What’s Happening in the Shop

We’re working hard and having fun in the shop. See some of what we’ve been doing here.

bigriverbindery

@jacquieprints was in the shop setting up for her

@jacquieprints was in the shop setting up for her workshop this weekend, Colourful Quotes. Students will be making gelatin print backgrounds for letterpress quotes. A great intro to both printing methods. We might be able to squeeze you in. See more at the website. #letterpress #geliprints #bookarts #printmaking #torontobookarts

My last task before getting snowed in for the week

My last task before getting snowed in for the weekend was taking this duct tape off this page. Please don’t use tape to fix your books, it causes more damage and work later. #bookconservation #bookrepair #tapeisevil #taperemoval #bookbinding #bookarts #torontobookarts

I had a great workshop at the @ischool.learninghub

I had a great workshop at the @ischool.learninghub today where we practiced disaster response techniques for a library leak. The students dove in to rescue the wet books and did a great job. #disasterresponse #wetbooks #disasterteam #fandrying

Our last presenter at the Canadian Artists’ Book

Our last presenter at the Canadian Artists’ Book Symposium is Susan Mills @minettaln. She makes paper and books that use local materials to talk about her environment in books meant to be handled and used. What a great way to wrap up the day. #artistsbooks #bookarts #papermaking #bookarts

Such fascinating layering of ideas and imagery in

Such fascinating layering of ideas and imagery in the presentation by @marlenemaccallum. A combination of place, memory, and design coming together for beautiful book projects. Another great talk at the Canadian Artists Book Symposium. #artistsbooks #bookarts #photobooks

I’m so excited we get to see books from the pres

I’m so excited we get to see books from the presenters now at the Canadian Artists’ Book Symposium. I love a chance to explore the books in person. #bookarts #artistsbooks #handsonbooks

@walkerwoodengraver is sharing lots of process inf

@walkerwoodengraver is sharing lots of process information about his books, as well as all the background and content of the work. It’s great to learn more about wood engraving as part of his bookmaking. #woodengraving #marypickford #bookarts #artistsbooks #torontobookarts

We’re off to a great start with the Canadian Art

We’re off to a great start with the Canadian Artists’ Book Symposium with the talk by Lise Melhoen-Boe. Amazing to see books and textiles so well combined. Glad to hear a mention of @thejppofficial during her talk. #artistsbooks #bookarts #textiles

Don’t miss our fifth speaker at the Canadian Art

Don’t miss our fifth speaker at the Canadian Artists’ Book Symposium, Susan Mills @minettaln She’s making the trip from Saskatchewan to share her work. After listening to her interview other bookbinders for years on the Bookbinding Now podcast, I can’t wait to hear more about how she makes her work. Join us online, link in the bio. #bookarts #artistsbook

I was delighted when @efrncsco_ accepted our offer

I was delighted when @efrncsco_ accepted our offer to speak at this years Canadian Artists’ Book Symposium. I’d seen his work at a @contact_pbl pop up shop and fell in love. Join us online to hear more about his work and process. #artistsbooks #bookarts #zines #torontobookarts

Sometimes I spend a lot of time cutting. This arch

Sometimes I spend a lot of time cutting. This archival board will be sent to my online students to make Preservation Enclosures. I’m just happy the board shear was big enough to handle it. #bookbinding #bookarts #preservationenclosures #lotsofcuttong

Don’t forget to sign up for the Canadian Artists

Don’t forget to sign up for the Canadian Artists’ Book Symposium. You’ll get to hear @marlenemaccallum talk about her books and process. I’ve loved her artwork since seeing it at the @fisherlibrary and can’t wait for her talk. You can still sign up to join us, link in the bio. #artistbooks #bookarts #bookbinding #bookartsevent

I’m so excited to have @jacquieprints teaching i

I’m so excited to have @jacquieprints teaching in the shop. Join her to advance your lino block printing. .

Posted @withregram • @jacquieprints Proofing the layers of my Garter snake multi-block linocut print, inspired by the Lunar Year of the Snake. This image is small enough (4x6) that I can print it with my antique cast-iron book press and hang the prints to dry with clothes-pins on the folding drying rack in the hallway. This has been a good system for me as I can fold it up and put it in the cupboard when I’m not using it.

Traditionally when printing multi-block prints the lightest colour would be printed first (ie. yellow), and progressively darker colours added on top, but as you can see by my colour tests that is not always the best way to get the colours you’re aiming for - just switching the printing order can make a big difference in the appearance of the colours created by overlapping layers (ie. the best green was printed by yellow printed on top of blue, and the best orange by yellow on top of red).

And this is because I’ve mixed transparent extender into the coloured inks to reduce their opacity, which allows previous colour layers to show through to create an optical blending of the two overlapping hues to create a third. My favourite✨ but it does require a certain amount of mixing work to get the colours just right…⏱️ Individually, the layers don’t always make sense, but it all comes together in the final print. There is still a bit of tweaking to do, but I’m almost there!

And here I thought I was making a simple sample for the Multi-Block Linocut Workshop I’ll be teaching @bigriverbindery on Sat & Sun March 29 & 30… I wouldn’t wish carving all those scales on any beginner printmaker! But I can’t help setting a challenge to make it more interesting for myself.☺️ Interested in giving multi-block printmaking a go yourself? Join us and get the benefit of the tips & tricks I’ve learned through my own years of trial & error. More info and registration on the Workshops page of the @bigriverbindery website.

Cleaning off another book spine today in the shop.

Cleaning off another book spine today in the shop. We clean off the old adhesive and linings before relining with new flexible adhesive and linings. #bookbinding #bookconservation #bookrepair #cleaningthespine #bookarts #torontobookarts

You’ll get to meet @walkerwoodengraver if you jo

You’ll get to meet @walkerwoodengraver if you join us for the upcoming Canadian Artists’ Book Symposium. There’s plenty of online spots available for this February 12 event. See more on our website, link in the bio. #artistsbooks #bookarts #woodengraving #bookbinding

I’m making all the cuts on this clamshell box to

I’m making all the cuts on this clamshell box today. We have to cut the covering cloth so the it will wrap all the board and lay down flat and smooth. #clamshellbox #bookbinding #bookconservation #bookarts #preservationenclosure #torontobookarts

What a great group of students to spend the weeken

What a great group of students to spend the weekend with. Their Edelpappband bindings turned out amazing. Hope to see more of them in the shop and more handmade books around Toronto. #bookbinding #bookarts #edelpappband #finepaperbinding #torontobookarts

Join us for the Canadian Artists’ Book Symposium

Join us for the Canadian Artists’ Book Symposium on Febriaru 12. In-person tickets are sold out but you can still join us online. Come hear one of our speakers, Lise Melhorn-Boe, talk about her work and process. #bookarts #artistsbooks #textileart #textandtextiles #canadianartistsbooks

We’re having a great time in my Edelpappband wor

We’re having a great time in my Edelpappband workshop. It’s a full house and everyone is doing great. Text blocks sewn and moving in the the bonnet and boards tomorrow. #bookbinding #bookarts #germanbookbinding #edelpappband #torontobookarts

It’s a great end of the week when your carton of

It’s a great end of the week when your carton of paper arrives. I’ll have enough @mohawkpaper superfine to last for workshops and projects for a while. #paperlove #bookbinding #letterpress #bookrepair #bookarts #torontobookarts

Load More... Follow on Instagram