this in Florida!

Thanks, Margaret! We hope Medusa is enjoying her new home too!

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Now onto the good stuff: the show!

SUNDAY, MAY 15

We felt great entering the booth on Day 1—even better after Eric gave Deb the thumbs up that the Starbucks line had finally dwindled down. With the lights on and the aisles cleared, it’s amazing how the Javits seemed to magically transform overnight. For those of you who couldn't be there, I thought you would appreciate this hyperlapsed booth tour I captured on my phone!

The Stationery Show is when many retailers start to shop in preparation for the holiday season. That’s why you’ll see nearly half of our booth was devoted to our holiday collection. We also had new everyday stationery, boxed notes, and gift wrap as well as a brand new line of edge painted correspondence flat notes (coming to our online shop soon!). I really enjoyed connecting with our customers face-to-face and getting their feedback. To our delight, we received a lot of enthusiasm for the spring release.

Now you can’t exhibit at a trade show and not have fun swag for visitors to remember you by. This year, we gave away little wildflower seed packets that we made to coordinate with our booth design. We also participated in Legion Paper’s ‘70s-inspired trading card set and had our interactive Name That Do cards out for people to collect. Check out the entire collection here.

Tip(s): You meet so many people that it’s impossible to remember who’s who at the end of the day. Save yourself the guesswork and write a note on everyone’s business cards as a reminder of your conversation and how to follow up. Also, avoid the Starbucks in the Javits at all costs if you don’t want to wait an hour for a cup of coffee.

MONDAY, MAY 16

We kicked off Day 2 with a few one-on-one meetings with our sales reps. We are always in touch with our reps over email and by phone but we don’t get to see them too often. In fact, it was the first time meeting some of our reps in person for both Sarah and myself. Unfortunately, Sarah could only stay through the morning; we needed her back at the studio to start working on orders! Clayton joined us at that point to help man the booth and field any questions. The traffic was steady, and it was probably the busiest day in terms of taking orders too!

The day ended with a fun rooftop party hosted by our friends at Postable! The photo was an afterthought taken in the stairwell as Eric and I were leaving (and very tired!).

Tip(s): As back up, it can’t hurt to take snapshots of your completed order forms at the end of the day. Keep your hard copies in a safe place but this is just one of those tips you don’t want to learn the hard way! Also, for a delicious and (comparatively) healthy lunch, forgo the food court and walk about a block north to Sunac Natural Market.

TUESDAY, MAY 17

On Day 3, we finished up our meetings with sales reps, and I had a chance to walk the show and visit many of our paper-loving friends! It’s always inspiring to see everyone’s booths and newest designs (more on this later!).

A big highlight was going to Oh So Beautiful Paper's Paper Party. Kudos to Nole and her team for a fun, disco-inspired evening! After another long day on our feet, we kicked back with some refreshments, more friendly chatter, and photo booth glamour shots. Deb introduced me to a bunch of great folks, and by the time we left I could barely speak from all of the shout-talking. :)

Tip(s): Say hello to your suppliers on the Supply Side. Here again it’s a chance to put a face to the name which I think is always so helpful in continuing a relationship where so much of the communication is online.

WEDNESDAY, MAY 18


The last day of the show is only a half day, and not surprisingly, it's usually fairly quiet. A few more customers visited our booth, and we invited them to sit down with us because we were honestly too tired to stand anymore! As soon as the clock struck 1:00 we started breaking down the booth. We had everything taken down and packed into the van in less than two hours. By that point, we just wanted to get out of there and get home. The drive back was, thankfully, completely uneventful.

Tip(s): Provide extra seating. Our little side bench was a very popular spot for people to rest. If they can sit, they (and potential orders) will come!

Stay tuned for Part 3: Favorite Booths!

Catch up on Part 1!

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