Brick & Mortar: 2015 Daydreams + Unprompted Requests, Part 1

I’m a brainstormer and day dreamer, the old fashioned kind who stares out windows and loses hours (/avoids to-do lists). Lately, I’ve had the good fortune of being in your good graces, so each day brings gorgeous mail, thoughtful emails and social media hellos. It is the perfect amount of fodder for my product inspired daydreams. In these early 2015 days, I want to share a few things that I not-so-secretly hope you’ll make. I’m going to share it in two parts because, it turns out, my daydreams are far more prolific than my t0-do lists. Here’s part one! –Emily of Clementine

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Illustration by Emily McDowell for Oh So Beautiful Paper

First, nota bene: these are my daydreams. As a shop owner, I have the luxury of ideating without the hassle of actual production.  These ideas may be impossible, flawed, or unmarketable. They’re also unprompted, they come from little sparks in my mind, not from customer requests or outside suggestions. This is to say: I send them with love but with absolutely no attachment.

PART I . Matchmaker, matchmaker. You know when you have two single friends who you think would be perfect for each other but you’re not sure how to tell them so you decide to do it on the internet without any warning? This is kind of like that except I barely know anyone involved (but if you know any single straight men in NYC, do I have a few amazing friends…).

  • Brown Parcel Press & Andie’s Specialty SweetsWhen I first saw the cards and prints from Brown Parcel Press, I thought: They look good enough to eat. Similarly, upon my introduction to Andie’s Specialty Sweets, I thought: That can’t be real! They look too incredible to eat! Both of these makers mold their material into a truly scrumptious product. I would love to see Andie’s base a little line of candies from Brown Parcel’s card lines. (I would admire them for an appropriate amount of time and then I would totally eat them up.)

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 Brown Parcel Press’s Grapefruit + Andie’s Specialty Candies marzipan fruit

  • Sapling Press + Notabli: Last week, while eating breakfast, my 3 year old turned to me and said “Mama, your eyebrows are too bright.” I reacted like many moms of my generation: I grabbed my phone and decided which social media platform deserved this quip. I chose notabli, a scrapbook-like app that saves your kids moments in photos, audio, video or just a little note. I love the note function because everyone always tells you to “write down what your kids say” and of course you never do, but now I finally am.

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Sapling Press card + a little shot of the Notabli App

A while back, I laughed through my entire Sapling Press order. So here’s my idea: I want these two to join forces. I want Notabli to hold a contest for parents to enter the funniest things their kids say and then I want Sapling Press to print them. Kids do say ridiculous things, but that doesn’t mean they’re not worthy of letterpress. (Spoken like a true parent, I know.)

  • Our Heiday + MCMCI’ve carried MCMC fragrances at Clementine for several years and Anne’s descriptions are just my favorite, vivid and lush, they take you right to a place. Last year, Pat from Our Heiday sent her beautiful intro packet and with each new card I found myself wanting another sense involved. They were like visual ingredient bouquets and I kept wondering: what would these cards smell like? I would love to see what these two would do together: a scent MCMC creates based on an Our Heiday illustration? Or Our Heiday illustrations based on MCMC scents? Either way, I’m in.

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Our Heiday’s Mom Card + MCMC’s Garden Fragrance

  • Anna Joyce + The Hive StudioI have horrible handwriting, so calligraphy truly is magic to me. Though I carry a few calligraphed cards at Clementine, people still think it is reserved for wedding invitations. I would love to see its application expand. Lindsey Buck of The Hive Studio was my Goody Goody Gift Swap mate and I was just floored by her calligraphy, it was bold and graphic, penning in a vibrant teal ink it was raised from the page and I wanted to see it on repeat. Anna Joyce‘s line of accessories has been a Clementine favorite for a while. Her contrast of her fabric and leather makes her accessories rise to art status, especially with her new hand painted series. It seems like a seamless jump to turn Lindsey’s wrapping paper into fabric for a special limited edition line with Anna’s skills.

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Anna Joyce Design’s Splatter Print Clutch in Yellow + The Hive Studio holiday wrapping paper

  • Red Cap Cards + Hygge & West: I spent my childhood skirting the edge of Vermont’s forests. My little friends and I built endless fairy houses and lived knee-deep in a land of make-believe. Whenever I find a designer able to capture the feeling of that time, I want to live in their world. This is to say: wallpaper. I want them to make wallpaper. Currently, I think Hygge + West is knocking it out of the park translating illustrated designs onto walls and I love scouring Red Cap’s line for illustrators who create the worlds I could live within.

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Becca Stadtlander for Red Cap Cards + Hygge + West’s Mint Peonies by Rifle Paper Co

  • Red House Inc + Swiss Cottage DesignsVermont is tiny state, with big state pride. Red House Inc, a fave local maker is creating some fantastic waxed canvas products. I especially love her thoughtful details, like her choices for liner fabrics. Courtney from Swiss Cottage Designs recently sent me a sample card from a Vermont wedding she designed. I was planning to crash the wedding (for the goodie bags) because I love LOVE, but then she wrote to say: let’s make something out of this and I thought: ug, where do I start? Well, I’ll start with fabric. (Then wallpaper, wrapping paper, notepads….). How about these two together:

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Red House Inc’s extra large tote + Swiss Cottage Designs Vermont illustrations

  • Little Auggie + Clap ClapLittle Auggie is creating some of the softest, sweetest bedding around. I’m especially grateful for their patterns for boys – which don’t fall into the easy rut of sport/superhero/truck themes. Instead each line creates a narrative that even parents can love . Similarly, Clap Clap Design‘s stationery stops me in my tracks with bold colors and a clear story. I would happily pull a duvet cover designed by these two over my head for a long winter nap.

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Little Auggie‘s Rabbit Patch Collection + Clap Clap‘s Greeting Cards

  • Julie Song + Pretty Plum SugarIt turns out, these two were well ahead of me. For Christmas, I was gifted a gorgeous robe from Pretty Plum Sugar (long live the pinterest wish list!). I returned to Clementine to find Julie had sent her beautiful 2015 Calendar. As I was dreaming up this post, I had a fleeting thought about how perfect Julie’s designs would be on these robes. Then last week on Instagram I saw that it had already happened, even prettier than I had imagined (and dare, I say the perfect get-up for 2015 tea-drinking bed-lounging daydreams):

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{Julie Song for Pretty Plum Sugar exclusively via BHLDN}

Join me back here soon to day dream about new and expanded products from some of your existing stationery lines. And in the mean time…What brands do you think could partner to create a new product?

xx 2015!

DC Guide: Where to Shop for the Perfect Cocktail Party with car2go

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One of our goals this winter is to have friends over to our house more frequently – it isn’t always easy to go out when you have small kids at home, especially when you just want to stay warm and cozy inside. Last year we were still unpacking and getting settled into the new house, and by the time spring rolled around we felt like we’d spent the entire winter hibernating. Plus, hosting friends is a great excuse to try out some of our new cocktail recipes!

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Whether we’re planning a larger event or a smaller gathering, we always want to have something tasty for our guests, but it isn’t always feasible to get around town using public transportation. I’m so glad that car sharing services have become more popular in DC over the last few years. I see car2go all over my Capitol Hill neighborhood, so I was really excited to team up with car2go to try one of their cars for myself. We had a few friends coming over to try some of our upcoming winter cocktails (the best kind of research!), so I jumped into a nearby car2go to gather provisions. Because this was a more intimate gathering of friends and the first time we’d had people over since Alice’s arrival in September, we decided to keep things really simple: two really good cocktails accompanied by a cheese plate and some seriously delicious doughnuts – all around our coffee table (an antique Egyptian brass tray that we found at a flea market!). I try to get as much preparation as possible done during nap time, and car2go made it so easy to pick up some special treats from some of my favorite DC spots in just a couple of hours!

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In case you aren’t familiar with car2go, the entire fleet is made up of smart cars – so they can fit into really small parking spots – that you can access for short trips around town, even one way or by-the-minute trips! I was a bit worried about being able to find a car nearby when I needed it, especially on a weekend, but I just pulled the car2go app up on my phone when I was ready to walk out the door and there was a car just a couple of blocks away. I was in a car with a quick swipe of my member card and on my way in about 10 minutes total!

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My first stop was my favorite new addition to Capitol Hill: District Doughnut! I was so happy when they opened up shop on Barracks Row a few months ago – they seriously make the best doughnuts I’ve ever tasted! My personal favorites so far are Brown Butter and Maple Butter Pecan, but they’re always coming out with new seasonal flavors. Lines have been known to form down the block and parking can be really difficult on weekends, but I managed to find a tiny parking spot that was just the right size for car2go.

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Next I headed up to Union Market, an artisanal food market in the NOMA area of DC. We love coming up to Union Market for casual meals or to shop at the many specialty stands – you can find everything from produce stands to a fishmonger to ice cream! I made a beeline to Righteous Cheese to pick up the ingredients for our cheese plate, then stopped by the produce stand to grab some fresh seasonal citrus in lieu of flowers. I couldn’t resist popping into Salt & Sundry to pick up a new candle from local candlemaker Sydney Hale Co. and the most gorgeous tiny dipping bowls from Redraven Ceramics.

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If you’re planning to host a cocktail party of any kind, you’ll definitely want to visit a well curated liquor store. My final stop was at our favorite liquor store in all of DC: Schneider’s of Capitol Hill. Schneider’s seriously has everything – from small batch distilleries to the more familiar brand names – and the staff is always available to help you find something, answer questions, or make recommendations if you need help navigating the sheer number of options. It’s overwhelming in the best possible way.

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My favorite part of running around DC with car2gocar2go? Once you’re done with the car you just park it anywhere and leave! You don’t have to return the car to a specific spot or worry about completing a return trip within a specified period of time. You just drive the car for the amount of time that you need it (even one-way trips) and then you’re done. I found a parking spot right around the corner from my house, so I didn’t have to worry about schlepping a bunch of things for a long walk home. My husband was taking Sophie and Alice for a walk when we pulled up – so Sophie even got a peek inside the car2go! She promptly proclaimed it her tiny car.

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I made it home with plenty of time to set everything out before our guests arrived. Andy made up a large batch of one of our favorite drinks – The Martinez – and a bowl of Hot Rum Punch â€“ you’ll have to check back on Friday for the Hot Rum Punch recipe!

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Photos by Sweet Root Village for Oh So Beautiful Paper

Happy Thanksgiving!

Happy Thanksgiving everyone! I hope you all have a wonderful (and restful) holiday weekend with friends and family – and wish those of you traveling for the holiday a safe journey!

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Lettering via Cautiously Obsessed

In lieu of weekly links – a few holiday events and sales from some of my favorite shops and stationers! I may add a few more here between now and Monday if you want to check back!

Silhouette America is offering several options for OSBP readers through Monday 12/8 at 11:59pm MST – just use the code IHEARTPAPER to access all the sales below!

  • Portrait Bundle: Portrait machine & 1 free year to Club Silhouette for $179.99
  • CAMEO Bundle #1: CAMEO machine, Designer Edition software upgrade, Dust Cover, 4 Tools and $25 Download card to the Silhouette Design Store for $269.99
  • CAMEO Bundle #2: CAMEO machine, Design Edition software upgrade and 1 free year to Club Silhouette for $299.99
  • CAMEO & Portrait Bundle (One for you, one for a friend!): CAMEO machine, Portrait machine and 2, $25 Download cards to the Silhouette Design Store for $299.99
  • Already a Silhouette user? Use my code to receive 40% off at SilhouetteAmerica.com (*excluding machines, design downloads, download cards, subscriptions and gift cards) PLUS Free Shipping on orders over $25 for the lower 48 states
  • 50% off all designs at SilhouetteDesignStore.com – no code needed!

Cyber Monday Sales!

  • 9th Letter Press is offering 30% off for Cyber Monday (with code CYBER30)
  • Almanac Industries is offering 25% off through Monday (with code givethanks)
  • AHeirloom is offering 25% off (with code AHcyber25)
  • Angela Liguori is offering 15% off through Monday (with code grazie14)
  • Ban.do is offering 25% off the entire site through Monday – no code needed!
  • Betsywhite Stationery is offering 30% off on Monday
  • Blabla is offering 20% off on Monday (with code wow20)
  • Blackbird Letterpress is offering 20% off Friday through Monday (with code xmas14)
  • Brightroom Studio is offering 20% off through Thursday December 4 (with code SHOPSMALL)
  • Britt Bass is offering 20% off through Monday (with code HOLIDAY HANGOVER)
  • Dinara Mirtalipova is offering 15% off Friday through Monday (with code BLACK15)
  • Egg Press is offering 30% off on Monday (with code cyberfunday)
  • Emily McDowell is offering 20% off everything through Monday (with code IGFOODCOMA)
  • Farewell Paperie is offering 35% off through Monday (with code YAYINTERNET)
  • Fig.2 Design is offering 30% off on Monday (with code CYBERMON14)
  • Forage is offering 35% off the entire site (with code HOLIDAY) and free shipping through December 8!
  • Graceline Illustration + Calligraphy is offering 30% prints and classes on Monday (with code shopsmall)
  • Hammerpress is offering 20% off (with code THANKYOU20)
  • Hello Tosha is offering 20% off on Monday (with code THANKFUL)
  • Honeycomb Studio is offering free shipping through Monday (with code shopsmall14)
  • Idlewild Co is offering 30% off + free shipping (with code BABYITSCOLD)
  • Julie Song Ink is offering 25% off her Etsy shop (code BLACK14)
  • Knot and Bow is offering 25% off through Monday (with code 25PERCENT)
  • Ladyfingers Letterpress is offering 30% off plus a free letterpress surprise through Friday December 5! (with code OMGDEALZ)
  • Linda & Harriett is offering 30% off through Monday (with code THANKS)
  • MAIKA is offering 40% off through Monday (with code SOTHANKFUL)
  • Mon Voir is offering 25% off her shop (with code BLACKFRIDAY)
  • One Canoe Two is offering 25% off on Monday (with code CyberMonday25)
  • Our Heiday is offering 30% off (with code CELEBRATE30)
  • Parrott Design Studio is offering 30% off Monday through Thursday (with code HOLIDAYCHEER)
  • Postable is offering 26% off on Monday (with code CYBERMON)
  • Printerette Press is offering 30% off in their Etsy shop (with code MONDAYMONDAY)
  • Rifle Paper Co is offering 30% off site wide through Monday – no code needed!

Happy Weekend!

Happy Friday everyone! Poor little Alice and I both have colds and Sophie seems to have come down with a stomach bug – so I’m pretty much just going to go crawl back into bed and hope for the best! But in the meantime…

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Photo by Erin Benzakien / Floret Flower

…a few links for your weekend!

This week on Oh So Beautiful Paper:

Check back soon for this week’s cocktail! I hope you all have a wonderful weekend, and I’ll see you back here next week! xoxo

Party Paper: The Thanksgiving Kids Table

If the Thanksgiving kids table looked like this – I’d probably choose it over the adult one! If you have a bunch of little ones headed your way for Turkey Day, here’s a few of my favorite items to keep them entertained while you snag the last slice of pie! —Kelly

Party Paper: Thanksgiving Kids Table via Oh So Beautiful Paper

No. 1 Placemats from Anthroplogie, No. 2 Paper Cups from The TomKat Studio, No. 3 DIY Candy Pumpkin from Real Simple, No. 4 “I Am Thankful Cards” from Paper Source, No. 5 Printable Pie Boxes from Studio DIY, No. 6 Turkey Place Cards from Paper Source

{images via their respective sources}