Smile! It's St. Patrick's Day ,,,

Top o' the morning. At it is the top of the morning. I slept in after staying up 'til the wee hours of the morning messing around with a design project.

It's gray and dreary here in Cincinnati, and since there's a bit of Irish in me - on my mom's side of the family - I thought I'd brighten the day with St. Patrick's Day postcards from the archive. I skipped the landscapes in favor of those with people, and two sets from specific series and artists.

When I began collecting pre-WWI holiday postcards, I spent too much on them. The card above, published in 1912 by Boston's A.M. Davis Co. as part of its series 705, is a good example of what I mean. I paid a whopping $15 for it at a flea market. I knew it was too much, but didn't have many St. Pat's then and wasn't seeing many, so I pounced. 

Back then, I also tended to buy cards that were not in great shape (note the postmark ink coming through to the front of the card). I figured they could be fixed up in Photoshop when I wanted to make reproductions, which was the plan. But as I got deeper into collecting, I yearned for cards in better condition. That's when my master's in library science came in handy, because as I researched publishers and artists, it became obvious I was overpaying. Happily, it was a lesson learned early on.

The cards here are a mix of mint, good and poor. I'll admit, I still fall for crummy ones when there is an image I can't resist.

The cards above were all published by Boston's International Art Publishing, and were drawn by Ellen Clapsaddle. She was one of their premiere artists. Her work - which is copyright free - is widely reproduced, popping up on everything from mugs to tote bags. The most collectible of the cards are those with her signature on the front (the two at the top).    

This sweet series was published by England's Raphael Tuck and Sons as part of its St. Patrick's Day series No. 106. Pigs have always been considered lucky in Europe. They are a sign of prosperity, and appear on many St. Pat's cards, as well as New Year's cards. Of course, the requisite good luck charm, the four-leaf clover, is ever present.

The cards teach a bit about the evolution of postcards. The one on the top left (postmarked 1907) with all the writing on it has what's known as an "undivided" back. Postal regulations specified that the address was the only thing that could be written on the back. Then, the rules changed and backs were divided - like now - to allow an address and a message. The other two cards (postmarked 1908 and 1909) represent that change.

One last card that is so goofy I couldn't resist adding it ...

Love of letters ... and snail mail

So excited when I got home from the studio last night and discovered the envelope, above, in my mail box. Even more excited when I opened it to find the card/poster below.

It's by Erin Beckloff, a young, enthusiastic letterpress printer. A bunch of us were on Facebook lamenting the news that the post office will stop Saturday delivery later this year and extolling the virtues of snail mail, printing, paper, etc. Erin promised to send me a letterpress card if I sent her one. I did, my bell ringer card - as a New Year's card.

Erin teaches at Miami University in Oxford, Ohio, and in her spare time, is consumed by all things letterpress. She operates Inky Winke Press and its Etsy shop. The shop is empty at the moment while she works on printing new cards, etc.

She comes by her love of printing via her father, Scott Moore. He makes - yes, makes - wooden letterpress type. I can't wait to see what the exchange will bring next. Time to get my letterpress going again.

Plenty of cool images but still no pope ...

Well, it's taken six months, but I'm back to scanning that cast of marvelous Italian characters into the digital archive. I started again when trying to be timely by posting an antique image of a pope. Still have not found one among the 88 hand-colored plates in the Costumi Dei Secoli. The book was published in Firenze (Florence) in 1837, so there is bound to be a pope somewhere.

I'll keep searching. Meanwhile, here's a look at who I did find ...

                                              

High Euro style: March 1899

I'm trying to imagine negotiating the wacky March weather we've had in any of these ensembles.

They are from a bound volume of six monthly issues - January-June 1899 - of the Young Ladies' Journal. After searching it the other day. I thought it was about time that the 20 gorgeous fashion plates were scanned and archived.

You'll note that some images are whiter than others, which seems odd since they were all in the same volume. Some are so white, I'd have suspected they were reprints if I hadn't seen the original source. The paper they were printed on may have something to do with the differences.

The magazine was a British publication but the fashion plates were printed Paris - a fact proudly noted on each cover. I discovered the magazine via framed plates in a friend's apartment, then, scoured the internet and area bookstores to find some. This is the only bound volume I have ... at the moment.

My plan is to use the plates that are most oxidized or torn in collages; the others - which are in near mint condition - will be matted and sold in the "Stuff I Can't Bear To Cut Up" bin at the studio.

Tools of the trade: smoothing out things

Bone folders are one of a collage artists's essential tools. I use them every day to burnish paper, smooth out wrinkles and to make sure that everything is well adhered after gluing. As much as I like bone folders, I've all but given them up in favor of Teflon "Bone" folders.

The major advantages are that they don't leave marks on the paper, won't tear thin papers and are easily cleaned. Happily, a bigger range of sizes and shapes is available now. And, as soon as I pay the most recent framing bill, I'm saving for an entire set of Teflon tools. Right now, I have but one large folder. A few weeks ago,  that one was misplaced and I was in a panic until finding it.

No shops carry them locally, so I shop online. The ones pictured above are available from Talas. It's a remarkable Brooklyn shop for conservation, preservation and restoration supplies. It specializes in bookbinding supplies and the customer service is great.

An even bigger selection is available from BoneFolder.com. I haven't ordered from here but am impressed by the array of folders. It also carries Teflon-coated tweezers, spatulas, carving tools and scissors.

Another source, but with less of a selection, is Ann Arbor's Hollander's. Love, love, love this place. I once detoured to Ann Arbor to visit the shop, and will likely do it again. It's paper heaven.