Fugu Fugu Press Card

WHERE DID THE NAME OF YOUR STUDIO COME FROM?

Fugu means puffer fish in Japanese (Shino is Japanese). As fish go, puffer fish are little characters. They're not the world's best swimmers and they have big googly eyes and are really kind of goofy looking, but are also friendly, social and cute. But don't let their cute appearance fool you.. they're known to be poisonous if you eat them! And they puff themselves up big to frighten off predators! So, the combination of those elements.. cute but dangerous, friendly but a little goofy.. seemed like a good mix of things, and seems to fit us pretty well. Some companies have scary charging bulls or big loud lions as their mascots. For us, the puffer fish works just fine. Also, people sound funny when they say "Fugu Fugu Press" out loud for the first time.. and that's kind of fun for everybody.

WHO IS ON YOUR TEAM, AND HOW DID YOU COME TOGETHER?

It's just us, Ken and Shino, and we've hired a helper person here and there along the way (we sometimes enlist friends and family members as well), but for the most part it's the two of us. We always wanted to start a business together, and when we envisioned it, it was a 'mom & pop' business in the true sense of the words (although we don't have any kids, we do have a dog-child!). We like to keep it small and be able to do every aspect of the business ourselves - from designing, printing, to packing, promoting, making the website... and we'd like to think that it translates to our cards. 

HOW DID YOU GET INTO DESIGN AND LETTERPRESS PRINTING?

I (Shino) was a freelance illustrator after graduating from college, and after doing many odd-jobs on the side, I started working for my friends who owned a letterpress greeting cards company.  They taught me how to print on C&P and Miehle there, and they also let me design cards, some of which ended up being sold at Urban Outfitters. They eventually sold their business, and they were super encouraging about us (Ken and I) starting our own company. So we did!

WHERE DO YOU FIND INSPIRATION FOR YOUR DESIGNS?

Because of my illustration background, I still look at different illustrators and artists constantly. But more often than not, I get inspired while I'm walking my dog everyday, looking at plants and running into animals (we see lots of wildlife around here). Also when I sit down and sketch, I often have a specific person in mind that I want to design the card for. It helps me to keep the designs simple but instantly communicative, and it makes me happy to try and imagine the person receiving the card.

WHAT KIND OF PRESS(ES) DO YOU USE?

We have 2 Heidelberg Windmills and a Vandercook 4.  We print primarily on one Heidelberg (red ball), and use the other one for scoring and die-cutting.

WHICH PRESS WAS USED TO PRINT THE NICELY NOTED CARDS?

Our trusty Heidelberg #2 (with the red ball)!! It was built in 1965, and it's a heck of a machine. We do everything on it! It never complains and always makes everything look great!