10/28/2015

Hazel’s Fall Harvest First Birthday Party Invitations

For her daughter Hazel’s first birthday, my friend Maggie worked with Courtney from Swiss Cottage Designs to create the most fun and whimsical Fall Harvest-inspired invitations. And I’m so excited to share them here on OSBP today, along with photos of some of the party details from the talented ladies at Sweet Root Village! The invitations feature watercolor illustrations by Courtney paired with plaid patterns, a cute insert featuring Hazel’s monthly baby photos, and the most adorable (and completely perfect) vintage stamps. The whole thing came together so beautifully!

From Courtney:Â Hazelâ€™s invitations were inspired by colors found during autumn and that cozy feeling you get during this time of year. We wanted the invitations to be fun and cute but nothing that was too overtly baby. I created a watercolor border made up of different autumnal elements and complemented that with a fun little fox friend (complete with party hat!) We contrasted the hand illustrations with the bold envelope and graphic plaid liner.

Love those beautiful plaid patterns!

From Maggie: We loved how the invitations perfectly embodied the party’s look and feel with the gorgeous plaids and whimsical animals.

And here are some of the amazing party details by Maggie!

Thanks Maggie and Courtney!

Invitation Design: Swiss Cottage Designs

Swiss Cottage Designs is a member of theÂ Designer RolodexÂ â€“ you can see more of Courtneyâ€™s amazing workÂ right hereÂ or visitÂ theÂ real inviÂtaÂtions galleryÂ for moreÂ wedding invitation ideas!

Photo Credits: Sweet Root Village

10/27/2015

Fuchsia Watercolor and Gold Foil Wedding Invitations

If you love pink you’ll absolutely LOVE these wedding invitations from Alex ofÂ Good heart Design! Alex hand painted a vibrant watercolor wash using gouache in two different layers, making each invitation completely unique. And who could possibly resist that shiny gold foil?

FromÂ Alex: IÂ had so much fun working with my client Kelly Gellner on her wedding invitation suite! Kelly had already been dreaming up ideas for this suite so it didnâ€™t take long for us to come up with this super fun idea.

The inspiration behind this suite was simple: fuchsia, white, and gold! Kelly wanted something simple and clean that highlighted theirÂ names in a unique way. She also for sure wanted a pink watercolor wash incorporated somewhere in the suite. She had brought up the idea of each invitation being individually watercolored (my kind of girl!) and I totally took that idea and ran with it. This was the first invitation suite I had made that incorporated watercolor and foil so I was a little nervous but super happy with the results!

Each piece featured delicate hand lettered details and were all printed in shiny gold foil. The main invitation was printed on slightly thicker paper than the other two pieces, 220# Lettra, so that when the watercolor was applied after printing the paper was thick enough to stay flat and not warp. The other two pieces were printed on 110# Lettra paper. Each invitation was individually hand watercolored, which made each and every one completely unique.

I kept my method of watercoloring consistent throughout the process, but each invitation still had a slightly different watercolor wash â€“ which ends up being the beauty (and the benefit) to hand painting each one versus digitally printing a watercolor background. The watercolor was applied in 2 layers (one light and one dark) right on top of the the foil. Luckily the watercolor falls right off of the foil, so the foil is able to shine beautifully through. You can see a video of the watercolor being applied over the foil here!

Thanks Alex!

Design + Lettering: Goodheart Design

FoilÂ Printing: Czar Press

Client: Kelly Hunt of Eat Yourself Skinny

Goodheart Design is a member of the Designer Rolodex â€“ you can see more of Alexâ€™s beautiful work right here!

Photo Credits: Goodheart Design

10/23/2015

Happy Weekend!

Happy Friday everyone! I hope you all had a beautiful week! We’re expecting another crisp Fall weekend here in DC, and I’m really enjoying these clear days before the temperatures get cold. Sophie is studying trees at preschool this month, so we’re planning to go collect some leaves and acorns this weekend!Â But in the meantime…

Lettering by Whimsy and WildÂ via Instagram

…a few links for your weekend!

Bella Figura is having its annual Sample Sale â€“ check it out here! Ends Monday!
These pumpkins are ridiculously adorable
I love the print on this gorgeous bag
I want to make this cardboard llama costume in my own size!
A googly eye party would be so much fun any time of year
Oh, hello gorgeous cape trench coat!
I wish this came in my size!
My favorite pin of the week
MAKE: Apple and Thyme cake with Salted Caramel Buttercream frosting (yum!!)

This week on Oh So Beautiful Paper:

Stunning cobalt calligraphy wedding invitations
This is the cutest thing ever: a Halloween first birthday costume party!
The Art of the Envelope
How fun is this DIY painted red lips guestbook wall??
Amazing original artwork, prints, phone cases and more from Kristy Rice!
Hey Boo! A Halloween-inspired round up from Urbanic!
I love all of these nature-inspired wedding escort cards
Gorgeous rustic watercolor invitations for a wedding in Colorado
This week’s Well Said Type in the informal script typeface Blend
Beautiful crepe paper ranunculus to brighten any space or hallway
Decorate your home office with globes!
My latest guide for eBay: How to decorate with copper â€“ and a collection of my favorite copper pieces for your home!

That’s it for me this week! We’ll hopefully have a cocktail recipe for you all on Monday â€“ things got a bit too hectic for us at the end of the week! Have a wonderful weekend! xoxo

10/21/2015

Rustic Watercolor Colorado Wedding Invitations

We’re starting to get some wonderful fall foliage here in DC â€“ so I can only imagine what the mountains must look like this time of year! Bonnie and Currier from Tenn Hens Design sent over these beautiful rustic watercolor invitations designed for a wedding in Colorado this past summer, complete with a gorgeous watercolor illustrations, antler motif, and woodgrain paper. The perfect fit for a wedding weekend in the mountains!

From Bonnie and Currier: Earlier this year, we got the opportunity to work on a custom wedding invitation and it was a true labor of love. The wedding called guests to the mountains of Steamboat Springs, Colorado and promised a weekend of outdoor events that were not to be missed. The bride wanted the suite to reflect her Native American heritage and the beauty of the natural setting so we created a watercolor â€œcrestâ€ touching on those elements.

The save the dates were letterpress printed on woodgrain paper as a nod to the beautiful aspen trees that would surround the ceremony site.

For the invitation suite we made woodgrain booklets that were carefully wrapped with handmade feather tassels and set inside a kraft box with lace. Very elegant, but with a relaxed and authentic feel of the West. The folders and invitations were letterpress printed and the watercolor pieces were digitally printed to show off all the color.

Since this was a destination wedding there was also a party card and an information card for the guests. We created watercolor illustrations to add colorful details and make each piece stand out.

Thanks Bonnie and Currier!

Design & Illustration: Tenn Hens Design

Calligraphy: Val Cole calligraphy

Photo Credits:Â Tenn Hens Design

10/20/2015

Quick Pick: Kristy Rice

Artist Kristy Rice has spent the past few years creating some of the most striking hand painted invitations and wedding stationery through her company Momental Designs â€“ you can see plenty of evidence in her Rolodex page here and in past features on OSBP here! Yesterday Kristy launched a brand new website where you can now find everything from original art pieces and gold foil art prints to wallpaper (!!) and phone cases with her beautiful floral patterns! Kristy is also offering bundles of hand painted notecards and some adorable baby milestone cards!