At Lunalux, we design and print everything in-house. This gives us tight control on the quality of our work, and nothing goes out the door if we are not happy with it!
Most of our design work is done on the computer; graphics and type are converted to photopolymer plates for use in our vintage letterpress printing presses. Steel-backed plates mounted on super-strong magnetic bases give us a type-high, relief-style printing surface that we can use in one of our three machines.
Most Lunalux products are printed by John on this 10×15 Heidelberg Windmill, circa 1950. It’s a real workhorse! Even though this press is no longer in production, Heidelberg is still in business, and we can purchase parts as necessary. We call on an independent repair person when the press needs some TLC. Jenni’s dad is also a veteran printer, he helps us troubleshoot problems as well.
We also have a hand-fed Golding Jobber press. It’s a simpler machine than the Windmill, but it’s good for small jobs. We believe it was manufactured around 1900. The rollers need recovering, so the press isn’t in use right now. But we’re not giving up the ghost!
Our Vandercook SP-15 (manufactured in 1966) is a larger format press, most often used for making concert and event posters or signs that we hang in our studio windows. This is where all of our lead and wood type comes in handy! Lunalux interns also get to learn about the basics of letterpress-printing with this machine.
In addition to our presses, there’s other lovely old equipment that we put to good use in the Lunalux studio. Our Reliance 25-inch guillotine cutter (also from around 1900) is an indispensable tool. The most unusual item in our studio is a Rossback pinhole perforator, for making pinhole-style perfs like you see on traditional postage 
stamps. We have a few products in our wholesale line that are perforated, and most recently we incorporated the pinholes into our letterhead and mailing labels, as a decorative element.
Lunalux also houses a nice collection of antique lead and wood type, ranging from itty bitty Goudy to 6-inch-tall wood type. We also have a good assortment of monogram sorts, some very common and others quite extraordinary. We use the type for posters, limited-edition product for our store, and personal projects like stationery.
