If a fabulous letterpress thank you card is the perfect way to thank guests for celebrating with you, than undeniably the perfect way to kick off the festivities is with a show-stopping letterpress save the date. We love this recent Haddington save the date, printed for a fall wedding in Philly. Dreamed up by our friends at Judy Paulen Designs, featuring our Smock Spencerian calligraphy font in eggplant ink, its beauty lies in its elegant simplicity. It’s perfectly sweet and charming, printed on our smaller reply card size, making it both more affordable and more eco-friendly as it uses less paper. The motif is from our rousseau pattern, making it a truly custom design that we adore.
Today we are thrilled to welcome a guest to the Smock blog, Seana, who recently hosted the most incredible first birthday party for her daughter Madeline. Inspired by the Smock letterpress party invitations she sent to guests, Seana crafted a beautifully handmade, eco-friendly party that has us dreaming up any number of excuses to host great parties. Without further ado, Seana shares with us more about Madeline’s fabulous birthday celebration…
A couple months after my daughter Madeline was born, I was perusing the web for eco-friendly paper companies who had cute birth announcements. I came across Smock and fell in love with the Horsey stationery suite. I decided right then and there they would be the invitations for my daughter’s 1st birthday party. Needless to say, I never actually sent out birth announcements (I know, bad mom!) but as Madeline’s June thirtieth birthday was approaching, I went back to Smock and bought the invites along with the matching Delft correspondence cards for thank you notes. They became my inspiration for her party! I went with an aqua and coral color scheme and started planning the decorations, cake and menu.
It is very important to our family that we make as little impact on our environment as possible so Madeline’s party was planned with that in mind. On my home computer, I designed and printed the happy birthday banner and the party favor nametags. I bought some scrap fabrics and ribbons in coordinating colors in order to make the flag banners and “doilies”. One of my favorite projects was the picture banner. I made a fabric flag banner but left some extra space between the flags, there I used graphic clothes pins to hang home printed pictures of Madeline starting at birth and on through her first year. There won’t be a birthday party for Madeline every year but I will continue to hang the birthday banner, I’ll just change out the number. I will also continue to hang the picture banner, switching out photos for ones from the year we are celebrating. It will become a birthday decoration tradition and it’s much better to re-use than to buy new every year.
The cake, cookies and mini smash cake were fantastic! I went to this really great bakery right down the street from our home in Chicago, The Bleeding Heart Bakery. It is an organic bakery known for their innovative designs and the environmentally responsible way in which they operate their business. I brought in the invites and thank you cards for inspiration and they came up with a delicious carrot cake with the invitation horsey on it. They also made the bird cookies to look like the bird sweetly perched on the horsey’s back. Madeline’s mini smash cake was actually sweetened with agave nectar instead of sugar, a request I made so as to curb that sugar overload for such a small body, and they were happy to oblige.
I will admit that if there is a way that I can get out of a lot of clean up after a party, I am all for it. One way is to use disposable utensils, plates and napkins. Unfortunately using all of that plastic is just not good for the earth so I set out to find some environmentally ways to make the party easier without compromising quality. After doing my research I found some great alternatives. We used disposable, compostable bamboo plates made by the company Bambu and we used disposable, biodegradable utensils made from potato, yes potato! Called Potatoware, these utensils were strong, in fact a lot less brittle than your regular plastic kind. I really couldn’t justify using paper napkins, so we went with cloth, but that was ok, it gave me another excuse to add some color by tying the rolled utensils with ribbon.
The simple menu consisted of:
• Green salad made from our CSA lettuce, organic cherry tomatoes, onions and artichokes all topped with a goddess dressing.
• Fruit salad made up of our CSA strawberries, in-season organic blueberries and in-season cantaloupe.
• Cheeseburgers with condiments also coming from our CSA.
It’s amazing how you can have a fairly simple meal taste SO good just by using fresh, in-season local food.
It was not a very large party, just a few of our close friends and their kids but it was such a nice way to get together to celebrate our little girl’s first year. Madeline is the joy of our lives; she is such a happy one year old and she thoroughly enjoyed her party. We look forward to many more birthdays in the future!
Thank you, Seana, for sharing Madeline’s party celebration with us – we are so completely inspired! And, a big Happy Birthday to Madeline from all of us at Smock!
You probably already know that here at Smock, printing gorgeous letterpress invitations makes us absolutely giddy. With that said, the opportunity to print the letterpress invitations, escort cards and menus for the recent Modern Bride Trendsetters Awards Dinner was a sincere honor and so much fun! Printing beautiful things is what makes us excited about what we do everyday, but being able to print the invitations for such a fabulous event, honoring amazing wedding professionals we truly admire, was especially exciting.
The letterpress invitation to kick off the event was our Aberdeen design in grass and black inks paired with an envelope liner in our sottern pattern in a custom hot pink ink. Ensuring no detail was forgotten, the invitations were also corner rounded and edge painted in grass ink to make for a truly show-stopping invitation. How exciting would it be to get something this fun in the mail?
The letterpress menus and letterpress escort cards were also our Aberdeen design, printed in black and the same custom hot pink color. They were edge painted in gold and all of the pieces, including the invitation, featured pattern backing in our oesa pattern. We loved working with the editors of Modern Bride to create these pieces and love the final look – perfectly sophisticated, cheerful and undeniably celebratory.
This photo by Bee Kim, founder of Weddingbee and a Trendsetter honoree, shows the beautiful table design at the awards dinner where you can even see the letterpress menus at each place setting – talk about thrilling! You can read all about the fabulous time had at the awards dinner on Weddingbee PRO and on Wedded Bits, the Modern Bride magazine blog.
We loved seeing our Rhon letterpress wedding invitation design in pewter and verbena inks pop up in this beautiful inspiration board featured here on The Inspired Bride yesterday. We think this kind of sunshine-filled inspiration is perfect for a vibrant summer affair and we extend a big thank you to Maddy of The Inspired Bride for including Smock! Also, The Inspired Bride is celebrating the launch of their beautiful new site, so be sure to pop over and visit for lots of fabulous ideas sure to inspire.
{Inspiration Board via The Inspired Bride}
Inspiration Board Credits:
Decorated Tent, The Knot
Placecards, Martha Stewart Weddings
Groom’s Tie and Boutonniere, The Knot
Bridesmaid’s Dress, Jenny Yoo
Table Card, The Knot
Planter Decor, The Knot
Cake, Cake Girls
Invitation, Smock
Honey Jar Favor, The Knot
Having first printed beautiful letterpress wedding invitations for Cathy and Tom in our Cavall design, we were sincerely thrilled when No Regrets in Newton, Massachusetts contacted us again about printing letterpress event schedules for the couple’s guests. Using the same size booklet as our letterpress program covers, we created a completely custom piece where we letterpressed the exterior and offset printed all of the weekend event information on the inside so guests would know where to be, what to see and what to wear the weekend of Cathy and Tom’s celebration. The exterior is letterpress printed in raspberry and peacock inks while all of the details inside were flat offset printed in peacock. We also corner rounded the booklet to give it that perfect finishing touch, making it a truly special way for the couple to welcome their guests and invite them to join in on all of the weekend fun.
Thanks to team at No Regrets for the great opportunity to print something so special and fun!
The Miami Herald featured Smock this week and it was so exciting. We were blown away by their amazing compliments – we love when others are as excited about what we do as us! According to the Miami Herald, our bamboo “paper’s texture is soft and elegant, and the impressions made with the cast-iron presses create a quality only possible with a craft requiring the personal attention to every detail provided by Smock’s employees – successfully mixing an antique art with contemporary charm.”
BRIDES magazine blog also mentioned Smock recently, citing our suggestions for ways to trim costs while selecting letterpress wedding invitations. Looking for ideas to keep letterpress budget-friendly? Consider using 1 ink color and opting for a reply postcard instead of a traditional reply card with envelope – both are sure to save you money without sacrificing great design.
Style Me Pretty, one of our absolute favorite wedding blogs, featured our new letterpress wedding invitation designs, recently unveiled at the 2009 National Stationery Show. Style Me Pretty also hosted a giveaway featuring our latest letterpress thank you card designs, perfect for both bridal and everyday correspondence. Thank you, Abby, for sharing our new designs with your readers! It’s always a thrill to see our letterpress wedding invitations and letterpress cards pop up in fabulous places!
Other great Smock mentions: Great photos of Smock’s National Stationery Show booth on RiverDog Prints | Maria from Ritzy Bee visits Smock at NSS | New Smock Everyday cards at NSS on design*sponge | According to Hip Hostess, Smock makes lovely letterpress | Nicole of a little sussy lists Smock as one of her favorite vendors at NSS | Smock sponsors the Brooklyn Pop Up Wedding Series | Kristen of paper crave features Smock’s new letterpress Everyday cards | New Smock letterpress Everyday cards on Freshly Blended | Traditionally Modern Designs features Smock’s letterpress cards on sustainable bamboo paper | My Mom Shops features Smock at the National Stationery Show
We can’t think of anything that shows gratitude and appreciation more than a beautiful hand written note on a lovely letterpress thank you card printed on soft bamboo paper. We’ve printed a few lately that have left us dreaming of mailboxes full of sweet sentiments on pretty letterpress cards and could not resist sharing them.
Brought to us by Perfectly Personal by Jen in Chappaqua, New York, this Rhon thank you note is printed in saffron ink on ivory. This card is sunny and bright and sure to bring smiles to the faces of loved ones.
Printed in pearl and clover, these pretty thank you cards are our Chasseral design. Created by Paper Dolls of Saratoga in Saratoga Springs, New York, these note cards are the perfect way to thank loved ones for sharing in your celebration.
Using our Cavall design in 1-color letterpress, printed in raspberry ink, these letterpress thank you cards were brought to us by No Regrets in Newton Centre, Massachusetts. Sitting down to write thank you notes can only be considered delightful with cards as lovely as these.
It’s pretty much a given that here at Smock we are absolutely in love with paper, but we also happen to have a great love for chocolate. Dark chocolate in particular. With that said, it should come as no great surprise that we are completely fascinated by the inspiration behind Vicki Petersen’s store, Paper & Chocolate, in Dallas. A store dedicated to two things we absolutely love? Heaven!
With a unique background in computer programming, later to become a CPA, Vicki’s dreams and passions came together in 2006 with the opening of Paper & Chocolate. Having always been a lover of paper and having taken several classes in calligraphy, letterpress and bookbinding, the time was finally right to make the leap and allow her creative side to take over. Offering a wide array of stationery, gift wrap, greeting cards and custom wedding invitations, alongside an incredible selection of gourmet chocolates, Paper & Chocolate is one of those places we could browse for hours.
As the idea for Paper & Chocolate was forming, Vicki had the opportunity to visit the Minnesota Center for Book Arts and with a true passion and love for bookbinding, she decided to open a store that would focus on paper and offer classes and workshops to visitors. The first location she found offered unique character and a great patio and fireplace, but sadly also came coupled with a lot of structural issues that resulted in her finding another location in a popular Dallas shopping district which boasts a great Art Deco theatre, the Inwood Theatre. However, during that time the concept for the store grew and, with the hope of one day including a café, Vicki took her husband’s suggestion and named her new venture Paper & Chocolate, after her two favorite things.
Today, Vicki loves working with brides to create the wedding invitations of their dreams and looks forward to the bustle of lunch time when working professionals in the area stop by to check out the shop while away from their desks. She even has a smaller press where is she able to give customers quick letterpress demonstrations and to share with them the true art form that is letterpress printing. If you’re ever in Dallas, you want to be sure to visit Vicki at Paper & Chocolate!
And, of course, we had to ask Vicki…
If you could describe your personality in letterpress, which Smock invitation would you be and why?
Vettore! I love the design, classic yet distinctive. The horizontal orientation makes it elegant and unique. The color choices are endless so for someone who always wants change it is perfect.
What’s your favorite chocolate treat? What’s the most unusual chocolate you’ve ever had?
I love our Wiseman House Wild Woman Truffle. It is dark chocolate at its best. I have to say I am a traditionalist so I love my chocolate to taste like chocolate. I don’t love the unusual chocolate flavors, but I love the sea salt chocolate-covered caramels by Fran’s.
What’s your top pick destinations for first time visitors to Dallas?
I think most people have a stereotype of Dallas that doesn’t fit the reality. We have an incredible art district centered around the Dallas Museum of Art and the Nasher Sculpture Center so that is where I would start. In the evening, I would take a visitor to the Meyerson Symphony Center, a contemporary structure designed by I.M. Pei that has the feel of an old world concert hall with incredible acoustics. Of course, in between all that would be lunch and dinner at some of our well known restaurants, Stephen Pyles or Fearings, and then some smaller gems like Sharon Hage’s York Street Dallas or Nonna. The art district is growing and this fall our new opera house and performing arts center will be opening.
Where are your favorite places to shop?
The shopping in Dallas is outstanding so locally I usually shop at small shopping areas like Inwood Village, where we are located, Preston Center and for a large shopping center, NorthPark Center. Away from home I love the Pearl District in Portland and abroad, anywhere on the Left Bank in Paris, especially the Sunday organic market, Marché Raspail.
What’s the best vacation you’ve ever taken?
This is a tough question for me because I was able to spend a summer in London with my oldest daughter. I think I loved that most because we actually lived there and felt like we knew London and our neighborhood so much better because we lived, shopped and walked there every day without feeling like a tourist. Paris, however, is my favorite city so it is my favorite vacation spot.
What new trends in stationery and gifts are you in love with right now?
I am still in love with letterpress so every new design delights us and we love showing them to our customers. We also love the people are enjoying really beautiful gift wrapping for their gifts.
Can you describe the sweetest or most memorable card or stationery you’ve ever received?
Anything from my 3 year old grandson is what I love right now!
Thank you so much, Vicki, for giving us a glimpse into Paper & Chocolate – we can’t wait to make it to Dallas to come visit!
Our first Smock Real Party feature is particularly near and dear to my heart because the party was none other than my very own bridal shower! Hosted last month by my incredible bridesmaids, we shared an amazing day of great food, even greater friends and amazing sunshine. What more could a girl ask for? And to be perfectly honest, the lovely women in my life far surpassed any expectations I could have had and then some. It was a truly wonderful and memorable day.
I will admit that it was a bit awkward for me to be banished from helping with shower preparations. I am very much hands on when it comes to social occasions and being on board to help with baking, cooking and logistics, but this time I wasn’t allowed to know anything aside from where and when to be. Upon arriving a few minutes before the other guests, the first thing I noticed were huge trays of cupcakes and tons of white roses. Two of my favorite things in life? Cupcakes and white roses. I knew right then and there it was going to be a great day.
And the food! There was such a spread of food it makes me smile just thinking about all the effort that went into creating this feast. (I am told it involved color-coded spreadsheets and the aide of Google Docs to bring it all together!) Lots of fresh fruit and miniature sandwiches, bruschetta and caprese skewers, pasta salad and cheesecake, it was sincerely the best food I’ve had since the last of the holiday cookies were eaten up this winter.
I absolutely adored the favors the girls dreamed up for all of the guests – tiny flowering plants potted in petite little terra cotta pots. During the party they served as added decor and afterward each guest had a little plant to take home to their garden. It was such a fabulous idea! Truly, no detail was forgotten. From fresh mimosas as guests arrived to little slips of paper at each seat asking each guest to impart a bit of a wisdom, it was such a special time for me to spend with the women closest to me prior to our wedding in July. Even my favorite colors, foods and flowers and my love for monograms were taken into consideration for a day that was infused with incredibly thoughtful personal details. It is certainly a day I will long remember – thank you to all of the ladies who made such an incredible day possible!
Do you have an upcoming event? A great birthday party or anniversary celebration? Email hello@smockpaper.mom and we’d love to feature it on our Smock blog!
Have you heard about the Brooklyn Pop Up Wedding Series? Smock is proud to be a sponsor of this unique month-long event, which will culminate with one lucky couple winning a dream wedding styled by the editors of Martha Stewart Weddings! Other organizers include our friends at The Wedding Library, one of our favorite wedding bloggers, Vané of Brooklyn Bride, and the friendly folks of 303Grand.
On Saturday, June 13, Vané will be hosting a cool party featuring a raffle with some amazing prizes, with all proceeds benefiting the I Do Foundation, an organization that helps bride arrange charitable donations with nonprofit organizations. One of those prizes will be a set of 100 one or two color letterpress save the dates with printed envelopes or personalized stationery from Smock! If you’re in Brooklyn, make sure you’re there on Saturday night – the first 25 brides to show up will score incredible gift bags, too!
