Oh So Beautiful Paper

Jan181960s-Inspired Save the Dates for a 70th Birthday Party

Leslie from Lilly and Louise sent over these super-fun save the dates for a 70th birthday party – all inspired by the 1960s!  Leslie kept things simple with Mad Men-inspired icons in a black and red color palette, letterpress printed on bright white cotton paper.  I love the fold-out design and modern font selections!

From Leslie: For this 1960s-themed 70th Birthday Party Save the Date we created a simple, clean, Madmen-esque look, using bold red and black against a bright white.  To enhance the experience, we letterpress printed these elements into a thick cotton paper.

Guests literally unfold each element as they open the card.  The graphic illustrations of a black tie, red lips, red glasses and a birthday candle give a hint of the celebration to come at this B-A-S-H, without giving away too much.

Thanks Leslie!

Design: Leslie Lewis Sigler of Lilly & Louise

Letterpress Printing: Lumino Press

Photo Credits: Leslie Lewis Sigler of Lilly & Louise

Jan11Michele’s Hot Air Balloon Baby Shower Invitations

These adorable baby shower invitations come to us from Michele of Smitten Owl, a letterpress and design studio in New York City.  When it came time to the invitations for their baby shower, Michele and her husband Greg were inspired by their grand new adventure, incorporating hot air balloons into a two-color letterpress design.  So sweet!

From Michele: When my husband and I found out we were having a baby, among the many thoughts running through my head was “away we go!”  This inspired our hot air balloon and animal family design.  The two birds sitting on top of the center balloon were repurposed from our wedding invitations.  Our family was so excited to see the little “Greg and Michele” birds again!

The invitation includes a two-piece letterpress suite with a digital print registry card and custom envelope liners.  The announcement card and invitation are two-color letterpress printed on 220lb Reich Savoy.  In an effort to reduce the number of plates needed but still keep the design dynamic we added hash marks to the main balloons.  This also added a beautiful texture to the two color design.

Thanks Michele – and congratulations!

Photo Credits: Bia Sampaio

Jan05Diane’s Circus-Inspired Bar Crawl Party Invitations

Lindsay from McMillian + Furlow sent over these super fun bar crawl invitations that she designed to help celebrate a friend’s return to the United States from a teaching stint overseas.  Lindsay wanted the invitations to feel jubilant and playful, so she drew inspiration from vintage circus posters, incorporating a very American red and blue color palette along with fun wood type-inspired fonts.  So cool!

From Lindsay: I decided to go with a circus themed bar crawl, and found a ton of inspiration in vintage Barnum and Bailey posters, raffle tickets and the beloved classic popcorn bag.  Along with the red and blue, I love how the design feels very American, which is appropriate for this particular celebration.

I’m always trying to find any excuse to use some of my favorite wood type fonts, and this project was no exception.  The combination of bold color, playful typography and circus-inspired illustration all contribute to the success of this festive design.  The invitations were printed digitally on a thick glossy paper and mailed in bright yellow envelopes.  With all this hype it’s bound to be a exceptionally good time!

Thanks Lindsay!

Photo Credits: McMillian and Furlow

Dec12Anastasia’s Paint Drip Birthday Party Invitations

You might remember Anastasia’s bright and colorful Kate Spade-inspired birthday party invitations from last year, and today Anastasia is back to share the invitations for this year’s birthday party!  I love the simple inspiration behind these invitations: Anastasia simply dipped into her personal paint supply and let a few drips run down a trimmed sheet of paper!  Anastasia printed all the relevant details on a yellow belly band, using kraft paper tape to secure the two pieces.

From Anastasia: I found some super thick paper that I had lying around and picked out four colors of paint (sunny yellow, ocean blue, pink, and metallic gold) from my craft box.  I squeezed the paint onto the trimmed thick paper, letting the excess roll down the invitation.  All the party info was printed on yellow paper and trimmed just so I could wrap it around the invitation.

I secured the yellow strip with super sticky kraft tape on the back.  I also added puff tape underneath the front portion of the strip to give it a bit of lift.

So fun!  Thanks Anastasia – and happy birthday!

Photo Credits: Anastasia Marie