11/14/2016

Romantic Blush and Gray Letterpress Calligraphy Wedding Invitations

These romantic blush and gray letterpress calligraphy wedding invitations from Laura of Paper & HoneyÂ were inspired by the natural elegance of Austin, Texas and the quintessential charm and simplicity of the weddingâ€™s resort venue. The subtle blush and gray color palette is complemented by the gorgeous gold foil and gray letterpress printed text, vintage postage stamps, and timeless calligraphy details! We always love a fun envelope liner and these marbled envelope liners made from handmade paper have us swooning!

From Laura: Working on Ivana and Bob’s invitation suite was a total dream! These two lived on opposite coasts for three years of their relationship to pursue their professional dreams â€” his of being a surgeon, hers of working for Google â€” and over the course of their long distance they learned to “love each other to the moon and back.” What an honor it was to help them craft an invitation suite worthy of helping them celebrate finally starting their lives together!

Ivana and Bob married at the Lakeway Resort and Spa. With a wedding held in the rolling hills of Austin, Texas, just overlooking Lake Travis, we knew the paper had to convey the beauty and simplicity of the area. Elongated, sweeping calligraphy paired with a simple serif kept the design timeless and classic with a hint of whimsy. Everything was letterpress printed on delicious cotton paper, and metallic gold foil stamping elevates the invitation and provides a hint of sparkle. Gold foil always says romance to me! The RSVP card is one of my favorite parts â€” I love the contrast of the light gray paper, and the tiny food icons are too cute.

To wrap everything up, we added a pop of blush (one of Ivana’s wedding colors) through the euro flap envelopes, and an envelope liner made from handmade marbled paper. Handmade paper is the best; each piece is so unique and prettier than the last. Outer envelopes were addressed to guests with romantic calligraphy cohesive with the rest of the suite, and how else could we get them to friends and loved ones but with perfect vintage stamps.

This wedding suite, perfectly simple, romantic, and organic with a hint of playful movement, was such a joy to create! With Ivana’s ideas and the location in mind, it came together easily. I hope it did Lake Travis a bit of justice!

Thanks Laura!

Design: Paper & Honey

Printing: Czar Press

Vintage Postage Stamps: Verde Studio

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

Photo Credits: Andrea Pesce Photography

11/11/2016

Fish House Punch

We’re going to spend some time over the next month or so exploring the big flowing bowl: punches! We’veÂ featured a few punches before, but we’re going to try to tackle what really makes a punch a success and some of the ways to tweak punches to suit your needs. We’re starting with a spin on a rum punch recipe with the ridiculously named Fish House Punch.Â â€“Andrew

Fish House Punch

8Â oz Jamaican Rum
4Â oz Brandy
4Â oz Lime Juice
4Â oz Preserved Lemon Syrup
1Â oz Apricot Brandy
8Â oz Chamomile Tea

Combine everything in a swing bottle and refrigerate overnight. To serve, pour over ice into tiny cups and enjoy! Makes about fourteenÂ two-ounce servings.

This is a heady, rich, boozy punch. (Feel free to dilute it with water or more tea if it’s a little too, ahem, punchy.) There’s a lot going on in this punch, sweet and sours and fruity and funky and spicy, and it’s a great showcase for punch’s ability to incorporate lots of flavors â€“ when you’re working with a big batch, you can start to incorporate small amounts of ingredients, like the apricot, to add subtle notes to each glass.

We made this punch a little smaller than usual for a couple of reasons. First, I was testing out the recipe and didn’t want to mix up a giant bowl, with the risk that a bad recipe would result in a giant bowl of undrinkable punch and several wasted bottles of perfectly good liquor. Second, not every punch needs to be huge. Sometimes, you just want to share a few drinks between friends, or maybe you’re having a party where you want punch but still want some variety. Making it like this gives you flexibility â€“ and it’s a lot easier to transport a bit of punch in a large swing bottle than a whole huge bowl.

Fish House Punch dates all the way back to the 1730s, when a Philadelphia club, known as theÂ State in Schuylkill Fishing Corporation, set up shop and came up with a signature punch. America, or at least its men, used to be much more fond of these clubs and, with them, drinking huge amounts of punch. Progress does not always make things better. This isn’t the original recipe â€“ we’ve added the chamomile, for example, for an added element of spicy complexity, and replaced the now-unavailable peach brandy with some apricot eau-de-vie â€“ but I don’t think anyone from theÂ State in Schuylkill Fishing Corporation would mind the innovation.

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

Glassware byÂ Liquorary

Photo Credits: Nole Garey for Oh So Beautiful Paper

11/11/2016

Veterans Day

Flag illustration byÂ @paulaandwaffle

Sending lots of love, gratitude, and respect to all of our veterans and their families today. We’ll be back later with this week’s cocktail recipe, and tomorrow with our regular weekly round up!

11/10/2016

Calligraphy Inspiration: Ettie Kim Calligraphy and Design

Hello everyone! I’m excited to share some pretty calligraphy inspiration from that capturesÂ a fluid and organic calligraphy style. Nowadays, it’s easy to find fonts and digital graphics that incorporate fanciful lettering, and I’m all for calligraphy taking over the world. But when you see an artist doing calligraphy in a way that looks so uncalibrated, so imperfectly perfect, with brushstrokes that you simply can’t create with the click of a mouse, that makes me appreciate this art form that much more. So take a peek through the work of Ettie Kim Calligraphy and Design!

Ettie, an East Coast native, shared on her Instagram that she took the leap into a full-time creative career after a detour through law school. It’s clear Ettie has a love for handmade papers, and the delicate raw edges feel like the perfect canvas for her delicate calligraphy. I also love all the botanical patterns she mixes in with her work. Ettie Kim’s websiteÂ includes a just-launched shop where you can hire her for projects from semi-custom invitations to address labels, and she shares her inspiration: “My lettering work is inspired by the asymmetrical, irregular forms found in nature, and I aim for unique design that is organic yet refined.”

Simplicity rules, as you can see in this sweet save-the-date by Ettie.

A vintage crate adorned with sweet calligraphy is just about the perfect spot for cards and gifts for a rustic modern wedding.

Honey jar wedding favors with custom calligraphy tags. | Photo credit: Nikki Kauzlarich

On Ettie’s site, she notes you can contact her “for other bespoke inquiries” (which I love) including non-paper projects like designing a calligraphy tattoo. Let me just say, I have no tattoos and I was not the teenager who was ever pining for a tattoo. But recently (late thirties crisis?!), I’ve had this newfound desire to get inked in part because of all the amazing calligraphy tattoos I’mÂ seeing popping up on inspiration boards. I’m still not sure I’ll ever take that big permanent leap, but if I were to get a tattoo, Ettie would be one of the first artists I’d look to for the design.

Photo Credits: Ettie Kim Design, except where noted

Thanks for following along and be back soon with more calligraphy love!

11/10/2016

Well Said Type | 168

ZOOJA