In Store: Buy the Letter

Paper Hammer is so much more than just a paper store.

Located on an unassuming corner in downtown Seattle, conveniently kitty-corner from the Seattle Art Museum, Paper Hammer is a deceptive little space. It has roughly the same square footage as your living room, but once inside, the literary-minded shopper can get lost, endlessly distracted by meticulously arranged paper goods. 

Here you will find  vibrantly colorful handmade notebooks, chapbooks and journals, along with other letterpress curiosities: an alphabet of coasters, doorknob hangers and something called a “Decider,” which is reportedly capable of solving personal problems. There are also two shelves filled with books published by Marquand Books, the operation that owns the shop – and is located next door.

Most surprising of all is the fact that this little shop is part of a much bigger plan to revitalize the small town of Tieton, home to the press, bindery and letterpress operation responsible for every paper thing in the shop. •

Paper Hammer
1400 2nd Ave., 612.682.3820, paper-hammer.com