DIY Painterly Pink and Gold Easter Eggs

Last week, I shared this tutorial for toddler-friendly marbled Easter eggs using food coloring and vegetable oil! Well, since I was already dyeing some eggs, I thought I’d experiment with some spray food coloring that I happened to have on hand. The eggs turned out with a soft painterly vibe that I really love, so I thought I’d share the results with you!

DIY Painterly Pink and Gold Easter Eggs / Oh So Beautiful Paper

DIY Painterly Pink and Gold Easter Eggs / Oh So Beautiful Paper

I used Wilton Color Mist Spray, which you can find on Amazon or in person at pretty much any party or craft store in the cake decorating section. It comes in a whole range of colors, but I kept things simple by using the gold color mist with pale pink eggs. I love the soft edges of the gold food color spray, and it leaves a really beautiful and subtle shimmer on the eggs!

DIY Painterly Pink and Gold Easter Eggs / Oh So Beautiful Paper

Supplies

Wilton Gold Color Mist

Hardboiled Eggs

Egg Carton

Liquid Food Coloring (or other dye of your choice)

Small Bowl

Vinegar

Spoon

Paper Towels

DIY Painterly Pink and Gold Easter Eggs / Oh So Beautiful Paper

To make the eggs:

Step 1. First, dye the eggs in your chosen base color. Fill a small bowl with warm water, then add one tablespoon of vinegar, followed by several drops of liquid food coloring (or any other dye method) in your chosen color.

Step 2. Using a spoon, submerge a hardboiled egg in the dye bath for approximately 1 minute. Remove the egg from the dye bath and return to the egg carton to dry completely.

Step 3. Once your dyed eggs are fully dry, you can apply the food color spray. Place paper towels under the egg carton to protect your surface, then place eggs in every other row so that you have plenty of room to apply the spray. Hold the spray can 4-5 inches away from the egg and spray a thin layer of food coloring on the visible half of the egg, being sure to cover the entire surface of the egg. Allow the food color spray to dry completely, then apply additional layers if necessary.

DIY Painterly Pink and Gold Easter Eggs / Oh So Beautiful Paper

DIY Painterly Pink and Gold Easter Eggs / Oh So Beautiful Paper

DIY Painterly Pink and Gold Easter Eggs / Oh So Beautiful Paper

DIY Painterly Pink and Gold Easter Eggs / Oh So Beautiful Paper

DIY Painterly Pink and Gold Easter Eggs / Oh So Beautiful Paper

These spray painted eggs were so much fun to make! And Sophie absolutely LOVED them. Pretty pastels and some metallic shimmer – what could be better for Easter??

Allspice Punch

We’re back again this week with another cocktail featuring our homemade Allspice Dram, because it’s too good and too easy to make to only give it one chance to shine. This week’s drink shows off not just our warmly spicy Allspice Dram, but also some gorgeous blood oranges that just happen to be in season: Allspice Punch. – Andrew

Allspice Punch Cocktail Recipe / Liquorary for Oh So Beautiful Paper

Allspice Punch

2 oz Aged Rum
3/4 oz Allspice Dram
3/4 oz Lime Juice
1/2 oz Blood Orange Juice
1 tsp Rich Simple Syrup
1 dash Angostura Bitters

Combine everything in a shaker filled two-thirds with ice and shake well. Strain into a chilled cocktail glass and garnish with a candied cherry and a slice of blood orange. Enjoy!

Allspice Punch Cocktail Recipe / Liquorary for Oh So Beautiful Paper

Allspice Punch Cocktail Recipe / Liquorary for Oh So Beautiful Paper

For all intents and purposes, this is a gussied up Daiquiri. You have your rum, your citrus (lime and blood orange), and your sugar – the Allspice Dram is plenty sweet, and a dash of simple syrup helps balance out some of the allspice’s astringency. But it’s also warmer and spicier than a typical Daiquiri, and also delightfully pink, with a nice citrusy tartness to balance the spice. Alllspice is native to the Caribbean, so it only seems natural to show it off in a Daiquiri, the cocktail mascot of the tropics.

Allspice Punch Cocktail Recipe / Liquorary for Oh So Beautiful Paper

(Don’t forget to follow us on Instagram, where we’ve been posting our experiments before they make their way onto this column!)

Glassware by Liquorary

Photo Credits: Nole Garey for Oh So Beautiful Paper

Happy Weekend!

Happy Friday everyone! Sophie and I are up in New Jersey for the weekend to celebrate my dad’s 75th birthday! We took the train up yesterday afternoon and our arrival was a total surprise for my dad. Then my sister showed up and also surprised him! She flew in all the way from California, and we’re all excited to spend a few days together to celebrate our dad’s big milestone. But in the meantime…

The Lovely Ave Paper Flower Bouquet via Instagram / Oh So Beautiful Paper

Paper flower bouquet by The Lovely Ave via Instagram / Photo by Elisha Braithwaite

…a few links for your weekend!

This week on Oh So Beautiful Paper:

That’s it for me this week! Check back a bit later for this week’s cocktail recipe! I hope you have a wonderful weekend, and I’ll see you back here on Monday! xoxo

The World of Illustration: Kelsey Oseid

I’m so excited to share the work of our first illustrator here on The World of Illustration: Kelsey Oseid. Kelsey is a freelance illustrator and artist located in Minneapolis, Minnesota. Her work first caught my eye on Instagram when I scrolled by one of her beautiful moth illustrations. I particularly love her use of colors and shapes along with her choice in subject matter. Kelsey was kind enough to speak to us a bit about her profession and personal inspirations. – Julie

The World of Illustration: Kelsey Oseid / Oh So Beautiful Paper

What is your background?

I took lots of art classes growing up, and my father, who is a watercolor painter, taught me to paint as well. I also have a degree in Visual Communications from Loyola University Chicago.

How did you begin your journey of becoming an illustrator?

I’ve really always wanted to be an illustrator. When I graduated college I worked for a publishing company as a production artist for a while, but I craved more creative outlets. I left my steady job to become a “piecemeal creative” freelancer, taking design and art related jobs wherever I could get them. Finally in the last year I’ve been able to focus primarily on my illustration work, which I love!

The World of Illustration: Kelsey Oseid / Oh So Beautiful Paper

Who or what inspires you?

A lot of my work is about the natural world. So of course, nature is an inspiration! And I absolutely love studying natural history — museums, nature documentaries, books — I am fascinated by the ways humans have tried to interpret and connect to the natural world. Also, David Attenborough is my hero.

What do you love most about your profession?

So many things — getting to make stuff every day, creating pretty things, learning about my subject matter, feeling that loving feeling for my career! I am very lucky.

The World of Illustration: Kelsey Oseid / Oh So Beautiful Paper

What sort of advice would you offer someone who is thinking of pursuing or trying to advance their career in illustration?

The one thing that has had the biggest impact on my career and business has been social networking (big surprise there, right?). I started a project in 2015 to post a new piece of art on social media every day, and I think I’ve landed more jobs from that project than from any other avenue. Also, to just make a lot of work. Try to illustrate every day!

The World of Illustration: Kelsey Oseid / Oh So Beautiful Paper

The World of Illustration: Kelsey Oseid / Oh So Beautiful Paper

To see more of Kelsey’s work, follow her on Instagram for a dose of illustration inspiration in your feed, or visit her shop for your very own Kelsey Oseid print or original painting!

Delicate Black and White Leaf Wedding Invitations

Black and white is undoubtedly the most classic of color palettes, but it’s also a bit unexpected for a botanical-inspired invitation design! These delicate black and white leaf wedding invitations from Anastasia Marie were created for a spring garden wedding in Oregon. Anastasia paired an illustrated leaf pattern with a whimsical script – all printed in classic black on off-white paper. So simple and pretty!

Delicate Black and White Leaf Wedding Invitations by Anastasia Marie / Oh So Beautiful Paper

From Anastasia: These invitations were created for a simple outdoor garden wedding in Oregon. The invitation design features a simple leafy twig pattern, a flowing script typeface for the names, and a classic and straightforward serif typeface for the body text. We incorporated one little illustrated piece to tie everything together.

Delicate Black and White Leaf Wedding Invitations by Anastasia Marie / Oh So Beautiful Paper

Delicate Black and White Leaf Wedding Invitations by Anastasia Marie / Oh So Beautiful Paper

The leaf illustration was drawn up digitally in Illustrator, and given a subtle hand drawn look to bring the design down to a homemade feel. We made a patterned version of it for the back of the invitation to bring life to something that otherwise would have been left blank. It made the invitation feel more garden-y and whimsical.

Delicate Black and White Leaf Wedding Invitations by Anastasia Marie / Oh So Beautiful Paper

When it came to the color palette, we looked to the bride and groom’s wedding attire for inspiration. The bride wore an ivory and champagne-hued dress and the groom wore a classic black suit, so we printed on smooth ivory paper with classic black ink.

Delicate Black and White Leaf Wedding Invitations by Anastasia Marie / Oh So Beautiful Paper

We then tied up the printed pieces with metallic gold and black twine and slipped it all into shimmering gold envelopes for a touch of added elegance. Lastly, we sealed the envelopes with black striped washi tape. Washi tape is a perfect way to add a little bit more personality to an invitation suite, especially if you’re on a budget, and was a great fit with the whimsical feel of this particular invitation suite.

Delicate Black and White Leaf Wedding Invitations by Anastasia Marie / Oh So Beautiful Paper

Thanks Anastasia!

Check out the Designer Rolodex for more tal­ented wed­ding invi­ta­tion design­ers and the real invi­ta­tions gallery for more wedding invitation ideas!

Photo Credits: Anastasia Marie Cards & Stationery