Press A Card

I'm on the mend from some health issues, so I've had plenty of time to catch up on photo editing. A few weekends ago, I was fortunate to have the opportunity to tour Press A Card, a local Thai print shop.  "Press A Card," is a letterpress print shop started by Nirut Krusuansombat. After finishing his undergraduate in Bangkok, Krusuansombat studied graphic design in the United States. He worked in the United States for awhile and then returned to Thailand to make his own mark. Taking the reigns of his aunt's print shop, he has been producing beautiful wedding invitation designs for many happy couples in Thailand and in other countries across the globe.

Krusuansombat has also had his hand in many other design projects. During my tour of his facilities he  shared some examples of his print and publication work. I was particularly impressed by his layout design for a photography monograph--a collection of imagery of Old Siam. Krusuansombat and his design team have a long list of clients including Miss Teen Thailand. During my visit, I saw a mock up of some pretty classy crowns being developed.

One of my favorite parts of the tour was when Krusuansombat showed me a drawer full of metal type pieces. He compared the whole set up to a font file and of course, he referenced the one and only, Helvetica. Before he opened up the first drawer, he turned to me, and said, "Think about 8 point Helvetica." As drawer upon drawer was pulled upon, thousands of pieces of tiny precious metal type glimmered in the dim room. Organized by size, Krusuansombat ticked off each size as he revealed the contents, "10 point Helvetica, 12, 14..." As I stared in wonder at these relics, I marveled upon my luck to see this. I had never seen metal type in person, let alone Thai type. Unfortunately, this process is not much in use anymore. As Krusuansombat designs his print projects with new and shiny fonts from Illustrator, he sends off his designs to be turned into plates through the etching process.

I would highly recommend anyone in Thailand to seek out Press A Card for any design work. It is evident that Nirut Krusuansombat is very passionate about graphic design. Here are some images from my tour: