Oh So Beautiful Paper

We love horses at Antiquaria and find ourselves constantly drawn to and inspired by vintage horse imagery.  Today we’re thrilled to be able to show you how to create a sophisticated equestrian themed invitation suite all your own!  This suite is subtle but definitely sets the stage for horse farm or equestrian center nuptials.  The color palette of hunter green, peach, and cream helps elevate the overall look and make it fresh.  The best part?  The stamped leather tag! – Bailey and Emma of Antiquaria

Step One: Set an A7 (5″x7″) piece of card stock on a hard, clean surface.  Ink your invitation stamp (we used our Equestrian Invitation stamp) thoroughly with a hunter green stamp pad.  Center stamp over card stock and carefully set down.  Press moderately on the stamp.  Too firm and it will smudge and too softly will not give a clear print.  Remove stamp and let the ink dry.

Step Two: Repeat the printing technique in step one on a 4bar (3.5″x5″) piece of paper.  We used our Equestrian reply card stamp for this piece.

Step Three: The little “extras” are what really make your invitation your own.  For this suite, we wanted to bring in a different texture for the monogram tag used to tie the whole thing together.  Cut leather into 2″ x 2″ squares.  Punch a 1/8″ hole in the left corner of the square.  Install a metal grommet in the hole to give it a clean and professional finish.

Now you’re ready to stamp!!  Ink your stamp (we used our Handwritten Calligraphy Names monogram) and center it on the leather.  Apply pressure (you can be a bit more gently this time since the surface is softer) and make your print. Let dry.

Step Four:  Stamp your return and reply address on the respective A7 and 4bar envelopes.  It is wise and a huge money saver to use the same stamp for both!  We used our Vintage Horseshoe return address stamp for this suite.  Cut a liner to fit your A7 outer envelope.  You will want it to sit right under the adhesive.  You can either cut it yourself or have your local print shop cut them all for you.  To insert the liner,  place a line of double stick tape or stick glue across the top  and slide it into position and press to secure.  Fold at the crease with a bone folder to get a nice, crisp edge.

Materials

Equestrian custom stamps: invitation, reply card, return address

Calligraphy Names Monogram stamp

A7 Cards

4Bar Cards

A7 Envelopes

4Bar Envelopes

Leather

Metal Eyelets

Twine

Vintage Postage

Anti­quaria is a mem­ber of the Designer Rolodex – you can see more of their beau­ti­ful work right here or visit the real wedding invitations gallery for more wedding invitation ideas!

Photo Credits: intertwyned for Antiquaria

No matter what the office, or what kind of work you do, a good pair of scissors is pretty much a requirement.  I always find myself snipping something, be it for work, craft or a whirlwind wrapping day.  It’s only then that I realize that not just any pair will do; you need the right scissors for the task at hand.  From fabric to paper, and even a pair suitable for traveling, I’ve put together a round up of scissors big and small that will surely make the cut. – Julie

No. 1 Brass scissors by Hay; No. 2 Tailor’s shears from Sundance; No. 3 Yellow scissors by ANYTHING; No. 4 Classic school scissors by Garrett Wade; No. 5 Owl embroidery scissors from Sublime Stitching; No. 6 Little gem blue scissors from The Workroom

{images via their respective sources}

With only a week left (!!) in March, Easter is just around the corner!  Today we thought we’d round up a few favorite cards for those of you celebrating the Easter holiday.  Whether Easter is celebrated in your home or your neighborhood, the bright colors, references to fuzzy animals, and spring-inspired floral designs conjure a rousing warmth perfect for the new season and warmer days. – Tashia

 

Egg Press

 

Enormous Champion (left); Letter C Design (right)

Fluid Ink Letterpress

Social Proper (left); Hello!Lucky (right)

Sass & Peril

{images via their respective sources}

*Hello!Lucky is a sponsor of Oh So Beautiful Paper

It’s the ladies of Anti­quaria, back with another cre­ative DIY project for you!  Today they’re sharing a fun tutorial on how to make DIY envelope liners using rubber stamps!

The finishing touches make your stationery special and unique.  It’s the little things – like vintage postage, twine, washi tape, calligraphy and envelope liners – that can turn a basic invitation, card or letter into a show stopper.  At Antiquaria, we love envelope liners… but they can be mighty expensive, so we figured out a way to get the look of decorative paper on a shoestring budget.  Plus it’s super easy!

Step 1: Lay your sheet of text weight paper out on a hard surface.  Choose your stamp (we used our Mod Fern Pattern stamp), and ink it well.  Print your pattern stamp in an orderly fashion on the paper, making sure you stamp enough area so that the images will bleed off once the liner is cut.  In general, you will not want to overlap the stamped images (but don’t worry if they do).

Step 2: Cutting your liner… the technique will all depend on what style of envelope you choose.  You can find envelope liner template kits at Paper Source to fit their envelopes.  To use these, trace the template and cut along the line.  If you’re using square envelopes, you can have your local print shop cut paper down to your envelope specifications or draw out the dimensions and cut your own!

Step 3:  To insert your liner,  place a line of double stick tape or stick glue across the top (or around the top triangle), slide them into position and press to secure.  Fold at the crease with a bone folder to get a nice, crisp edge.

Materials

Pattern Stamps – we used Mod Fern Pattern stamp (in turquoise), Repeat Leave Pattern Stamp (in ochre)

Stamp Pad

Envelopes

Double Stick Tape or Stick Glue

Bone Folder

Anti­quaria is a mem­ber of the Designer Rolodex – you can see more of their beau­ti­ful work right here!

Photo Credits: Intertwyned for Antiquaria