Today we’d like to introduce you to Josh Flohre.
Alright, so thank you so much for sharing your story and insight with our readers. To kick things off, can you tell us a bit about how you got started?
Lettering has been a big constant for most of my life. My left-handed, ADHD & creative mind learned early that to express myself; I could tweak these shapes into what I wanted & become different than everyone else. This conscious love came when I was learning hand drafting early in school. The timeless but simple forms needed for drafting & blueprints was a challenge. A few years later, I was introduced to a black book, your personal & sacred bible in graffiti. For two decades after that, graffiti became my life. I supported myself through pushing murals and my art. Somewhere in there, I learned to tattoo and stepped away from it a few years later. I was traveling to paint & building a mural company which started me on this current path. Around 2008 I was laid off again from my welding & fabricating career & had an opportunity to start design school. I worked as a print designer for 3 years after at a solid local firm. I learned so much by doing that, and it was extremely hard. Eventually, I understood that sitting in front of a computer designing all day was not a good fit for my mind or hands. One day I had some deep motivation from an old friend & I just asked myself, why have I had my lettering brushes hidden away for so long? The choice was easy to start Ink & Hammer because I was already sharing a workshop with a close friend that was a woodworker. I was working full time as a designer & then every other waking moment painting signs, letterpressing, or fabricating something. The Sign Painters documentary came out, and everything seemed to line up. I took the scary leap working for myself and haven’t looked back. For the first few years, I was self-taught, reading and collecting as many old sign books as I could, networking with other sign painters & eventually got into some very important classes and workshops. It’s not an easy path & many times; I was so close to quitting. I never got into this to run a business; I just wanted to paint cool shit! These past few years with teaching classes, bringing on an apprentice & producing our own sign supplies it’s really opened my ability to learn more about the business side. It’s reminded me why I started and what I’d like to leave for the younger generations.
Alright, so let’s dig a little deeper into the story – has it been an easy path overall, and if not, what were the challenges you’ve had to overcome?
These past 10 years have been a blast! It’s not always been easy or fun. I started painting signs because it was a complete collection of the acquired knowledge & experiences from my life, not to run a business. I struggled many times financially, to the point of being completely broke and having to take on a job I didn’t want to do but was my only choice just to try & get ahead. I was very lucky to have someone at the time that supported me through it. I would fall behind & not be organized or get back to people. I would become overwhelmed at the simplest tasks & take forever to get jobs done. It wasn’t until these last 4 years of looking inward, getting to know myself, starting therapy & getting retested for my ADHD did I start to understand all the pieces. It was all connected to each other. It’s taken a heavy amount of work on myself to learn and grow. I’m better than I was & I still have a lot of work to do, but letting go and understanding this is a lifelong struggle eases the mind and makes for a better life.
Thanks – so what else should our readers know about Ink & Hammer Mfg. Co.?
We are a custom hand-painted sign shop specializing in the time-honored tradition of hand-painted signs & fine gold leaf. That includes custom designs & logo or lettering, sign fabrication, restoration, neon signs (not the neon part), to whatever you can dream up! We love the odd and crazy jobs.
We are mostly known for our gold leaf work. It’s what I love doing the most as there’s nothing that comes close to the shine of a genuine noble gold leaf sign. Being in Ohio and the Midwest, there’s also not that many sign painters left & even less that work in gold leaf. The industry is becoming more known and growing, which is exciting. I think what sets us apart is our level of detail and quality. We like to take the time to make sure what we are producing fits each person’s needs in a deeper way. This allows them or their business to stand out against the sea of vinyl and crappy design.
The past few years, we have been working on growing a new side of the business which we produce our own quality sign tools, supplies & just cool shit! There’s a lack of that in our industry, and since we are making this for ourselves to use, why not give everyone the choice to have the same. We feel it’s a way to leave this better than it was given to us!
What would you say has been one of the most important lessons you’ve learned?
Personally, this journey has taught me that asking for help when you need it is ok. I am only good at certain things & even though I’ve always learned to do things myself, we all need help at times. Be kind to yourself & that work and money will always come and go. Making time away from the business or work is absolutely key. I work too much & found myself burning out a few times a year which caused heavy strain on my relationships and my marriage at the time. Learning to say no, and letting go was a very scary move but ultimately the best one. It’s allowed me to focus on what’s important and to start having a healthier life.
Contact Info:
- Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/inkandhammer
- Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/inkandhammer/
- Other: http://inkandhammer.bigcartel.com
Image Credits
Jonathan Raul
Ryan Palmer
