Warm greetings, Friends, and Happy Summer Solstice!

The year is turning. The sun is high and hot, here in the northern hemisphere. The world spins with events large and small, tragic and joyous. A time for reflection, compassion, and nourishing new creativities.

Here at the Press, the season brings much refreshed energy for new work ~ from books of original poetry, to books filled with wide-open pages for your thoughts. This newsletter highlights the latest addition to the growing line of journals we are creating ~ handmade Guest Books!

These Guest Books are a beautiful place to record special events ~ from weddings to anniversaries, retirements to graduations to celebrations of life.

We began by selecting gorgeous handmade papers from Nepal. Made from the lokta plant, they have been an important sustainable economic venture for folks in the Himalayan region since the 12th century. Cutting the large handmade sheets to size here in the Bindery was the next step, followed by affixing them to sturdy boards to create front and back covers. We then paired these color-saturated, decorative covers with 25 sheets (50 pages) of thick, smooth-white, recycled Bristol paper interiors ~ perfect for pen-and-ink. Finally each guest book was hand-sewn with strong Irish linen thread in an elegant side-bound pattern from 16th-century China. Finished size is 8" x 12."

In honor of the long-standing tradition of beautiful paper-making in Nepal, we are currently donating 10% of the proceeds from each of our Guest Books to the relief effort in the wake of the recent earthquakes in that region. For more information on the disaster and the relief work, click here. To see the many different Guest Book patterns available, please see our "Products" page.

All the best to each of you, dear Friends. May the turning season turn us all towards the light of compassion and peace, all the world over.

St Brigid Press