New Giveaway! Custom Map from Swiss Cottage Designs!

I’m still trying to wrap my head around holiday cards, much less gift ideas – but whenever possible I always try to come up with unique and personal holiday gift ideas for close friends and family.  Today, Courtney from Swiss Cottage Designs is giving one lucky reader the chance to win a completely personal holiday gift: one of her gorgeous custom illustrated maps!

Courtney is offering one lucky reader the chance to win a custom 8 x 10″ black and white map print – just like the three pictured here!  The map design can include up to 8 custom locations, tailored to the winner’s specifications.

To enter, just leave a comment below with a destination that you would love to visit someday.  We’ll chose a winner randomly, and you’ll have until 11:59 p.m. EST on Friday, November 18 to enter – bonne chance!

Photo Credits: Swiss Cottage Designs

Wood + Foil NASCAR Invitations from Lettered Olive

I’m used to gushing over the beautiful wedding invitations from the ladies of Lettered Olive, but today they’re sharing something a bit different – NASCAR invitations!  These gorgeous mixed media invitations were created for a celebratory party for the NASCAR Sprint Cup.  Inspired by the industrial event space in Chicago, these invitations combine wood, etched metal, and beautiful metallic foils.

From Christine at Lettered Olive: We recently worked with NASCAR to create an invitation for a celebratory evening kicking off the Chase for the NASCAR Sprint Cup.  This event was at a fabulous space in Chicago called Salvage One.  The space is industrial, with wood beams, brick walls, and exposed metal.  We just loved the space and found it so inspiring!  So we created the invitation for a “Legendary” evening (the dinner entertainment was John Legend!).

The invitation was metallic blue and silver foil on wood, backed with etched metal.  The great thing about this job is that it allowed us to get in touch with our “masculine side” – this invitation was all about clean lines, the mixed materials, and total sophistication.  To add another luxe element to the invitation, we foil stamped the envelope and created a teal velvet envelope flap to mimic the amazing vintage velvet sofas at the venue.

So amazing!  Thanks ladies!

Lettered Olive is a mem­ber of the Designer Rolodex – you can see more of their beau­ti­ful work right here!

Photo Credits: Melanie Mauer for Lettered Olive

p.s. I have an awesome giveaway coming up a bit later, so check back soon!

 

Emily + Matt’s German Beer Wedding Invitations

How fun!  In these invitations from Lauren at The Creative Parasol, Emily and Matt were inspired by their German heritage and German beer for the design of their wedding invitations.  It’s probably a good thing that my husband didn’t realize this was an option back when we were choosing our own wedding invitations!  Lauren and Emily drew their inspiration from vintage folk patterns, crewel embroidery, and beer packaging to come up with a whimsical and colorful design.

From Lauren: Emily and Matt had three important ingredients for their wedding: German. Folk. Beer.  In coming up with the design, Emily and I were inspired by vintage folk patterns, specifically old crewelwork and embroidery designs.  The inspiration for the typography came from some of the great beer packaging, specifically Shiner, whose brewery is just outside of Austin.

 

Thanks Lauren!

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

Photo Credits: The Creative Parasol

Lauren + Andrew’s Orange and Gray Fall Wedding Invitations

Happy Monday everyone!  I’m still feeling kind of cruddy from the cold that I caught last week, so I’m hoping these pretty fall wedding invitations from Stephanie at Salt + Pepper Press will help cheer me up.  I’m loving the warm orange and gray color palette, the classic laurel illustration, and the adorable sketch (from one of the couple’s love notes!) used as a cover for the enclosure that included hotel and activity information.

From Stephanie: The bride and groom were planning a vintage-inspired fall wedding with lots of homemade touches.  We incorporated a typewriter font in the invitation text and RSVP card for a vintage element, while the bright orange and muted warm gray really played up the fall aspect of the wedding.

 

The couple used a sketch that was made on a quick love note from their past as the front cover of the poster.  The poster held all the additional information such as hotels and activities around the wedding.

Thanks Stephanie!

Design and Printing: Salt + Pepper Press

Photography: Lauren Reynolds

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

Photo Credits: Lauren Reynolds

Friday Happy Hour: The Aviation

Today’s cocktail, the Aviation, involves an obscure but fascinating liqueur – Creme de Violette, which went out of production following Prohibition but recently resurfaced.  This is a really interesting drink, not like anything I’d had before.  It’s sour and sweet with a strong hint of almond from the Maraschino liqueur (made from Marasca cherries and their pits), and a floral finish from the Creme de Violette (literally flowery – the Creme de Violette is made from violets).  It also has the really unique color of a cloudy blue sky, from which I’m sure it got its name.

This is a drink that could star in its own soap opera.  A hit before the First World War, it disappeared in the 1920s and was replaced by another cocktail masquerading under the same name, only to reappear years later with no memory of where it had been all that time.  Ok, so maybe I’m overselling it a bit, but this fantastic drink has a really interesting history.

Read below for the full recipe!

The Aviation

2 oz Gin
1/2 oz Maraschino Liqueur
1/2 oz Lemon Juice
1/4 oz Creme de Violette

Combine and shake over ice, then strain into a cocktail glass.  Garnish with a cherry and enjoy.

 

The first mention of the Aviation was in 1911, when flying still had a tremendous air of glamor, adventure, and sophistication (some things have not been improved by progress).  But, by 1930, the Aviation appeared in recipe guides missing an ingredient: the Creme de Violette.  What happened?  Prohibition.  I suspect Creme de Violette was just too obscure an ingredient to justify the risk of smuggling it in from Europe.  Everyone seems to have forgotten that it was ever part of the recipe.  Recipes have described the impostor for decades, and it has been impossible to enjoy a true Aviation.

Until now!  A few years ago, Haus Alpenz started importing a Creme de Violette by Rothman and Winter from Austria, and suddenly all sorts of vanished drinks started reappearing.  This Creme de Violette is a rich dark purple that gives the drink its color and sweet, floral finish.

The Maraschino liqueur and, especially, the Creme de Violette may be hard to find in a lot of places.  Keep looking!  It’s worth it.