Over at Fantabulously Wedd....

Check out my latest post for Fantabulously Wedd about creative DIY save-the-dates that pop!

Apple Pie

When I close my eyes and conjure up classic Americana, the first thing that pops in my mind is hot apple pie coming out of an old O'Keefe & Merritt stove.

So, naturally, when I don my paper-thinking cap and think about Americana, I head straight to Pie Bird Press, a homespun print shop located in Albany, California, just north of Berkley that celebrates, "the good things in life that put a smile on your face: fireworks, glazed donuts, puppies, lunchboxes, and pumpkins on the vine."

Pie Bird's cards have a vintage vibe, but the colors and patterns bring them into the 21st century. Still, I like the idea of writing on cards adorned with images most associated with a time when people always wrote on cards.....does that make sense? Here's a peek at more of Pie Bird's designs, available online at the Felt and Wire Shop.



Of all of Pie Bird's designs, the pencil shavings are definitely my favorite! Reminds me the draft notes I like to write before putting pen to paper and writing to that special someone.

Back to Basics

Photos courtesy of Peyton and Clark.

There wasn't a whole lot of new stuff at this year's Stationery Show to knock my socks off. A surprising pop of color here, a modern cut out there....but on the whole, everything - every vendor - seemed to be churning out more letterpress.

Which is why I was delighted to meet Jeannette Yudes, who, along with her mother, Bebbins, runs Peyton and Clark, an engraved stationery shop based in Springfield, NJ. Jeannette is the business woman, Bebbins is the artist, and together they make a pretty adorable team. I know what it's like to appreciate fine paper and want to join the family business, and so I instantly took a liking to Jeannette!

Combining elegant paper stock with beautiful artwork and copper-plate engraving, Peyton&Clark reminds me of what fine stationery is meant to be. Very traditional-chic.

Which is why my heart fluttered a little when I found out that this new line launched last month! It's so refreshing to see stationery producers repurposing traditional techniques to make paper that's inspiring.

The company has 15 designs to choose from and boxes of eight engraved cards are available for $48 on their website.

More on P&C's process:

The process begins with original drawings by Peyton & Clark artist Bebbins Yudes. Each image and design is hand-drawn in pen and ink. Bebbins’s method is time-consuming and intense: she creates several dozen drawings of a particular image in order to arrive at the one that she considers worthy of printing.

A master craftsman then creates an engraving plate and embossing die for each drawing. These are labor-intensive and rarefied art forms that result in richly detailed, multi-dimensional images that meet Peyton & Clarks’ exacting standards.

Bebbins Yudes hand-draws each image with pen and ink. A master craftsman then hand-etches the image on a copper engraving plate.

"What Brides Really Want" - an Update from Brides EIC

Check out my latest post on Fantabulously Wedd featuring the newest line of wedding invitations co-created by Checkerboard and Bride magazine:

Trends at the 2011 National Stationery Show

OK - I promised yesterday that I would dig into some of the big trends I spotted at this year's Stationery Show. Here's the rundown. Readers - tell me what you think - I'd love to know if any of these trends get a big thumbs up or thumbs down from you!

Trend #1: Neon. Yesterday I shared a shot of Fig 2 Design's neon inks. But there were lots of others. I loved the shift from earthy colors we've seen in year's past to something so much happier. May be too bold for some brides (not me - I love it!), but it also works really well with greeting cards.

Printerette Press

Sesame Letterpress

Smock Letterpress

Trend #2: Blind Emossing. On the other end of the color spectrum, I noticed a lot of white on white/blind embossing used as background texture on wedding invitations and business cards.

La Fontane from Elum

Pistachio Press

Umi Blind Deboss

Trend #3: Stitching + Letterpress. I have to say I'm really not a fan of this trend. It just seems like needless add-on. But it was everywhere. Here's a peek:

Gilah Press


Good Girl Gifts

Trend #4: Laser Cutting. This technique has been around for a while - Art Scroll used to put out a bunch of laser cut Jewish New Years cards like these:

SHUDDER.

But now laser cutting is back with an updated, modern feel. Clean lines, clean cuts. Here are a few examples:

Wedding invitation from Gilah Press.

Place Cards from Papyrus Cutters.

Die cut calling card spotted on Etsy this week (not at the show) from Ready Go.

Spotting Letterpress Standouts at the 2011 National Stationery Show

Photo courtesy of Printerette Press

Back from the 2011 National Stationery Show! I had a fantastic time shopping the show with my mom, chatting up some incredibly talented artists and perusing lots of great paper.

But the truth is, my head isn't buzzing with new ideas like it usually is after the show.

This year's show featured so. much. letterpress.

So much.

Sifting through my show loot I counted more than two dozen business cards from letterpress designers. Ask me how many engraving companies I came across this year...

(go ahead- ask me!)

...fine, I'll tell you. Two. And one was so over the top expensive it wasn't even worth looking at. Have I maxed out on letterpress? Not sure. It's still really pretty and elegant when done right.

(I'll write about the one extra special engraving company in tomorrow's post. For now, let's dive into this letterpress mess.)

What I do know is that while prices are roughly the same from one shop to the next, the quality can vary dramatically. Taking a closer look at these different letterpress lines side by side, I noticed several key elements that can distinguish one from the next:

1. Paper

Most shops print on 300 lb cotton paper - sometimes made by hand, sometimes made by Crane. A few shops print on 220 lb paper and it feels a little flimsy. Others print on 600 lb paper - it's super thick, like a book! 600 is great, but 300 fits the bill.

300 lb Crane Lettera paper from InkPetals

Paper weights aside, there are a few paper options that are really standout. One is bamboo, used by shops like Smock - can you see how soft it looks? Feels pretty great, too:

Smock was the first high-end letterpress shop to offer letterpress on bamboo paper, which is not only soft and elegant, but also sustainable. Read more about their bamboo paper here.

Another press shop featuring standout paper is Portland's Oblation Papers & Press.

Oblation makes all of its paper in-house, using old-school techniques to make cotton paper by hand using recycled remnants from the garment industry.

Being able to feel the quality of letterpress paper in your hand is one of the (many) reasons why checking out papers in person - at the show and in stores - is so critical before making big buys.

2. Ink.

This is my biggest pet peeve about letterpress - the colors can look faded. I'm not sure what causes that - whether it's due to the quality of the ink or the quality of the press. I suspect it's a little of both. In either case, the best letterpress features clean, fully saturated color (unless the design calls for a more distressed finish). Here's an example of distressed color that seems lacking:

Photo courtesy of OhSoBeautiful Paper

Fig. 2 Design took the prize for best ink palate. Bright neons were one of the big trends at this year's show - more on that in my next post - and Fig. 2 had some really killer shades (again thanks to OhSoBeautiful Paper, who expertly documented this year's show):

So did Printerette Press, my favorite newcomer at this year's show.

My mom especially fell in love with this card! So happy, so bright. Great ink.

3. Design

Great/unique/creative designs are easy to pick apart from the ho-hum that's cluttering the letterpress scene these days. Today, over at FantabulouslyWedd, I highlighted some of my favorite letterpress designers at this year's show, including Bella Figura (which offers more than 250 creative letterpress designs) and Gilah Press, a quasi-local shop based in Baltimore. Be sure to check out that post for some great photos.

One other design leader that I'd like to point out is Anemone Press, a member of the Ladies of Letterpress collective and all around superstar.


It's flowers done very right. Modern designs with well apportioned color and a beautiful backdrop. A standout!

First Big News - Then an updated from NSS - Promise

Big exciting wonderful Post news! I am thrilled to be a a contributing blogger to Fantabulously Wedd, the sister site to the uber-shopping deals and sales site Fantabulously Frugal.

I get such big kicks out of sifted through virtual shops to scout out the best/newest/most creative paper products out there and I have a serious soft spot for wedding invitations.

Needless to say - I'm excited! First post coming soon!

Oooh lala!

Hello gilded age!

We're here!

New goodies at the Stationery Show!

Look Who's Calling

I love this piece in the Wall Street Journal about the resurgence of the calling card, "the kinder, gentler business card."

[P]ersonalized business cards are enjoying something of a revival as reactions to, and against, our own recently concluded Gilded Age. The updated versions, increasingly referred to by stationers as calling cards, differ from conventional business cards in that they provide as little information as possible: a name and a single contact number is common. Examine one closely and you might be able to glean the bearer's profession, but any hint of corporate conformity has been stamped out.

I'm totally on board with classic calling cards. They're classic and sparse and oh-so-alluring. Why calling cards in a digital age?

[A] personalized card acts as a quiet rebuttal to the white noise jabber-jawing of Twitter and Facebook. A rectangular symbol of restraint, the well-conceived card provides its recipient with just enough information.

Interested in investing in calling cards but intimidated by their uber-cool factor? The Journal goes on to decode calling card speak:

Glossary of Terms

A layman's guide to calling-card jargon

• Engraving | The most traditional process for social stationery, it involves the incising of letters or images into a steel die or copper plate. The plate is inked, wiped clean to remove excess ink from the plate's surface and then run through a high-pressure print press that pushes the paper into the grooves of the incisions. The result: raised typeface or imagery above the paper's surface.
• Embossing | Paper is pressed into an engraved metal plate without ink, creating a raised image or lettering.
• Letterpress | Ink-covered type is pressed into the paper, so lettering is below the surface. Like engraving, letterpress printing yields a three-dimensional product.
• Foil Stamping | Metallic foil is stamped into the paper, creating metallic letters.
• Watermarking | A translucent design, impressed upon paper, that is only visible when held up to light.
• Offset Lithography | Letters are transferred to paper from a plastic plate. The result is flat, smooth and cheaper than engraving or letterpress.
• Digital Printing | Inkjet or laser printing. A cost-effective alternative to flat printing, allowing for often rich colors.

Mail Time

Look what came in the mail today!! Congratulations Bethany and Ryan! So excited for the big day.
This calligraphy is SWOON-worthy! And the invitation from Designers Fine Press is stunning!!

Lovely Favor idea

Attention Philly brides: Here's another great wedding find from Bird and Banner -- City of Brotherly LOVE soft pretzel bags perfect for a delicious wedding favor takeaway.

These come in packs of 10 - a perfect way to treat guests to a taste of Philly (without any messy cheese whiz....)

Oh Baby!

Is it possible I have a new favorite baby shower invite to top my all time bun-in-the-oven favorite?