Letterpress printing is a form of relief printing that uses the direct impression of an inked, raised surface against sheets or a continuous roll of paper. This form of printing has been around for centuries, and although it remained the primary form of printing until the 19th century, industrialized printing processes have made letterpress printing more of a rarity in recent years.
That’s why letterpress print shops like January Letterpress here in Waco are so special.
January Letterpress is a stationery store and custom letterpress studio in downtown Waco that brings elegance and hand-crafted quality to each and every piece they produce.
Michelle and Jon Mark Buckner, owners of January Letterpress, are innate creators. When they opened the store in 2018, it manifested as a product of Michelle’s passion for artistic creation and Jon Mark’s passion for creating something of unique value for our community.
“I believe God created us to make things,” Jon Mark said when asked about his motivation to create. “He put us on this earth in a garden and called us to turn this garden into a city. So, I want to use my skills and my creativity to bring new ideas into this world,” he continued.
When the two met their freshman year at Baylor, Jon Mark was a journalism and public relations major, and Michelle was studying studio art and religion. Neither of them had any intention to step into the realm of business and entrepreneurship.
After graduating, Jon Mark and Michelle got married and moved to northern Colorado to begin working for a church there. During the time immediately following graduation, Michelle began designing wedding invitations for a couple of friends getting married. It wasn’t long before more people started asking, and the Buckners unintentionally became freelance graphic designers.
Working in ministry in Colorado for two years, dreams of opening their own business lingered in their minds. But Michelle and Jon Mark wanted to be much more than a drop in a big city bucket. They knew that Waco’s business growth had been on the up and up, and it had always felt like home, so in the spring of 2018, they moved back to Waco.
“I was inspired to create January Letterpress because I knew I was going to offer a new store that Waco didn’t have and that it would give people an opportunity to see things they don’t normally have access to,” Jon Mark said.
“I was excited to participate in the downtown growth and be able to rub shoulders with the entrepreneurs in downtown Waco that had inspired me.”
Upon moving back to Waco, Michelle learned that a friend of hers had a letterpress in her garage that wasn’t being put to use, so the Buckners bought the letterpress and opened a garage studio. However, it didn’t take much of the Texas summer heat to help them realize they needed not just a workspace, but a true studio and store.
Enter January Letterpress as we know it today. The studio and storefront location at 7th St. and Franklin Ave. in Waco has been home to January Letterpress for a little over a year and a half. It is a place to create, a place that celebrates, and a place that helps dreams come to life for people in both the big and small moments.
That feeling of inspiration, dreams coming alive and fresh hope is where January Letterpress gets its name.
According to the Buckners, “January is a time when we all feel a little bit lighter. We shrug off the previous year and step into fresh hope. It’s about less stuff and more substance, quality over quantity.”
Michelle and Jon Mark truly hope that the pieces they create with their own hands will help add a little bit of beauty back into life.
“Letterpress is special to us because it’s so much more involved and so much more satisfying,” Jon Mark said. “We really got engaged in letterpress because we wanted to work with our idea from our head all the way through to something we’re holding in our hands.”
From idea to creation, the pieces found at January Letterpress encapsulate timeless designs that are handmade with quality and care for a refined, beautiful and practical life.
