Hello,
The late, great Anthony Bourdain once said: “The excruciating pain you feel when you sink a knife into your thumb... a lot of that pain comes from the knowledge that you’re really an idiot”. I can confirm this is 100% accurate. If you're following PREST on Instagram, you’ll have seen that I sliced through my finger this week. It’s frustrating, but sometimes you just have to slow down a bit, even when everything feels urgent.
So, here’s what’s been in the works at PREST this month.
TLDR: Launching September 30th. £16 each, with 50p donated to arts in schools. A few production hiccups. Some finishing touches. Completed portfolio boxes.🚀 Launch day
I said Batch 001 would launch in September, and September 30th is now the official launch date. It might be the last day of the month, but I’m keeping to my word. Subscribers to the newsletter will get early access, along with a 10% discount code. After all the hours spent making these books, it feels quite nerve-wracking to finally share them. There’s a strange mix of excitement and fear in showing something you’ve put so much of yourself into.
💸 Pricing breakdown
Inspired by Everlane’s “Radical Transparency”, I’ve decided to be transparent about the cost of our exercise books. Each one will be £16. I understand that might feel quite high to some, especially in the current climate, but high-quality materials and careful handcrafting don’t come cheap. The price covers materials and production whilst leaving just enough to keep PREST moving forward. I’ve broken down the costs below. Some things like design time, tools and equipment, website fees, transaction fees etc. aren’t accounted for, so bear that in mind.
🫶 Giving back
You’ll notice that part of the £16 price tag includes a 50p donation. The government continually underfunds arts subjects and I want to use PREST to do something about it, no matter how small. We’ll be putting 50p from every book sold towards materials and tools to be donated to UK classrooms. Hopefully, these small contributions can help to spark some creativity and confidence in the next generation of makers and creators. More on this soon.
⚠️ Production hiccups
It hasn’t all gone smoothly. The embosser arrived with the wrong font which has delayed some of the finishing touches, and the Risograph print date kept getting pushed back too. Everything’s felt very last minute. On top of that, I had a quick trip to A&E on Wednesday after slicing through my finger with a scalpel. It’s still pretty sore, but hopefully on the mend. I’ve had to buy a pair of gloves to finish making the rest of the batch. No one wants a blood-stained book, do they?
📸 Finishing touches
With the launch right around the corner, most of the website is now built. The final missing piece is photography, which I’ll be finishing just in time for launch. Seeing it all pulled together on a website, ready for people to actually visit, browse, and (hopefully) buy from feels like a huge shift. It’s exciting to know the site will finally feel complete once that’s in place. Pre-warning: I’m no photographer, so fingers crossed I can pull it off. Maybe in future I’ll be able to pay for a proper shoot but for now, we’ll manage.
🗃️ Portfolio boxes
Alongside all of this, I’ve been making 10 portfolio boxes for Ian Morris. I showed the initial 3D render for the boxes last month, and now they’re finally made. This has taken up most of my time in September, but it’s been a great opportunity to get some box making practice in. This sort of thing demands a lot of focus, but you learn so much from making the same thing over and over, and the satisfaction of seeing it all complete is immeasurable. It’s also a bit of a reminder that making is rarely just one thing. There’s always a web of projects, collaborations and experiments happening all at once. A bit chaotic, but worth it in the end.
