Sarah + Chase’s Texas Garden Party Wedding Invitations

These wedding invitations are such spring fun! Created by Kristen of Mountain Paper for a spring wedding in Dallas, the suite features a color palette of green and blue along with pretty vintage-inspired floral ornaments. My favorite part? The playful quotes that the bride included throughout the invitation suite!

Green + Turquoise Garden Party Wedding Invitations by Mountain Paper via Oh So Beautiful Paper (2)

From Kristin: These invitations were created for Sarah and Chase, who are getting married in Dallas this spring. Sarah’s wedding palette of vibrant, springy blues and greens really shines on the printed page. The colors in combination with the curlicue typography is perfect for this fun couple. Sarah’s pension for dance moves that involve finger snapping and Chase’s hilarious Jay Cutler impression are just the tip of the entertaining iceberg!

Green + Turquoise Garden Party Wedding Invitations by Mountain Paper via Oh So Beautiful Paper (14)

Green + Turquoise Garden Party Wedding Invitations by Mountain Paper via Oh So Beautiful Paper (3)

The mix ‘n’ match look of the suite reflects the bride’s bold personal style and incorporates a touch of vintage. Sarah’s vision for her event is an upscale garden party with all the familiar trappings of a classic Texas affair, so the design needed to reflect both the refined side as well as the fun, old-world southern side. We spent a lot of time creating the filigree elements that frame each piece. They needed to look just a tad imperfect while still lending structure to the page.

Green + Turquoise Garden Party Wedding Invitations by Mountain Paper via Oh So Beautiful Paper (12)

Green + Turquoise Garden Party Wedding Invitations by Mountain Paper via Oh So Beautiful Paper (10)

Sarah’s favorite piece is the rehearsal dinner card, which invites guests to a shindig of microbrews and barbecue. My favorite pieces, on the other hand, are the clever quotes she decided on for the reverse of two cards.

Green + Turquoise Garden Party Wedding Invitations by Mountain Paper via Oh So Beautiful Paper (7)

Green + Turquoise Garden Party Wedding Invitations by Mountain Paper via Oh So Beautiful Paper (9)

We stacked each enclosure snugly in a moss-green pocketfold and wrapped the whole packet with a garter printed with a matching filigree frame. (Sarah is a news editor by day and self-admittedly loves organization, so the pocketfolds were a given from the very start.) We printed all her recipient addresses on hefty, turquoise envelopes with more fun graphics on the back for the return address, too.

Green + Turquoise Garden Party Wedding Invitations by Mountain Paper via Oh So Beautiful Paper (13)

Green + Turquoise Garden Party Wedding Invitations by Mountain Paper via Oh So Beautiful Paper (4)

Thanks Kristin!

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

Photo Credits: Mountain Paper

Sarvenaz + Graig’s Art Nouveau Wedding Invitations

I love it when designers experiment with different printing methods to achieve a unique look – and that’s exactly what Jen from Starshaped Press did with these beautiful Art Nouveau-inspired invitations! Jen mixed a linoleum cut illustration with antique metal letterpress type to bring the couple’s vintage book cover inspiration to life in their wedding invitations. So lovely!

Art Nouveau Wedding Invitations by Starshaped Press via Oh So Beautiful Paper (9)

From Jen: Sarv and Graig were keen on wedding invitations that would resemble mini posters and they had great inspiration in the form of a vintage book cover. Given that letterpress printing doesn’t have the opaque vibrancy of screen printing, we ran a few tests to see if we could successfully achieve two light colors on dark blue paper and were happy with the result; the colors were muted in a faded, old fashioned way.

Art Nouveau Wedding Invitations by Starshaped Press via Oh So Beautiful Paper (1) Art Nouveau Wedding Invitations by Starshaped Press via Oh So Beautiful Paper (3)

We decided on creating a piece that was 7×10″ so that it would fold to 5×7″ and mail in a standard A7 envelope. The image worked perfectly as a two-color linoleum cut after a little adjustment to the overall size and placement. The type is set in a mix of deco-meets-nouveau styles to pull the overall design into a more cohesive and streamlined form. It is printed in gold to pop out from the navy paper.

Art Nouveau Wedding Invitations by Starshaped Press via Oh So Beautiful Paper (8)

The typesetting was very particular to achieve a subtle curve along the artwork. I loved having an opportunity to use our DeVinne type for their names; it’s a lovely and quirky typeface from the turn of the century that sadly doesn’t get enough play in the studio.

Art Nouveau Wedding Invitations by Starshaped Press via Oh So Beautiful Paper (6)

The invitation folds in half, and on the front panel (what you see when you pull it out of the envelope) is a snippet of the overall artwork with their initials rendered in our mortised initial caps and an ampersand from the 19th century typeface, Dakota.

Art Nouveau Wedding Invitations by Starshaped Press via Oh So Beautiful Paper (5)

The envelopes are sour apple green and the reply cards are pale yellow to give a little pop to the color palette. We continued the abridged image on the envelopes in gold (the return address is on the back flap) and carried through the multiple typefaces on the reply.

Art Nouveau Wedding Invitations by Starshaped Press via Oh So Beautiful Paper (4)

Thanks Jen!

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

Photo Credits: Starshaped Press

Ellie + Seth’s X-Ray Save the Dates

Um, how cool are these save the dates from Morgan and Arley-Rose of Ladyfingers Letterpress?!?! The bride and groom – both doctors – were inspired to do something non-traditional for their wedding save the dates, so Morgan and Arley-Rose worked with them to come up with the idea of an x-ray featuring signature Ladyfingers Letterpress hand lettering screen printed in a bright teal ink. Such a fun surprise for their guests!

X Ray Save the Dates by Ladyfingers Letterpress via Oh So Beautiful Paper (4)

From Morgan and Arley-Rose: We were approached by a pair of doctors (and the bride’s lovely mother!) to create their save the dates. During a chat with the bride-to-be, she shared a story that inspired them to want something a little non-traditional: A few years ago, a lawyer friend of theirs was getting married to another lawyer. Instead of sending a traditional invitation, they subpoenaed all their guests to their wedding! As doctors, they wanted to do something as witty and a little bit different, thus the x-ray save the date was born!

X Ray Save the Dates by Ladyfingers Letterpress via Oh So Beautiful Paper (6)

X Ray Save the Dates by Ladyfingers Letterpress via Oh So Beautiful Paper (5)

We were able to procure a chest x-ray from a stock photo website and hand-lettered their adorable “Looks Like a Case of True Love” type on top. We worked with our friend Jon who runs a great local silkscreen shop called Headlight Hotel to produce the films and silkscreen printing.

X Ray Save the Dates by Ladyfingers Letterpress via Oh So Beautiful Paper (7)

We also designed and ordered rubber stamps that read “Confidential” and “X-Ray Official Test Results – Do Not Bend” and hand stamped each envelope. Lastly, we letterpress printed their return address onto the backs of the string-tie envelopes.

X Ray Save the Dates by Ladyfingers Letterpress via Oh So Beautiful Paper (2)

In the end, their guests received in the mail what appeared to be some sort of confidential medical test result, when in fact it was a clever and fun way to let them know that two of their favorite doctors are tying the knot!

X Ray Save the Dates by Ladyfingers Letterpress via Oh So Beautiful Paper (3)

Thank you so much ladies!

Ladyfingers Letterpress is a member of the Designer Rolodex – check out more of their beautiful work right here or visit the save the date gallery for more beau­ti­ful cus­tom save the date ideas!

Photo Credits: Ladyfingers Letterpress

Pisco Punch

Let’s go back in time this week to a drink that used to be one of the most popular in America: sweet, tart, and a little funky, the Pisco Punch. Pisco is that clear, fresh, and slightly funky South American Brandy we used to make the Pisco Sour a while back. Combined with the citrus and the pineapple syrup, it leaves you with a drink that’s sweet and fruity but not cloying at all. The Pisco Punch was once, as the name suggests, made in big batches and served in punch bowls. Here’s a slightly tweaked version to make one glass at a time.

Cocktail Recipe: Pisco Punch via Oh So Beautiful Paper (7)

– Andrew

Read below for the full recipe!

Pisco Punch Recipe Card, Illustration by Caitlin Keegan for Oh So Beautiful Paper

Illustration by Caitlin Keegan

Pisco Punch

2 oz Pisco
1 oz Fresh Lime Juice
1 oz Pineapple-Infused Simple Syrup

Start the night before (it’s worth the wait). Chop up a fresh pineapple into one-inch cubes, then soak the pineapple overnight in some rich simple syrup.*  The next day – you waited, right? – mix the Pisco, citrus juice (lemon is the classic, but lime works really well too), and pineapple-flavored syrup, shake with ice, and strain into a chilled cocktail glass. Garnish with a chunk of pineapple and enjoy.

Cocktail Recipe: Pisco Punch via Oh So Beautiful Paper (2) Cocktail Recipe: Pisco Punch via Oh So Beautiful Paper (11)

Once upon a time, it was cheaper to ship Pisco from Peru up to California than it was to ship fancy European Brandies across the United States. Pisco and its cocktail varieties were once so cheap and wildly popular in San Francisco, that city to which America’s cocktail culture owes so much, that every bar in the city served a Pisco Punch and some served just this drink. At least until Prohibition came along and ruined everything!

Cocktail Recipe: Pisco Punch via Oh So Beautiful Paper (6)

It’s drinks like this that inspired us to start this column in the first place: drinks with a history that, when made with care and quality ingredients, are astronomically better than anything served these days made with absurdly flavored Vodkas or with names that rhyme with “Martini” but don’t actually feature gin and vermouth. America has a rich culinary and drink history that our country forgot for years but, fortunately, can start enjoying again.

*To make rich simple syrup, bring some water to a boil and then take it off the heat. Stir in sugar in a 2:1 sugar to water ratio and stir until all the sugar is melted. If the sugar isn’t melting all the way, you can put it back on the heat but only briefly. Since you’re using twice as much sugar as in regular simple syrup, taking it off the heat can keep the sugar from burning while it melts. The result is a much thicker, sweeter, and silkier syrup.

Photo Credits: Nole Garey for Oh So Beautiful Paper

{happy weekend!}

Happy Friday everyone! It may have been a short week, but it was busy busy busy over here. Lots of planning for the 2013 Paper Party (yay!) during the National Stationery Show in May and a new special (but currently top secret) project that I can’t wait to share with you! Oh, and some not-so-fun tasks, too, like our 2012 taxes and trying to navigate the world of homeowner insurance quotes. But really, nothing makes me feel better than getting things done, particularly when the length of my to do list was starting to freak me out! Now I get to actually enjoy the weekend and spend time with my sweet little girl. But in the meantime…

 JoyHey: Art is Love via Oh So Beautiful Paper

Photo Credit: JoyHey | Krista Palmu

…a few links for your weekend!

This week on Oh So Beautiful Paper:

We have a fun cocktail coming up for you this afternoon, so check back a bit later for the recipe!  I hope you all have a wonderful weekend, and I’ll see you back here on Monday!  xoxo

p.s. I’ve been spending a lot of time on Pinterest these days gathering lots of home and entertaining inspiration! If you’d like, you can find me right here!