Maker We Love: Lindsay Schmittle of Gingerly Press

Maker We Love: Lindsay Schmittle of Gingerly Press

Brand Name

Gingerly Press

What neighborhood do you live in?

North Point Breeze

Tell us the story about your brand. Why is it the best?

Gingerly Press creates colorful, modern and earth-friendly letterpress printed artworks & stationery products with vintage metal & wood type, hand-carved blocks and 100% recycled paper on a SP15 Vandercook Press from 1962 and a 10x15 C&P Press from 1915. Each original print is carefully crafted by artist Lindsay Schmittle in her Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania studio with the intention to brighten your home and empower you to explore nature’s beauty every day. We believe that when we immerse ourselves in nature regularly we not only feel more at peace with ourselves but we also develop an appreciation for and drive to protect the planet’s natural ecosystems— and we need more of that good energy in this world!

Gingerly Press also offers hands-on letterpress printing & bookbinding workshops designed for beginners to the old-school craft. Learn how to set and print vintage metal & wood type, just like Gutenberg did over 500 years ago, and create your own set of prints through guided instruction in an afternoon or evening workshop! Learn more at gingerlypress.com.

What is your background, and how did it lead you to starting your brand?

Lindsay began practicing the old-school art of handset letterpress printing using vintage metal & wood type with antique printing presses as an undergrad at the University of Delaware. As a Visual Communications major tired of an abundance of screen time, she immediately fell in love with the hands-on medium of letterpress printing and was off to the races learning how to create artwork that reflects her colorful geometric aesthetic and sustainability values within this 500-year-old medium.

LIndsay began Gingerly Press in a one-car garage in eastern Pennsylvania in 2013 and moved it across the state to the Lawrenceville neighborhood of Pittsburgh in 2019 where she currently enjoys designing & printing collections of artwork and teaching hands-on letterpress & bookbinding workshops to her local community. 

Inspired by her adventures in nature, both big & small, Lindsay creates colorful & playful original artworks that share nature’s simple stories. Lindsay has created collections of artwork inspired by her 2017 thru-hike of the Appalachian Trail, her 2022 ACEER Foundation Artist Residency working with the Maijuna Indigenous Community in the Peruvian Amazon, as well as the most simple of strolls on trails local to Pittsburgh. Lindsay creates to share nature’s small and often overlooked beauties to encourage others to slow down, be mindful, and soak up the simple joys nature has to offer all around us. Lindsay believes that when we immerse ourselves in nature regularly we not only feel more at peace with ourselves but we also develop an appreciation for and drive to protect the planet’s natural ecosystems.

Lindsay has exhibited her work, taught workshops and given artists talks all over North America from Birmingham to Seattle to Nova Scotia, has work published in multiple international publications & books and has both public and private collectors of her work all over the world, including work that lives in the Special Collections Library of the Library of Congress.

What one product do we need to know about and why? 

You need to know about the "A Pittsburgh Sunset" print showcasing Pittsburgh's iconic skyline tucked in the rolling hills of Appalachia! This print is a customer favorite because it's a modern take on the city skyline, a subtle nod to the beauty of Pittsburgh and it's connection to the natural world surrounding it and because it's 11 x 14" and fits in a standard sized frame!

In three words, why do you love Pittsburgh?

Community, Nature, Small Business

How can people find out more about you?

Website: gingerlypress.com
Instagram: @gingerlypress
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