06/12/2017

Illustrated Tropical Hawaiian Wedding Invitations

Oversized palm frond motifs, dainty pineapple wax seals, and a vibrant color palette; these wedding invitations have it all! Katie of Honey Brush Design designed these illustrated tropical Hawaiian wedding invitations for a bride who also happens to work as a florist! When the bride spends the better part of her days working with gorgeous blooms, you can definitely expect that her wedding invitations are going to be packed to the brim with gorgeous flowers and foliage!

From Katie: This custom wedding suite was created for a destination wedding in the Kona, Hawaii. The bride drew inspiration from some of the favorite unusual blooms that she came to know and love as an assistant florist, as well as from the island the setting of her wedding.

She wanted to step out and do something different than the traditional Hawaiian look. She opted for a wild and romantic feel to accompany her tropical invitations. With lots of greenery and jewel colored blooms, we chose a rich color palette rather than going bright. We went with cream colored paper to go up against the moody tones and to tie in the color of the white sandy beaches of Hawaii.

The Taro Plant is known to many Hawaiians as a life source and has beautiful large green leaves shaped like a heart. The bride loved the meaning behind this element and asked me to use it in the design. She also requested that I sneak in thistles to symbolize Scotland (where they got engaged!). Other details including a pineapple wax seal, monstera envelope liner, and vintage tropical stamps also bring in special touches to these paper goods. The invitation itself is adorned with unique watercolor flowers and brush lettering to add the wild look we were aiming for.

A serif typeface balances out the loose feel of the artwork with a more structural element. The RSVP postcard is coated in an ocean-inspired blue watercolor wash and the information card subtly sports a piece of fan coral. The creamy envelope liner and wax seal pop against the subdued blue envelope which is similar to the color found on the the RSVP card. The pieces of this suite have been flat printed on paper that is similar in texture to watercolor paper in order to highlight the artwork.

Thanks Katie!

Design: Honey Brush Design
Printing: Thikit
Paper: Mohawk Via Felt Warm White Paper

Check out the Designer Rolodex for more talÂented wedÂding inviÂtaÂtion designÂers and the real inviÂtaÂtions gallery for more wedding invitation ideas!

Photo Credits: Rebecca Arthurs

06/09/2017

A Sherry Negroni

It’s Negroni Week again, when participating bars all over the country donate a portion of each sale to charity, and people generally drink a lot of Negronis. The Negroni is a simple drink, equal parts dry gin, Campari, and sweet vermouth. Its simplicity is probably key to its success, because it offers a template for endless experimentation. We created this Sherry Negroni recipe for Negroni Week with sweet Pedro Ximinez sherry in place of sweet vermouth, a simple swap that turns a sharp, intensely bitter drink into something dark and rich and luxuriant. â€“ Andrew

Sherry Negroni Recipe

1 oz Dry Gin
1 oz Campari
1 oz Pedro Ximinez Sherry

Combine the gin, Campari, and Sherry in a mixing glass and stir well with ice. Strain into a chilled cocktail glass and drop in a big chunk of fresh ice. Garnish with a piece of orange peel and enjoy!

Pedro Ximinez â€“ also affectionately called “PX” â€“ is a Sherry, fortified wine made in the Jerez region of Spain. Unlike other Sherries, PX is made from grapes dried in the sun and, as a result, has a raisiny, sweet taste and a thick, syrupy texture. It works well in cocktails, adding rich sweetness and notes of dried fruit. It’s thick enough to use as a syrup in stirred drinks like the Old Fashioned.

Here, the PX Sherry does a pretty good job standing in for sweet vermouth, another fortified wine. It’s a little less complex than sweet vermouth, which is steeped with all sorts of spices and herbs, but the Sherry makes up for that simplicity in this Negroni by mellowing out the drink, taking the sharp edges off the dry gin and herbaceous, bitter Campari. This is still a Negroni, but darker and richer and a bit sweeter than usual, with a raisiny chewiness in place of the classic recipe’s bracing crispness.

So, if you haven’t already, go find a bar participating in Negroni Week and order a few Negronis, and then go mix up one of these at home.

(Donâ€™t forget to follow us on Instagram!)

Glassware by Liquorary

Photo Credits: Nole Garey for Oh So Beautiful Paper

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06/09/2017

Quick Pick: Fox & Fallow Dark Romance Collection

Happy Friday everyone! I’ve been working furiously behind the scenes to edit the thousands of photos (literally) that we took at the National Stationery Show â€“ we’ll be kicking off NSS round ups right here VERY soon! But in the meantime I thought I would share a sneak peek at one of my favorite new collections that debuted at the show: the Dark Romance collection from Australian stationer Fox & Fallow! Inspired by dangerous botanicals â€“ from carnivorous plants to poisonous foxglove â€“the collection features greeting cards, journals, notepads, and gift wrap in deep tones of pink, purple, and red, and plenty of metallic foil. And how gorgeous are all those floral illustrations??

Here are a few more favorites from the collection:

The full Dark Romance collection from Fox & Fallow will be available on their website â€“ and hopefully a retailer near you! â€“ very soon. And stay tuned for NSS 2017 round ups here real soon!

06/07/2017

DIY Iridescent Paper Prize Ribbons

My oldest daughter, Sophie, graduates from preschool next week! Cue all the tears! I seriously cannot believe that I’ll have a kindergardener on my hands in September. I wanted to do something special for Sophie and the other kids in her class, so I made some fun DIY iridescent paper prize ribbons using opalescent tissue paper and pastel card stock. They turned out super cute, so I thought I’d share the how-to with all of you! These prize ribbons are a really cute way of congratulating someone on a recent achievement â€“ like graduation, landing a new job, buying a home â€“ celebrating an engagement, or even offering a quick note of encouragement!

The prize ribbons that I made for Sophie’s classmates all say “preschool graduate,” but I wanted to show them with more general congratulatory messages for those of you who don’t have kids. You can also write your own personalized message by hand on a blank circle! But if you’re worried about your hand lettering skills, you can totally download our free printable downloads through the links at the bottom of the post and use them as needed! There’s one version with school-specific messages and another with general messages that can work all year long! I love the idea of making a bunch of these to have ready throughout the year, or even making an end-of-the-school-year tradition by taking a photo with a new ribbon after finishing each grade! Ooooh, these would also be really fun for a birthday party! So many possibilities!

Aaaaah!! These paper prize ribbons are so colorful and full of iridescent shimmer! I used pastels with pops of navy and plum, but they’d be so good in any color combination. Let’s make some, yes??

Materials

Cover weight paper / card stock in your color palette
Iridescent tissue paper
2″ circle punch
1.5″ circle punch
Paper trimmer
Scissors
Stapler
Craft glue or a glue stick
Hot glue gun
Bar pin back (optional)

To make the DIY iridescent paper prize ribbons:

Step 1. Without unfolding the iridescent tissue, cut the folded tissue into 7.5″ segments. My iridescent tissue contained three sheets per package, so after making all the cuts I had twelve 7.5″ x 18″ sheets of iridescent tissue. Fold each sheet in half lengthwise to create a 3.25″ x 18″ sheet. Accordion fold the iridescent tissue, then staple in the middle and trim the ends as needed. You can leave the ends straight â€“ or make them curved or angled! Gently unfold and use a very small amount of hot glue to glue the edges together and form a complete circle.

Step 2. Punch several 2″ circles out of your card stock. You’ll need twice as many 2″ circles as the final number of ribbons â€“ one for the front and one for attaching the ribbon tail on the back.

Step 3. Download our printable template with congratulatory messages and print them onto colorful card stock. Use the 1.5″ circle punch to punch out each message â€“ or you can punch a bunch of 1.5″ circles and hand write your own personalized message! Use craft glue or a glue stick to glue the smaller circle to the center of a larger circle â€“ this is the center of your prize ribbon! Hot glue the center circle to the center of the folded iridescent tissue.

Step 4. To make the ribbon tails, use your paper trimmer to cut a piece of card stock in half lengthwise, then into 1″ segments (giving you 1″ x 4.25″ pieces). Staple two pieces to a 2″ circle, then trim the edges â€“ just like you would do with a real ribbon! Hot glue the 2″ circle with the tails to the back of the prize ribbon.

Step 5. To make the ribbons wearable, hot glue a bar pin to the back of the prize ribbon. These prize ribbons also make fantastic gift toppers, or you can hot glue a loop of string to hang them on the wall!

Download the printable templates right here:

SCHOOL YEAR PRIZE RIBBONS

CONGRATULATIONS PRIZE RIBBONS

Photos by Nole Garey for Oh So Beautiful Paper

06/06/2017

Stationery A-Z: Wedding Congratulations Cards

Remember waaaay back in the winter when all your friends were suddenly engaged? Well, wedding season has finally arrived! Which means it’s time for a round up of our favorite wedding congratulations cards! Break out the heels, get your summer suit cleaned up and start writing the world’s least boring, most endearing, tear-inducing wedding speech. And while you are at it, don’t forget to include a meaningful congratulations card that two people you deeply care about have decided to profess their love for each other in front of friends and family. And while you are at it, be sure to say thanks for the open bar. – Shauna

From top left:

1. Love this naive floral illustration (in a bright spring palate) from our friends over at Egg Press.

2. Will you take this peony and wild rose bouquet from Banquet Workshop and Atelier to have and to hold from this day forth?

3. Personally, my favorite part of my wedding was the honeymoon. Celebrate an adventurous couple with a travel-themed design from Idlewild Co.

4. Not a fan of the institution of marriage? Call it like you see it with this foil and letterpress greeting card from Ashkahn.

5. Weddings aren’t just for brides and grooms. Celebrate ladies who love (and commit) with this fashion forward illustration from Ferme A Papierby Cat Seto.

6. Their big day deserves a callout – especially one that is hand lettered with silver foil (from Lionheart Prints).

7. Two misters? Two times the party! Get the celebration started with extra shiny holographic foil from The Social Type.

8. Sometimes life can be a fairytale….give this Antiquaria foiled design to the most romantic couple you know.

9. Marriage requires work and if you’ve made it through the wedding planning process, you’re well on your way to a successful lifetime partnership. From Paperboy London.

10. Did you know that swans mate for life? Anne and Kate do.

p.s. A few more favorite wedding congratulations cards from a couple years ago!