The beauty of letterpress
Letterpress printing is an age-old technique dating back to the fifteenth century. At The Distillery, we have patiently learn the craft from retired master printers, restored a family of vintage printing presses, and are proud to showcase our service here in Sydney.
Simply put, nothing else compares to the beauty of letterpress printed wedding stationery.
Cotton Papers
At The Distillery, we letterpress print into 100% cotton rag to achieve the gorgeous results of printed impression into your stationery.
Our wedding stationery paper of choice is Crane’s Lettra. Imported direct from the United States, Lettra is the premium choice for letterpress around the world. The paper exclusively combines a distinct soft fluffy, finish with a firm fine hold.
Lettra’s cotton fibres are naturally long, and elegantly blend into a subtle grain to form a luxuriously smooth look and feel. Lettra is available in fluorescent, pearl and ecru white in 300gsm and 600gsm weights.
We also offer stationery printing with a selected range of specialty papers including kraft boards, coaster and blotting boards. Please visit our studio in Darlinghurst to look, feel and collect some paper samples.
Vibrant Inks
To help beautifully express the tone of your special day, the letterpress inks used by The Distillery are mixed by hand and Pantone® colour-matched to perfection.
Our ink of choice is Van Son rubber-based inks. Considered the premier ink in the letterpress printing industry, Van Son inks display vibrant colour strength, excellent consistency, and ultimate suitability with letterpress papers.
Faithful Printing
When printing, we love using the most precise, reliable, and loveable letterpress machines ever made – the Heidelberg Platen Windmill. Discover the beautiful craft of letterpress printing, and book a press-check to watch your wedding stationery being produced right in front of your eyes.
We have currently have three Heidelberg Platens in use, named in our best German accents: Wolfgang, Heidi and Klaus. All three were found rusting away in the corner of old printing factories, saved from the scrap yard. We’ve patiently restored each press to as-new condition and even installed custom laser-cut safety guards and switches for modern safety upgrades.
