09/06/2013

{happy weekend}

September is my big milestone month. Yesterday I celebrated my 32nd birthday. Sophie’s first birthday (!!!)Â is a week from today. On Sunday, Oh So Beautiful Paper will celebrate its 5th anniversary. Oh, and while I’m at it, Andrew and I celebrated our 5th wedding anniversary in May and I celebrated 3 years of self-employment in early July. Anyway, I normally reserve my goal setting for the end of the year, but I’ve been in an introspective mood these last few weeks. So, a few thoughts before we get to our weekly round up…

Rosewater Chocolate Cake by Sweetapolita

Photo Credit: Sweetapolita

The truth is: as many wonderful things happened in my 31st year, it has been quite a struggle. I’ve struggled to find my footing as a working mother, struggled to manage caring for my child with growing my business, and struggled to regain a sense of normalcy after our big move back in March. I made it through Sophie’s first year of life, but just barely. So today I’m looking forward to a new age and a new year, hopefully filled with a little less anxiety and a bit more peacefulness. I don’t like to focus on anything negative here because, well, this blog is my happy place, but like anyone else I need to grow and evolve.Â Reflect and make changes. I’d like to share some of those changes here, with all of you. I’ve always shared things that inspire me beyond invitations and stationery, but I’d also like to share a little bit more of me here. I mean, it’s been five years… it would probably be nice if you actually knew me, right? I don’t entirely know what that means just yet, but stay tuned!

Grow in Grace by Todd Wendorff and Anna Zajac

Image Credit: Todd Wendorff and Anna Zajac

As always, a few links for your weekend:

Between Joy, Jordan, and my friends Amber and Emily, I’m absolutely dying to have my own studio space!
Completely in love with this timeline that Melanie put together for her 7 year anniversary
Being gentle to ourselves. YES.
A gorgeous boathouse wedding. And oh hey! The bride used one of our DIY tutorials for her invitations!
Super cute printable geometric gift boxes

This week on Oh So Beautiful Paper:

Theo’s adorable mini flip book first birthday party invitations
Party Paper: A row, row, row your boat party!
Dramatic and elegant soirÃ©e invitations with metallic foil on black chipboard
Vibrant and colorful destination wedding invitations
Well Said Type: Cantoni Calligraphy Font (and a big discount!)
Lots of ideas for incorporating award ribbons into your day-of wedding stationery
Art Deco-inspired screen printed wedding invitations (and a glimpse of the process behind the scenes!)
Pretty + Paper: Inspired by the loveliest shade of lavender
Love these interactive comic book strips for kids from The Mu
Our spring family session with Adam Barnes

A big welcome to the newest member of the Designer Rolodex: Julie Song Ink!

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

09/06/2013

Spring Family Session with Adam Barnes Photography

With Sophie’s first birthday just over a week away, we’re even more aware of how fleeting these first years really are. We make an effort to capture as many moments as possible with our iphones and my real camera, but it usually means that only one of us can be in the photo with Sophie. Back in May, we met up with photographer Adam Barnes for a family session at one of our favorite DC spots: the National Arboretum. Sophie was only eight months old at the time â€“ it was before she was sitting up or crawling! Adam is one of the photographers that I wish I’d known about when we were married five years ago (sigh) and I know we’ll treasure these photos forever. Here are a few of our favorites from that afternoon…

The National Arboretum is also home to the original columns from the U.S. Capitol Building. Sophie really loved the fountain in the middle of the columns!

Adam is an incredibly talented fine art photographer specializing in weddings, engagements, and events. Adam regularly works in the Mid Atlantic region from Charlottesville, Virginia to the Eastern Shore of Maryland, but he also happily travels both domestically and internationally. You can see more of his work right here!

Photo Credits: Adam Barnes Fine Art Photography

09/05/2013

Pretty + Paper

Pretty + Paper: Lavender Watercolor via Oh So Beautiful Paper

Clematis bouquet by Southern Blooms by Patâ€™s Floral DesignsÂ via Southern Weddings // Watercolor calligraphy wedding invitation by Julie Song Ink

Julie Song Ink is a member of the Designer Rolodex â€“ check out more of her beautiful calligraphy and wedding invitations right here!

Photo Credits: Eric Kelley PhotographyÂ //Â Julie Song Ink

09/05/2013

Aurora + William’s Art Deco Screen Printed Wedding Invitations

These screen printed invitations from Mikaela at The Hungry FoxÂ are proof that you don’t have to sacrifice great design to achieve a budget-friendly wedding invitation. Just print the design in a single color! The text takes center stage in this design, with decorative elements inspired by the Art Deco vibe of the wedding and printed in a lovely shade of sage green. Beautiful!

From Mikaela: Aurora was planning a wedding with a loose 1920s theme. She wanted to create a very relaxed festival feel but with a glamorous old world Art Deco-inspired edge. Her palette was sage green, light pink and creamy white.

Here is an initial sketch I made and a picture of the screen I made to print them. I enjoyed designing an invitation that was mostly about the lettering, with decorative touches. Aurora also wanted a monogram, and I made several for her to choose from. I printed the one we chose on the back flap of each envelope.Â I thought the sage green on the creamy white envelopes was a nice touch. This suite shows that a person on a budget can still get lovely hand printed invitations by choosing a one color design.

It was slightly complicated communicating about things like paper thickness, because in the UK they talk about paper thickness in gsm instead of pounds as we do here in the U.S. We resorted to saying things like “Oh, about the thickness of 10 sheets of computer paper stacked together.” The invitations were printed on French Muscletone Paper in Whip Cream.

Thanks Mikaela!

Check out theÂ Designer RolodexÂ for more talÂentedÂ wedÂding inviÂtaÂtion designÂersÂ andÂ theÂ real inviÂtaÂtions galleryÂ for moreÂ wedding invitation ideas!

Photo Credits: The Hungry Fox

09/05/2013

Travis + Laura’s Colorful Destination Wedding Invitations

School may be back in session, but it still feels plenty like summer! Irene and Blake from SparkvitesÂ sent over these fun destination wedding invitations full of bright color and inspired by the relaxed feel of Hilton Head Island. The invitations mix letterpress and digital printing methods along with a beautiful script font andÂ a bold floral pattern inspired by Lily Pulitzer. So pretty!

From Irene: We designed this custom invitation set for Travis and Laura’s destination wedding in Hilton Head, South Carolina. Laura’s inspiration for her wedding style came from a Lilly Pulitzer styled shoot, and she also wanted to incorporate the upscale but laid back feel of Hilton Head Island.

The invitation is letterpress printed and the additional cards and custom envelope liner are all digitally printed so we could use as much color as possible and keep the classic feel of the cotton letterpress paper.

Thanks Irene!

Check out theÂ Designer RolodexÂ for more talÂentedÂ wedÂding inviÂtaÂtion designÂersÂ andÂ theÂ real inviÂtaÂtions galleryÂ for moreÂ wedding invitation ideas!

Photo Credits: Sparkvites