Superhero Showdown in Long Beach: Lemonade Day

. I'm taking the opportunity of this unplanned time off to connect with the many artists and creators in this wonderful city that I love. Come with me on my 100-day odyssey of art and creativity in Long Beach. I call it .

When you're a printer company and you want to catch the attention of a conference attendee, you print large scale images of superheroes!  At least, that was the message today, the last day of The NBM Show.

August 18th was Day 48.  I visited The NBM Show and brought the Justice League and Superman home for dinner.

The superheroes were just passing through.  Perhaps they are getting ready for the Long Beach Comic-Con which will be held the first weekend in November.  Still, I was happy to be able to bring a few home to hang with "the boys".

I'd intended on visiting The NBM Show today to catalog every piece of equipment I saw at the show.  That worked for about... five minutes!  Instead, I'd like to feature a few moments of new friendship and share a bit about the people I met and some things I learned. (NBM stands for National Business Media).

Victor

I'd been wandering around the show for some time, carrying an enormous Justice League poster on plastic corrugated board for hours.  I sat down at one of the tables.  Too tired to ask if it was ok to sit there.  Sometimes, things happen for a reason. 

The fellows I sat next to were from OmniPrint, which manufactures and markets its own brand of printers.  In fact, one of them was Victor Pena, the owner of OmniPrint.  After exchanges about our mutual exhaustive states, we somehow got around to talking of Makers and Makerspaces.  I explained to Victor my mission, about making creative spaces that help to overcome the barriers of place, equipment, knowledge.  About making communities.  He said... "I've been thinking of that."  At that, I was tired no longer.  We chatted some more, about how we could make a print-shop-as-maker-space, and he showed me the print process with his printer.  I asked if I could see his other business, a print-shop that uses his OmniPrint printers.  He said yes.  Perhaps he said no but I heard yes.  It happens.  Can I call it Karma?  Yes, but I prefer to wait.  And if nothing happens, it's nice to have dreamed with a new friend.

Michelle

My next new friend is Michelle who was demonstrating the SawTrax machine.  Manufactured in the U.S.A.  It's a cutter that can cut wood, matting, metal, all in the same footprint.  She simply traded out heads and cut away.  Michelle is my new friend because she gave me her waste plywood for me to use to make stamps.  Not only did she give me her waste plywood, but she cut it into stamp-sized blocks for me!  Super!  I'll be able to work on them with when she comes on Tuesday!

But that's not why Michelle is my new friend.  When I told her what I wanted to do with the blocks, she lit up!  Michelle shared with me photos of work with the stencils she'd made with her Silhouette Cameo.  She also gave me some ideas for inexpensive one-of-a-kind T-Shirt making using contact paper!  She found her vinyl supplier, Vinyleze, on eBay.  Michelle has no website for me to share with you, but she's a super gal!  She works with tiny cutters and giant ones, too!

There were so many inspirational moments at the show, too many to share.  I will share just a few more.

Juan

Juan, at the Brother International booth spent a fair amount of time showing me how to print on a black T-Shirt with the Brother GT-3 Series printer.  It is a 4-step process: 1/ pre-treat with a binding agent using a Lawson machine, 2/ set the binding agent with an Air Fusion heat press (80 lb pressure, 356 deg F, 35 secs) 3/ print the white layer followed by the color layer 4/ set the color, again with a heat press (20 lb pressure, 356 deg F, 35 secs).  I met Juan before I met Victor, else I'd have told him about Making and Makerspaces, too!

Toni

Toni, at the IEC booth gave me a 3' x 4' laminated Justice League poster on plastic corrugated board.  It ws done on a ROLLSROLLER flatbed laminator.  Apparently laminating is often a multi-person job and takes hours.  With the IEC system, it turns the job into a 10 second job.  The laminator they'd brought today was 4' x 8', but they go as big as 64" x34' long.  Yes, folks, 34 feet long.  Hm.  Definitely not for your average home business!  This was the first booth I visited and yes, I carted that 3' x 4' laminated Justice League poster around for hours!

Angel

Angel Ochoa at Jet Best showed me the printer they'd brought.  It's a Chinese model, but comes with an Epson print head.  Customer Giselle from Banegas Signs came by to say hello and a provide a Jet Best testimonial.  I was impressed that Angel knew so many of the folks gathered around to watch the enormous poster-sized stickers of Superman print.  Angel let Superman come home to dinner.

Justin

Justin is an American born, Korean American.  He is the son of the founder of the All American Manufacturing & Supply company.  I tried out the personal rhinestone heat set equipment and looked at the Silhouette Cameo printer that was at the booth, but returned when I saw that the name was All American.  I had to know.  Young Justin explained that the company is a 27 year old company from Philadelphia, PA.  Twenty seven years ago, the only way to find a print operation was to look it up in the yellow pages.  We laughed together.  I didn't tell him I remembered those times.  All American would come near the top of the list, ensuring that the company name would be seen.  Since then, it's sort of led the way the company evolved.  I asked about the machines they sell that are made in the US, and Justin pointed out the silk screening machines and the digital printers manufactured by All American.  Sweet!

There were many, many other machines on display.  Wood cutting machines, laser etching machines, engraving machines!  By manufacturers Brother, Roland, Fuji, Epson and more!

Tidbits, Things, Trails

• The boys' response to the Justice League in full color in our living room?  "Mom may not be making any money, but she sure is getting some cool swag!"  I love my boys!

Want more lemonade?       

And Tomorrow...

I'm going to try to find any dye or print related materials I have.

Need to contact me?  info@handmadepenguin.com

Trish Tsoiasue writes as herself about creative and maker topics for and as Handmade Penguin for the Handmade Penguin Blog.