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When I last visited Blue Barnhouse before their departure from Asheville, NC to Wilmington, NC, I was informed about an organization called Ladies of Letterpress. My initial response was naturally “hey! I’m a lady! I love letterpress!” I visualized a small local group of printers, similar to knitting circles and neighborhood quilters. When I went online to investigate further, I learned that it is a national organization with representative printers from nearly every state. I felt very lucky that the upcoming conference was to be held in none other than Asheville, North Carolina. “Hey! I live there!”

When I walked in for the first panel, I started spotting some craft, letterpress and blog celebrities. I mostly kept to myself but it was super cool being in the presence of other printers just starting out, veteran printers with established businesses, and top tier printers whose work I know and admire. Panels focused on topics like starting a letterpress business, using social media to share and promote your work, and what the future holds for letterpress.

In addition to the panels, there were also various demos and events held at Bookworks, including paper making, tabletop press printing, and die cutting. I’ve heard that die cutting can tear up your press, so I’ve been debating looking for another press that’s not in great shape so that I could dedicate it to die cutting. But I learned how capable my press is of this kind of work – and it really opens my world up in terms of what I can create on my press. After seeing the demo on a press very similar to mine, I’m confident that my press can die cut without harming itself.

On Saturday night, a classy reception was held at the Venue, where the keynote speaker, Judith Berliner of Full Circle Press, gave her speech. It was moving, entertaining and inspiring. She printed broadsides for all of the attendees, with the following words by Beatrice Warde. I will hang it in my new studio that my handy husband is in the process of planning.

“This is a Printing Office. Crossroads of civilization. Refuge of all the arts against the ravages of time. Armory of fearless truth against whispering rumor. Incessant trumpet of trade. From this place words may fly abroad, not to perish on waves of sound, not to vary with the writer’s hand but fixed in time, having been verified by proof. Friend, you stand on sacred ground, This is a Printing Office.”

Brides like Danielle make my job so much fun and so very easy. From the beginning, she was open to new ideas and based on working with her on her invitations – I think she and her fiance, Steven are going to throw a beautiful wedding this Fall. Can’t wait to see the pictures!

We’ll be working on their ceremony programs over the next couple of months – stay tuned!

If you have read this blog before, I’ve probably made it perfectly clear how much I love my dear friend Lizzie and her fiance Ben. Hopefully this wonderful couple could feel the love I put into their invitations. Their wedding is in less than THREE WEEKS (!!) and I will certainly post pictures of their ceremony programs, thank you notes, etc. after their wedding. For now though, CONGRATS to this beautiful couple… I’m so honored to be a part of the wedding.

I always try to squeeze a little note to the couple on a response card, but I love the idea Lizzie brought to me of actually designating a spot for it. She has told me that they have gotten wonderful words of excitement and encouragement in their message section on their response cards.

All of the invitation elements were tucked inside a vellum envelope and sealed with a gold wax “C” for the last name the couple will soon share.

We decided to use the map that served as the background for their Save the Dates as the invitation envelope liner. It again features the Grove Park Inn as the focal point of the liner, and includes the surrounding roads, trees, and mountains of Asheville, NC.

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.