Favorite Friend Friday: Lisa Hasegawa of ilfant press

Aside from being a key player in getting our crafty kit booklets printed at her day job at AA Printing, Lisa Hasewaga a brilliant graphic designer and the owner & principal of ilfant press, her local card and stationery line with nods to traditional schoolhouse design and parcel post. Besides all of that, she also teaches classes at Seattle's Pratt Fine Arts Center, and her story is absolutely fascinating. It's a pleasure to have her on the blog this Friday.


Tell us a little bit about ilfant press. When did you start it and what were you looking to create? What got you interested in printing?
ilfant press has morphed a bit since its inception. I created a business name, “ilfant” as a sort of transmutation of the word “elephant” while I was in undergrad because elephants were featured so often in my prints. Later I added “press” to it when I started making artist’s books. In the last several years I have settled more into letterpress and stationery items so the name still fits.

Printing has always been my destiny. When I was little my dad lived at a hippie camp where they had a mimeograph machine and it was *awesome.* I found out about printmaking while I was in high school and knew that was my next path. One year at Bumbershoot (a really long time ago when they still had the small press fair) there was a guy who brought a little table top letterpress and I fell in love with that. Once I found out there was a thing called letterpress I knew I had to learn more about it.



Your nostalgic stationery sets and notepads are especially popular with our most creative customers. Why do you think they are so popular?
Honestly I’m not sure; it’s something I have also wondered. They are pretty different from other things out there. Perhaps because visual people have more of a need to write things down; that is, to visually express thoughts. I am a die-hard note-taker and I can’t function well without notepads.


You work in a Queen Anne print shop called A&A Printing and teach at Pratt! How do you juggle ilfant with your other two jobs? Do you ever feel too thinly spread?
Since Pratt and ilfant are both part-time (I usually only teach one or two nights a week) and I absolutely love what I do, it works out pretty okay. Each job fulfills me in different ways, so I’m not sure what I would do if I didn’t have so many things going on. Eating and sleeping sometimes get in the way of work (I am actually not kidding) but I am pretty adamant about giving myself weekends off for the most part so I don’t go too crazy.

Do you have any projects coming up in the future that you're excited about?
Nothing in particular, but I do have an artist’s book I’ve been working on for too long that I would really like to complete this year. It will be completely letterpress printed from handset type and rule (only one other book is all letterpress) and that’s the kind of thing that makes me really happy.

What does your design to print process like?
It depends on the project, of course. Some things, like the ruled postcards, I print intuitively while in the studio. I’ll put some rule (strips of lead that print different types of lines) together and change it around until I’m happy with it. If it’s something really complicated that uses handset type I make proofs (really quick prints) and then scan them into the computer to play around with the design and color, which is kind of odd mixing old-timey lead type with modern-day computer design. In most cases I think about it for awhile in my head and then make notes and drafts in my sketchbook.




We met you at Urban Craft Uprising where you were one of our favorite vendors, along with a personal friend of yours, (and fellow Favorite Friend), Emily Baier of Tako Fibers. What have you learned from the experience of selling at Craft Shows? What are the upsides and the downsides?
People are generally not as excited about the same things I am. I am a huge print nerd and most people aren’t, so while some might appreciate the fine printing and typesetting or the fact that the envelopes in my stationery sets have printing on the inside, it’s pretty rare for someone to say, “WOW! You brilliant print goddess! How on earth did you ever create that wonderful piece of printed perfection?” Okay maybe that hasn’t actually happened at all yet.

What do you like to do in your off-time?
I read, eat, cook, and spend time with friends.

If you could live anywhere in the world, where would it be and why?
Truly it would be here or Portland. The Pacific Northwest is the greatest. I went to grad school in Philadelphia and I couldn’t wait to get back here.

If you could eat at only one local restaurant for the rest of your life, what would it be?
Purple. Man I love that place.

What's your dream job, besides what you are doing now?
I would love to have my own shop; part retail and part custom printing. And teaching… basically what I do now, but tidier.

You get to organize a dinner party, who is there?
This question would take far more thought than I have time for.

If you could have a super power, what would it be?
To manipulate time. Duh. And also fly.

Any new years resolutions?
Yes - finish that artist’s book I mentioned!

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See Lisa's beautiful stationery sets in our online shop.
Thanks Lisa!!

Images: ilfant press & Assemble Shop & Studio

Assemble Shop Vendors at Urban Craft Uprising

We were so excited to be able to go to Urban Craft Uprising this weekend (together!) It's a rare treat that Emily and I can go anywhere together, so this was fun. We got to see all of our favorite Assemble vendors doing what they do best at the huge, amazing craft show.


Favorite Friends, Slide Sideways selling their awesome, graphic wares. I got myself some of their awesome handmade wrapping paper!

Pamela Davis of MuchoDesign. We talked about all of the new, awesome product she is going to stock us up with -- take a look!


Another Favorite Friend: Emily Baier of Tako Fibers. Plus! She stocked us up on kits! Come by and see some of her brand new ones (there's a squirrel!)

Pretty new studs by our pal, Amy Bengtson

Sweet animals by our new vendor, Three Bad Seeds. We loved the pug!

If you didn't get a chance to stop by Urban Craft Uprising this weekend, definitely come by our shop or check it out online, as we have a bunch of product from some of the same, amazing vendors. We love them, and UCU!

Favorite Friend Friday: Emily Baier of Tako Fibers

Image via Tako Fibers
We met Emily Baier (another Emily!) of Tako Fibers pretty early on in the opening of Assemble. We found her at the Urban Craft Uprising, an awesome bi-annual craft and DIY show in Seattle. Assemble fell in love with her work and commissioned her to teach workshops at Assemble, plus sell accompanying crewel embroidery kits. She even had an art show last year! When she's not making and selling gorgeous, interactive crewel embroidery kits, she's at her day job distrubuting letterpress cards and gifts at another place we adore: Egg Press! We love, LOVE her and wanted to introduce her sweet personality and incredible work to our readers:

Assemble: First of all, how do you pronounce Tako Fibers, and what does it mean?
Emily Baier: Tako is a Japanese word that means both "octopus" and "kite", and is pronounced similarly to the word "taco." I wish I had eight arms -- seven to do all of my hobbies, and one more to fly a kite!

What is crewel embroidery?
Crewel embroidery is a textural kind of embroidery that uses wool yarn. It is a kind of "free embroidery," meaning you are not counting stitches or filling in a grid. The images are "painted" onto a fabric surface with stitches, and are very filled in. Remember those crazy tapestries and wall hangings from the 1970s, the ones you can still sometimes find in thrift stores...? Those are crewel work! The thick yarn makes a project go quickly, so you have the satisfaction of finishing a project much faster than some other crafts.


Green droplets kit from Tako Fibers
When did you get started making kits?
I started making kits in 2009, after visiting friends who had a collection of vintage yarn art on their walls. I thought they were SO cool, and I wanted to make my own, but there weren't very many crewel kits available, and most that were available were not what I would want hanging on my walls. I have been an artist my whole life, and thought, 'hey! I can design my own!' And so I did. After getting great feedback at my first craft show, I decided to continue making them, and have been ever since!

What's the thing you love most about your job(s)?
I love making embroidery kits because I love to help people be creative. I think that taking on a new hobby can be intimidating, and so a kit can be a helping hand in the right direction. The entire process of making a kit (which I will go into in a second!) is creative and fulfilling, and knowing that it will be enjoyed by someone else makes the process even more exciting.

While it would be lovely to be making embroidery kits all day every day, I do have an amazing day job. I spend my days shipping out letterpress printed greeting cards from Egg Press. I work with such creative people, and it is always exciting to go to work. I studied printmaking when I was in school, and even though I am not in the printing department just being around the presses makes me very happy!

What goes into the development of a kit?
It starts with a drawing in my sketchbook. I keep my book with me all the time, so whenever I have a great idea I can sketch it out. Each pattern is hand screenprinted onto fabric, so I need to make a negative from the drawing. I sometimes scan a drawing and print it out on transparency paper, but my favorite method is painting the sketch onto acetate with black ink. If I am not sure about the design, I'll transfer it to a piece of fabric and test-embroider it before printing a bunch of them. Some wonderful drawings just don't translate to embroidery very well. But sometimes I have a good feeling and will jump into it right away!

After I make a screen with the new image, I screenprint it onto fabric. I use a few different types of fabric, depending on the kit -- some kits have a beautiful flax colored linen-cotton blend fabric, and others have a natural cotton fabric flecked with speckles.

Then, its time to test embroider! I pick out my colors, and start embroidering. As I embroider, I keep track of how much yarn I use so I can make sure to include enough in the kit. Sometimes I'll rip out the test a few times, other times its perfect right away. I take notes as I embroider as well, especially if there is a tricky part that I want to make sure I go into in the instructions. I then take my notes over to the computer, and scan in a copy of the negative. I use Adobe Illustrator to make a stitching diagram, and I write out detailed instructions on exactly how to stitch the piece like I did. This is harder than it sounds, and is the most time consuming part of the process.

After I am satisfied with the instructions, I'll pass them on to a friend to copy edit them and make sure they are clear. I also prefer it if I have another person embroider the piece before I release the kit.

Then its assembly time! All OF the kits come with the screenprinted fabric, yarn, a crewel needle, a small hoop, instructions, and also instructions on how to do each stitch. Someone who has never embroidered before should be able to start stitching right out of the box!

What's your favorite kit, and what is your fan favorite?
That is a really hard question to answer! My favorite might be my new geometric sampler that I'll have ready in the next few weeks! My most popular kit though is Mr. Party Fox. I'm not sure if it is because he is a fox, or because he is ready to party, but everyone loves him!


Party Fox Kit + Brand new upcoming kit! from Tako Fibers

Now for Assemble's favorite questions:

What do you like to do in your off-time?
When I'm not stitching I am... still stitching. In addition to my own personal embroidery pieces, I also knit, and I sew a lot of my own clothes. I also sing a lot of karaoke. Oh, and I also love to make pickles and jams and kim chi. And I love to make soup. It has just occurred to me that I am always doing one of those things.

If you could be anything in the world, what would you be?
Well, I do like who I am quite a bit, so I am quite content with being me. But if I could be anything else, I think I would want to be Boo, the world's cutest dog. Because really, who wouldn't want to be Boo? What a life!

If you could live anywhere in the world, where would it be and why?
Is it silly to say right where I am? I live in Portland, Oregon, but grew up in Seattle. The Pacific Northwest is the best! I love Portland and Seattle and travel frequently between them.

If you could eat only one food for the rest of your life, what would it be?
Probably tacos. Or spaghetti. Or Teriyaki. I can't decide! I hope that situation never happens.

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Take a look at Emily's in-stock kits here, (more coming soon!) and sign up for her workshop if you are interested in a great time with crewel embroidery. Thank you, Emily!!