National Stationery Show 2010 : All About Details, Part 2

May 25, 2010 // kristen // 1 replies

Miss the first part of All About Details? You can check it out here.

The Smock booth was a feast for the color lover’s eyes. I loved seeing the vibrant colorways in their new card collections, and the bent wire signage was something else — hello, mini smock hanger! Smock’s new gift boxes and bags are really cool, too, and their patterned boxes would make great office paper storage, as well as being fantastic as reusable gift boxes. And the gift bags — very sturdy and made from paper handmade in Nepal using 12th century papermaking techniques. Pretty neat stuff.

Wiley Valentine’s booth was like a super luxe lounge. I think they even had a couch in there! I really enjoyed their use of the birdcage wall hanging as a display for their cards and calendars, and their letterpress art prints were a feast for the eyes. Seriously, though, the “Let Them Eat Cake” print was making me hungry, and their oh so pretty recipe cards were making me want to bake. It must’ve been around lunch time when I visited their booth. Yep, that’s my excuse.

The Mr. Boddington’s Studio booth made fantastic use of paper! From the white paper cobblestone walls to patterned envelope liner awnings, there was a little bit of paper in every corner, and it was a beautiful display for Mr. Boddington’s greetings. Plus, how cool is that post box business card holder?

Paisley Tree Press oh so cleverly used chicken wire as a display for their beautiful letterpress cards and coasters. Who knew that chicken wire could be so elegant?

The hand cut wood sign at The Mincing Mockingbird was completely awesome, and I thought that the white on white in the booth made it look like a modern gallery space, perfect to display their bird paintings and prints. One of my favorites was the Pi is Infinitely Tasty card, perfect for the mathematician or pie lover in your life. Versatile!

Lots of color and fun cards in the Amy Smyth Made It booth. Hee, Not Old Owl card! I thought it was neat that the back of the booth was covered with “framed” versions of a variety of the cards.

photos by yours truly

National Stationery Show 2010 : All About Details, Part 1

May 25, 2010 // kristen // 6 replies

One of the most exciting things about being at the stationery show was seeing all of the different booths. Walking into a shop’s booth was walking into a world that they’d constructed to house their creations, and I was amazed by so many of the booths and the work that was obviously put into them.

Blue Barnhouse rocked it with their awesome sign and wood plank walls!

One of my most anticipated booth visits was the Two Trick Pony booth. Laurie and Carrie had been posting in progress sneak peeks on Twitter leading up to the show, and I couldn’t wait to see everything in person. They created the perfect display for all of Two Trick Pony’s fun and colorful cards and invitations:

Hot pink + handlettering + vintage postcards = awesome, which is what the Linda & Harriett booth, and their gorgeous letterpress calendars, was. Seeing their new calendar has become a yearly anticipation for me because it’s always filled with super cool illustrations, and their birthday calendar is great for people like me, who are a little absent-minded and need birthday reminders.

I had so much fun in the Sugarcube Press booth. It was great to meet Kelsie and Elizabeth, the “sweet girly duo” behind Sugarcube, and their letterpress greetings were beautiful as well as clever. Plus, how cool are the vintage spoons used in their card display and the sugarcube covered cake stand used to hold their business cards?

The a. favorite booth was truly an extension of their completely clever, vintage-inspired letterpress line of greetings. I loved that the cards were displayed on oversized “notebooks” (this theme was also carried through to the business cards — more on that later), and the retro-y goodie bags were the icing on the cake.

photos by yours truly

National Stationery Show 2010 : World of Illustration, Part 2

May 24, 2010 // kristen // 5 replies

Miss part one of the World of Illustration? You can check it out right here.

Oh so cutie patootie new letterpress and wood veneer cards from Night Owl Paper Goods. How adorable is the little watermelon?!

Egg Press has a style all their own, and I always look forward to seeing what they’ll come up with next. Their new die-cut double decker bus and finger puppet cards and prints are so much fun!

Urubbu was a booth that wasn’t originally on my list, but I’m so glad that Erin and I stopped in because it was fantastic. Though not technically illustrated, these cards are so very unique. I still can’t get over that the original collages used to create the cards and prints are made, for the most part, from recycled magazine pages:

Red Cap Cards has been one of my favorites since before I started Paper Crave, and it was wonderful to finally meet Carrie Gifford and to see so much of the Red Cap line, which now also includes cards from illustrators like Blanca Gomez, Anke Weckmann, and Jon Klassen.

photos by yours truly

National Stationery Show 2010 : World of Illustration, Part 1

May 24, 2010 // kristen // 0 replies

I have a soft spot for great illustration, and there was no shortage of fantastic illustrated greeting cards and stationery at this year’s stationery show. From the wonderfully fun creations of Brad Woods (Maginating Letterpress + Design) to Carolyn Gavin’s (Ecojot) illustrated notebooks for a great cause, there was so much to see.

The Maginating Letterpress + Design booth was so much fun. Even the grumpy clouds made me smile, and the From the Tools card is perfect for Father’s Day, which will be here before we know it:

Lots of buzz about the Rifle Paper Co. booth, and with good reason. Anna Bond’s illustrated cards and invitations are absolutely beautiful. She really takes it to the next level, and I cannot wait until her line of personalized wedding and event invitation templates launches later this year.

And these recipe boxes, made from reclaimed wood, plus coordinating recipe cards would make fantastic gifts. Plus, a calendar! Can’t wait until that’s released later this year.

I cannot get enough of Cindy Tomczyk’s whimsical illustrations, and I had so much fun in the Let {her} Press booth, of which Paper Parasol, Cindy’s greeting card and stationery shop, was a part. A little more from Cindy later, but here’s a peek at her all occasion line:

Pie! Seriously, I’m gobbling up this print from Old School Stationers as soon as I spot it in their shop. They’ve really tapped into the do-it-yourself/back to the land zeitgeist with their In the Kitchen line, which features prints and letterpress cards in four designs:

Ecojot debuted a new line of notebooks, illustrated by Carolyn Gavin, at the stationery show. The line represents a new partnership with Jane Goodall, and a royalty from the purchase of each of the new wildlife notebooks will be given to the Jane Goodall Institute to help conserve an endangered species.

photos by yours truly

Weekly Wrap #25 : National Stationery Show Edition

May 21, 2010 // kristen // 1 replies

I was on the hunt for gorgeous gift wrap at the National Stationery Show, and my search did not leave me disappointed. I spotted so many great options for gift wrap and packaging that will be truly standout:

From top:
* The Ecojot booth was filled with colorful goodies, including whimsical gift wrap sheets featuring illustrations by Carolyn Gavin (left).
* Drool … I must have these gift wrap sheets by Sanna Annukka (right, top four), and the number/letter wrap by Sukie and Geisha wrap by The Good Life are fantastic, too. All spotted in the eye candy-filled Vigo booth. You can purchase everything shown from the UK based Nineteenseventythree.
* Loved the palette and pattern in these handmade gift wrap sheets from May Day Studio at the Ladies of Letterpress booth.
* Gorgeous fabric wraps from Chewing the Cud
* Lovely new gift wrap sheets by Avie Designs. Available soon in the Avie Designs shop!
* Oh so pretty letterpress self mailers from Tiselle.

I’m just getting started, so stay tuned next week for much, much more from the show. Have a great weekend, everyone!

images by yours truly