It’s time to say thanks to the fantastic editors who have featured Smock’s letterpress wedding invitations, greeting cards, gift-wrap, and more in their magazines and on their blogs over the past few months. Our first feature is from Brides magazine, which showed our Palmer letterpress wedding invitations in their White Hot! section of their November edition — they were digging the die-cut shape and the fact that our invitations are eco-friendly!

Well Wed Hamptons Fall/Winter 2011 edition featured this set of stunning letterpress wedding invitation suite and one of our amazing retailers — Claudia Hanlin of The Wedding Library!

Eco Beautiful Weddings, an online magazine, recently featured Smock wedding invitations in their winter 2012 edition in “Green Is” — a section that helps brides track down eco-friendly goods for their weddings, and MODBlog also featured a variety of Smock wedding invitations this fall! (more…)

Christmas is right around the corner, and we love having an extra reason to get crafty around here! We made these festive Christmas Trees with our double-sided gift wrap for a little extra holiday cheer — they’re a fun DIY project and pretty enough to give as a gift — just be sure to make a few for yourself!

You will need: a cone/tree form (we preferred the cardboard cones, but styrofoam works, too!), paper, scissors, and a hot glue gun. Start by covering your tree form in the paper color of your choice. We used our Merry wrap for this tree. If you purchase a cardboard tree form, these typically have a point on top, but if you use a styrofoam form (like the one shown above), we recommend making a point with the wrap for a sleek look (see below).

After you’ve covered the tree form, you’ll need curls. LOTS of curls. We used our Merry wrap and our Mistletoe wrap for this part for some variety.  To make the curls, cut your paper into thin strips of varying lengths and widths — the variety will help the tree ‘fill in’ nicely. Then, begin curling the strips with scissors the way you would for curling ribbon. When you’ve compiled a decent amount of curls, begin adhering them to your tree with a hot glue gun.

Fill the entire tree form with the paper curls until you’re happy with the look. If you’d like, make a star to adhere to the top or leave it as is — and tada! A very merry (paper) Christmas tree.

We were inspired by these amazing snowflakes on How About Orange and decided to create our own crafty garland with the pretty paper folds instead of snowflakes! It’s really simple and the end result is stunning, and you’ll only need a few items: paper, scissors, and a glue stick! We used our double-sided, eco-friendly Pageant gift wrap — it’s really cheerful & festive!

Cut 10-15 6 inch squares of your favorite Smock gift wrap. We used Pageant.

Fold each square in half diagonally, then fold it in half diagonally a second time.

Use the scissors to make straight cuts on the triangle, and make sure each cut is evenly spaced apart – we created 5 cuts. Be sure to cut into the folded side of the triangle.

Unfold the paper, then begin assembly by bending the tips of the inner-most sections toward each other. Curl with your fingers to give it shape, then glue the pieces together.

Bend the next set of sections around in the opposite direction until they meet. Overlap the ends and secure with a glue stick. Continue this process until each section is combined.

Begin assembling your garland by gluing the ends of the ornaments to one another. Let dry, hang, and enjoy!

The holidays are right around the corner, so it’s time to start shopping for gifts! At Smock, we’ve got something for everyone — whether it’s pretty letterpress stationery for her, or man-friendly notebooks for him, we’ve got you covered. This is a carefully selected assortment of our best-selling items, so they’re sure to please everyone on your list! We’ve even got some great stocking stuffer ideas — all for under $15!! So stop by your local Smock retailer or visit our website to get started on your holiday shopping today! And don’t forget to stock up on a few rolls of our double-sided, eco-friendly gift wrap for a perfectly coordinated present (and to find out how to make matching bows, visit us on Youtube!).

1. Veranda Medium Keepsake Box $12 | 2. Quadrille Attachments Sticky Note Cube $18 | 3. Pollen Letterpress Scratchpad $7 | 4. Sorbet Letterpress Art Print Calendar $8 | 5. Honeycomb Letterpress Social Notes $14 for a 6 count box | 6. Veranda Notebook $9 | 7. Berry Memo $7 | 8. Cayman Offset Social Notes $12 for an 8 count box | 9. Picadilly Jotters $6 for a 2-pack | 10. Newport Lettersheets $20 for a set of 12

1. Oxford jotters $6 for a 2-pack |  2. Planet Memo $7 | 3. Ridley Lettersheets $20 for a set of 12 | 4. Bicyclette Letterpress Social Notes $14 for a 6 count box | 5. Peacock Letterpress Art Print Calendar $8 | 6. Koi Notebook $9 | 7. Bicyclette Scratchpad $7 | 8. Pembroke Offset Social Notes $12 for an 8 count box | 9. Oxford Medium Keepsake Box $12 | 10. Beetle Attachments Sticky Note Cube $18

1. Peacock Letterpress Scratchpad $7 | 2. Bubbles Letterpress Gift Tags $8 for a 6-pack | 3. Ming Memo $7| 4. Herons Letterpress Social Notes $14 for a 6 count box | 5. Pollen Jotters $6 for a 2-pack | 6. Oxford Letterpress Art Print Calendar $8 | 7. Pollen Letterpress Art Print Calendar $8 | 8. Jade Letterpress Gift Tags $8 for a 6-pack | 9. Crochet Memo $7 | 10. Flowerburst Letterpress Scratchpad $7

With the holiday season underway, we know that there’s going to be lots of gift wrapping in the near future! Add a special touch to your gifts this year with handmade bows — they’re beautiful and will add the perfect personal touch to all of your gifts. (And bonus — they’re really easy to make!)

You can visit us on Youtube to see the instructional video that we put together, which shows you the whole process step-by-step. We’ve also put together this handy set of instructions that you can print out. You’ll need some of our eco gift wrap, scissors, a ruler, and a glue stick or double-sided tape for this project. Happy wrapping!

If you haven’t gotten started on your holiday shopping yet, head over to our sale section for some great gifts for the paper lovers in your life! Sale section items are marked down to 50% off, and if that weren’t reason enough to start shopping, we’re adding a bonus: all proceeds from sale items purchased on Monday, November 28 or Tuesday, November 29 will be donated to Earthworks Oil & Gas Accountability Project to help raise awareness about hydrofracking. Through this project, Earthworks teams up with tribal, urban and rural communities to protect their homes and the environment from the devastating impacts of oil and gas development. Your purchases can make a difference! Need some ideas? We’ve put together some great combinations for gift sets with items straight from our sale section, so check out our picks! We’ve included a wide range, so you’ll find ideas for under $15 or $30.  Our sale section has also got some fantastic holiday cards & gift tags, so stock up before they’re gone!

Great Gifts under $15

Perfect for the person who loves to send little notes just because. Pair a box of our Ellie notecards with a box of coordinating petite folded notes — at just $7 per box, give these letterpress cards as a set for a pretty present at just $14.

Know a paper-crazy kid? Introduce them to letterpress with these sweet cards! Petite folds in fun colors with kid-friendly motifs come in sets of 8.  At only $7 per box, these would be great little stocking stuffers! Choose from our Ellie, Horsey, Liony and Ducky notes.

Great gifts under $30

Our Thackthwaite attachment is a pretty cube full of sticky notes — 700 of them, to be exact. Attachments from Smock are made from 100% post-consumer recycled paper and they’re FSC certified, so they’re eco-friendly and cute. Snag this deal (marked down to $9!) and pair with a set of blank Thackthwaite notecards for just $21.

Pair some flat social notes with one of our notebooks for another great gift idea under $30 — we love seeing our Horsey flat notes with a Persimmon notebook, a fun combination for only $16.

At just $2 per card, we love the idea of giving a sampling of cards (paired with a lovely keepsake box, like the Veranda box pictured below).  Simply choose 10-12 cards from our fabulous selection of designs, package your picks in a small keepsake box, and you’ve got a great present for less than $30. Cards for special occasions such as engagements, birthdays, a new baby or ‘just because’ will have the recipient of this thoughtful gift prepared for the year.

Holiday Cards

Don’t forget about holiday cards! Check out the beautiful holiday cards in our sale section — stock up on our Joy & Peace cards and send stylish letterpress greetings this season. Our Joy petite folds make great gift tags, and our Celebrate cards make lovely thank you notes after the gift giving is over. Looking for something more traditional?? Check out our Holly letterpress greeting cards or our festive Poinsettia gift tags – boxes sell for just $7 each!

We’ll be posting more gift ideas along with DIY projects for the holidays over the next few weeks (including tutorials for gift bows and the most beautiful holiday wreaths ever), so stay tuned!

How cute is this paper holiday dress!? Jessica Sanders from Salutations in Charlotte is the dress maker extraordinaire behind this beautiful Christmas cocktail dress – made with our double-sided, eco-friendly Mistletoe wrap, this dress has us so excited for the holiday season! Those presents and custom holiday cards are pretty as can be, too — be sure to stop by your local Smock retailer to take advantage of our custom letterpress holiday promotion and stock up on holiday essentials today!

Have you created a masterpiece with our eco-friendly gift wrap? Share it with us! Get in touch with details and photos today!

If you’ve toured the Smock offices recently, you probably saw the amazing bunting some of our team put together a while back (and if you haven’t been on a tour yet, look below!). Today’s DIY project will show you how to make your very own bunting in just a few quick steps – it’s easy! And you’ll only need a few items.

You will need:

• Your favorite Smock gift wraps
• Twine, rope, yarn, or ribbon (we love the way twine looks!)
• Scissors
• An adhesive of some sort — hot glue or double-sided tape

The first step of this DIY is to determine how large you want the little banners on your bunting to be. Ours are about 7.5 inches wide and about 9.5 inches high. If you want yours to be the same size, we created this handy little cutting guide for your convenience! Next, you’ll want to determine how much bunting you’ll need (for 25 feet of bunting, you’ll need around 42 little banners).

Cut your banners out with your favorite Smock gift wraps — we chose to mix it up & use a little bit of everything, but there’s tons of ways to make yours. You could use just one pattern straight across for a uniform look, or alternate the front and back patterns to switch things up while still color coordinating. You can also pick a few to varying wraps like we did for a vibrant, festive look.

Next, you’ll want to secure the bunting to the twine — there are a few ways to go about this. Before securing anything, be sure to give yourself a little extra twine (maybe a foot or two) to be able to hang the bunting. Then, start by making a small fold along the top of the triangle banner (the fold should be somewhere between a 1/4 and 1/2 inch).  Use your adhesive to connect the twine & paper — we used a handy tape gun (pictured above) with double-sided tape to quickly secure the twine to the paper, and this made the process really quick and easy. If you don’t have double-sided tape, a hot-glue gun would work well, too. We haven’t tried this with regular glue, but we’re sure it would work if you use something to hold down the folds while the glue dries. You’ll want to space your banners about 1-2 inches apart.

After you’ve secured your banners to the twine, you’ll notice little triangles that form from folding the paper over (pictured below) — just snip these little overlapping pieces off with your scissors for a clean, even look.

Repeat this process until you’ve created enough bunting for your decorating needs! If you didn’t pre-cut your twine, be sure to leave a little extra on the end to make hanging a breeze. The end result will be a perfectly cheerful strand of bunting!

Making your own bunting?? Share your images with us on Facebook – we’d love to see them!

What books have changed your life? What have you read that’s really stuck with you over time? We love a captivating read as much as we love letterpress around here, and while we know it can be hard to find the time to sit down and soak up a good book, we believe it’s important to make the time. So every now & then we’d like to share with you some of the books that have impacted us, and we’d love to know your thoughts – feel free to discuss with us in the comments section below! First up, Debbie Urbanski shares her thoughts on Half the Sky.

Hi. I’m Debbie, one of the co-owners of Smock. That’s my day job at least, though I went to school for writing, and one of the things I’ve been missing lately about my grad school days is discussions about books. Not just discussions such as, “Man, I don’t have any time to read anymore,” or, “I read this article on the New York Times website,” but discussions about books we actually read and loved, or didn’t love. Though the best discussions were about the books that not only we loved but books that changed us, sometimes because of content (like Nicholas Kristof’s book below), sometimes because the writing is so perfect (see Alice Munro, Runaway), or sometimes because of how a book captures us, or a previous stage of us (see Criss Cross by Lynne Rae Perkins, a beautiful tribute to a happy childhood). I’m starting to write this knowing no one has time to read, so here’s my secret: audio books from Audible.com. Audible has an amazing iPhone app that, dorky as it sounds, did change my life.  So from time to time I’d like to share some of my favorite books. And I’m always looking for recommendations — what books have changed your life?

First up is Half the Sky: Turning Oppression into Opportunity for Women Worldwide, written by power couple Nicholas Kristof and Sheryl WuDunn. I’ve been a Nicholas Kristof junky for awhile, but this book cemented my severe and utter awe of the man. Half the Sky is filled with examples of ordinary people who decided to devote themselves to making things better — specifically, making the situation of women better. It needs to be better (point 1 of the book). And it can be better (point 2 of the book — there is hope if we as individuals, and we as a country, actually start doing something!). Easy for me to say sitting here after 20+ years of schooling, and the two natural births of my children in a hospital birthing center, and all my access to good medical care and equal rights for my daughter, but oh, the heartbreaking examples of this book, and the equally heartbreaking statistics. From the introduction: “It appears that more girls have been killed in the last 50 years, precisely because they were girls, than men were killed in all the wars of the twentieth century. More girls are killed in this routine “gendercide” in any one decade than people were slaughtered in all the genocides of the twentieth century.” Wow. Kristof and WuDunn argue that the moral challenge of the 19th century was slavery; in the 20th century, the battle against totalitarianism; in the 21st century, it will be gender equality in the developing world.”

The book’s focuses are sex trafficking and forced prostitution; gender based violence (including honor killings and mass rape) and maternal mortality — and why does any of this matter to us? I mean, we know it’s all awful stuff, but why do we need to read an entire book about it? Kristof and WuDunn do address this: “Honor killings, sexual slavery, and genital cutting may seem to Western readers to be tragic but inevitable in a world far, far away. In much of the same way, slavery was once widely viewed by many decent Europeans and Americans as a regrettable but ineluctable feature of human life. It was just one more horror that had existed for thousands of years. But then in the 1780s a few indignant Britons, led by William Wilberforce, decided that slavery was so offensive that they had to abolish it. And they did. Today we see the seed of something similar: a global movement to emancipate women and girls.” I could go on and on about this book but actually my kids are waking up, so, in brief — this book would be the perfect gift for anyone college aged, who has the ability to spend a year abroad in a developing country during or right after school, as the authors encourage (how I wish I had done this rather than going to London for an off campus study program to study theater!). But it’s also the perfect read for any woman, or for anyone who cares about women, or actually anyone cares about the current state of the world, as well as the future of the world, which, hopefully, is everyone. Half the Sky is filled with inspiring examples of ordinary people who saw a problem and then decided to do something about it — and for any of us to make a difference, we first need to believe we can make a difference. If you don’t have time to read the book — well, read it. And if you still don’t have time, at least check out the book’s web site, or Kristof’s blog, or at least read his twitter feed for God’s sake!