Although class has a great deal to do with how one carries oneself, perhaps even how one dresses, a keen barometer of this elusive thing called class is correspondence. How one communicates with world is an immense indication of one's class. The jaunty, and often garbled, text message -- even the casual email -- fails to do justice to the notion of class. With the tactile sensation of paper in hand, of embossed decorations, even a personalized stationary, you are just communicating. Mere communication is not correspondence.
A letterpress note, signed by a beloved friend or relative is something that will pass on through generations. The case is not even being made for handwriting a correspondence, indeed it is completely acceptable to type your missive, as long as you hand write a salutation and a valediction. The purpose, to be sure, is to communicate, but to do so with the direct intention of creating something that will stand the test of time. A deleted email or text message is as disposable as the world we live in.
The letterpress has survived longer than the automobile, aviation, and even movable type. The letterpress may even outlive the Internet. We shall see. The point is a tool so ancient and revered is one that has survived precisely because we are creatures that seek out heirlooms. We instinctively covet things -- items, baubles that we can cherish and pass down. A beautifully crafted sheet of paper is no different. It is the exception to find a married couple that does not have at least one copy of their wedding invitations under glass.
We are feeling creatures, doomed to the beauty of a world that we cannot take with us when we pass. We are creatures, divinely curious and hopeful, who need things to remind us of one another. You cannot cherish an email. You cannot frame a text message. For messages that truly matter, which will resound beyond a mere mortals lifetime, something more is required. Indulge in the wisdom of your elders and indulge in a set of custom-crafted invitations or stationary.
J.B. Lieberman, the leader of the American Chapel movement in the late twentieth century said it best when he quipped: "YOU can print! You can do real printing, even if now you can't tighten a nut, can't boil water, can't tell type from tape, live in one room with three other people, and have to hoard your money. It's simple, it's fun, it's useful, and you'll have something to show!" To be sure, to have something to show is the key, not just to your immediate intimates, but also to the generations yet to be born.
A letterpress note, signed by a beloved friend or relative is something that will pass on through generations. The case is not even being made for handwriting a correspondence, indeed it is completely acceptable to type your missive, as long as you hand write a salutation and a valediction. The purpose, to be sure, is to communicate, but to do so with the direct intention of creating something that will stand the test of time. A deleted email or text message is as disposable as the world we live in.
The letterpress has survived longer than the automobile, aviation, and even movable type. The letterpress may even outlive the Internet. We shall see. The point is a tool so ancient and revered is one that has survived precisely because we are creatures that seek out heirlooms. We instinctively covet things -- items, baubles that we can cherish and pass down. A beautifully crafted sheet of paper is no different. It is the exception to find a married couple that does not have at least one copy of their wedding invitations under glass.
We are feeling creatures, doomed to the beauty of a world that we cannot take with us when we pass. We are creatures, divinely curious and hopeful, who need things to remind us of one another. You cannot cherish an email. You cannot frame a text message. For messages that truly matter, which will resound beyond a mere mortals lifetime, something more is required. Indulge in the wisdom of your elders and indulge in a set of custom-crafted invitations or stationary.
J.B. Lieberman, the leader of the American Chapel movement in the late twentieth century said it best when he quipped: "YOU can print! You can do real printing, even if now you can't tighten a nut, can't boil water, can't tell type from tape, live in one room with three other people, and have to hoard your money. It's simple, it's fun, it's useful, and you'll have something to show!" To be sure, to have something to show is the key, not just to your immediate intimates, but also to the generations yet to be born.
About the Author:
Regale yourself as a lady or gentleman. Those of you who are interested in ordering letterpress invitations would be well served ordering from a respected letterpress boutique.
