Author: Brendan English

I’ve always loved the idea of printing recipe cards, and was motivated to do so when planning my friend Lizzie’s bridal shower. When I was engaged, my mom and her girlfriends threw me a shower and included recipe cards with all of the invitations they sent out. At my shower they gave me a box full of recipes from ladies I know and love. I just love this idea and decided to steal it so that Lizzie could have a collection of recipes from her loved ones as well.

Because recipes are so personal and protected, passed down through the generations, I wanted them to have a handmade and homey feel.

Of course, I printed plenty of extras, and they’re available in my etsy shop.

Melissa Williamson is an amazing photographer who specializes in weddings. Because she has seen, captured and preserved so many unique elements of many weddings, and because she has such an eye for detail, she stretched me as a designer to develop something unique for her and her fiance, Ryan.  They wanted their design to be mainly typography based, vintage inspired and incorporate a tree and heart with their initials. Here’s what we came up with (I think they’re so sweet and fun!):

It was very important to the bride and groom that their invitation suite was as eco-friendly as possible. We decided to go with tree-free 100 percent cotton paper, Crane’s Lettra in Ecruwhite. It is made from recovered cotton that is waste of industrial textile manufacturing, it is soft and sturdy and such a joy to print on. It’s like buttah. We chose 100 percent recycled kraft envelopes for the invitation and the square response card, which give the suite a lovely, rustic vibe.

Each invitation, response card and its envelope were bundled together with peach baker’s twine.

We are working now on their ceremony programs and thank you notes, which I will post after their June 4th wedding. It’s such a pleasure to work with them. I can’t wait to see pictures of the other details they come up with for their big day. Thank you and congrats Melissa and Ryan!

Alex Matisse makes beautiful, beautiful wood fired pottery at his new place in Marshall, North Carolina, East Fork Pottery. I met Alex during college at Guilford, and shortly after he began a pottery apprenticeship with Matt Jones, overlapping with my Alex for a couple of months. The two Guilford pottery Alexs lived in a cabin in the mountains of Leicester together, making pots, watching movies and playing a whole lot of Grand Theft Auto (0r some car video game I can’t remember the name of).  I have many happy memories of this brief time in our history. Alex moved away for a while and is now back in the area with his lovely lady Connie, and we are thrilled that they are calling the North Carolina mountains home for now.

Alex and Connie contacted me about printing greeting cards for their business, which announce their first kiln opening.  Everyone in the area should do themselves a favor and attend. The land, kiln, pottery and people are all just lovely.

Here are some pictures of the card:

Alex, James Croonenberghs and and I helped out for the midnight shift of the first firing in the new kiln. I haven’t gotten to check out the pots from this firing yet, but I’m sure they’re just stunning.

This gorgeous print is on its way to me from Pearl & Marmalade. So the kind of work I want to be making…

Lizzie has been my friend since age 3, a bridesmaid in my wedding (and now I’m one in hers!), and now she’s a client. (Which is what I’m going to start referring to as, e.g. “This is my client, Ms. McKenna.” and “My client refuses to comment.”, etc.)

I have been working on Lizzie’s save the dates for her wedding, and this weekend she came in town to help me finalize what she wanted out of the design, and we got them ready to send out. It helped me crystalize some ideas I’ve had for her and Ben’s invitations, and it was super fun (because I got to hang with Lizzie and fellow bridesmaid, Elizabeth, and because we ate sticky buns and drank bellinis and got pedicures).

 

{the bride in her bling, stuffing envelopes}

I can’t wait for her July wedding and am just beside myself with happiness for her and her wonderful fiance. Ben’s love of old maps were an inspiration for these save the dates, which will be carried out through the invitations and wedding. In Illustrator, I made the map of Asheville and the little Grove Park Inn icon to mark the venue for their ceremony and reception. The overall layout never felt quite right until Lizzie and Elizabeth came over and we all talked it out. I’m so happy they were there because now it really feels totally right for them. My favorite thing about these, and about our ideas for their invitations, is that they feel like a true blend of Ben and Lizzie. I know their wedding will feel the same way.

Congrats Ben and Lizzie! More posts with thier invitations to come!

The beautiful Claire and Paul Knittle were the first of our group of friends to get married, and their wonderful wedding marked the beginning of an era for our group of friends. I suppose we’re at the age where we reconnect at weddings instead of house parties, and we are closer to having babies than being them.

I designed and printed their wedding invitations, going for a green leafy/floral theme that is very much Claire. They commissioned Alex to make their dish set, and when they came out of the kiln Alex and I were tickled at how similar our creations for them were. When Alex showed Claire the finished dishes, she pretty much flipped out. I can’t say that I blame her, they are beautiful.

We feel so proud that they trusted us with the invitations for their wedding and the dishes they hopefully use everyday.  Thanks for supporting our art and for being so awesome! We love you guys!

I’m so inspired and amazed by this beautiful Absinthe bottle.

Here are a few shots of my new business cards, hot off the press:

I’ll be including them with all purchases and handing them out. Super excited about them and so happy to finally have gotten a chance to print them.

For a post about the design check out this previous post.

Every year since Alex and I started dating, we’ve spent a couple of days between Christmas and New Years in a cabin (perhaps as a way to relive our early days of falling in love in his old cabin in Sandy Mush). While this is usually a joyous event for us, the 2010 New Year cabin trip was full of anxiety and stress on both sides of our family. The harsh winter froze these feelings into me. Instead of claiming my new year a week late, or a month late, I somehow decided not to start over until the next new year. This was not the best personal decision I’ve ever made, but I have been anticipating this opportunity to begin again for months now, bracing for another long, cold winter, and trying to take steps toward living the life I envision for myself. By the time 2010 was all said and done, it was, indeed, a worthwhile year, but I’m positive 2011 will be a fabulous one.

 Ten things I am thankful for in 2010:

1. Celebrating my first year of marriage with my beautiful, wonderful husband, Alex.

2. Having my amazing family close.

3. Finding a press that I love, and seems to love me back.

4. Having wonderful in-laws who have welcomed me into their family.

5. Discovering that Alex and I have the same goals to travel someday.

6. Having a day job.

7. Having a night job.

8. Finding various people and businesses with the same beginnings and dreams as I have, through this beautiful thing called the interweb.

9. Making back my money for initial studio costs and press through letterpress sales.

10. Realizing that I really do love my dog.

Eleven things that I look forward to in 2011:

1. Quitting my day job (???… ok, maybe 2012)

2. Finding a perfect paper cutter.

3. Seeing the work of Erik Minkin on TV.

4. Seeing Alex Minkin’s Thesis Photography show.

5. Lizzie and Ben’s wedding (posts with their save the dates and invitations to follow in the coming months!)

6. Celebrating Melanie and Scott’s engagement all year.

7. Working on the wedding invitations and other projects I have been entrusted with designing and printing.

8. Martha Stewart knowing my name (I’m ok with this one carrying over a year or two).

9. Learning more about printing.

10. Drawing more.

11. 11/11/11

For now, for the first few glittering moments of 2011, let’s believe that there will be a time in the year that I don’t slave away at a law firm, that I have more time to devote to the things that I love, and that I continue to grow as a person.

2011 is not the Year of the Rabbit. At least for this dreamer, it is the Year of the MINK.

The first batch of the Pohtzee sets are finished! A lucky few will be able to give them as gifts this holiday season. Unfortunately (and fortunately) the first batch went fast and we are backordered until 2011. BUT we went to Greensboro this weekend to fire the gas kiln at Guilford which contained a few more sets, some of which are not spoken for. We will post them on Etsy after the firing is complete.

Ninety percent of the credit goes to Alex for making these happen, but it was still a fun way to work together and combine our mediums. Printing is a solitary process that yields a product usually given from one person to another, an intimate process resulting in an intimate transaction. Pottery, on the other hand, requires a community to complete the entire process and yields a product that is often community based, like eating, drinking, serving, and in the case of Pohtzee, playing. Our mediums certainly say a lot about ourselves, but its nice to delve into someone else’s every now and then.

We were in the pottery studio at Guilford all day tending to the kiln, until 2 a.m. Fortunately it’s given us a forced block of time in a stressful, busy time of the year to relax and work on some projects that we have been putting off (which I can’t share until after Christmas!).

{My sweet, talented husband checking on the kiln}