we're having a party!

We haven't unpacked all of our boxes or built out all of our new space yet, but we're ready to celebrate our new studio and our new equipment! We're having a party! A launch party! An urban garden party in Downtown L.A. with handmade cocktails and snacks and music to be more precise! 

The invitation to our new studio launch party open house, to RSVP just click on the image above.

We're having a lot of fun getting ready for this party. We've had some great help from friends and family and can't wait to celebrate with all of the people who have helped us get where we are!

L-R: assembling our goodie bags, pretty paper straws and mini cupcake liners for the party!

We decided to make paper decorations for the party, it just seemed like the right fit! Some of our friends came over and helped us make a skyline out of white butcher block paper that we painted with watered down acrylic paint. We painted each strip of paper and then adhered them to the wall with double-sided tape. It's been really fun having this up on the wall, we'll probably keep it around after the party until we're ready to finish building the space out.

The hand-painted butcher block paper skyline we made with the help of some of our friends.

One of the other paper decoration projects we've embarked on, is making crepe paper flowers. These were definitely a little more challenging! We made a few poppies that were made with single petals, but mostly we concentrated on the multiple sheet way of making flowers. We found a great tutorial on Pinterest where you stack multiple sheets of crepe paper, fold the stack into an accordion, tie it in the middle and trim the edges. Then you carefully unfold the individual sheets. We're really pleased with the end result.

The crepe paper flowers we made, we'll also be using fresh flowers from the LA Flower Market in DTLA.

We've also been very lucky to work with a few of our favorite companies and local organizations who have graciously donated goodies or information packets for our goodie bags. We're only offering a limited number, so get here early to snag one!

L-R:a sneak peek at a treat from our goodie bags, the terra cotta cupcake towers we made from plant containers, the goodies Neenah paper graciously donated for our goodie bags. 

We have a bunch of other fun projects in the works. If you're interested in taking a look at what we've been thinking about for decorations, take a look at our Party Plans board on Pinterest or stay tuned on Instagram or Facebook where we'll be posting pictures over the next few weeks as we get ready for the big day!

We're really excited to open our doors and welcome everyone into our new space and show off our new equipment. Hope to see you there!

Best,
Rosemary+Robin

first big steps

Robin setting up the rollers.

We took some first big steps this weekend. After taking some time to learn how our new press works, we took the plunge on Sunday and pulled our first prints!

L-R: our workspace, locking up the letterpress heart in order to print.

It might not look like much, but it's taken us a little over two years to get to this heart, our first print on the Heidelberg Windmill Letterpress.

L-R: Our bottleneck press in our living room in Koreatown, in our booth at Artisanal LA in November of 2013.

We started working together on a line of paper goods, just over two years ago. In that time, we started by printing with our fingers, moved on to printing with a spoon and a baren, then built our bottle jack press. We relaunched as Ink+Smog Editions a year ago in March. We only dreamed at that point, of having a dedicated print shop and mechanized press. 

L-R: our very first print on the Heidelberg Windmill, Rosemary holding our first print and bursting into happy tears.

A lot of work and time and effort has gone into that little heart. So much so, that moments after we first realized that we'd successfully made our first print, Rosemary was so happy, she burst into tears. The future seems so bright right now, and we couldn't have gotten here, without all of the love and support we've gotten from our friends, our family and our followers. We are so appreciative. And we can't wait to work our fingers to the bone. Thank you.

Best,

Rosemary+Robin