Shopwarming!

At long last, we’re up and running in our new home, and we’d love for you to come check it out!

Join Midwest Ephemera and C’mon Home on Saturday, November 8 in our new shop at 5610 W. Bloomingdale, here in Chicago. We’ll host printing demonstrations and hands-on activities starting at 2pm, then turn down the lights and start the party at 6pm with DJ MK Ultra and friends.

Here are some of your anticipated questions, answered:

Who are Midwest Ephemera and C’mon Home?

Midwest Ephemera is Bryan. C’mon Home is Matt. We’re two separate businesses on paper, but we share the shop and equipment and help each other out. Bert and Ernie, Felix and Oscar, Bryan and Matt… name a more iconic duo.

But what exactly do you do?

We are both graphic designers who have embraced letterpress printing for fun and occasional profit. We met a bunch of amazing letterpress printers while working together at Field Notes, and we got hooked. During the pandemic, we started setting up a print shop as a side hustle, and it kept growing, and here we are.

This event is like 10 hours long, when should I come?

Great question! From 2-6 we’ll be demonstrating our equipment, talking about letterpress printing, type, and ink, and allowing guests to do some hands-on printing and typesetting. If you’re bringing the family (see below) or just want to see the shop and don’t plan to stick around for the party, come earlier in the afternoon.

If you’re planning on coming to the party but want to see the shop in action, come later in the afternoon, then run out and enjoy dinner in the neighborhood, then come back for the party.

At 6pm we’ll put out drinks and snacks and fire up the turntables. We’ve got a couple surprises lined up, too. The party will run as late as people want to stick around.

What sort of printing demos and activities will you have?

We’ll have a couple stations set up to learn about type, ink, and printing, including some hands-on experiences and take-home prints. There aren’t specific times, everything will be running all afternoon, so allow yourself an hour or 90 minutes to work through everything. If you’ve never been to a letterpress shop, you’ll see and learn some pretty neat stuff. 

Are kids welcome?

We love kids, but please be aware there is some very dangerous equipment in our shop, some of it was manufactured 100+ years old when safety just simply wasn’t a concern. We’ll leave it up to you. If your kids are observant, patient, and curious about printing, and you’re able to keep them out of harm’s way, then by all means, bring ‘em!

In any case, everyone should read our safety guidelines (they’ll be posted near the door).

The party later may get a wee bit… chaotic, so you’ll probably want to clear out the kids before we get into full swing.

Can I bring anything?

You certainly don’t need to, but if you want to bring a snack (finger foods) or some beer/booze/soda for the party, we’ll help you consume it. If you’re one of our many printer friends coming, we can always use more prints and posters to cover our walls…

What should I wear?

This is a print shop, it is dusty, inky, and greasy. Please don’t dress fancy, and please wear comfortable, sturdy shoes. We have some aprons but it wouldn’t hurt if you brought your own. If you plan to print, please tie up your long hair and don’t wear anything dangly.

Can I bring a friend?

Sure! Especially if that friend might hire us someday to print something so we can keep doing this.

What’s with the Vespas?

It so happens our print shop is also the clubhouse of the Vespa Club of Chicago. Bryan’s the current leader of the pack, and we’ve invited them to the party, too, and boy would they like to talk to you about scooters.

I’m here, how do I get in?

It’s easy, follow these simple instructions. But seriously, for the party, we’ll have signs directing you where to go.