{happy holidays!}

Okay folks!  I’m heading out to prepare for our loooong drive to upstate New York.  Next week I’ll be revisiting some of my favorite wedding invitations, save the dates, and other content from 2011 (leave a comment below if you want to nominate any favorites!) before returning with new content in 2012.  I hope you all have a wonderful holiday!  But in the meantime…

…a few links for your weekend:

This week on Oh So Beautiful Paper:

Photo Credit: Brunch at Saks

Holiday Card and Birth Announcement for Baby Mila

These birth announcements from Elpitha at Print in Cursive are so clever – for a November baby, why not combine two projects and turn the announcements into a family holiday card?  New parents Chris and Amy did just that for little Mila, including a darling photo of baby Mila by Bella Baby Photography in lieu of a traditional holiday family photo.

From Elpitha: Tis’ the season for… babies!  I’m so pleased to honor another birth with these announcements for baby Mila.  Parents Chris and Amy wanted to combine their news with a little holiday cheer.

As usual, for birth announcements, I like to start with the photo and Amy knew she wanted olive green, pink, and Lily of the Valley incorporated into the design.

Thanks Elpitha!

Photo Credits: Announcement by Print in Cursive, baby photo by Bella Baby Photography

Happy Thanksgiving!

Hi everyone!  I’m heading off for the long weekend – and crossing my fingers that we don’t run into too much traffic as we make our way north this afternoon.  I’ll be back on Monday with a beautiful set of wedding invitations, holiday cards, and lots more.  I hope you all have a wonderful and happy holiday weekend!  But in the meantime…

…a few links for your weekend!

This week on Oh So Beautiful Paper:

Graphic by me, the font is Belluccia

Black + Gold Birth Announcements for Baby Owen

As much as I love the cuteness factor of baby announcements, I’m also drawn to announcements that eschew traditional baby graphics for something a bit different.  So I was thrilled when I laid eyes on these stunning baby announcements created by art director Mark Rawlins for the birth of his son Owen and letterpress printed by The Mandate Press.  Mark wanted to create something masculine for his little man, so he chose a black and gold color palette paired with a beautiful blind impression pattern.  So awesome.

From Mark: The biggest inspiration for this piece was Babies-R-Us.  Seriously.  While preparing for the Owen’s birth we, like just about everyone else, walked around that store filled to the brim with over produced, glossy, and often tasteless stuff.  I decided that I wanted to design a baby announcement counter to everything else in the world of babies.

In this case, I wanted the piece to be masculine, celebrating the birth of a little man.  That thought led me to use bold gold and black colors combined with the subtlety of a blind hit for the patterning, rather than the more typical childlike colors and themes.  We were so happy with how it turned out.  And, as always, the fine folks at The Mandate Press did a fantastic job. 

Thanks Mark!

Design: Mark Rawlins

Letterpress Printing: The Mandate Press

Photo Credits: 1 – 4 by Mark Rawlins, 5 by The Mandate Press

Suzanne’s Elegant Baby Announcements for Twins!

I love sharing adorable baby announcements – and today I’m thrilled to feature announcements for twins!  Suzanne from SHE Paperie gave birth to her darling twins Elle and Liam in 2009 and knew that she wanted to two something extra special for her little bundles of joy.  Suzanne based the design on the special nickname that she and her husband came up with for the babies while Suzanne was pregnant.  So sweet!

From Suzanne: The inspiration behind the design actually came from what my husband so endearingly referred to our babies as while I was pregnant: “The Diamonds.”  I incorporated two Swarovski crystals (one for each baby) into the design, along with unique wording woven throughout the announcement, to tie in the special name that we still call our babies to this day.

The 6-panel announcement was printed on pearlized stock to resemble that of a lustrous diamond and then packaged in a shimmering petal enclosure for mailing.  Other unique touches of the ensemble included a wax seal, personalized mailing labels, and a color palette suitable for either a boy or a girl.  Designing our birth announcement and hand crafting every last detail was indeed a labor of love.

Thanks Suzanne!

Photo Credits: Jeanna Hayes Studio