Instagram story viewer> @starshapedpress> Tagged
Starshaped Press(@starshapedpress)'s profile avatar HD Profile

Starshaped Press

@starshapedpress

22.2K
followers
1018
following
Jen & Jo. Celebrating 26 years of metal & wood type letterpress work. Love to share the process, forms and printing adventures. 💌Chicago.
POSTS STORIES REELS TAGGED
Hey, what a know. It's the weekend and there's more frames complete. Some new artwork. Some old. All reclaimed wood. First up is the "official" tour poster from Ida's "Duo" tour of the Midwest this September. After 30+ years, it was a pleasure to finally get to meet and talk to Elizabeth and Dan. Maybe we shared a passing pleasantry way back when, but I don't recall actual words and sentences being exchanged. As beautiful and pleasant humans as one would imagine. Poster designed and printed by Star Shaped Press. The second one here is a digital image created by Pete Prodoehl. It was originally a 12x12 piece of art for the WMSE auction several years ago, but I sweet talked him into printing me two shaker copies - one for myself and one for a friend. The building in the piece should need no introduction. So I won't give it one. A piece of Milwaukee and music history. (sorry Pete, I just wanted to give it a proper frame) Lastly, I had to get my Phoebe ticket stub (or seat identifier? I dunno.) safe and secure. I tried a little something different with the glass floating frame. It didn't turn out too well, but I'm content. That wood I used has stumped every professional wood worker I've shown it too - nobody can identify it. Hard as nails, but light. I have a ton of it. I want to go back to that concert and live there. Thanks for reading.
4
Download
COLUMBUS, THE PERFECT FINAL SHOW OF THE SEPTEMBER DUO TOUR ❤️ This show was hosted by our new friend Kate who is a teacher at this beautiful church, truly one of the sweetest sounding rooms we have ever played. Majestic high ceilings, gorgeous natural reverb, thoughtfully designed so the space was both resonant and clear for words and music, we could sing without mics and be easily heard in this large room. In fact we used their grand piano and did just this on at least one song. Here is basically what went down, the audience was so great, sang along and even learned harmony parts: Bunny Hop Hop (Nanang Tatang cover) The Weight Of The Straw Brand New Cadilac/Sun Ra’s Batman See The Stars The Killers 1964 Maybelle Tell Me Now, Boy (Scrawl cover) False True Lover By The Time It Gets Dark (Sandy Denny cover) (talk about Joy In Repetition, Graffitti Bridge) Calling You (Jevetta Steele Baghdad Cafe cover) Late Blues Shrug/17 Days (Prince cover) Tellings Shotgun/Bullet Proof Soul(Sade cover) Q & A Shoe In (Secret Stars cover) First Light More and more we are seeing and appreciating the diversity of people at the shows, all ages and backgrounds, young people starting bands, people on dates, people who traveled great distances to be there, people who have been listening to us from the early days, have everything we ever recorded, but never saw us until this night. We did an interview with a super thoughtful college student doing a piece for a school news site, or maybe it was a kind of zine. The nicest, most awesone people come to our shows. We feel like the luckiest people alive every night. This night we met a woman from the audience who told us that she found out that day that she was cancer free and she and her husband came out to celebrate. We were moved and humbled that they came out and shared their story with us, a testament to what music can be, something that will not fix everything, but it helps somehow, like a medicine for the heart, for the spirit✨ We talked so much on this tour about our dog that we were trying to get home to, so we thought we end these posts by including a picture of her. Here is Yuki the morning after we got home❤️
11
Download
DRUM ROLL PLEASE.... CHICAGO+BATAVIA💯❤️! This visit to the Windy City and its neighbors was unlike any other time we have been there. We stayed with our dear friend Rebecca Gleason who took the photographs for I Know About You (and our other Simple Machines albums). It made us really happy to give Rebecca a copy of the beautiful Numero vinyl reissue, and the book that highlights her work with us. Rebecca owns a delicious restaurant in Chicago called Flying Saucer. We weren't able to visit there this time but trust us it is ESSENTIAL! Check it out! Our duo show in Chicago was on a dead end road right on the Chicago River. We got there and felt like we had slipped through a portal into Narnia or some other magical place. Our friend Jen Farrell of Starshaped Press came to the show and brought us a fresh stack of the beautiful letterpress posters she has made for our duo tours. Thank you Jen! Our hosts home felt palatial and cozy at the same time, and they gave us and our amazing listeners all so many snacks. GF house❤️🙏🏽What an inspiring family! The show was super fun, we played The Great South River, first and only time on the tour. The next night our host was an incredible vegan bakery/cafe in the sweet sweet town of Batavia. We cannot say enough good things about New Moon Vegan, it is definitely worth the trip if you are anywhere near Chicago! This is a real deal very cool and visionary family business. And we go back to Other Music days in NYC with one of the owners, Josie. Jai, Josie and their amazing crew took such good care of us and we finally got to talk about THE KNICKS WINNING THE CHAMPIONSHIP AGAIN, which we had taken a break from since our tour in June. It was a cold, rainy night but we were given the most incredible and warming potato chickpea soup, the most delicious GF salted chocolate chip cookies we have ever had and some transcendent chai infused with patience and love. New Moon Vegan is an inspiring community spot full of great people, great food, a great sounding room and everyone who came out to the show made it a wondrous night. Knicks in 5, forever💙🧡
19
Download
MADISON❤️ We are home from our epic east coast run and have a few moments to catch up and share more posts from our September duo tour. I've got to write these while I still remember what happened! After St Paul we drove to Madison and arrived at our generous host, The Bounty- a vintage store, art gallery and more. One of the most magical nights on a tour of many. There were really unique repurposed and carefully curated objects everywhere you turned. We warmed up in a room with a TV screen playing Andy Warhol’s Screen Tests w/Nico, Lou Reed, Edie Sedgewick, and other fabulous Factory kings and queens. It was another all ages night, and we met a young person named Ida who was "not not named after our band". It wasn't the first time this had happened on this tour and it moved us more than we could possibly say! Her dad Stephen (from the very fine band Por Avion) was one of the very kind hosts. The Madison audience was super fun and sang so good on “First Light” that we almost stopped playing after we taught everyone the harmonies. We played our old song “Vacation” for the first time in 25 years. It was truly an unforgettable evening. We met many new and longtime listeners and super cool kids from the burgeoning Milwaukee underground scene. We felt inspired and really really lucky that we get to do what we do. This night was all about music and community in the best way❤️
2
Download
@chiarchitecture Chicago Open House 2026 Locations include @columbiayachtclub @starshapedpress @fineartsbuilding @dankhausgerman @auditoriumtheatre and Harold Washington Library
5
Download
We love Open House Chicago and all the opportunities it brings to see, to witness, to enjoy the history of our city-through homes, businesses and industries… all in our city of neighborhoods. Starshaped Press is a letter press and design studio located in the streamline moderne-style Bulldog Lock Co. Building in Ravenswood. As designers with one foot firmly rooted in past technologies and traditions, it was a treat-waking up all the senses and muscle memory of days and machines gone by. #ohc #openhousechicago #letterpress #starshapedpress #fatheaddesign
0
Download
Today was our day to explore the #OHC2026 in and around Uptown! Thanks to @chiarchitecture for this annual event that gets everyone out exploring and appreciating our city in new ways 💜 This year's itinerary was short but good (3 OHC locations + a meal at Fat Cat = I passed out for like 3 hours when we got home). Here's what we did: 1. 🎭 2.5 hours in line to peek inside the Uptown Theater and it was worth it. The interior is lavish and we got to hear from @uptown1925 and their efforts to #bringbacktheuptown 2. 🌟 @starshapedpress was probably my favorite stop. We got to see the printing presses in action, drawers upon drawers of letters and designs, and lovely designs 3. 🥃 Yeah I can't drink, but I knew the other two in our group would appreciate a trip to @kovaldistillery (especially when I mentioned the tasting 😆). Needless to say, it was a hit.
3
Download
Eight doors. One Saturday. Bikes, looms, mushrooms, molten glass, notebooks, whiskey, letterpress, and a line around the block for a theater that’s been closed since 1981. That’s Open House Chicago.
67
Download
We’ve been busy prepping for November. It’s coming in hot! We’ve got an event every weekend. Come out and support your neighborhood stationery shop! 🖊️ 1st @aurorastationeryfest 📍 Two Brothers Round House, Aurora 📝 5th Letter Writing Meet Up 📍 a. favorite design 🫟 6-8 WORD Wayzgoose hosted by @starshapedpress @blountben 📍 a. favorite design + multiple print shops throughout Chicago area 🛍️ 15th @a.nalogmkt 📍 above a. favorite design 🍺 21st + 22nd @begylebrewing Holiday Market 📍 Begyle Brewing 🦃 Small Business Saturday 📍 a. favorite design #makersmarket #stationeryshop #chicagomade #fallevents
2
Download
MARKETPLACE NEWSLETTER April 2026, 5/9 Starshaped Press An Open Letter to Doctors, Jennifer Farrell An Open Letter to Doctors is written from the experience and perspective of a caregiver navigating a healthcare system that doesn’t put sick patients first. While much of this is outside of doctors’ control, they do have a say in how patients are treated once they’re sharing a room. These interactions are crucial when in a vulnerable state of body and mind. The book shares ten topics to help doctors understand patients and caregivers, through primarily gothic wood and metal typefaces printed in scrub colors. The pages fold like ECG reads and the book is bound with exposed antique surgical thread. The wrap cover nods to steri-strips and is string-and-button bound. Printed at Starshaped Press by Jennifer Farrell in an edition of 60 on Mohawk Superfine and Colorplan papers. $550. https://www.starshaped.com/ #fpba #fpbaworld #artistbook #letterpress
0
Download
We've played Minneapolis many, many times but we'd never played in St Paul before, so our Undertow duo show there was another first. Our super kind and generous host Jessica brought us up to her incredible rooftop terrace around the corner from the birthplace of F Scott Fitzgerald. We set up our gear with an amazing view of the Minneapolis skyline behind us, and thought about all of our favorite twin cities bands, from Prince to Husker Du. The next morning we made an appearance on our good friend Bill Child's radio show, Spare the Rock, and I played my applelele. Thank you to both of the twin cities for many years of shows we will never forget, including this beautiful night under the stars. Also Daniel says salamat to his kababyan for the delicious snacks ☀️
9
Download
After Lawrence we drove to Omaha for our first ever show in Nebraska. It started, of course, with a Tornado watch in full effect, which was balanced by being greeted by three amazing dogs- we only got pix of two of the dogs but trust us, they were all really good dogs! Our hosts, the Kiefer family, were so kind to share their home with us and our audience. It was truly an all ages night. We sang some songs and Daniel told some really long stories about the Wim Hof method and circular breathing and then we got to meet a lot of really beautiful people. Oh and we got to share the Ida buttons that a really awesome person made and brought to the show in Kansas. Another night of feeling so grateful❤️
15
Download
back to up