Happy Mother’s Day Weekend!

Happy Friday everyone! And Happy (almost) Mother’s Day to all the mamas and soon-to-be mamas out there! This week has been kind of intense for me: after four years of living in our home, we’re FINALLY having central air conditioning installed – which isn’t the easiest process in a narrow 1920s row house with brick and plaster walls. But we’re almost done and it’s going to be sooooooo worth it once the summer heat and humidity arrives. But after all the construction at home, I’m thinking we’ll just enjoy a low key weekend and Mother’s Day. It’ll be my last quiet weekend before the National Stationery Show kicks off next weekend! Aaaaah! But in the meantime…

Photo (and card) by Heartell Press via Instagram

…a few links for your weekend!

I’m on the hunt for a few lightweight midi skirts for summer. I have my eye on this lavender linen skirt (also comes in gingham!), this chambray skirt, this striped skirt, and this dotty gingham skirt.

Planning to make a ton of these mini cherry crisps this summer

Loving this sculptural lamp

Help buy 800 goats for Syrian refugees in Jordan

Also, how Syria changed the world

How cute are these hologram foil save the dates??

These gingham sneakers are so cute for little girls (and they’re 25% off with code SHOPNOW)

Crying all the tears after reading this story

Card of the week!

 

Recently on Oh So Beautiful Paper:

Enrollment for the Modern Calligraphy Summit 2.0 is back open! Read about it here, or just go ahead and sign up here.

Absolutely LOVE these colorful patterned wedding invitations!

New illustrated desktop wallpapers for May!

NSS 2017 Sneak Peeks from Richie Designs, Iron Curtain Press, and Ramona & Ruth

Ethereal vellum wedding invitations

Behind the Stationery with Cheree Berry Paper

Cards to send to your graduates: Part 1 and Part 2

Fun party supplies from Hip Hip Party Goods!

Pokemon birthday party invitations!

Understated calligraphy and green fern wedding invitations

Autumn ombré wedding invitations

Spring at the National Arboretum

A Passionfruit Mezcal Sling and a delicious Elderflower Tequila Rickey

Spring at the National Arboretum

Spring is far and away my favorite season in DC. I love watching everything wake up and see color come back into the world after months of winter, and all the gorgeous spring flowers fill me with ridiculous levels of joy. It’s my favorite time of year to visit some of my favorite floral destinations in DC: the National Arboretum, Dumbarton Oaks Gardens, and George Washington’s Mount Vernon Estate. When Sophie was on Spring Break a couple of weeks ago, we spent an afternoon wandering around the Dogwood Collection and Asian Collection at the National Arboretum – and I brought my big camera along to document the gorgeousness around us. It was pretty much the perfect time to visit: the dogwoods and azaleas were both in full bloom along with the camellias and bluebells, and the peonies were just starting to make an appearance!

Spring at the National Arboretum

Spring at the National Arboretum

I love visiting the Arboretum year-round, but there’s just something special about early spring at the National Arboretum. Sophie was in heaven with all the pink flowers blooming everywhere. She even ran up to a giant pink azalea bush to give it a hug! I’m so happy that my sweet girl inherited my love for flowers.

Spring at the National Arboretum

Spring at the National Arboretum

Spring at the National Arboretum

Spring at the National Arboretum

Spring at the National Arboretum

Spring at the National Arboretum

Other than the flowers, Sophie loved exploring all the different paths and trails within the garden collections. She made sure we went on every single path in the Asian Collection at least once, and two or three times for a couple of favorite paths that felt like secret fairy trails through all the flowers and greenery.

Spring at the National Arboretum

Spring at the National Arboretum

Spring at the National Arboretum

Oh, and yes, we wear our tiara EVERYWHERE these days. To explore garden trails. To the splash pad. Even to school! People often ask if it’s her birthday, and I love telling complete strangers that it’s part of her everyday attire these days. Four and a half is such a magical age.

Spring at the National Arboretum

Spring at the National Arboretum

Spring at the National Arboretum

p.s. Autumn at the National Arboretum, Fall Foliage Destinations in DC, and the Gardens of Dumbarton Oaks

Autumn Ombré Letterpress Wedding Invitations

I always love the colors of changing leaves in Autumn: crisp red, warm orange, and bright yellow. To create these autumn ombré letterpress wedding invitations, Alex of Al Stampa utilized one of my favorite letterpress printing techniques – the split fountain – to create a wonderful color gradient that evokes all those wonderful autumn colors. Can’t you just see everyone gathered around a fire drinking a cup of warm apple cider??

Autumn Ombré Letterpress Wedding Invitations by Al Stampa

From Alex: This wedding invitation was designed for a sweet couple, Colette and Petey. They wanted a colorful, fire crackling, leaf-turning, autumn wedding, and we wanted to inspire guests with the first piece everyone would receive… the wedding invitation!

Autumn Ombré Letterpress Wedding Invitations by Al Stampa

The wedding took place in Red Hook, Brooklyn at the Liberty Warehouse â€“ right on the water. Colette was the mastermind behind everything having to do with planning her wedding, and she took it all on her own shoulders. It was such a pleasure to be able to take this portion of the wedding planning away from her and ease her to-do list.

Autumn Ombré Letterpress Wedding Invitations by Al Stampa

Because coloring is so important with an autumn wedding, and the fact that it can become quite pricey to letterpress multiple colors, especially for a wedding of 200+ people, I suggested we treat the press, and how I print the colors, similarly to how nature treats the trees in October. We decided to use an ombré technique called a split fountain to make the amazing colors of the season the focus, by inking up the press with various yellows, oranges, and reds and letting it do its work on each invitation. In doing this, each invitation came out a bit different, but with the same amazing gradient effect.

Autumn Ombré Letterpress Wedding Invitations by Al Stampa

The illustration of the branches and leaves were meant to take over the invitation, and also create a large illustrated area that would absorb the ink’s changing of colors perfectly. We paired the branch illustrations with lovely calligraphy by Ashley Curry and a modern typeface to maintain the modernity of the wedding invitations and complement the wedding’s modern warehouse venue. Printed on 120 lb Reich Bright White paper, the invitation had a wonderful heaviness to it – and the beautiful ombré colors made these invitations something really special!

Autumn Ombré Letterpress Wedding Invitations by Al Stampa

Thanks Alex!

Design, printing, and styling: Al Stampa

Calligraphy: Ashley Curry

Paper: Reich Paper

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

Photo Credits: Roland Kielman and Alex Labriola

Modern Calligraphy Summit 2.0 – Enrollment is Open!

Yay! I have good news for those of you who missed out on enrollment for the Modern Calligraphy Summit 2.0 back in February – enrollment has finally reopened! If you have no idea what I’m talking about, you can read the original post right here. The Modern Calligraphy Summit 2.0 offers two and a half weeks of online calligraphy classes with over 7 hours of video lessons from seven ridiculously talented calligraphers: Katherine Ross of Script Merchant, Lauren Saylor of A Fabulous Fete, Jenna Rainey of Mon Voir, Karla Lim of Written Word Calligraphy, Sharisse DeLeon of Pieces Calligraphy, Younghae Chung of Logos Calligraphy, and Molly Knabel of Poppy and Mint Design.

Modern Calligraphy Summit 2.0 / Written Word Calligraphy

Written Word Calligraphy

Summit topics include digitizing watercolor illustrations, invitation design, brush calligraphy, classic copperplate, writing on non-paper surfaces, and more! Basically all the things you need to create beautiful envelopes, place cards, or even write out party menus on tropical leaves, wood boards, or sheets of plexiglass. And all from the comfort of your own home! The Modern Calligraphy Summit 2.0 also includes handy templates and handouts, and a private Facebook community to support you as you learn.

Modern Calligraphy Summit 2.0 / A Fabulous Fete

A Fabulous Fete

Oh, and don’t forget that enrollment in the Modern Calligraphy Summit 2.o includes LIFETIME ACCESS to all the amazing content. Enroll, watch the webinars and videos, then go back as many times as you need to practice and get the hang of things! Don’t miss this chance to join in the fun – click here for more!

p.s. If you’re completely new to the Modern Calligraphy Summit – there’s still plenty of time to join in the fun. You can sign up for the Modern Calligraphy Summit 1.0, including lifetime access to all the original video instruction, worksheets, and templates, right here!

This post contains affiliate links. By clicking on these links, you’ll help support Oh So Beautiful Paper while also learning the beautiful art of calligraphy! I only recommend products that I truly love and trust that you’ll love, too. My full disclosure policy can be found here.

Lucas’s Pokemon Birthday Party Invitations

It’s so fun to see how talented designers interpret their kids birthday party theme requests, especially as they get older! I’ve had the pleasure of featuring every single birthday party invitation that Lisa from Good on Paper has designed for her sons Lucas and Theo, and I’ve loved watching the themes evolve from numbers to superheros to animals to magic. For Lucas’s 7th birthday party (!!!), Lisa put her spin on a Pokemon-themed party! For the Pokemon birthday party invitations, Lisa created her own modern take on a Pikachu design complete with a sunny yellow balloon and envelope liners with a photo of the birthday kid. So fun!

Pokemon Birthday Party Invitations from Good on Paper

Pokemon Birthday Party Invitations from Good on Paper

From Lisa: Lucas asked for a Pokemon themed party for his 7th birthday. As usual, I like to put my own modern spin on the theme. I designed the invitations with a simple and modern take on Pikachu’s face. I initially wanted to mail each invitation with a balloon that had a hand drawing of Pikachu’s face but it didn’t quite work out the way I wanted.

Pokemon Birthday Party Invitations from Good on Paper

Instead, each invitation came with a yellow balloon taped to the yellow backing of the invitation with some black striped washi tape. The custom envelope liner had a photo of Lucas looking at a Pokemon book written in Japanese from our date to the Kinokuniya bookstore in San Francisco’s Japantown. The invitations were mailed in sunny yellow envelopes and sealed with wraparound address labels.

Pokemon Birthday Party Invitations from Good on Paper

Every birthday party we throw includes donut holes and custom paper cones – definitely a big hit with the party guests!

Pokemon Birthday Party Ideas from Good on Paper

Pokemon Birthday Party Ideas from Good on Paper

For the party favors, I made Poke Surprise Balls using white crepe paper streamers, a black Sharpie and red acrylic paint. Each Poke Ball included a few Pokemon figurines, Japanese candy, and a colorful whistle.

Pokemon Birthday Party Ideas from Good on Paper

For the birthday cake, I made a super easy red velvet cake and cupcakes with cream cheese frosting. I had seen many Pinterest photos of cupcakes resembling poke balls but I didn’t have the time or energy to go that route. Instead, I just put seven Pokemon figurines on Lucas’s cake and one each on top of the cupcakes. The kids were so excited to get more figurines and negotiated trades.

Pokemon Birthday Party Ideas from Good on Paper

Pokemon Birthday Party Ideas from Good on Paper

We also hired a face painter who specialized in Pokemon drawings. Some kids had their full face painted and others, like Lucas, just had a character drawn on their face or arm.

Pokemon Birthday Party Ideas from Good on Paper

Every year, my husband Nick and I tag team on making the piñata. This year I made a giant Poke Ball using the paper maché method and filled it with Japanese candies and fruit gummies.

Pokemon Birthday Party Ideas from Good on Paper

Thanks so much Lisa! And happy 7th birthday Lucas!

p.s. You can also see the invitations from previous birthdays: 6, 5, 4, 3, 2, and 1.

Photo Credits: Good on Paper