What is in a name?

Hey Ladies, My “new” press is on its way to my studio, and we’re trying to name her. What have you named your press and what made you name her that? 

Christy,

Congratulations on the new family member! =)

I’ve had a few presses in the 6 years that I’ve obsessed over letterpress printing. The very first press I purchased was an Adana HS No. 2 table top. I named her Adele. The next presses I purchased were a 6×10 Craftsman tabletop and a 3×5 Kelsey. I didn’t have them long enough to name. I then purchased a Golding Pearl #11 and named her Frau (in honor of my German mother in law). Both Adele and Frau are now in new homes. I then purchased a Golding Official #6 tabletop and named her Ophelia. After Ophelia, I purchased a Golding Jobber #7 and a Kelsey 5×8. The Jobber is named Jocelyn, the Kelsey is named Kiki. For Christmas, my husband purchased a Chandler and Price 10×15. She is named Charlene. I also have a showcard press but I haven’t named her yet. Both Jocelyn and Ophelia are in Indiana getting cleaned up. Charlene is in my basement and is what I primarily print on. Kiki needs rollers. The showcard is just sitting on a table right now. Looking back at all of these presses, I can honestly say I’m a hoarder! My process of naming my girls is pretty simple. Their first name starts with the letter of what they are. Except for Frau. 😉 Good luck in naming your girl. My husband really questions my logice every now and then, escpecially when it comes to naming the presses.

Take Care,
Diana

I almost always name my presses!  They are too important not to.  We name ships, aircraft, and if you go back to the early 1800s, in the days of the thwart-mounted 8-gauge bird guns of the Chesapeake, even the guns!  Even Swords received names! Oddly enough, my original 8×12 NS C&P that does yeoman duty is nameless. I never felt moved to name it.  My 1909 Pearl OS Model 3 was christened “Anna”, after my grandmother, both whom came into this world in June of 1909.  My Kluge is named “Brother John”, after it’s prior owner John Moran, printer extraordinaire.  My former student, Isabell, of “9th Letter Press”, named her OS 10×15 C&P  “St. Peter”.

-gary

http://www.paperwrenpress.com

http://www.gjohanson.blogspot.com

Christy have you come up with a name yet?  I’ve been thinking about this too.. I bought a Golding Official a few months ago, and I’m not even sure if it’s a male or female yet!  I was just going to give it some more time and maybe the right name will come, just like the shop name hopefully will!  ~Marina.

Hi Marina,

I held a contest on facebook and we named her Mrs. Mia Wallace.

In Quintin Terantino’s 1993 film Pulp Fiction, Mia Wallace is a saucy little tart and Marcellus Wallace’s wife. She messes up every now and again, but always comes back to life and is ready for a joke. It just seemed fitting 🙂

For those that like the classic names, Mia can be short for Miriam – sister of Moses. The Hebrew meaning: bitter, strong.

Awesome, one of my most favorite movies!!

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