Type

I am increasingly interested in type forms, well I am returning to a subject in which I have long had an interest, but with a new desire not only to understand and appreciate these beautiful shapes but to create my own.  Today I have borrowed a copy of Peterson's account of the Kelmscott Press, and a study of Eric Gill's typographical work.  Good reading I hope!    

Party time

This Saturday will see the latest birthday party at our house when we a host a relatively small gathering (say a dozen children plus adults) for a friend's daughter who will be 5. The last occasion (our eldest son's birthday) was much larger, and quite chaotic but generally held to be a great success. There were no fatalities and hardly even a cross word spoken. Vast amounts of food were of course consumed and we had a large inflatable pool, complete with slide and water rings, toys, etc., set up in our library (minus the water of course) because the weather was foul. This was hugely popular with the children - but what a pity I didn't get it on video!

St Mary's Cathedral, Newcastle upon Tyne, magnificent in the sunshine. Built in the 1840s, paid for by subscription, a glorious steeple which soars to a dizzying height. 

On the beach

Wow, what a fantastic day yesterday at the beach. The sun was really hot. Before we left to go to go there I was exposing cyanotypes (amazing early photographic process) in only a minute or two - then developing them out in plain water with the help of the children. Sun tan cream was liberally applied once we got to the seaside, and we kept up our calorie levels with icecream and chips!

ILAB Virtual Bookfair

This advertisement was sent to me yesterday and sounds very interesting.

You are welcome to visit our stand at the Virtual Bookfair which is organized by ILAB, International League of Antiquarian Booksellers. The fair will run from 18.00 Central European Time, (12 noon Eastern Daylight Time,US) May 20th, until 22.00 C.E.T. May 22nd. 47 dealers from USA, Europe and Australia will display a selection of fine books.

Starting out

My first foray into the world of Blogging has proved remarkably pain-free so far. But I wonder whether anybody other than myself would ever want to read what I write here. Even if not it may have value, in the same way that a diary or journal does.