Stationery A-Z: Encouragement Cards
You know that feeling you get when you’re about to make a big change? I’m talking about nerves, fear, reservations, and second guessing yourself. It’s not fun and it can be really hard. Now think about how you would feel if you received a note of encouragement, especially if that note came in a beautifully illustrated package featuring anthropomorphic root beer floats (you know, for example). See what I’m getting at here? Forget the text message, pick up a pen and send one of your favorite encouragement cards (some of ours are below!); your intended will appreciate it more than you know. – Shauna
From top left:
1. Hanging planters look great in your home as well as on this Wild Hart Paper greeting card.
2. Yes YOU can! This exuberant air horn from Smudge Ink is sure to send good vibes to anyone about to embark on a new adventure.
3. This extremely hungry worm is about to enjoy a triple-decker sandwich as well as wish someone the very best of luck. From Yellow Owl Workshop.
4. Keep on keeping on. This sweetly illustrated hula girl from Lucky Horse Press is wishing laki maika’i (that’s “good luck” in hawaiian for all you mainlanders).
5. While a Yeti may be a stretch of the imagination, believing in a hard working loved on isn’t. Designed by Ladyfingers Letterpress.
6. A sure winner for manicure fans (and those who envy the professionals who get to name them). From my new favorite, Boss Dotty.
7. The neon tiger and uplifting messaging is sure to send that little extra something to help the decision-making process. From our friends over at Hello!Lucky.
8. These cheerful beets can’t be beat (hey, one good pun deserves another). From Atlanta-based Farmwood Press.
9. A different take on the same sentiment (as well as the aforementioned anthropomorphic root beer floats in all their glory). From perennial favorite, Lucky Horse Press.
10. Send warm fuzzies (along with gold foil on bright orange stock) from Wild Ink Press.
Understated and Elegant Cream and Gold Wedding Invitations
These elegant cream and gold wedding invitations by Megan of Ruby the Fox combine woodsy details with feminine glamour – all inspired by the wedding venue on the groom’s family farm in Maryland! A letterpress-printed woodgrain pattern, gold foil text, gold glitter envelope liners, and delicate calligraphy are just a few of the special touches in this invitation suite.
From Megan: When Kate, the bride-to-be, reached out to me to design custom wedding invitations and day-of paper accessories for her Baltimore wedding, I knew it would be a treat. I love working closely with couples on bespoke paper suites that truly reflect their personalities and the look and feel of their wedding day! Both the bride and groom are from Maryland, and they got married at the groom’s family farm.
Kate knew she wanted something feminine and elegant but felt strongly about bringing in a “woodsy” element to keep in mind in her fiancé’s interests. To combine those two looks, we went with a blind faux bois pattern printed on double-thick soft white cotton paper on the main invitation as well as a gold foil printed logo featuring antlers and the couple’s initials! The rest of the elements were printed on 110lb cotton paper with a combination of dove gray letterpress and gold foil. The result was super luxe and beautifully tactile.
Subtle touches of blush were incorporated through the outer and reply envelopes as well as a satin ribbon on the program. We also brought in custom spot hand calligraphy as well as gold hand calligraphy on the outer envelopes to keep everything super custom. Although the bride was very aware of involving her fiancé and his likes/dislikes, we couldn’t resist using a bit of sparkle (ahem, gold glitter envelope liners and backers for the menus!) to keep things glam. It was the perfect amount of sparkle! We carried the antler logo throughout the entire paper suite which made for a beautiful, cohesive look.
The final result was understated, feminine, and organic, which was the perfect combination for the couple’s upscale, chic farm wedding! This suite was so much fun to design and it ended up being one of my favorites from the season.
Thanks Megan!
Design: Ruby the Fox
Printing: Copper Willow Paper Studio
Invitation Styling: Caitlin Kruse
Ruby the Fox is a member of the Designer Rolodex – you can see more of their beautiful work right here or visit the real inviÂtaÂtions gallery for more wedding invitation ideas!
Photo Credits: Krista Jones
Summer Picnics
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Ah, summer in DC! After a long and cold winter, it’s pretty much impossible to keep us indoors once the weather really starts to warm up in late spring and early summer. Our summer weekends usually consist of getting together with friends, going on adventures around the DC area, and balancing our kids’ insatiable desire for time at the local splash pad. Today, in the spirit of 4th of July picnic festivities, I’m sharing one of our recent weekend adventures (including a summer picnic!) in partnership with Peapod, who makes life a bit easier by delivering our groceries – giving us more free time for the things we love!
Since we live in the city, we try to make sure that at least one of our summer weekend adventures includes time out in nature. I’ve shared a bunch of our favorite outdoor destinations before – including the National Arboretum, Dumbarton Oaks Gardens, and Kenilworth Aquatic Gardens – and each time we head out on an outdoor adventure we love to pack a picnic to enjoy with our girls. Our most beloved destination is probably George Washington’s Mount Vernon Estate. There’s a ton of outdoor space where the girls can run around, we can visit the resident farm animals, and I love walking around the historic gardens. On the 4th of July, they have a fantastic display of daytime fireworks, historical reenactments, and even a naturalization ceremony on the lawn in front of the mansion! We get a family membership to Mount Vernon each year and visit at least once every season. And there are plenty of little park areas along the Potomac River near Mount Vernon for a family picnic!
Our weeks are super hectic, and I hate having to give up our precious weekend time for things like errands and food shopping. Summer feels even more precious, since we only have a few short weeks to break away from our regular routine and take advantage of this gorgeous weather! Being able to order groceries from Peapod and have them delivered to our home makes life sooooo much easier, and I’m honestly just happy not to have to squeeze yet another errand into my already busy weekday schedule. I’m also convinced that ordering groceries in advance is better for my bank account, since it forces me to meal plan a bit better, and means less food waste overall. Win win!
Ordering our groceries from Peapod is super easy. I usually browse the aisles through the Peapod app on my phone to find what I need (just as I would in person!), or use the Past Purchases function to add frequently purchased items like milk and eggs. I’m also a big fan of the Fresh Meal Kits for extra busy weeks. Whenever we’re planning a picnic, I make sure to add a few extra items to our Peapod order, including snacks that I know will travel well and my girls will enjoy, like crackers and hummus, salami, fresh fruit, and sliced cheese, along with a few pre-made pasta salads and ingredients for sandwiches – mozzarella, basil, and prosciutto on a baguette for the adults, and PB&J for the girls. On our way out the door, I throw all of our food into a cooler and pack a few extra supplies in a basket, and off we go!
Sophie and Alice LOVE a good picnic! They’re even happy to lend a hand with set up. It helps to bring rainbow plates and napkins!
Look at their little faces! Those smiles are just the best.
Sometimes, even when we stay closer to home during the day, we’ll pack a picnic and take it to our local park for a picnic dinner. It stays light so much later and the evening breezes are so lovely, it’s nice to just hang out on the picnic blanket while the girls run and play a little while longer. I’m all about slow, easy evenings and enjoying the outdoors as much as possible during the summer.
Sophie will be five in September, and I definitely have some clear memories of having picnic lunches and dinners with my dad when I was that age. I’m hopeful that both Sophie and Alice will grow up with fond memories of our weekend family adventures and summer picnics.
What are you doing to maximize your summer weekends? Are picnics and outdoor adventures part of your family’s summer traditions?
This post is brought to you by CJ Affiliate’s VIP Content Service. Thank you to Peapod for sponsoring this post! All content and opinions are my own. Thank you for supporting the sponsors that make Oh So Beautiful Paper possible! Save $20 on your first Peapod order of $75+ and get free delivery for up to 60 days with code AFF20FD!
July Desktop Downloads!
Happy July everyone! I know many of you are probably off enjoying an extended 4th of July holiday weekend, but I wanted to pop in real fast to share a couple of posts that are near and dear to my heart: starting with some brand new illustrated wallpapers for July! We have two SUPER fun patterns from Katie at The Good Twin, and I asked Kim from Bright Room Studio if she’d be willing to convert one of my favorite Instagram posts into a wallpaper download. Luckily she said yes! As always, the wallpapers are available in both desktop and phone sizes for your favorite devices. Download your favorite below and enjoy!
Illustrations © The Good Twin and Bright Room Studio. All artwork is made available for personal use only. By downloading the wallpapers you agree to the terms of use.
p.s. If you’re a designer or illustrator interested in contributing your own designs to this column, please email your design to hello(at)ohsobeautifulpaper.com with the subject line “desktop downloads†and image files in both desktop and iPhone retina screen sizes. If it’s a good fit I’ll add it to the post for the following month!