I'm Stuck On Stuck Labels

I recently discovered this great new company, Stuck Labels, where you can purchase sheets of pre-designed labels that you customize with whatever text you want. The designs are simple, pretty, and elegant and are perfect for adorning favors or even sealing envelopes.

When you purchase the sticker sheets, they come with a template so you can easily insert the text you want, in whatever font and color you want, and print them on your home computer. I am really digging the Vintage Green Oval design.

What a great and affordable way to customize all of your gifts and correspondence. I think I need to come up with something to create just so I have an excuse to get some!

New Holiday Designs

Over the past month, Envelopments has released several new Holiday themed designs that have really got my creative juices flowing! November and December have long been my favorite months of the year for reasons I am sure I don't have to explain. From all of the yummy food to being able to decorate my house from top to bottom, it doesn't take much to get me into the spirit of the season.
I am particularly loving this knit hat design. Living in a state that sees alot of snow, knit hats are a daily requirement around here. The hats and mittens warming by the fire is adorable!

I have always been a fan of the blue and silver combo that you typically see for Chanukah. Adding whimsical dreidels and a touch of gold is so elegant and pretty.

I want to celebrate all of the holidays of the season, because regardless of which religion you follow, the themes and feelings are the same. Everyone coming together to celebrate family and the bond that all humanity shares. When we all might believe that peace can exist and all men (and women) are inherently good. Truly a magical time of year!


With that said, it's time for me to get started on my Holiday cards!

Fall...In Love With Vermont

Fall is my favorite season. Probably because I grew up in New England and learned to appreciate the crisp air, sweet apples and gorgeous foliage that descends upon us before the bitterly cold winter. It's the last hurrah before we all hunker down in our houses in front of the fire.

I chose Fall for my wedding because of the spectacular colors and scenery in Vermont during that time of year. I couldn't imagine any other backdrop for the most magical and special day of my life. My husband also has an affinity for Fall (proof that we are perfect for each other!) so on October 14th of 2006 we pledged our undying love to each other.

As we celebrate our 2nd year anniversary (yes I realize this is a little late- it was Tuesday) we reflect on why we chose Fall. As we drive through our small country town in awe of the fiery color that is overtaking the mountains, or the vibrant reds, golds and oranges that glitter in the sunlight above our heads as we drive through tree lined streets. There is something peaceful and content about Fall- like a well earned reward after all the work of the Summer. The sweet and tart of a crisp, ripe apple that whisks you back to a childhood full of jumping in piles of leaves and carving pumpkins.

It is homey. I want to bake pies and crisps. Heat up stews and soups. It is very similar to the feeling of knowing the person you are with is the love of your life. The feeling of creating a cozy home and nourishing each other's souls. True, Summer is really 'Wedding Season' with it's great weather and warm evenings. But Fall has a magic for me that Summer can never produce and so Fall will always mean love to me.

Fall Inspiration

1. Windham Fabrics Sweetpea- Purl Soho 2. Beehouse Lamp- Yar Rassadin 3. Birdseed and Polka Dots Cloth Napkins- Creations By Rachel 4. Acron Tree Illustration- Mary Kilvert 5. Bread & Butter Plate- Amy Butler 6. Beautiful Bouquet Ideas- VT Vows 7. Apple and Bird- Gypsy and Twink 8. Know Me Journal- Anthropologie 9. Isabelle Half Apron- Creations By Rachel 10. White Pumpkin Candles- Pottery Barn 11. 1708 Lima Romana Fruit Print-Volckamer 12. Olivetta Owl Duvet Cover- Pottery Barn 13. Twig Bowl- Pottery Barn 14. Reception Ideas- VT Vows 15. Butterfly Card Set- Anthropologie 16. Birds on a Wire Vinyl Wall Decal- Single Stone Studios

Who Knew?

I never thought that I could get so excited about paper- recycled paper that is. Last night I placed my first order for some recycled card-stock from Paperworks, an online store specializing in Neenah brand paper. I was beyond excited to find a bazillion (no, I'm not exaggerating!) options for environmentally friendly paper- it made it so hard to choose.

I had to prioritize. What type of paper did I need? I am going to create some note cards to be printed off of my laser printer as well as some I am going to Gocco print (more on that later). I also am going to create some invitation fill-outs in two different sizes. And of course I need envelopes. After much deliberation I settled on a pack of White Felt Finish 80lb cardstock- it has a soft felt finish to it and is perfect for my screen printing. A package of white PLIKE 95lb which supposedly has a soft, velvet-like finish to it and is laser compatibility guaranteed. And finally, but certainly not least, a package of Green Grocers Bag 65lb coverstock (and matching envelopes too!).



I might be more excited about the Green Grocers Bag cardstock than anything else. It's 100% recycled paper and looks exactly like what the name implies. It will not only make beautifully rustic invitations and note-cards, but will also become the wraps I will use to package my cards for sale. Now all I need is a custom stamp for my logo!

In the next couple of weeks I hope to get my Etsy shop up and running so everyone can see what my brain has been tirelessly working on for the last few months.

Update

Whew! The past week and a half has been quite busy for myself and Truly Noted. We actually got some nice, sunny weather here in northern VT so it has been nice to get outside and enjoy it!

This week I finished putting together some advertisements that will run in two of Vermont's premier wedding magazines, VT Vows and Vermont Bride Magazine. I am very excited to be appearing in both publications since they each played a huge role when I was planning my own wedding in 2006. In addition I will be putting together a fun little take-away that will be available at the VT Vows Wedding Affair show held at beautiful Shelburne Farms. I can't wait, I am sure it will be fabulous.

I Heart Word Clouds

So I have noticed this really cool thing on a bunch of other blogs recently, but had no idea where they were getting it- a word cloud. Today I just happened to stumble across what seemingly everyone else has already found, Wordle. Wordle is this cool applet that allows you to plug in any text you want and it will automatically generate your very own word cloud. Basically a word cloud is a jumble of words mashed together in a seemingly random pattern with some words larger and more prominent than others. The size of the words is based on how many times that particular word appears in whatever text you plugged in. You can also choose how you want to text oriented- vertical, horizontal, every-which-way - the font, and the colors.

Even cooler still, you can plug in a URL for a blog or any RSS feed site and it will automatically pick up all of the text from it. Here is what I made based on the Truly Noted blog:

Cool, huh? I can see this being a really cool, unique aspect of a wedding invitation with the names of the bride and groom, special places they have been, adventures they have had together and even just special phrases and words that are meaningful to just them. I am definitely bookmarking this site for future inspiration!

Truly Noted Is Now A Licensed Envelopments Dealer!

I am excited to announce that Truly Noted is now an official Envelopments dealer/designer! I have been using Envelopments' products to create invitations for a couple of years now, but didn't think to apply to become a licensed designer until recently. There is the obvious perk of being able to purchase their paper products at wholesale, giving me greater flexibility in the price that I charge for the end product. But even more than that, I am excited to have the resource of a relationship with the company.

Their website is a great source for inspiration and design ideas and with the license I also receive the official Envelopments design library. This will allow me to show my customers all of their choices for color, texture and pattern. All around it's a great first step for Truly Noted. I can't wait until my design library arrives!

Fun With Fonts

I just got my monthly e-newletter from MyFonts, the best online resource for any type of, well, type that you are looking for. You can search by style, name, foundry, or if you are unsure of the name you can upload an image of a font that you like and use their What The Font feature to find out exactly what font it is. Each month they send me their newest Rising Stars to drool over, and maybe even perhaps buy.


This month I am enamored with the new Aviano Serif, an addition to Aviano and Aviano Sans that were hits last year and voted 'Best Display Couple'. With it's beautifully simple flourishes and a classic elegance, I can see why its a rising star. I particularly love the special characters for certain letter groupings, like EE and OO.


The other stand-out from this month is Oxida- designed to have a ragged, rusty edge. You can't see the details except in a large text size, so it would be best used as a headline on a poster or perhaps on a book cover. Even still, the elegant calligraphic feel of the type would lend itself well to an invitation even without the detail of the rusty edges.

Since invitations can vary in style greatly I try to be prudent about any special fonts that I buy. It needs to be something versatile enough to apply in many situations. Many of the fonts that come standard on a computer already fit this bill pretty well and I try not to get too crazy with really specialized fonts that may only serve a purpose once and then sink to the bottomless depths of my hardrive to never be seen again. But it is fun to browse!

In The Beginning

In the beginning there was just a passionate graphic designer who wanted to start her own company creating fabulous, unique invitations. With some help from her family and friends, she came up with a name, printed some business cards, put up a website and waited for her dream to come true. And this is the story.