New lace goodies on Etsy!

Thanks Courtney of French Country Cottage for posting about us on your blog! She's hosting a giveaway for our new set of paper goods on Etsy. These lace inspired cards and mini notebooks are just in time for spring!

Cavallo wedding #2

Finished these Save-the-dates for another Cavallo wedding this time in August. Vintage/Americana themed paper goodness with a folded map and custom pattern inside. Lovely calligraphy in gold by Neither Snow with an assortment of vintage stamps collected by the bride.

Envelopes were hand-made, just folded text weight navy paper, glued the seam in the middle and ran one side through a sewing machine. We closed by folding the other end and sealed with custom letterpressed address labels.

We came across this envelope addressed to the White House while assembling. Apparently if you send the president an invite you will receive an official congratulatory letter. How fun, right? The bride and groom have a great sense of humor. I love this notion :)

Will be walking these up the street to the post office tomorrow. After spending so much time designing and crafting a set like this, letting them go is always so bitter-sweet. But the idea that people will be receiving these lovelies in the mail always makes me smile. So all the hard work is always worth it.

(part 5): Printing lace

One of my goals this year for the shop is to produce more goods to sell online on my Etsy shop. I think this would be a fun way to explore creating things I haven't yet found the right custom project for. So why not make it for myself?

Julia and I were brainstorming one day and were inspired by lace. She remembered seeing a friend print it before so we decided to re-visit and try for ourselves. So with a bit of lace, a lino block, some hot glue, and a couple of hours later on press, we made ourselves a collection of notecards and mini-notebooks!

Products coming soon on my Etsy store, stay tuned!

Play time!

My cousin Paula and my 2 nieces Izzy and Emma spent the day at the shop this week to play with the presses. So fun...I gave the girls a lesson in printing, color and composition, and the value of making things with your own hands. They came away with quite a stack of printed goods to show off to their dad! They were busy little bees :)

Here's Emma cranking on the Vandercook.

and Isabela on the feed...

They picked their own letters and plates from our collection at the shop.

And voila! Look at all their loot. Impressive, right?

Chez Panisse 40th

Recently I had the pleasure of being a part of the preparations for Chez Panisse's 40th anniversary by helping assemble these beautiful menus printed by none other than my friend & shop neighbor Richard Seibert.

It was great for me to offer my help even though I've never assembled accordion fans before! With a little patience, humor and lots of prototypes, we finally figured it out. All my production experience assembling for weddings came in handy :)

There was so much buzz and excitement in the air during that week, I loved being a spectator to such a milestone event and listening to alums reminisce about their days at the restaurant. Congrats Chez Panisse, here's to 40 more years! The proceeds of the event were given to Alice Water's Edible Schoolyard Project. Check out the site for more info on the foundation and how to make a donation.

Do you know how to wax seal an envelope?

...well, let us tell you how! Ms. Camille was gracious enough to do this for me, what a sport :) We sent this how-to video to our client to help with her invite crafting. This just shows the extent of my OCD and how far I'll go to try and control a situation ;) Enjoy!

P.S. Thanks to my brother, Carlos for filming the vid! It took a while to stop the giggling but he and Cam eventually pulled it together.

I own a press, therefore I can make books!

This past week has been one of the most production-heavy I've had in a while (if not ever). We hand bound 175 booklets that I made for an upcoming wedding...

But it went so smoothly, thanks to the awesome team I recruited to help me. I couldn't have planned it any better. Thank you Hillary, Stephanie, Maya, Julia & Ofri. Yep, it took six of us to get this shit done in record time ;)

Here are some process pics! Hopefully I can share more after the wedding in a few months.

Stencils for Mexico

I have a huge love for making stencils--they're quick, easy, affordable and have that distinct handmade look. I find them really useful for one-off signage, perfect for events. A couple of weeks ago we made these for a client who just got married in Tulum, Mexico. The ladies over at AE looped me into the project and they will eventually post pics on their blog. In the meantime, I thought it would be fun to share our process in making their wedding-day signage.

This was a joint effort between me and the girls: I designed them, Lauren cut the stencils out (I think this was her last task before leaving the shop--thanks Lauren!), and Camille spray painted.

Here's a look at one of the stencils.

Behind the Scenes

Thought I'd share some production photos of the New Buffalo wedding I worked on last year. I find that sometimes the process is just as interesting to see as the final design. This invite in particular was very involved in terms of assembly. Almost every piece was custom, down to the postage stamp. The envelopes were handmade, I had a monogrammed wax seal (in hot pink!), a hand-bound booklet, stitching on the invite (by Mira Aster), calligraphy in yellow ink (by Georgia Deaver)...You name it, we made it work!

Inspiration: Re-imagining Holiday Giving by Making Old Things New Again

by Camille
 
Every time during this time of year, I am inspired by how creative people are. Sometimes, in the hubbub of our busy lives, we are just waiting for an excuse to make things and be creative with our hands, and the holiday season seems to make that possible. Since we are at a time when saving and reusing is very important, I though I would share some inspiration from artists/crafters that really take the art of 're-imagining' to a new level. Something old can really be something new again in the eyes of a designer who sees beyond a piece's functionality and makes it part of something that crosses the line of what it was originally designed for. The best seem to find ways to make something 'useless' into something timeless. I wanted to share some designs that I found especially inspiring for the holiday season; the pieces I found I feel are aesthetically pleasing, charming, and in some cases, really functional as well.

I admit, terrarium fever is running rampant, and I wasn't spared the sickness. I love love love how the possibilities are endless with terrariums. This is a cool little terrarium design by a local SF blogger, Ann of The Hipster Home: the terrarrium in a lightbulb. Here an old lightbulb houses a little bit of life and light again. Terrariums are great gifts because they are all kinds of pretty, they are living but don't require a lot of work to keep them alive, and they make great gifts and centerpieces for the holidays. Also, with a bit of ribbon or string they would make great holiday ornaments, too!

On Press: Holiday patterns!

Holiday printing started yesterday at the shop :) Will keep you posted on what these are for soon!

Off the Press: Kelly & Edward Invite

I printed these over the summer for a lovely couple from Berkeley. I letterpressed the invite and rsvp cards and they screenprinted the envelope and digitally printed the enclosures themselves. I think this is a great way to create an invite if you're hands-on like they are or are on a limited budget but don't want to lose any of the beautiful details of your design. If you're crafty enough, there are many ways to make a set look cohesive without having to letterpress each piece. I encourage you to talk to your printer and ask advice on different options--mixing printing techniques isn't against any rules of etiquette. I think if anything, it gives it a lovely, handmade look when done right like Kelly & Eddie's invites. You can definitely tell when something is made with TLC :)

Bowerbird Craft & Design

My lovely and multi-talented intern, Stephanie Laursen, along with her friend Rachel recently launched an Etsy store which you should check out. They sell hand-crafted accessories such a hair-pieces and earrings--great for everyday wear or special occasions. They can also do custom orders which is great esp. for brides looking for that stand-out accent piece to complete their look :)

You can check out their Etsy here and more updates on their blog here. Thanks!

Spring bouquet!

My friend Anne of Mira Aster emailed me these lovely pictures of her take-home floral bouquet from the Heath wedding lounge that I have to share! She came by and paid us a visit and checked out the other vendors at the show...

Just Arrived!

I'm SO excited about my custom papel picado flags for the wedding in Mexico next week!!! These were hand-crafted by local artisans and is a great addition to the collateral that's coming together :) More soon...

Grinch is out. Holiday cheer is in!

The holidays are in full-effect! Here are some fun pics of shop happenings as of late. I have to admit that I'm loving the arctic (maybe not quite) temperatures we're experiencing this week. Very unusual for me since I'm such a warm-weather person. But I've caught the holiday bug and decided to de-grinch myself this season! I see snow in the mountains and foothills by my house and on my way to work everyday. Love it!

By far the best and most original holiday card I've received so far--from my quirky and creative friend Catherine. Cute picture of her 2 boys in the middle and a perfect greeting to match :)

Feelin' the Felt

Fun felt typography by LuckyYou.