Frosty Friends by Suzy Ultman

October 24, 2012 // kristen // 1 replies

Disclosure : Chronicle Books sent me a preview copy of the Frosty Friends notecard set to review.

It’s no secret that I’m a big fan of Suzy Ultman’s work, and I jumped at the chance to check out her new Frosty Friends card set. This wintry notecard set includes 12 illustrated and die cut flat cards (4 designs) – a snowman, a polar bear with a cute cap, an Eskimo girl, and two penguins all dressed up for the cold weather – along with 12 envelopes and a sticker sheet. And it’s all adorable!

As an adult who loves super cute paper goodies, I would delight in sending out little notes to family and friends on these fun cards, and I think the set would make a perfect gift for kids who are old enough to write thank yous for holiday gifts or to send out their own holiday greetings. You could also string together the notecards to make a garland, which would be such a cute way to decorate a child’s room for the winter season.

Head over to Chronicle to pick up your own set of Frosty Friends, and get ready to receive a big bunch of cute in your mailbox!

photos by Kristen Magee

Bethany + Ron’s Unique, Thyme Embellished Wedding Invitations

October 23, 2012 // kristen // 2 replies

Florals are a timelessly popular choice for a wedding invitation theme, but Anticipate Invitations took floral inspiration to the next level with this beautiful wedding suite by seamlessly incorporating pieces of real flowering thyme, which add a wonderfully unique dimension to this soft and romantic wedding suite.

The soft green and lavender invitations were inspired by the save the date postcard, which features a fantastic custom stamp and a vintage image of the main road that guests would be traveling from Los Angeles to the wedding. The beautiful script used in the custom stamp is echoed throughout the wedding suite, tying everything together perfectly.

Michael Musser, the designer, shares:

Although the bride, Bethany, didn’t have an exact idea in mind to start, it was evident from our initial consultation that she was drawn aesthetically to lace and wildflowers. She hoped for something romantic and sweet to complement her outdoor reception, which was to be held in a local art gallery’s sculpture garden.

Beginning with the Save the Date, we involved vintage touches with the ultimate goal of personalizing the suite specifically to the couple. The solution found us, with an antique postcard depicting the main road her wedding guests would be driving from Los Angeles. A customized stamp was the perfect finishing touch.

The production challenge was getting the thyme on the invitation itself. Each one required two small holes be punched by hand, and then a needle was threaded through both holes to raise the paper surface between the holes. This allowed the thyme stalk to easily slide through the holes without damage. While this portion did prove to be tricky, it allowed for each invitation’s flower to be completely different naturally, thus giving Bethany and Ron the sweet and personal touch they were looking for.

images from Anticipate Invitations

Letterpress Notebooks by Bespoke Press

October 22, 2012 // kristen // 2 replies

Holiday gifting has been on my mind a lot lately, and these very lovely letterpress notebooks by Bespoke Press would make wonderful gifts for journal writers, list makers, doodlers, and pretty much anyone who enjoys pretty paper goods.

Patterns include everything from sweet hearts to origami cranes, and I love that the pages are kraft paper, which is a little bit different and would be a great backdrop for white, silver, and gold ink pens, as well as the standard black and blue.

images from Bespoke Press

Hand Illustrated Greeting Cards by Familytree

October 22, 2012 // kristen // 0 replies

I really enjoyed the Monster Friends and Japanimals artist series posters from Familytree, and I’m so excited to see that they’re branching out (no pun intended) with a fantastic new collection of illustrated greeting cards. The four designs in the collection feature super cool, hand drawn type and illustration by Alex Pearson, and the cards are screen printed by Kangaroo Press in deep red and blue inks onto French’s 100# Speckletone paper. Check ’em out!

images from Familytree

Weekly Wrap #132 : Free Printable Halloween Treat Boxes

October 19, 2012 // kristen // 6 replies

Still looking for just the right packaging for your Halloween tricks and treats? I designed a trio of “Happy Halloween” treat boxes that might fit the bill. The candy striped containers fit a variety of fun size candy, candy corn, gummy bears, etc., and they’re available in three color options : ghostly teal, slime green, and pale pumpkin.

Templates are available as printable PDF files (links below), and you can download the free Adobe Reader software to view and print if it’s not already on your computer.

Ghostly Teal Treat Box | Download (2Mb)

Slime Green Treat Box | Download (2Mb)

Pale Pumpkin Treat Box | Download (2Mb)

These printables are for personal, non-commercial use only. You may not sell, alter, distribute, or incorporate them into any work for sale or for profit.