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| 1 | +--- |
| 2 | +author: amanda-visconti |
| 3 | +layout: post |
| 4 | +date: 2024-11-06 |
| 5 | +title: "My recent making projects roundup: zines, letterpress, coding, fabrication" |
| 6 | +slug: visconti-recent-making-projects |
| 7 | +summary: "I've been making lots of things lately." |
| 8 | +category: essay |
| 9 | +tags: |
| 10 | +- makerspace |
| 11 | +- expansive-makerspace |
| 12 | +- letterpress-book-arts |
| 13 | +- zines |
| 14 | +crosspost: |
| 15 | + - title: Amanda's blog |
| 16 | + url: https://literaturegeek.com/tag/building-making-creating-coding |
| 17 | +--- |
| 18 | + |
| 19 | + |
| 20 | +(link josef, alphabuzz, bookbeetle, blog bookbloosom) |
| 21 | +(link provisional press co) |
| 22 | +bookbinding (makerspace link, Leah Phan shoutout) |
| 23 | +apprenticeship vandcook: (link books arts memberships) |
| 24 | + |
| 25 | +## Zines |
| 26 | +### "Speedweve for mending" zine |
| 27 | +A 16-page standard-size, full-color zine, ["Speedweve for Mending"](https://zinebakery.com/homemade-zines/SpeedweveForMendingDHMakesMethodzZine1-BlickhanVisconti) introduces you to speedweve-style mending looms for fixing small holes in socks and other fabric: What are they? What’s cool about them? Why might you want to try one? How would you get started using one? It’s a zine-ification by me, of a 10/15/2024 #DHMakes Methodz Talk and slides by Sam Blickhan. ([#DHMakes Methodz Talks](https://amandavisconti.github.io/DHMakesMethodz/) is a public maker talk series I organize.) |
| 28 | + |
| 29 | + |
| 30 | + |
| 31 | +### In-progress zine writing |
| 32 | +I'm currently drafting a zine about making zines, based on Claudia Berger's 10/31 ([#DHMakes Methodz Talk](https://amandavisconti.github.io/DHMakesMethodz/) on the topic, in Canva. I've got a new paper draft of a mini-zine on researching and procuring your first set of letterpress wood or metal type. I've also got a full paper draft of a mini-zine introduction to letterpress typesetting and Vandercook press printing, started back in August. |
| 33 | + |
| 34 | +## Bluesky follower/following/list management tool using coding |
| 35 | +I coded a Bluesky follower/following/list management app for myself, since I couldn't find one. You can achieve a surprising amount with just HTML and a little JavaScript: I made a webpage with a sortable table of Bluesky accounts, linked to their profile pages, with columns for various metadata like last-posted date—without needing an API access token. |
| 36 | + |
| 37 | +## Letterpress/book arts x lots of project work! |
| 38 | + |
| 39 | +### Building a Provisional Press tabletop letterpress printing press from a kit |
| 40 | +I used the [Provisional Press](https://www.provisionalpress.com/) kit to build a wooden tabletop letterpress printing press: |
| 41 | + |
| 42 | + |
| 43 | + |
| 44 | + |
| 45 | + |
| 46 | + |
| 47 | + |
| 48 | +### A Hobonichi-Techno-style notebook using bookbinding methods |
| 49 | +I took student Makerspace Tech [Leah Phan](/people/leah-phan)'s Scholars' Lab Makerspace [workshop](https://scholarslab.lib.virginia.edu/events/makerspace-workshop-hobonichi-techno-bookbinding-a-2024-10-25/) (recommended!) on using bookbinding methods to create a a Hobonichi-Techno-style notebook: |
| 50 | + |
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| 54 | + |
| 55 | + |
| 56 | + |
| 57 | + |
| 58 | + |
| 59 | +### A year-long letterpress printing apprenticeship |
| 60 | +I'm just starting a year-long letterpress printing apprenticeship with [the Virginia Center for the Book Book Arts](https://www.vabookcenter.org/book-arts/), focused on typesetting in metal and wood, showcard press practice, and especially projects and practice toward certification to run their Vandercook proofing press on my own (and hopefully help teach it to others, too). [Shane](/people/shane-lin) is also doing this—let us know if you're interested in learning or collaborating on letterpress, book arts, and adjacent digital work. |
| 61 | + |
| 62 | +This follows up on the August [4-day letterpress printing intensive](https://literaturegeek.com/made/2024/08/23/M-vandercook-letterpress-intensive-training.html) we took, as well as my other recent [letterpress and book arts work](https://literaturegeek.com/tag/letterpress-book-arts). |
| 63 | + |
| 64 | +### BookBeetle screw press & letterpress printing pedagogy |
| 65 | +Last Saturday was the 1st session of Josef Beery’s Alphabuzz at the [the Virginia Center for the Book Book Arts](https://www.vabookcenter.org/book-arts/): a cohort of letterpress folks learning how to teach public & K-12 letterpress printing with the [BookBeetle](https://www.bookbeetlepress.com/), a reproduction historical screw letterpress designed to be ultra-accessible for public and teaching use. We did 6 letterpress printing exercises aimed at public teaching various age groups from kindergarten up, including letterpress printing with legos, Josef's new [BookBlossom wood type](https://www.bookbeetlepress.com/blog/2021/9/17/bookbeetle-woodtype), a [Declaration of Independence](https://www.bookbeetlepress.com/blog/2023/7/2/enslaved-printers-2) photopolymer plate, & my fave: cutting craft foam to make a bestiary book! |
| 66 | + |
| 67 | +The remaining three sessions will involve: our teaching K-12 teachers how to teach with the press, our teaching those teachers and their students, and a daylong intensive on letterpress history and practice (including printing on a Franklin Common Press!). |
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| 76 | + |
| 77 | +## Fabrication |
| 78 | +I made progress on my neon ghost books project, an attempt to emulate Aidan Kang’s [Luminous Books](https://www.thephotophore.com/airan-kang/) described in [my "Book-adjacent data" journal article](https://dhandlib.org/?p=154321). |
| 79 | + |
| 80 | +I learned: |
| 81 | +* hot glue gun doesn't work well for these glass & acrylic joints (too thick, dries too fast; had to peel off and re-glue with clear Loctite superglue) |
| 82 | +* leaving paper wrapping on the on glass & acrylic to protect it from the glue meant that it is now annoying to remove; and I discovered that excess glue actually cleans off it easily without leaving a cloud |
| 83 | +* the jigsaw-edge box design calculator I used, and/or the glass cutting measurement tolerances are off (resulting in gaps between the joints) |
| 84 | + |
| 85 | + |
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