I recently had the pleasure of printing three sets of custom bee stationery for an etsy customer. Printing this simple design in silver and gold ink imbued it with such elegance I just love how they turned out! Order bee flat notes here, or get in touch for a custom order!
I recently printed up another big batch of my business cards, and it occurred to me that when I rebranded last year I never shared my new cards! So, even though I’m considering another update in the next year or so (the perils of being a designer!), here’s the story of my cards!
Kraft paper was part of the identity package I put together for myself, and I love the look of white and metallic ink on kraft, so I knew I wanted to incorporate those inks in some way. After testing out a few options, I settled on white for the front of my cards as it has the most contrast with the paper, making small text easiest to read.
I also wanted to have a two-sided business card, but didn’t want them to be a difficult project to print—double-sided cards are the most difficult to get a tight registration. The solution? A free form pattern that would show parts of an oversized logo I had randomly printed on the backs of my cards. For the first few runs, I went with silver on the back, but this time I switched to gold (on a slightly lighter card stock)—it felt more festive for fall and the holidays, and more on trend! (Plus, like every other creative person right now, I’m obsessed with all things gold!)
Looking at them now, I’m falling in love with them again, so maybe I’ll hold off on that redesign…. Need some cards for you or your business? Get in touch, I’d love to work with you!
You guys, my boyfriend of two and a half years, the one I moved to a foreign country to be with, has never written me a love note. I’m not talking Byron and Keats here, all I want is a Valentine’s or birthday or just because card that I can look back at when the road gets rocky or when he’s traveling or when I’m feeling sad. (Full disclosure: When we were long distance he used to occasionally send very sweet, long, loving texts… but it’s just not the same!)
In fairness to him, there’s a lot of cheesy crap out there when it comes to lovey-dovey card shopping. While brainstorming straightforward sentiments, I started thinking about the love cards I’d really want to send. I started here:
And then I came up with a brilliant idea… funny and honest, and a reflection of the sender, which is really all you want in a card, right? Here’s the first batch, all of which are now available in my etsy shop. I’ve already come up with a bunch more to print, feel free to leave your ideas below!
Confession: I love watching home improvement/décor shows. Back when I owned (and was in the process of rehabbing) a century-old bungalow, watching them was a near daily activity. I’ve weaned myself in recent years, but a few months back I caught an episode in which the host and her trusty sidekick rustle up some antique wood type and simply stamp them on canvas for fairly inexpensive art.
Lucky for me, I happen to already own a lot of antique wood type.
I had silver metallic screen printing ink from a few years back when I thought I’d take up yet another method of printing (because I don’t have enough on my hands), so I decided to use that on regular fabric instead of gessoed canvas.
My plan was to print enough to stretch around a frame large enough to cover an unsightly fuse box in our entry way, plus enough extra to do a test wash and maybe a few scraps to include in a patchwork pillow project I have planned. While I had the ink out I also wanted to test out an idea for bespoke monogrammed wrapping paper I’ve been kicking around for a while.
Thanks to the magic of television, I didn’t realize how incredibly time consuming the project would be! After spending entirely too long printing a 12”x12” block of paper, I realized it wasn’t going to be a feasible option for retail (although my sister’s Christmas presents looked fab).
The letters printed more rustically than I anticipated, but I love how the fabric turned out! What do you think? Would you invest in hand-printed fabric for an accent pillow or piece of art?
Whether a big chunky cocktail style or something more subtle, lately I’m obsessed with rings! When it comes to jewelry, I’m always more interested in quality design than high end materials. Not that I’m going to turn down gems, but I’d rather have a well-designed crystal ring than a boring diamond one. Here are a few unique pieces I’m loving at the moment!
Quartz double ring by Adina Mills Design.
There’s not much I don’t love from Bario-Neal designs, but these simple stackable beauties are great! [photo courtesy of Style Me Pretty]
The Mobius Ring from Spies Jewelry.
Granule rings from Hannah Bedford.
Loved ring from St. Kilda.
I found this beauty via pinterest and I can’t seem to find its original source. So gorgeous!
622 press | LETTERPRESS GOODS MADE BY HAND 