Loco for Gocco

I took a Gocco class at Paper Source and enjoyed it so much that I ran out and bought a Gocco. I say "ran" (or more like "drove fast") because Riso, the manufacturer, is discontinuing the Gocco. I went to one of the few places in LA to carry them, the Blue Rooster at Vermont and Hollywood.

For those of you who don't know Gocco (I didn't until the other day), it's a small, portable silk screening contraption from Japan (left) that allows you to print words and designs on paper. Riso describes it as a "Professional Quality Home Printing Kit." Think of it as letterpress in that you bring a lever down to impress your design onto paper, only instead of making an indentation (as you do in letterpress), you are just pressing ink flat onto the paper.

In Gocco, you can print anything that is photocopied-- so that means type, pictures from books, even your own handwriting, as long as you've run it through a xerox machine (carbon-based copy). You can buy different color inks and print on those unusual sized papers that your inkjet won't accept (e.g., circle cards, dinky business cards). A fun hobby for those who like paper.