Let the Printing Games Begin

Ahhh...the scent of printers' ink and press wash....nothing quite like it. The plates arrived and after checking them over, I cut them apart and started planning the printing. I decided to print the full page images first, and spent the rest of the afternoon cutting up paper. I found there was only just enough, as after ordering, I had decided to include an extra image. Oops! I shall have to be extra careful. 

The plates for the images have some larger solid printed areas which made adjustments necessary. My old table-top Craftsman press was built as a jobbing press, for printing small jobs such as tickets, and invitations. Because of its clamshell action, it is not ideally suited for printing large solid areas, not usually an issue for me. So for these images, I had to make several adjustments to rollers, ink and packing in order to get the solid black areas to print well. I then had to print with my full weight on the handle to get enough pressure. I printed dry on this handmade 30 gsm Japanese paper, as I didn't want to spoil the beautiful surface by dampening it. Anyway, the alterations worked. Looking at the handle of this press, which has been welded  at some time in its career, my guess is that I'm not the first to throw my full weight on it. I just hope it holds out.

The text printing went well, the damp paper gives a lovely crisp impression and again, as this was the Griffen Mill handmade paper I proceeded extra slowly and carefully. This paper has a watermark in the corner of each sheet, with the letters GM, the infinity sign (to indicate its archival status) and the initials MG for Mike Gibbs, the papermaker. I love the thought that I'm making a book with paper made by a real person, a person I have actually met, and that the paper could last for hundreds of years. I have a bible dating back to 1589, in the reign of Queen Elizabeth I. It is beautifully printed, the presswork is amazing and although it is pretty beaten up, still an object of my admiration for the skill that went into making the paper and printing it all those 400+ years ago.

Because the paper had been dampened I let it dry off a little and when it showed signs of curling, finished the drying process between blotters under a light weight.

         

 During the time I was printing, my leather arrived! I had chosen it from a swatch on a card, so was not really surprised to find that it was slightly different in colour from what I had expected. One batch of leather never dyes the same as the next, it's a fact of life. This skin was a little brighter and redder than I expected, but still a very nice skin, as you can see. 

Paper Trail II

After a wonderful three day workshop, (of which more later), I'm back on the paper trail. The image left (courtesy of Griffen Mill), shows hand papermaking. So, handmade, mouldmade or machine made? It's 'make your mind up' time.

This book involves three outstanding men, the legendary Leonardo Da Vinci, the brilliant composer Eric Whitacre, and the multi-talented poet and artist Charles Anthony Silvestri. To me, there is no better paper for this purpose than a handmade paper, because it not only looks and feels beautiful, it has no grain, it is strong and durable, and is archivally sound. It takes letterpress well (they were, after all, made for each other), and will contribute towards the character of the book, without taking centre stage.

Having decided on a handmade paper, I then went back and leafed through the samples from Griffen Mill again, feeling them between my fingers and trying to decide which to choose. Like Goldilocks, I found them "too this" or "too that", not enough of the other, or just plain ho hum. My paper had to have star quality. In the file I found an envelope containing a few pieces of a very nice paper, warm toned, and quite opaque for its lighter weight. Looking at the post-mark, I remembered receiving them a few years previously, and the colour didn't suit the project I was then working on. Now, I thought, it looked just right. I conditioned (dampened) a few pieces of it for a printing trial, and tried it out the next day. It printed beautifully. Now to see if it was available, as it was not one of the stock papers.

After a couple of emails, I found that no, this had been a Special Making and there was not enough left over to make my book edition. But if I wasn't in a hurry, I could commission a Special Making and they could perhaps improve on the opacity by adjusting the fibre content. The minimum quantity for Special Making is around the amount I need for this book, 25-30 sheets, and the price about the same as the average of their papers of this weight. What did Chris mean, 'if I wasn't in a hurry'? It transpired that the paper has to mature or condition over a period of twelve weeks after being made, and "during this time the stresses and strains dissipate and the surface closes up" to quote Chris. Well, having some months work ahead on illustrations and the rest of the book, waiting twelve weeks was no problem. Game on.

One slight hitch: they were not sure exactly which paper I was talking about, as they had made two or three similar papers around that time. Could I send them a sample of the paper I wanted? So that went off in the post. After posting the sample (of course), I discovered that I had sent it to the previous address. Luckily the postman knew them, and it was delivered a few days later. That done, it was plain sailing, for me at any rate. Mike collected some fibres from the U.K. and a few weeks later, the paper was made, and on its way across the Atlantic. Yesterday it arrived. Wow, what a beautiful paper, even better than I hoped, it is a creamy colour, with a soft smooth surface, like a hen's egg. It is now under the bed, between boards, relaxing and maturing. I can hardly wait to try it.

I asked Chris to write a few words about Special Makings and handmade paper, here is what she wrote:

"Paper is a one of the major elements in book construction and as such its character, or lack of, can have a major affect on the way a book functions. For example, a well constructed book should be able to open easily and its pages turn and lie flat. With miniature books in particular, many problems are more apparent and so the correct choice of paper is vital. The appearance of the paper in a miniature book is also more striking simply because the visual elements are stronger.

The way that a paper functions is also critical when it comes to book restoration and con-servation. Here the aim is to match the character of the original paper in a sympathetic and ethical manner.

Despite thousands of different papers being available today sometimes the only way to obtain a paper that works in the context of a particular project is to have one made. If one wants a small amount of sheets only then the sole recourse is to approach a handmade paper mill where paper can be made in relatively small quantities.

"Leonardo Dreams of his Flying Machine" will be made using just such a paper, commissioned from Griffen Mill in Ireland. The wove paper is made from a mixture of jute, cotton and hemp fibres and has a subtle “antique” tone that harks back to the colours of the handmade paper used by Michael Angelo. The paper is of archival quality and is unique to this edition."

So the Paper Trail for a text paper ends here. Chris Laver-Gibbs will be making a presentation to the Conference attendees at the Society of Bookbinders Conference at the University of Warwick, UK. If you get the chance, I recommend that you go, you don't often get the opportunity to listen to a handmade paper expert.

I'm happy to have found the right paper for this edition. It is such an important element and once decided upon, sets the tone for the whole book. The next element that has to be decided, also very important, is the font which I will use to lay out the text. This also makes a vital contribution to the feel and character of the book, and will take some research. The photo below shows my paper. I'm sorry that computers haven't yet managed 'feelies', so you will just have to content yourself with looking. See how nicely it drapes?