I recently found myself needing a gift for a friend of mine… a friend who has everything. I came up with the idea of making him a set of decorative kraft letters in his initials. Although I’ve used glitter to decorate these in the past, I wanted to try a new technique that would create a handsome piece he could display on a shelf in his home.

Turns out heat embossing using a metallic powder creates an elegant and sophisticated finish. I used the VersaMark Watermark Inkpad on the kraft letters, sprinkled on embossing powders in a mixture of Jade Patina and Metallic Copper, and used the heat embossing tool to set in place. Combining those two embossing powders created a patina that looks similar to an old penny.

In the past I’ve decorated kraft letters with glitter by covering them in PVA, then sprinkling on glitter. These “JOY” letters in True Red Glitter make a great holiday decoration – use in a centerpiece arrangement or display on a mantle surrounded by evergreen branches. You could achieve a different red finish by using the heat embossing technique described above and Cherry Twinkle Embossing Powder.

My gift of the “JC” initials was extremely well-received, because it was personal and unlike anything he had. They turned out so well in fact that I decorated other kraft letters to display in our store!

–Ken, Paper Source NorthPark Dallas Store
PS colors: chartreuse & pool
Latest fave: Woodgrain A2 Embossed Stationery

What could be more personal than creating custom stationery for a special friend? By choosing specific paper colors, embellishments, and adding their name you are honoring their personality and creating a one-of-a-kind gift. A stationery set can be as simple as a collection of note cards and envelopes, but by adding other letter writing components like labels and pens, or personalizing the stationery with rubber stamps, you create something truly unique.

To take it over the top include a custom return address embosser plate – an easy and elegant way to add a return address to envelopes. Finally, be creative in your presentation – put all of your stationery items into an adorable suitcase, or organize them inside a linen folio.

Here are some things you might need:
• Flat cards & folded cards
• Envelopes
• 8.5″ x 11″ text paper
• Labels
• Stickers
• Pens
• Return address embosser plate
• Rubber stamps – try alphabet rubber stamps to add a name or monogram

As the holidays approach, consider making a set of personalized stationery for family members, or as a thank you gift for a teacher who has made a difference in your child’s life.

p.s. If you’re looking for inspiration on making your own stationery, sign up for our Personal Stationery – Handmade Gifts Workshop taking place at all stores tomorrow – Thursday, November 12.

–Linda
PS colors: chartreuse & pool
Latest fave: Saddle Stitch Notebooks

I’ll admit there’s some pressure when you’re giving a gift to a fellow Paper Source employee – they know the products and secrets all too well. We recently threw a baby shower for our lovely and talented coworker who is having her first baby, and I put together a gift basket on behalf of the group. Filled with all kinds of special baby goodies tied individually with satin ribbons, the basket came together nicely…but I wasn’t quite satisfied.

Though full to the brim, the basket itself was lacking so I added a banner strung across the front with miniature paper animals secured to a ribbon with tiny wooden clothes pins. Irresistible and easy, I promise. I cut out the animals from sketch drawings I did on the back of our dots gift wrap keeping the silhouettes simple and rounded. If animal shapes seem too detailed for you try cutting triangles for a pennant banner instead. This extra special detail made the gift one to remember.

p.s. We are so excited to announce the birth of Molly – congratulations to new mom, Carolyn!

–Kristen
PS colors: pool & chocolate
Latest fave: Gold, Pink Dots Nesting Box – great to have around for last minute gift wrapping.

This past Sunday I turned 37. How can I be 37? My birthday always makes me think of back to school time. I still remember being 7 or 8 and getting my new school shoes in early August and letting them sit in their box in my closet until I got to wear them on the first day of school. I would open the box every day to smell the new leather and would plan what to wear for the first day of school for about a month. Too bad I don’t get a new outfit and shoes bought for me every August anymore….boo hoo….being an adult is so hard! I am however excited to buy myself a new date book. This fall I’m going to buy the L’apres Midi Date Book. It’s so cute with little watercolor illustrations and French sayings painted throughout. It’s also really cool because it is an any-day diary, meaning it comes without specific dates. You just plug in your own schedule. It seems so happy to me and I like that quality in something I have to look at every day!

There are a couple of other new things Read the rest of this entry »

Sometimes trying to be environmentally conscious and still loving to shop puts me in a bit of a bind. We all have that one friend who claims to care about the environment but nevertheless drives a three-ton suburban mini-tank to her yoga classes, or happily sucks down 14 plastic bottles of water a day. Fortunately, in my ongoing quest to avoid being a total hypocrite, I have discovered a few gift ideas that we carry at Paper Source that are both environmentally responsible and attractive. One problem that I’ve always had with eco-gifts is that I love bright, saturated colors, but “green” items tend to be full of neutrals—lots of burlap and browns. Lucky for me reusable and colorful Read the rest of this entry »

We’re really excited around here about our new Paper Doll Kit. Our staff can’t seem to get enough of it–many of us and our families have been spending countless hours coming up with fun ensembles and paper doll characters (and their pets)– and we’re not done yet!

We thought we’d start sharing some of the doll creations that have been circulating the halls here. (The dolls shown here were created by Haley, daughter of Rhonda in HR, with some help from brother Evan, and by our summer intern Tracy.)

More to come — we hope you enjoy this new kit as much as we do!

P.S. A great tip from Crysia, the store manager at PS in Boston: in addition to the removable adhesive dots in the kit, try using Xyron repositionable adhesive for doll clothing and accessories– great for using those outfits again and again.

–Fabra
PS colors: gravel & chocolate
Latest fave: Teflon bone folder

Clockwise from top left: ballerina and go-go gal made by Haley; pilot made by Tracy; robin hood and redhead made by Haley and Evan.

At Paper Source, we’re constantly working to come up with interesting and beautiful ways to do calendars. Last year, we launched our first wall art calendar, a large-scale poster display of gorgeous saturated color. This year, we had a “paper engineering” brainstorm to come up with a fun new take on a monthly calendar– we were aiming for something neat and small, yet super utilitarian. And thus was born the Mini Calendar. It’s so multi-talented, we like to think of it as our little workhorse. Read the rest of this entry »

We’ve all had them and we’ve all used them. The free calendars that businesses often give away each year (think your local bank or dry cleaners) become a necessity when trying to collect a family’s activities all in one place. Yet the part we all most appreciate about these freebees is the grid, not the art (as lovely as those pastoral scenes may be!). This year we decided to try our take on the grid calendar, hoping to make it both useful (on desk top or wall) AND artful.
In the past when we’d go to print a new pattern, Sue our founder would encourage us to tail onto the print run a variety of extra sheets of our PS colored papers – just to see how they would look once printed. It was a great way for us to learn how different color combinations printed on the solid paper backgrounds. Through this experimenting, we discovered that a tone-on-tone effect of pattern on our colored papers was simply beautiful. We couldn’t wait to find an excuse to try this technique on the right PS product!
And so was born the 2010 Paper Source Grid calendar, 17 months of tone-on-tone pattern in Chartreuse, Pool and Papaya. And yes, a nice big calendar grid for capturing all of life’s details. It’s truly a pleasure to flip through and adds a burst of color wherever you use it!

P.S. While proofing the calendar press runs Karen discovered a pile of production waste paper that she brought back to share with the team. We LOVE the ink pattern patchwork of layers resulting from the multiple runs through the press (see photo at right). Now we just need to think of a new product to use it on…

– Cindy
PS colors: chartreuse & pool
Latest fave: PS India Elephants Wrap – I love the proud marching elephants with their beautifully painted toes!