10.31.2010

William Morris ketubah

Here's a detail from a five-color ketubah (marriage contract) we printed last week, honestly one of the most intricate and beautiful prints I've ever worked on. The line work was an original drawing done by the groom (a sculptor by trade) inspired by the floral patterns of William Morris (we used a version of these leaves in their invitations as well).  I set the typography (in three languages!) and colorized it for them to coordinate with their wedding palette.





The scrolls were called out in an opaque white ink on a Rives BFK tan paper (de-luscious) to make them pop, and the tan of the paper softened all of the colors just enough for a gorgeous fall scheme. Leaves were printed first in yellow and then an orange gradient on top. The plate for the gradients came out with a harder edge than I liked so I ended up wiping off some of the ink on the feathered edge of each leaf by hand before each print.

I love projects that challenge the letterpress process and this one was no exception. Congratulations Julie and Miguel and thanks for including us in your big day!
Publish Post

2 comments:

Ezra said...

Shelley, this is gorgeous.

Shelley Barandes said...

I know, right? Design is all the groom, but I enjoyed coloring it for them. It's fun to have a project I can really get my hands dirty with. Having fewer to finish also means I can take more time with each run and experiment.