is this your lucky number?

In case you were unaware, today is Friday the 13th — the first one of the new year! What does that mean? In addition to black cats crossing your path and wishing on four leaf clovers, try to take a minute on your lunch break to toss together a postcard or two. Then, stop by the post office on your way home to drop off the mail, and it will be cancelled with today’s date on it: lucky number 13!

variety is the slice of (college) life...

Now if only there were some well designed, slightly disconcerting postcard stamps to put on these guys…

(are you listening to me, USPS?)

–JH

*: a fear of Friday the 13th

PS: there are two more Friday the 13th dates this year, so you can plan ahead! April 13th and July 13th are next up, in addition to today. And guess what? This year’s friday dates are each thirteen weeks apart from each other — do you think that it’s a mere co-incidence?

PPS: it has also been brought to my attention (by Mark Bloch of PanModern) that Ray Johnson died exactly 17 years ago today; that day was also a Friday the 13th…

delivering the mail, in style!

Here’s wishing all of you, dear readers a very merry holiday and a joyous new year! My wish for each of you in 2012? A pleasantly full mailbox, a bevvy of new correspondents, and an endless stream of inspiring mail art.

With a glass of celebratory champagne in one hand, and a sheaf of letters in the other –

–JH

PS: did any of you leave holiday gifties for your postal person, either in your mailbox or in person, at the PO counter? If the answer is “yes”, let us know!

PPS: the above image is for Pamela over at Cappuccino And Art Journal, as I know she collects such fabulousness…

he knows if you've been bad or good...oh wait! wrong guy.

Psst: I have something I have to tell you.

Something Extremely Important.

Something which cannot wait.

Christmas is exactly one week away.

my apartment. oh wait! wrong place.

That’s right: one week. Seven short, fly-by-the-seat-of-your-pants-days. And if you’re even the teeniest bit like me (and I think that you might be), you still have a couple of folks left on your Christmas list to shop for. That’s if you’ve started shopping at all.

make sure you've filled out all the correct forms!

So: I’m going to help you out a bit. I’ve rustled up a handful of “make at the last minute but it looks like you spent weeks in the studio” ideas, gift possibilities for friends who are equally obsessed with the post office. Who knows? Maybe you’ll have time to make an extra gift or two — for yourself!

adorable, no?

1): Andria over at the blog  “Drawing Near” sent the loveliest email last week, letting me know about her Airmail Jotters — perfect little notebooks if you need a stocking stuffer for someone. Fast and easy to make, these notebooks are cute as a button with their airmail covers! Head on over and check out her easy-to-follow tutorial…

2): the blog “Carolyn’s Homework” had this amazing goodie (among others):

now imagine what a dozen would look like, lined up in a row...

c'est magnifique!

and I think that cutie little jar would be perfect for a Christmas gift! Why not fill a canning  jar with rolled up envelopes, letter paper, one of those Pilot disposable fountain pens from Japan, and a sheet of postage? Top the whole thing off with a fancy, airmail envelope lid and you have the perfect gift for a niece or BFF.

would I even set a coffee mug on these coasters? It's hard to tell...

3): the Letter Writer’s Alliance shared this Design Sponge/postage coasters link last year, and I immediately swooned. Postage stamp-inspired coasters – what’s not to love? I mean honestly. These are a little more time consuming than the two projects mentioned above, but isn’t your favorite co-worker worth it? The one who stayed w-a-a-y late and helped you wrap up that most recent (hellish) project? Yeah, that’s what I thought.

With that, I wish everyone a merry everything! It’s back to the studio for me; all those half finished gifts are calling out, and I’ve got a deadline, just like the rest of you!
–JH

santa's workshop is so...organized.

a little bit of Christmas cheer?

Kringle, kringle, kringle, my fabulous correspondents!

Have you managed to send your holiday cards and end-of-the-year wishes?

this might be the answer to the PO's problems!

Fear not! There’s still time. “But when?” you may wonder.

I can help you with that: December 15th!

won't you join us? T'would be delightful...

San Francisco’s Correspondence Co-op will be hosting a holiday open house at the SF Center for the Book. Highlights will include:

• –a display of mail art by Correspondence Co-op members
• –letterpressed broadsides by poet Cody Gates, designed by Happenstance Type-O-Rama
• –a mail art “make-and-take” station, with supplies for creating your own marvelous postcards
• –raffle of the evening: a Smith Corona “Classic 12″ script (cursive) typewriter! (details below to enter raffle)
• –holiday issue of the monthly Co-op artistamp

an "average" night, at a Co-op meetings...

And how about that raffle? Y’know: the one for the typewriter? It’s this baby right here:

wouldn't this typer look GREAT sitting on your desk?

Specifics: 

Correspondence Co-op member Anna is bringing a lovely, nearly mint condition cursive script typewriter to SF from Seattle for our holiday raffle — the perfect Christmas gift for you or someone you know! Here are the “rules”:

• –you must be present or have someone collect the typewriter at the time of the raffle (Dec. 15th, 2011 during the open house).
• –tickets are $5 apiece and must be paid in advance via PayPal to alincoln at care2 (dot) com. Anna will not be accepting cash at the event!
• –Raffle remains open until 3pm on December 15th; the drawing will happen that same day, between 6-8pm at the SF Center for the Book.
• –50% of proceeds go to the Hachiko Coalition (helping animals in the Fukashima nuclear zone).

Hope to see you on Thursday night, with glue stick and rubber stamps in hand!

–JH

are you ready for it?

Let’s pretend it’s your first time visiting New York City. And let’s also say that you have absolutely no idea where to eat on your first night in town, but you’re starving. Finding yourself (somehow) on the Lower East Side with a rumbling stomach, you arrive at the corner of Houston and Ludlow (205 Houston, to be exact). An old school neon sign running down the side of a brick building proclaims that you are in front of Katz’s Delicatessen – a NYC institution which serves up (according to wiki) 12,000 hot dogs and 10,000 pounds of pastrami each week. Yep – you read that correctly. Weekly pastrami consumption is high in NYC and Katz’s is the go-to place.

so many shine-y surfaces...

There are many things I could tell you about the deli itself. I’ll limit myself to this: you MUST take a ticket at the door. This small green slip of paper is your meal ticket for delicious foodstuffs. Lose/misplace your ticket, and it’s a strong possibility that you’ll be subjected to a hefty “lost ticket fee” ($50.00!)

be here now...

Katz’s is one of the go-to places for mail artists; stories circulate through the Network of impromptu Ray Johnson meetings with friends and artists at Katz’s (Johnson lived right around the corner for awhile, so it was a convenient meeting spot). I asked mail art troubadour/guru The Sticker Dude about how Katz’s had ended up becoming a mail art watering hole – he had the perfect answer.

the group gets to work...

“Well, there are three things about Katz’s that make it perfect for mail art get-togethers.

making mail art happen!

There’s a pretty large back section, where you can scoot a bunch of tables together and settle down to work…

Sticker Dude on the Left, LJ Lago in middle, Mark Bloch on the right...

Nobody’s gonna hassle us; the staff pretty much leaves you alone. So if we get kinda loud and crazy, it won’t be a problem.

Francis & Ham of Red Fox Press...

And it just makes sense to come here. It’s like part of the continuity of the whole Network thing, what with Ray Johnson and all.”

Red Letter Day, with mailing list...

So: Mail Art Mayhem took place on October 3^rd,  2011. Frantic Ham (Red Fox Press/Francis and Antic Ham) were the first to arrive, and secured the perfect table for our group. Other mail artists slowly filtered in, grabbed their green tickets, and mingled. Who was in attendance? Mail artists The Sticker Dude, Mark Bloch, Robin Go, and E. Schaffer , poet Steve Dalachinsky, and artist L.J. Lago. As mentioned above, Francis and Ham of Red Fox Press and oh yeah – Red Letter Day!

It didn’t take long to break out the rubber stamps, envelopes, and postage…

Ray is everywhere, Ray is everything...

…as well as a glossy photo of our mentor for the eve.

Hot dogs, beer, addressing envelopes and socializing – we were all in our element. And after a fair bit of time had passed, the Dude felt that a song was in order.

The Sticker Dude sings a cautionary tale...

If you’ve had the pleasure of meeting The Sticker Dude in person, you know that he is a walking wonder, one fearless storyteller in his own right. At this particular gathering, the group was treated to the Dude’s “Vincent Van Gogh” – a song of Homeric proportions which chronicles the story of a single Van Gogh painting, while pointing out that society certainly didn’t regard the artist as “all that” while he was alive. By the time the song ended, most of the deli patrons were all ears.

Mail Art Mayhem gathering, October 2011

At the end of the evening, Von Span suggested that we gather together for a “school portrait” of sorts. So we did, complete with goofy expressions and wide eyed grins. It was hard to say goodbye, even though we knew that we should probably wrap up the evening. But the festive atmosphere was hard to let go of.

Mark Bloch puts the finishing touches on an envelope...

At this point, I have to give a special shout out to Mark Bloch, who kindly offered to show Von Span, Robin, and me around the Lower East side – specifically, Ray Johnson’s old apartment. We headed around the corner and stood in the growing darkness, as Mark regaled us with tales of being neighbors with “New York’s most famous unknown artist”.

I was told that it was okay to hyperventilate on the sidewalk...

My evening was complete. I was happy, from tip to tail.

The rest of the trip passed by in a blur; there were only 24 or so more hours to be spent in NYC. Being away for so long made me realize that it had been too long – why had I let so much time pass in between visits? Walking down tree-lined sidewalks with cabs winging along Lexington Ave, I could feel the streets humming with energy, a certain vibe that is far different from west coast cities. Heading out to JFK, I promised NYC I’d return in a jiffy, that I wouldn’t be a stranger.

–JH

coffee, airmail envelopes, and glue sticks: ready to settle down to work!

Sometimes, I have a problem with sequence. Example: I have a hard time deviating from numerical sequence or stepping outside of something, once I’m in the middle of it. Reading books out of order drives me crazy — I’d rather hunt down all the volumes of a series before I even consider diving into reading Book #1. Because the question that begs to be asked is this: what if I finish Book #1 at three a.m. and NEED to immediately begin Book #2?

Now you see what I mean.

nope. it always looks like that...

I’ll talk a little bit more about that at the end of this current post. Suffice to say, there’s a reason I brought it up. But for now, let’s talk about November news around the RLD mailbox, since the month is quickly drawing to a close…

the first week in the new space...

If you’ve been following my twitter feed (@redletterzine) you already know that I’ve moved into a new studio space, one that I’m pretty excited about! Why is this revolutionary? Why is it such a big deal?

after a bit of tidying up and putting things together...

Well, here in San Francisco space is (and always has been) at a premium. It’s not quite as bad as New York or Tokyo, but as an artist it can be a struggle to find a place to live, let alone a studio to work in.

rubber stamps await...

I’ve had a studio “cubby” for quite sometime out in Potrero Hill, but alas! Over the last few years, that space has been relegated to a storage unit of sorts. It’s a neighborhood that I never, hardly ever find myself in anymore. And through a string of great good luck (I love you, my incredible next door neighbors!) I found a place in my current neighborhood. Indeed: my new space is a five minute walk from my current abode!

well of course -- mail art!

16 banker boxes, 3 milk crates, 4 vintage suitcases — that’s all it took to move my studio. Well, that and a U-Haul truck…

packing up the old space...

Moving, in any way/shape/form is a funny business: there’s alot of dust dredged up, and also alot of memories. I found that I hadn’t really prepared myself for the nostalgia of going through boxes and bins at the old space. It felt as if I was meeting the person I had been four or five years ago, looking at that face in the mirror. At other times, it felt as if I were going through the cast-off items of someone who was incredibly similar to me, and yet…not me, anymore.

giving it a bit of a sweep...

...and this is all that was left behind.

Overall, the move itself took hardly any time — a fast two hours! And then the unpacking began.

So much dust! (why didn’t I leave that at the old space?) Where do I put all this stuff? (more shelves are needed, obviously) Do I really need all of these odd sized envelopes? (yes, yes I do.) Like a giant “virtual” puzzle, (although I guess setting up a new space is virtually puzzling, until you get it figured out) items and supplies came out of boxes, crates, and cases.

is that Ray Johnson calling?

So. Setting up a new space is also interesting. As mentioned above, when things get “out of sequence” for me, I have a hard time figuring out where Point A starts and Point (let’s say) G begins. I’ve spent the last couple weeks shuffling and re-shuffling where things should go…

a brush for (nearly) everything!

…so that tools can be reached quickly and easily.

old friends, carefully collected throughout the years...

How should those photos hang?
Or maybe I can put this old thing in a glass jar, for better viewing?

things that cut & poke, next to things that stamp & number...

All in all, I keep reminding myself that a new space is a work in progress, just like so many aspects of life. Even though my Aries sensibility wants organization and completion (badly), this is a project that will not happen overnight. The best way to figure out how my new space will work best for me is to spend time in it, making/creating/doing.

the magic begins...

And so, that’s where I’ve been and what I’ve been up to. Sure, there are plenty of other things to mention, but I’ll save those for the future.

–JH

PS: I know, I know: I mentioned numeric order at the beginning of this post; I was referring to the fact that I still have one last post to write about my NYC trip — the mail art meet up at Katz’s Deli! I haven’t forgotten. It will happen this week, I swear.
PPS: I pinky swear on it.

triplePS: thanks to Von Span for the photos of the new studio space!

shining like a beacon in the east village!

In New York City, I found my Disneyland – my own personal version of the happiest place on earth. After a long day of vending at the book fair, the Baron and I high-tailed it down to the east village to a place called Casey Rubber Stamps. While in SF, and before leaving for NYC, a couple postal-modern friends of mine assured me that Casey’s was where it was at. “It’s well worth your time,” one friend told me. “J.C. will set you up,” another enthused.

I thought I had a pretty good idea.

if you don't get it, you probably shouldn't be shopping here...

I had absolutely no idea.

are you hyperventilating yet? because I sure was...

Casey Rubber Stamps goes by different names, depending on who you talk to, and how long that person has lived in New York: “John’s place”, “J.C.’s”, and “that-rubber-stamp-place-in-the-village-that-has-really-weird-hours” were all terms I heard bandied about when discussing Casey’s with folks. But they all agreed: among mail artists, it’s legendary.

beauty queens behind the counter...

Herr Baron and I arrived with about a half an hour to spare – whew! Outside, a table was set up with a basket of rubber stamps and ink pads for trying out; I was caught up in a rubber stamp-induced swoon (it was their windows that did it — all that dusty old stuff!) so I completely overlooked the treasures outside. The shop, while small and narrow, is crammed with shelves and baskets and boxes of rubber stamps, still made onsite.

rubber stamps, in the wild...

how can I possibly decide? I can't; I'll take one of everything!

The two chaps behind the counter weren’t sure what to make of us at first: who was this rubber stamp obsessed groupie in their store? And what about that guy in a bowtie, toting a camera? Once we mentioned we were visiting from San Francisco and looking for a good place to eat, the stories and recommendations started flowing. Best Irish fiddle band in NYC? Covered. How about late night jazz? A decent omelette? Or the best view of the Hudson River?

Keat and Bill are your go-to guys — honestly.

Mr. J. Casey himself. Sadly, he was out of the shop when Herr Baron and I stopped by...

I rummaged around, poking under stacks of newsprint, behind stamps on the shelves; new stamp-ish curiosities seemed to appear under every sheet of paper and in each cardboard box. I loved the fact that there were open inkpads available to try out certain stamps. I also loved that there was a bottle of Old Overholt on the counter. “These are my people,” I thought to myself.

oh my gawd. when can I move in?

In the end, I walked out of Casey’s considerably lighter wallet, but it was well worth it. These guys are keeping the old-school mail art aesthetic alive: their rubber stamp inventory consists of many victorian/art deco cuts, funny slogans, postal themes, and a fairly big selection of interesting letters and alphabets.

You’re not going to find any of those twee rubber stamps which haunt the aisles of scrapbooking stores, and that’s a-ok by me.

I know! I know! Can you believe it?!?!

Leaving Casey’s with a huge smile on my face, I promised Keat and Bill that I would send them a postcard using all of my new rubber stamps. Here it is (surrounded by my Casey’s treasures):

outgoing tomorrow...

Keat and Bill: you’re the best!

–JH

PS: stay tuned for “Big Apple part 3″ — Katz’s Deli is involved and you’re not gonna wanna miss it!

PPS: all above photos taken by Von Span/Sartoriana

why is it so early? WHY?

I don’t care what anyone says: SFO before a certain hour of the morning is unholy. I consider it absolutely uncivilized that any flight should leave the ground before 10 a.m. Needless to say, the airlines haven’t been consulting with yours truly as of late, so it looks like I’m stuck with bogus call times.

This is the part of the blog post where I skip over all the hassle of airports, Super Shuttles, and terrible airline food (what food?!?). I’ll go right into my first meal on the ground in NYC:

and guess what? the floor was tiled in black and white!

That’s right. Artie’s on the upper west side. Matzo ball soup, just like mom used to make.

Since I was in NY for the NY Art Book Fair, the first day was spent running around town, picking up last minute items. A lot of time was also spent looking up at the sky, since Mother Nature was constantly threatening rain.

no photoshop here -- the sky really looked like that...

Thursday arrived, which was the “preview” day (I’m super condensing/editing things here…); the aforementioned rain arrived – in buckets. Herr Baron and I waited around in Manhattan until the last possible minute, then hopped a train over to PS1, in Long Island City…

seriously, I am flipping out. It's the NYABF and I'm IN IT!

Now, you may not believe this but it’s absolutely true (would I lie to you?): the vendor entrance for PS1 faces – wait for it – a post office. I couldn’t make this up. To prove it, I snapped a photo…

my tribe, my people!!!

And then it was time to set up, as well meet the folks I would be pal-ing around with for the next three and a half days…

On my right, Eunice Lak/Fantasy Camp:

beautiful screenprinted goodies...

And to my left, Denise Schatz/Miniature Garden:

the totebags were super cool & I loved the "book about books" poster...

Herr Baron headed up the RLD posse:

would you look at that bowtie?

On Friday morning, I arrived half an hour early to PS1, to find that there was already a line waiting outside to get into the building…

who says print is dead? these folks are hungry for BOOKS!

…and there was a constant stream of readers/lookers/buyers all day long. There was more off-and-on rain, but we felt safe and snug in our tent in the schoolyard.

our beautiful schoolyard tent, as seen from the third floor...

I knew that I would have to do most of my window shopping on Friday, since everybody kept telling me that Saturday was “a day of insanity” and non-stop action. I managed to sneak some peeks at the work of fellow zinesters…

zines from Japan's Zines Mate, organizers of the Tokyo Art Book Fair...

the table of Girls Like Us...

…as well as see the “Loose Leaf: Publications as Assemblage” show in one of the PS1 galleries. Focusing on the work of Wallace Berman (one of my idols), this show brought together reproductions of his incredibly rare artisan zine Semina, as well as work by other visual poets/writers/printers of the time.

a case full of Semina reproductions...

Semina close up, 1963...

At the end of the day, Herr Baron and I hightailed it out of Long Island City; I was determined to get back into midtown, in order to make it to Casey Rubber Stamps. For now, let’s just say that I made it in time. Tomorrow, I’ll regale you with more tales: beautiful rubber stamps, a lead on the best jazz club in midtown, and a trip to the Strand. Until then, I remain –

Ever postally –

–JH

PS: here’s a snap for Miss Rose, who wanted a shot of the table (sorry it’s a close up!):

a little bit of everything! the new goodies (somehow) didn't make it into this photo...

30,000 feet up in the air, writing letters in style!

It’s true: I’ve returned to SF after a week-long escapade in NYC. Next week I’ll have a run down about all of the groovy mail art shenanigans I got up to while visiting the Big Apple! In the meantime, RLD readers should take a little jump-step over to the Felt & Wire blog; when F&W inquired as to what kind of  correspondence items I simply cannot travel without, I had no problem reviewing some of my “I can’t possibly leave home without ‘em” tools.

Until next week — make sure the pens that you fly with are “leak proof”!

–JH

hard at work, making books at Press...

There are a handful of spaces left in both of the workshops I’ll be teaching over at Press: Works on Paper in San Francisco! (see below for details) Spend three hours folding paper, sewing signatures, and making books — is there a better way to spend an after-work evening? And I haven’t yet had a chance to mention that there are snacks and beer included in the cost of class, as well as all the materials you’ll need to make two complete books…

still life, with bookbinding tools...

This will be the last series of classes that I teach, before heading off to New York for the Art Book Fair — it’s now or never! (Or at least, ’til October…)

herringbone stitch, group photo!

The important stuff:

Wednesday, September 14th — 7pm-10pm:
Herringbone Stitch

Tuesday, Setember 20th — 7pm – 10pm
Longstitch Binding (back by popular demand!)

Cost: each class is $75.00, which includes all materials and supplies needed to complete two books.

longstitch binding samples -- your books could look like this...

All classes take place at Press: Works on Paper in San Francisco. Their address: 3492 22nd St.@ Dolores, SF CA. 94110.

To register for classes, please call 415.913.7156 or email info@pressworksonpaper.com

If you mention this article at the time of signup, you’ll receive a $10.00 gift certificate to the store!

Looking forward to seeing you in class…
–JH