Calligraphy Inspiration: Kelsey Malie Calligraphy

After another day lost in the world of OSBP’s Pinterest, I found myself going for one pin to another and landed upon the striking work of Kelsey Malie Calligraphy. Kelsey Carpenter of Portland, Oregon offers custom designed suites for couples as well as amazing logo work. Playful and dramatic, her calligraphy tugs at the heartstrings of romantics everywhere. Take a look at her beautiful pieces and you’ll see just how it held my gaze. – Julie

Calligraphy Inspiration: Kelsey Malie Calligraphy / Oh So Beautiful Paper

Calligraphy Inspiration: Kelsey Malie Calligraphy / Oh So Beautiful Paper

Calligraphy Inspiration: Kelsey Malie Calligraphy / Oh So Beautiful Paper

Calligraphy Inspiration: Kelsey Malie Calligraphy / Oh So Beautiful Paper

Calligraphy Inspiration: Kelsey Malie Calligraphy / Oh So Beautiful Paper

Calligraphy Inspiration: Kelsey Malie Calligraphy / Oh So Beautiful Paper

To see more of Kelsey’s work, visit her Etsy shop, Instagram feed and Facebook page for continuous inspiration.

Photography credits: 1 Katlyn Marie PhotoArt; 2 Lahna Marie; 3 left, 5 Michelle Boyd Photography; 3 right Shauna Veasey; 4 Andie Reavely; 6 left Sweet Blooms Photography, 6 right O’Malley Photographers

Best of 2015: My Favorites

Oh So Beautiful Paper: The Best of 2015 / Calligraphy by Cast Calligraphy

Image by Cast Calligraphy

Today I’m wrapping up my 2015 recap posts with some of my personal favorite posts from the year! 2015 was, for me, kind of a chaotic year. I feel like I spent most of the year chasing deadlines and constantly running around in an effort to just keep up, which didn’t leave much time to think about the future or how I want to grow my business. So while I’m still trying to wrap my head around my thoughts and goals for 2016, I know that at least part of what I want for the new year is to slow down, simplify, and focus on doing things intentionally rather than constantly reacting to everything around me. In the meantime, I’ve been looking back at 2015 to figure out what worked, what brought me joy (like the posts below), what I want to change, and what I want to do MORE of in 2016.

Hand Painted Rose Gold Foil Baby Announcements / Oh So Beautiful Paper

Alice’s Hand Painted Rose Gold Foil Baby Announcements

Okay, so I’m obviously totally biased, but I’m still completely nuts for Alice’s birth announcements! Each individual announcement was hand painted by Jenna of Mon Voir, meaning no two announcements are the same, and feature Jenna’s calligraphy and text printed in rose gold foil by Bella Figura on their gorgeous smooth cotton paper.

Brick + Mortar: All About NSS Mailers / Oh So Beautiful Paper

Brick + Mortar: All About NSS Mailers

Emily‘s Brick + Mortar column continues to be one of my favorite bright spots on OSBP! Two of my favorite installments from 2015 are the post that Emily and I co-wrote in March about NSS mailers and Emily’s post in September about the importance of the word “no” in growing your business.

Brick + Mortar: How Saying No Can Help You Grow Your Business / Art by the Dancing Cat / Oh So Beautiful Paper

Brick + Mortar: How “No” Can Help You Grow Your Business / Artwork by The Dancing Cat

Paper Party 2015! / Oh So Beautiful Paper / Photo by Charlie-Juliet Photography

Paper Party 2015!

This year’s Paper Party was a huge undertaking and SO much fun! We went with a subtle tropical theme with a color palette of cobalt blue, gold, and shades of pink, and plenty of tropical details like palm fronds, flamingos, and tropical fruit. The invitations were designed by Moglea with a hand painted background, hand painted envelope liner pattern, and text printed in matte gold foil by Bella Figura. Michele of Meant to Be Calligraphy addressed the envelopes in gold ink, and I dip dyed them in pink Kool-Aid!

Hand Painted and Matte Gold Foil Invitations for Paper Party 2015 / Oh So Beautiful Paper

Paper Party 2015 Invitations!

Tips for Working from Home / Bright Room Studio for Oh So Beautiful Paper

Tips for Working from Home from Bright Room Studio

Love these tips from Kim of Bright Room Studio for anyone working from home!

The Earth Laughs in Flowers / Oh So Beautiful Paper + Mon Voir Calligraphy Collaboration

The Earth Laughs in Flowers Art Print

Our very first limited edition art print! I collaborated with Jenna of Mon Voir on these gorgeous art prints featuring her floral watercolor artwork and calligraphy printed in matte gold foil. I can’t wait to do more of these collaborations in 2016, and in the meantime you can pick up your very own print right here!

Best of 2015: Cocktails

Oh So Beautiful Paper: The Best of 2015 / Calligraphy by Cast Calligraphy

Image by Cast Calligraphy

You guys, we had SO much fun with cocktails in 2015! I seriously had trouble editing down a list of our best cocktail recipes of 2015, so I just ended up with a list of eleven cocktails that I personally enjoyed the most throughout the year. We started the year off with a series of champagne and sparkling cocktails and continued with a different theme each month to help guide our cocktail recipes. We had a lot of fun with Tiki drinks throughout the year, from a Tiki hot chocolate during a month of hot cocktail recipes (which was ridiculously delicious and I could totally go for right now) to classic Tiki recipes like the Mai Tai in the summer. We did a whole month of frozen drinks back in August and a month of smash cocktails in September, which were probably my two favorite cocktail recipe months of the year. And I discovered that I really, really enjoy Scotch cocktails, especially when vanilla bean is involved in some capacity. Such a great combination! In 2016 I’m looking forward to even more tropical-inspired drink recipes, experimenting with shrub cocktails, revisiting even more classic cocktail recipes, and hopefully dedicating an entire month to punch recipes a bit later in the year! But in the meantime, here are my favorite cocktail recipes from 2015!

The Best Cocktail Recipes of 2015: Tiki Hot Chocolate Cocktail Recipe by Liquorary for Oh So Beautiful Paper

Tiki Hot Chocolate Recipe

The Best Cocktail Recipes of 2015: Maple Bourbon Hot Toddy Cocktail Recipe by Liquorary for Oh So Beautiful Paper

Maple Bourbon Hot Toddy Cocktail Recipe

The Best Cocktail Recipes of 2015: Sherry Cobbler Cocktail Recipe by Liquorary for Oh So Beautiful Paper

Sherry Cobbler Cocktail Recipe

The Best Cocktails of 2015: The Clover Club Classic Cocktail Recipe by Liquorary for Oh So Beautiful Paper

The Clover Club Classic Cocktail Recipe

The Best Cocktails of 2015: Blackberry Paloma Cocktail Recipe by Liquorary for Oh So Beautiful Paper

Blackberry Paloma Cocktail Recipe

The Best Cocktail Recipes of 2015: The Ghost Flower Rum and St-Germain Tiki Cocktail Recipe by Liquorary for Oh So Beautiful Paper

The Ghost Flower Rum and St-Germain Tiki Cocktail Recipe

The Best Cocktails of 2015: Classic Mai Tai Tiki Cocktail Recipe by Liquorary for Oh So Beautiful Paper

The Classic Mai Tai Cocktail Recipe

The Best Cocktail Recipes of 2015: South Seas Sling Tiki Cocktail Recipe by Liquorary for Oh So Beautiful Paper

The South Seas Sling Tiki Cocktail Recipe

The Best Cocktails of 2015: Boozy Basil-Grapefruit Granita Cocktail Recipe by Liquorary for Oh So Beautiful Paper

Boozy Basil-Grapefruit Granita Recipe

The Best Cocktail Recipes of 2015: A Zombie Snow Cone Tiki Cocktail Recipe by Liquorary for Oh So Beautiful Paper

A Zombie Snow Cone Recipe

The Best Cocktail Recipes of 2015: Orange Vanilla Bean Scotch Smash Cocktail Recipe by Liquorary for Oh So Beautiful Paper

Orange Vanilla Bean Scotch Smash Cocktail Recipe

If you’re looking for even MORE cocktail recipes, you can find our full recipe archives right here!

Best of 2015: DIY

Oh So Beautiful Paper: The Best of 2015 / Calligraphy by Cast Calligraphy

Image by Cast Calligraphy

We had SO many fun DIY projects on OSBP this year! Lots of really pretty printables, from tropical envelope liners to calligraphy Halloween favor bags, and some fun DIY foil projects where I tried (and failed) to resist the urge to put hologram foil on everything in sight. There were DIY rubber stamp wedding invitations and save the dates, and way more DIY party and entertaining ideas than in previous years. Also, paper flowers! I’ve been loving Rachael’s crepe paper flower posts and Mandy made some amazing gold paper air plants before heading off on maternity leave last year. We ended the year on a DIY high note with one of my all time favorite projects: DIY gold and copper leaf gift tags! And I’ve got lots of new DIY ideas and projects up my sleeves for 2016 that I can’t wait to share with all of you! But in the meantime, here are a few of my absolute favorite DIY projects from 2015!

DIY Balloon Cocktail Shaker Engagement Party Invitations / A Fabulous Fete for Oh So Beautiful Paper

DIY Balloon Engagement Party Invitation in a Cocktail Shaker

DIY Gold Paper Air Plants / Craftcourse Nashville for Oh So Beautiful Paper

DIY Gold Paper Air Plants!

Printable Watercolor Wedding Stationery Details / Bright Room Studio for Oh So Beautiful Paper

Printable Hand Lettered Watercolor Wedding Stationery Details

Printable Tropical Envelope Liners / Swiss Cottage Designs for Oh So Beautiful Paper

Printable Tropical Envelope Liners

DIY Hologram Foil Ice Cream Wrappers / Oh So Beautiful Paper

DIY Hologram Foil Ice Cream Cone Wrappers

DIY Crepe Paper Poppy Escort Cards / Appetite Paper for Oh So Beautiful Paper

DIY Crepe Paper Poppy Escort Cards

Printable Calligraphy Halloween Favor Bags / A Fabulous Fete for Oh So Beautiful Paper

Printable Calligraphy Halloween Favor Bags

DIY Pink and Gold Foil Advent Calendar / Oh So Beautiful Paper

DIY Pink and Gold Foil Paper Flower Advent Calendar

DIY Gold and Copper Leaf Hexagon Gift Tags / Oh So Beautiful Paper

DIY Gold and Copper Leaf Hexagon Gift Tags

Looking for even more DIY ideas and inspiration? Check out all of our past projects in the DIY archives!

Best of 2015: Babies + Kids

Oh So Beautiful Paper: The Best of 2015 / Calligraphy by Cast Calligraphy

Image by Cast Calligraphy

Nothing makes me happier than a beautiful baby announcement or colorful birthday party invitation. It’s hard to resist anything that involves an adorable photo of a newborn baby, and birthday party invitations can be so much fun – especially in those first few years when you can really do whatever you want! Ha! Baby announcements and birthday party invitations are a fabulous opportunity to create beautiful stationery (but without the added pressure that can come with creating a wedding invitation). My favorite baby announcements and birthday party invitations are those that manage to be whimsical, sophisticated, and kid-appropriate all at the same time while somehow not being overly cutesy. Some favorites from the year include a simple and modern hand lettered birth announcement, woodland critter birthday party invitations, gold foil polka dot baby announcements, watercolor popsicle birthday party invitations, and some SUPER fun invitations for a 5th birthday party!

The Best Birthday Party Invitations of 2015: Watercolor Calligraphy Popsicle Birthday Party Invitations by Maison Everett / Oh So Beautiful Paper

Watercolor Calligraphy Popsicle Birthday Party Invitations by Maison Everett

The Best Baby Announcements of 2015: Hand Lettered Letterpress Birth Announcements by The Good Twin and Power and Light Press / Oh So Beautiful Paper

Modern Hand Lettered Letterpress Baby Announcements by The Good Twin and Power and Light Press

The Best Birthday Party Invitations of 2015: Wild Kratts Birthday Party Invitations by Good on Paper / Oh So Beautiful Paper

Wild Kratts Animal-Inspired Birthday Party Invitations by Good on Paper

The Best Baby Announcements of 2015: Gold Foil Polka Dot Birth Announcements by Lauren Chism / Oh So Beautiful Paper

Gold Foil Polka Dot Baby Announcements by Lauren Chism

The Best Birthday Party Invitations of 2015: Woodland Fall Harvest Birthday Party Invitations by Swiss Cottage Designs, Photo by Sweet Root Village / Oh So Beautiful Paper

Woodland Critter Fall Harvest Birthday Party Invitations by Swiss Cottage Designs / Photo by Sweet Root Village

More baby announcements and birthday party invitation ideas right here!