Yeah, we've heard of St Patrick.
But the big holiday around here is February 1st,
the Feast Day of St Brigid of Ireland!
Who was Brigid?
Ah, there are as many stories as there are pints of Guinness to tell them over. But here are a few to get you started:
Celebrated as the Goddess of Fire in early Celtic times, and later as the Christian saint of the Perpetual Flame.
St Brigid was born, they say, in 453 in County Louth. Died February 1st at Kildare.
Had a passion for helping the hungry and the cold.
Established convents all over Ireland.
Celebrated on the Feast of St Brigid, in early February, the beginning of the old pre-Christian festival of Spring in Ireland.
Patron saint of dairymaids, fugitives, blacksmiths, nuns, sailors, and POETS and PRINTING PRESSES!
For more about Brigid, goddess and saint, see these links:
Why St Brigid Press?
Well, we were pretty sure we couldn’t go wrong with having the patron saint of poets and printing presses on our side! Plus, the founder of the Press, Emily Hancock, is a lass with Celtic lineage ;-)
Hear Emily talk about her choice of Brigid for the name of the Press, with NPR’s Martha Woodroof ~
Thanks so much for joining in our joy today!
"The wearin' o' the Green" -- INK, that is!
Yeah, we repainted our old typecases green ;-) Partly out of self-defense ~ when we found them, they were a horrid hodgepodge of colors, from neon orange to red and black. Ack!
We print a LOT of things in green... Here, on some gorgeous antique wood type.