WHAT IS  LETTERPRESS PRINTING?

Letterpress-printing is a relief printmaking process. The form of letters and words are impressed into the paper using a printing press. It is favored because of the impression left by the “bite” of the letters into the paper. Letterpress-printing allows for use of a much wider range of papers than digital printing, and is a more archival printing process than most other printing options.

From 1450 AD to the mid-twentieth century, letterpress printing was the most popular form of printing text on paper.

SOME BUSINESSES WE PRINT FOR

Sazerac House

Odgen Museum of Art

Mpress Printing

Invitations by Fergie

City Park Botanical Garden

Antenna

EQUIPMENT

The Southern Letterpress studio contains a Vandercook SP-15 from 1969, and an ancient Heidelberg windmill from 1953, and a small table top platen press from 1890. The studio holds around 80 typefaces in metal and wood type.

Read the story of the acquisition of The Southern Letterpress’s first press here.

See photos of all the studios we have occupied since 2012 here.

WHY DO WE LOVE LETTERPRESS PRINTING?

The quality of exquisite, handmade letterpress-printed products is vital to us and our clients. We love using our early twentieth century machinery to produce designs that contain evidence of the human hand, a step away from the proliferation of digital screens. As a small studio, we are empowered to work closely with our clients and create prints with personality and lasting significance.

Our cards, stationery, hand-crafted and custom prints are used as art and affirmation. Our cards are tacked to walls, placed in frames, hung on bulletin boards, and savored by recipients for years.

Invitations and Announcements: We love to work with customers to design and print their invitations. We specialize in unique, personalized designs based on your inspiration and interests. Ask about our print-your-own workshops, an opportunity to experience letterpress-printing while creating your invitation!

Letterpress products: The Southern Letterpress has an exclusive line of greeting cards, posters and stationery items for sale at retail locations around the South and at our etsy site.

Classes and Workshops: We educate about the craft and history of letterpress printing through public events and workshops in our studio. Check our upcoming opportunities here, and come print your own!

WHO WE ARE

Jessica Peterson is the printer and designer at The Southern Letterpress. Originally from Rochester, New York, she moved to Alabama in 2006 to earn an MFA from the University of Alabama’s Book Arts Program. She established The Southern Letterpress in 2012 in Columbus, Mississippi, with the mission to bring letterpress printing resources and education to her local community. The Southern Letterpress is now located in New Orleans, Louisiana in a building shared by Antenna’s Paper Machine.

Since 2016, Jessica has been learning about how motherhood intersections with small business ownership and printing.