Everyone knows the alphabet has 26 characters. And it has always. Wrong. The letters we use for English (and many other languages) is constantly in change. Printers often encounter this when they get a group of old type cases and find fonts with some rather odd letters (okay, most printers know what they are). We have changed (and eliminated) some letters over time. There are also the notation characters that were more commonly in use before computers became more common. One

To those of you who know me, you would know that I am a huge supporter of local Indie Bookstores over huge conglomerates. The local bookstore is a joy, not just because it supports the local economy of an area, but also because of the wonder of wandering. It is this concept of wandering amongst books that has been largely lost in a time of online purchasing. I must admit, I miss this part the most about buying a book online (which I am forced to do at the moment). The sheer d

“April is the cruelest month, breeding lilacs out of the dead land, mixing memory and desire, stirring dull roots with spring rain.” ―T.S. Eliot, The Waste Land Join us at FBAC (virtually) for Poetry month! We would love to share your poems and connect with our community to hear poems that are being written while we are sheltered-in-place. Let's make April a little less cruel by creating poetry about what we intend to do once this is all over and can leave our homes. Are you

Here's a few things you might find around your home that you can make some prints with. Kids and adults can do this activity. Another video by our Associate Artist, Sarah Matthews... https://youtu.be/Z9Vn8sayOtY #printmaking #styrofoamprints #fbac #fbacblog #printwithfbac #downtownfrederick

I thought some of our readers would like to indulge in a little print history today. Knowing about how printing developed is key to understanding why there are so many variations in letterpress and printmaking around now. And it's ACTUALLY interesting. This site has a wonderful easy-to-read timeline that can also be shared with kids for an art lesson (or just for fun). Please open the Prepressure site and enjoy: https://www.prepressure.com/printing/history?fbclid=IwAR06qdC5rH

At this time of social-distancing, we have Zoom (and other video chats), and email, and our phones to keep in contact with the ones we love and cherish. But what about a letter? Yes, I am advocating for hand-written (or printed) letters! My name is Sara and I am the Artistic Director (the one who organizes the classes) at FBAC. Stamps can be delivered to you by mail, and most people have envelopes and paper. It seems like this would be a great time to revive the art of writin

Today, we wanted to share a few tips on our favorite books (for kids and adults) and some online and local stores which have supplies you might want. Our staff and associate artists added a few of their best books they love for projects and ideas to make these lists. If you don't buy local, please consider using www.Smile.Amazon.com where Amazon donates a portion towards a charity of your choice. If you want to choose FBAC as your charity to benefit from any of these purchase

Make a mini pamphlet book from one piece of paper! At the Frederick Book Arts Center we LOVE making books, and we especially love being able to share that passion with our little ones. One of our favorites to make with the kids is this mini pamphlet stitch made from one folded down piece of printer paper! This is a great introduction to bookbinding and has a very simple sewing pattern that will make your kiddos feel like they’re the next Gutenberg! Supplies: 1 sheet of copy p

Since we ARE called Frederick Book Arts Center, part of name does evoke our love for books. Its not all we do (at all), but bookbinding and making artists books is part of our classes we offer. Today, for those who want the hands-on busyness during this time, I refer you again to the blog about Sarah Matthews' online videos for making a few book variations, until we have more online guidance for classes. For those who just need the escape and have others at home with them or

I would like to take a moment to tell our followers that there ARE a few videos online for instructions of bookbinding projects. This is all due to the amazing Sarah Matthews, our Associate Artist at Frederick Book Arts Center. She has a YouTube channel with a few bookbinding videos to follow and enjoy. Be sure to leave her comments and images on social media with Sarah and FBAC! Make sure to put them under the right project... Have a crafty weekend. #fbac #fbacbookbinding #b

So, I am assuming this was not the Friday that you expected to be having this week. All of us working from home, or minding kids, or watching our parents don't try to sneak out, or feeling a little under the weather from some bug (either the usual Spring ones or the one you are waiting for testing from), or all of the above, we have had a rougher week than we all expected. That is why I thought we could all do with a bit of fun on a Friday. If you are the kind of person who w

We have already talked about "traveling" to museums and sites online to get to "see" a lot of museums and collections around the world. But, seriously, there are lots online and many of them from close to home. Try to look for as many local resources (linked online) that you can so that you can support your local non-profits and small businesses near where you live. Small businesses are starting to suffer from the closures or restrictions already and could do with your suppor