Oh So Beautiful Paper

Archive for December, 2009

Happy (almost) New Year everyone!  I'm signing off for the weekend, but just wanted to wish you all a wonderful, warm, and safe New Year's Eve and fabulous 2010!  I also wanted to take a moment to send out a few thank you notes.  First, to all of my dear readers, for stopping by here everyday, for sending me your invitations and commenting on posts – you all make my day so much better!  Second, to all the designers, stationers, calligraphers, and artists that I've had the priviledge of getting to know over the past year, for allowing me to share your beautiful work.  And finally, I also have to thank all of my amazing sponsors for making so much of what I do on this blog possible!

I'll be back here next week, and I've got big plans and exciting changes for 2010 that I can't wait to start sharing with all of you!  In the meantime, if you're looking for inspiration, I've been updating my tumblr page like crazy this week – check it out right here.  Happy 2010 everyone! 

{image credits: little black umbrella}

These invitations are another of my favorites from 2009 — the mix of woodgrain details and amazing typography just blow me away every time.  I first saw Jefferson and Sarah’s autumn Nashville wedding invitations on the Studio on Fire blog back in November, but when the designer (and groom!) Jefferson Perky sent over his take, I couldn’t resist sharing his perspective!

From Jefferson: This invitation package was design for my own wedding. The idea was to create the feel of an elegant fall wedding with a hint of whimsy.  The growth of tree metaphor was carried out through the entire suite, from the Save the Date through the thank you cards.

Everything but the envelopes was printed in a single color (black) on the same sheet and trimmed from there (a great cost saving technique).  Although I decided early on in the design process that the invitations would be letterpress printed, I still wanted to maintain a good range of value in the greyscale imagery.  So first we had the paper digitally printed to get the woodgrain imagery the way we wanted it before letterpress printing the text of the invitation.

The mix of digital and letterpress printing on soft cotton Lettra paper both allowed for the gradient detail in the tree rings and created subtle tactile differences in the invitation suite.

My wife teared up when they came back from the printer and we started assembly.  Happy tears. (Ed note: awwww… how sweet!)

You can read more about these invitations over on Beast Pieces, and check out the Perky Bros website for lots of cool business collateral and print designs.  Thanks Jefferson!

{image credits: Studio on Fire and Perky Bros}

As much as I’ve enjoyed 2009, I’m definitely ready to ring in 2010 tomorrow night – and these confetti-inspired wedding invitations from SeeSaw Designs definitely help keep me in a festive mood.  These invitations were designed for a destination New Year’s Eve wedding in Scottsdale, Arizona planned by Aleasha at A Day to Cherish.  The ladies at SeeSaw incorporated confetti details on the main invitation, and designed the rsvp card to resemble a boarding pass to tie in with the idea of a destination wedding:

The rsvp was perforated so that the guests could select the activities they wanted to partake in, tear off the postcard and mail it back. The remaining piece was a schedule of events for the wedding weekend:

So cute!  A big congrats to Michelle and Mark on tying the knot tomorrow, and thanks to SeeSaw for sending over these lovely destination wedding invitations!

{image credits: SeeSaw Designs}

I love the quiet during the week between Christmas and New Year’s – it’s the perfect time to look back on the year that was before starting the new year.

This week I’ve been spending quite a bit of time going through my archives and trying to get myself as organized as possible before 2010, and I came across these beautiful blind emboss wedding invitations printed by Studio on Fire:

Designed by Aya Ikegaya for a summer wedding, the serene white and soft gray color palette would also perfect for a winter wedding.  The main invitation is actually the embossed text on the outer sleeve with letterpress enclosures on the inside, including a map and accommodation information:

Studio on Fire also gives a wonderfully concise explanation of the different printing methods for embossing and letterpress, which you can check out along with a few additional photos right here.

{image credits: studio on fire}

Allison from Bird Dog Press has such a beautiful way with pattern — like these spring-inspired letterpress invitations that she created incorporating a blue background pattern with brown text and floral elements:

I also love the corresponding blue poppy on the brown envelope, which just gives a slightly more lush feel to the overall design.  So pretty!  Check out more on the Bird Dog Press flickr page.

{image credits: Bird Dog Press}