Not sure what is about us designers and our infatuation with Pantone. You can pretty much take anything, slap a Pantone swatch on it and I’m hooked! Bait, line and sinker; I’ll take it all! The latest is this concept for Pantone paints on spotted on Lovely Package the other day and I felt compelled to round up some of my other Pantone branded favorites. What’s not to love; simple, colorful and plenty of white space!

1. Pantone Matryoshka Dolls by Yar Rassadin 2. Pantone Paint by Samy Halim 3. Pantone Cosmetics Concept by Renata Veiga via Lovely Package 4. Panettone by Purpose via Lovely Package 5. Pantone Mug from Exit 6. Pantone Chips on Canvas by AppleBlueSeaGreen

One of the things I love about falling down the rabbit hole that is ffffound is that you never know where you’ll come out. Case in point, today I discovered Duet Letterpress; a husband and wife team who’s work is A-MA-ZING! These examples are a few of my faves. Also make sure to check out their blog and Etsy store, they’re both worth the visit!

I got the sweetest email from Susan of Silverbox Creative and had a chance to check out some of their work. I just loved scrolling through their blog archives and seeing all the beautiful things they’ve done and then I came across this adorable invitation for an adult summer party celebrating Shark Week. It’s so refreshing to see a whimsical party invitation for grown ups don’t you think? And Susan tells me that they aptly served bloody mary’s as well; hysterical!

Thanks to Susan for letting me share these invites with all of you and happy Friday to everyone! I’m taking a photography class from Nicole Hill of A Little Sussy this weekend and I’m giddy with anticipation! I’ll see you all back here on Monday. xox

Images: Silverbox Creative and Martha Stewart

I know it’s a bit early for all these Valentine’s Day posts but I can’t resist! I had so much fun creating this new bag for all of you that I just couldn’t wait to share! Plus, I wanted you to be able to have time to get bags, print, make goodies and fill with time to spare.

Inspired by all things sweet and love related, I created this little pattern and printed onto the bag directly from my Ink Jet printer. If you don’t have an Ink Jet or if your printer doesn’t allow you to print odd formats, you could always print the label onto sticker paper (found at office supply stores) and post apply it to the bag. Fill with cookies, muffins, a handmade card, or whatever it is that your special someone will enjoy. Download the file here and enjoy! xoxo

Perfect for projects like these or for other crafts and gifts the White and craft paper bags are available through my Etsy shop here in bundles of 25.

Jasmine Wright of KURO, a design agency in California, was kind enough to send me a link to some of their recent work. I’m beyond thrilled that she shared this project with me and I’m sure you’ll all feel the same.

This visual idenity and collateral was created for a “new, very chic, very luxurious, cowboy themed” bed & breakfast called A Cowboy’s Dream. The details, oh my! I love that each peice is so uniquly different and yet the system hangs together seamlessly. I adore the added touches of design in the most unexpected places like the bottom of the cast iron pan or the wax seal on the shampoo and conditioner. As I always say, it’s all about the details…

And don’t get me started on their stationary! The letterpressed letterhead and bussiness cards are exquisite! Even their tag-ling is charming! Check out the rest of the goodies here on Behance.

*REMINDER! Today is the last day to enter the New Year / Blogversary Giveaway! I’ll be picking a winner this weekend and announcing it Monday, don’t miss out!

I’m taking a quick break from holiday posts this morning to share a little bit of sweetness with all of you. This is by far one of the most amazing and romantic proposals I’ve ever seen. Not to mention just plain cool. Australian illustrator, Guy Shield, drew this beautiful structure which appeared to be a series of random illustrations but when folded the message appeared. Not only is Guy fantastically clever but I just love his work and the color choices. Guy shares his process and the turn of events on his own blog, Turn Olympus to Atlantis. His story had me all choked up like you wouldn’t believe!

Via: Drawn! – Thanks Joseph for the tip!

If letterpress were a drug I would be such a junkie! I never get tired of looking at it and I daydream about what each piece looks like in person. I imagine the texture of the paper, how deep the impression and the use of color. I could go on… but I don’t want to scare you. This latest project pressed by the brilliant letterpress shop Studio on Fire makes for the perfect “fix” if you will.

This one color wedding invitation was designed by the groom, Osamu, for his wedding in Japan this December. Something about the use of gold is just breathtaking to me and I adore those charming silhouettes. I admire their non-tradition format as well and each piece in the suite is so well thought out. Check out Beast Pieces, the design and letterpress blog of Studio on Fire for more pictures and all the letterpress goodness to give any fanatic the shakes

Aren’t these just the cutest placemats ever?! I knew the first time I saw them that I needed to find an excuse to use them. These pop-up placemats come with 4 characters per set and coordinating reposition-able vinyl stickers so little ones will spend more time playing with their mat than their food! Each one includes an activity area on the back as well. Choose from Hello Robot, Hello Me, Hello Jungle or maybe all three!

There’s nothing I love more than seeing good design for all ages. I was thrilled to find out that Hello Hanna is a company co-owned by Anne Schultz and Jina Choi. Both are mothers and designers with a strong focus in early childhood development. I recently discovered that Anne used to work for the company that I am at now so it was fun to chat and compare notes. I’m so excited to see what these two come up with in the future and wish them both continued success. To learn more about this great team and to purchase your own set of mats be sure to check out Hello Hanna.

I’m still blushing from my mention in Bride & Bloom magazine this month, so you can only imagine my glee to recieve the latest issue of Memory Makers Magazine to find a whole page dedicated to the guest room gifts that I made for our wedding! It’s such an honor to to be included in this edition of DIY wedding projects. Thanks again to Abby of Style Me Pretty for listing my project as one of her favorites and providing this oppertunity. Pick up your copy of Memory Makers Magazine today, it’s chock full of great wedding & craft projects!

Images by me

I was day-dreaming of a vintage candy shop when I created these. This set includes four different patterns so that you can mix-and-match or just choose your favorite. Fill them with sweet treats and they make the perfect favor! Be sure to visit Style Me Pretty for the full post and to download the templates!

For some other exciting news, Abby is featured in this months edition of Bride & Bloom. The article is a behinds the scenes look at Abby’s life as a professional blogger. Being the huge fan that I am, I just had to have a copy of my own. I picked it up over the weekend and to my surprise I discovered that Twig & Thistle received a little shout-out as well!!!! At the end of the article is a section of Abby’s top 5 favorite things for weddings right now and she lists the DIY projects and favor boxes that I’m creating for her!

I’m completly honored to be included in her favorites list. A BIG thank you to Abby for the mention and congrats on her continued success! Be sure to pick up a copy of Bride & Bloom for yourself, it’s a stunning magazine and the article is fantastic.

Everything about this new identity for Photographer Lisa Lefkowitz is stunning! I stumbled on this update via my daily visit to Hello! Lucky the other day. I’m loving the pale teal and gold color combination. This exquisite identity, collateral system and site design were done by Melanie of Collective Lines. In a word: lovely!

Hello friends! My apologies for not posting yesterday, I took the day off to celebrate my husbands birthday. We ended up going to an amazing restaurant here in Seattle called How to Cook a Wolf. For you Seattleites I highly reccomned it. Yumm!

Anyhoo, back to T&T land! I spotted this AMZING wedding shoot on (my all time favorite blog) Style Me Pretty yesterday and I just couldn’t resist sharing some of the pics here. The details OH MY! Every last element has been thought through. It’s images like these that make me wish I could get married over and over again. Is that weird?! This was done by the talented Gloria of Gloria Wong Design and will be featured in the Fall / Winter 2009 issue of Brides Northern California due out September 1st.

Don’t miss a detail of this shoot! Be sure to check out all 5 parts to this feature on Style Me Pretty: Part 1, Part 2, Part 3, Part 4, Part 5

Great patterns, great colors, landscape options? What’s not to love about these Owl & Lion notebooks?!

Owl & Lion Via ffffound

Loving these pocket workbooks I spotted on ffffound yesterday! The colors and patterns are beyond charming and for around $9.00 a piece they’re pretty affordable too! See Wendy’s whole collection in her Etsy shop and visit her blog Dozi and Flickr set for updates and inspiration. Wouldn’t a set of these make a perfect gift for back-to-school?!

I love me a good matching game and the Switzerland by Momento happens to be my current favorite, however, I think this new one by the Brazilian design studio ps.2 could be a new contender. This typographic memory game was created as a self-promotion and features 20 different type families. It comes complete with a typographical glossary and history of each font, making this a designers dream game and a typographer’s porn

Via: We Love Typography Via: iDiY

As promised, I’m back with a few more pics from the Stache Bash we celebrated last week in my office. These 3 gentlemen are the winners! Each took home a prize ribbon and a moustache key chain – never to be without some face fuzz again! I found the adorable keychains on Etsy by Majesty Inc. As for the prize ribbons I’ve included a tutorial!

1) Cut out two 1.5″ x 10″ strips of paper and score every half inch on each.

2) Accordion fold the strips at the score marks.

3) Connect the two strips into one with double-sided tape. Then connect the two ends so you have a continuous loop.

4) Cut out two 1″ circles

5) Flatten the loop and squeeze inward so there is no space in the center, next hot glue a paper circle onto the center of the flattened loop. It helps to have a second pair of hands for this step. Repeat for other side.

6) Glue ribbon onto the back side, these can be paper or fabric, whatever strikes your fancy.

To make the Moustache Sticks from above simply print out the template below onto brown paper, cut and glue to a wood skewer! No need to wait until next May, Moustache parties are guarenteed fun year round! Enjoy!

Click here to see even more pics from the HADW Stache Bash 2009.

On the morning of the event each person in the office was greeted by a ballot and personal moustache at their desk. No reason we couldn’t ALL join in the fun!

This turned out to be such a fun event to plan and celebrate. Stay tuned for more details from the day, the winners and a few DIY tutorials.

Click here to visit NotCot to learn more about this amazing collection and see more products and patterns. Have a lovely Friday and long holiday weekend everyone! xoxo

(Thanks Javas!)

We were out enjoying the unusualy warm Seattle weather this weekend when I spotted a Starbucks undergoing a remodel. Normally this wouldn’t seem all that special but this is the second Starbucks to get the rustic makeover treatment. As such, they’re pulling out all the stops right down to the detail going into the plywood covering up the construction. It’s actually two layers of wood with the top layer painted then routed out. The result is type and illustration with a wonderful dimensionality. The store won’t be open till July, luckily there are literally three other Starbucks within 150 yards of this one to serve you until then. (You don’t know Starbucks density until you live in Seattle, trust me.)

More pics after the break!

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