The lovely Rachel of Benign Objects sent me a sweet email yesterday and a tip about a fantastic site called Inmod which allows you to custom design pillows and duvets. They have a variety of fabrics and endless color combos to choose from. So if you’re not one for making a pillow from scratch but still want to design your own; this is the site for you! Rachel was kind enough to share the set she created for herself and the combination is fantastic! I couldn’t let Rachel have all the fun so I gave it a try myself. See my set after the break:

Be sure to pop on over to Rachel’s blog to read about her pillow plight and her growing collection of inspiration. Happy designing everyone and have a splendid weekend! xoxo
(more…)

I seem to be on a mission to ruin our dinning table with all of my craft projects. In order to save our meal companion from further abuse I thought it’d be a good idea to make a work tablecloth. I wanted something that could be cute enough for an informal dinner and durable enough for a kids painting party. It took me about a half a day to make and I couldn’t be happier with the results. Below are step-by-step instructions for the whole project.

Materials Needed

Oil Cloth
Measuring Tape
Scissors
Sewing Machine
Thread
Pencil

Instructions

Step 1: Measure the surface of your table. Determine how much of an over-hang you’d like. I left 5 inches on either side. Measure and cut your oilcloth to the table dimensions plus the overhang for each side. My table, for example, is 35″ x 35″ plus 5″ over-hang on each side so I cut my cloth to 45″ x 45″.

Step 2: To make the scalloped edge I created a template of 3″ scallops on my computer which you can download here. Print the template and trim out with scissors or an x-acto knife. On the the back of the oil cloth mark where the over-hang is on each corner. This will determine where the scallops will begin and end (see the image below). Trace the scallops pattern onto the back of the oil cloth with a pencil along the edge of the cloth. Once the scallops are drawn along each side cut them out with fabric shears.

Step 3: To stiffen up the scallops and minimize curling, stitch along the edge of the cloth about an 1/8″ in. I used a wide zig-zag stitch with a low tension level on my sewing machine so that the stitches were close together. Any decorative stitch would work here.

Step 4: For an accurate fit, place your cloth upside down and centered on your table. At each of the corners grab the extra cloth and pin it vertically and snug to the table edges. Sew shut with a straight stitch.

Step 5: To finish it off, trim the extra fabric from the corners,turn right side out and enjoy!

*If you want your scallops to meet exactly at the edges you may need to adjust the size of the scallops to fit your table. Use this formula to determine the specific scallop width for your table: Divide the length of your table by 3. Round that number up to the nearest whole number. Then take the length of your table and divide it by that whole number. That’s how wide to make your scallops. You can make your own template using your computer’s creative software. Note: If your table is rectangular you’ll have to do that formula for both the long and short side.

I am SO excited to announce that I’ve opened up shop on Etsy over the weekend! I hope to be able to share more templates and other craftables in the future but for now I’ve got just the one project (in 4 colors). I’ve received several requests for my Baby Quiz Scorecards from my friends shower that I designed and hosted, and I thought it would be a good place to start.

These PDFs are editable, so you can fill in your own questions and answers and then print and cut. The best part is that once you’ve downloaded the template it’s yours to keep and use again and again! Below are some pictures from my first listing at the Twig & Thistle Store on Etsy.

Choose from Blue, Pink, Yellow or Green

To see pics from the shower that these were originally designed for check out Baby Shower: Part 1, Part 2, and Part 3. If you have any specific ideas on what you’d like to see next or more of, I’d love to hear from you! Just leave a comment below.

Besides the whole getting married thing, the invitations were my favorite part. As a designer I felt like I had something to prove by designing my own invitations so it turned out to be one of the most rewarding and intimidating aspects of the whole event. Needless to say, my husband and I love how they turned out and they were worth all the effort.

From top: Wedding Suite, Invitation, Thank You Notes, Thank You Card, Mailing Envelopes
*Note: No longer our address so we won’t be there if you decide to stop by for a visit

The Invitations, RSVP Card, Accommodations Card, Directions Card, Thank You Notes, and Envelopes were all letterpress printed on Crane’s 100% cotton Lettra Letterpress Paper by the very talented Bryce at Bjorn Press.

From top: Accommodations Card, Program, Dinner Menu, Thank You Note.
Photos: Twig & Thistle

The Programs were off-set printed onto the same Lettra Letterpress paper by the lovely folks over at Quality Press using a metallic ink. I printed the Menus on a large format digital printer.

That’s it for our trip down memory lane! It was an amazing experience and I’m so glad I could share it with all of you. Have a lovely weekend everyone and Happy Valentine’s Day! xoxo

Below are some more pictures from our wedding last year held at the Novelty Hill Winery in Woodinville, Washington. This was by far the most stunning location we visited when looking for a venue. If you ever happen to be in the area I encourage you to stop by. Its understated elegance and modern architecture are breathtaking.

More Pics after the break! (more…)

With all the love that’s in the air, it’s fitting that my husband and I celebrated our first anniversary this past weekend. I honestly can’t believe it’s been a year already! We both had so much fun at our wedding and I wish that we could go back and enjoy the day over and over. Thankfully we have our photos and I can look back as often as I like. Please join me on a trip down memory lane…

Inspiration board

To start, I thought I’d share my inspiration board that I created right after our engagement. It’s fun to see how this translated into the actual event. I picked yellow and grey as our wedding colors because I wanted something unusual and not overly feminine. My husband definitely appreciated this and was as equally excited about the color choices. Since our wedding was in February the yellow seemed like a good bright color that could add some warmth. The grey acted as a neutral tone throughout while silver added the little extra shine.

More pictures after the break! (more…)

Save the DateÂ

Wiley and Valentine, a new-to-me letterpress shop, has an extensive collection of wedding invitations. I quite luckily stumbled onto their great work through Parcel Post. Though it was hard to pick just one to highlight, the Island Fête collection stood out the most. I don’t know if it’s the ocean and bamboo color palette or the luxurious pattern but the whole program made me want to clap for joy! Simpley lovely details that I just couldn’t resist sharing. Be sure to check out the rest of their collections, truly amazing work!

From top: Envelope, Coaster, Invitation

More extraordinary pics of this wedding suite after the break! (more…)

My niece’s first birthday is quickly approaching and I’ve decided to try out a few projects for her upcoming party. First up is a fabric garland to decorate the walls and ceiling. I couldn’t wait to share this latest project because it turned out to be so easy and super fun to do! I wish I had a birthday party to celebrate every month just so I’d have an excuse to make these.

More pics and step-by-step instructions after the break! (more…)

I spent the better part of last week designing and printing our company’s holiday card. Considering that I had less than 24 hours to design and order the plates for letterpressing I’m pretty happy with how they turned out.

We needed a simple card that could be customized with a personal note and mailed to our clients. The design is a subtle nod to holiday sweaters while celebrating the beauty of letterpress. I did one pattern with snowflakes and another with reindeer. Below are some pictures of the cards.

Abby from Style Me Pretty posted a few pics from each of the 3 projects I submitted for her DIY Wedding Contest. Such an incredible honor to win!!! There were so many great and unique projects and I can’t wait for the next contest.

Abby has since asked me to be a contributing DIY editor on Style Me Pretty. I will be submitting projects on a monthly basis so check back for updates!Â

DIY Hot Cocoa and Marshmallows, DIY Custom Matchbooks, and DIY Custom Sparklers