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As Paper Source expands in Chicagoland I thought my weekend adventure to a destination near two of our newest suburban stores might interest artists and crafters who seek local inspiration.

A good friend told The Mister and I about Cantigny Park in Wheaton, IL. Read the rest of this entry »

As the remains of Blizzard 2011 slowly wash away, and ugly *dibs materials return to more appropriate indoor storage areas, we Chicagoans cannot stop ourselves from thinking spring. Those of us working at Paper Source, both at the Chicago corporate office and in our 43 store locations, also find promise of a changing season in daisies!

Why are we so fond of daisies?

A daisy is associated with simplicity, innocence, loyal love, beauty, purity and patience. It is one of the few flowers to have absolutely no negative symbolism. They exude a positive energy that is ideal for those who suffer from winter fatigue, and a genuine happiness that transcends geographic location.

Our daisy pattern began as a simple line drawing of a small daisy cluster, showing the fronts and backs of the flowers. We also incorporated a few closed blooms, as if they had not yet opened their eyes to begin the day. Like many of us! (Did you know: Daisies open during the day and close at night?) Read the rest of this entry »

Oh boy! Baby fever continues and this time it is my oldest, dearest friend who is expecting a little bundle of joy. Her first! And, like a good crazy “Aunt” Liz, the news prompted me to send her a litany of whimsical nursery room decorating ideas for welcoming baby Grayson. My best friend has always had style—a contemporary and coordinated style much different from my own—so it came as no surprise when she sent me a picture of the modified Wildness Madness suggestion I threw her way.

It is just the beginning, but the tree and color scheme provided perfect inspiration for her upcoming baby shower. Here’s a glimpse of the invitations Read the rest of this entry »

A few weeks ago Cindy asked readers to talk about their wedding inspiration and the discussion showcased so many thoughtful themes. It also gave me pause: What the heck was my inspiration?

The Mister and I knew we wanted our guests to have fun, but we needed it to be a little more meaningful than the usual “Party at Joe and Liz’s.” We kicked around a dozen possibilities – my I-give-up-let’s-go-to-the-courthouse suggestion was nixed – and went with what made sense: a hometown Indiana celebration. (I know what you’re thinking, here come the corn, cows and country line dancing. Think again.)

Once we picked home as the destination, our personal commitment to supporting small businesses quickly fueled the planning process. A friend opened up his beach-inspired restaurant and bar (Yes, I got married in a bar) to us for our late September wedding. Rental needs were managed by a family-owned business. A local jeweler helped us with rings, a long-time friend and judge officiated the ceremony, and a family friend took on the task of creating floral designs out of found natural objects of the season.

Our newly planted Chicago roots were not lost in the occasion either—Carol’s Cookies sat on our cake table instead of cake and, of course, Paper Source designs helped set the tone for the evening.

So how does this all come together? Read the rest of this entry »

Since it’s back to school time I thought I’d choose one of my favorite teacher appropriate cards and tell you a little bit about the company who created it. The card I’ve chosen is called Apples made by Salmonberry Studio on Whidbey Island, Washington.

Salmonberry Studio is actually a lovely woman named Francy Kling Blumhagen. An artist for over 30 years, Francy got her art degree in painting from the University of Washington in Seattle. She works in a variety of media including block print, woodcut, collage, and wax resist. While Francy was busy creating art, her late husband, Bob – who I had the great pleasure of knowing before he passed away – ran the business side of their little publishing company. He LOVED their company with all his heart, and when Paper Source met the pair at a trade show several years ago, we began a long lasting and memorable relationship.

The thing I love about buying cards from Salmonberry is that I know every single one is made by hand with passion and love. Each card is hand signed too, so your recipient (maybe your favorite teacher?) will know he/she is getting something special. Their library of images is so vast that I am almost sure to find a card for any occasion. Because of this, you’re likely to see different Salmonberry Studio images in Paper Source stores throughout the year.

I hope you’ll stop in our stores (sorry, not currently available on our website) and check out the detail of these little works of art. They are truly special cards made by a truly special woman. And I’ll never forget her wonderful husband, Bob, who paved the way for Francy’s art to touch the world.

–Gretchen, PS Buying Team
PS colors: fuchsia & moss
Latest fave: 2011 Paper Source Academic Grid Wall Calendar

Is it wrong to collect something that wasn’t meant to be seen? No, according to me and my Paper Source work mates. A few months ago I brought in my collection of security envelopes and tacked them to my inspiration board. Each day since everyone in the Design Department has been adding to the mix! They’re really quite beautiful and detailed.

Some of the envelopes are duplicates so I made some origami with them. Read the rest of this entry »

When planning your wedding, what inspired you? It’s interesting to reflect on this question after the fact. My friend Linda shared photos she had taken from my wedding in the fall of 2007, and through these photos it’s clear – the place John and I were married, on the shores on Lake Michigan, was the inspiration from which our wedding was built.

The beaches we had walked, so many visits prior, provided the foundation – rocks! Both of us love to comb the beach for smooth, layered rocks and through our visits had collected enough to use as natural wedding favors at the place of each of our guests.

The warm browns and varied greens of the landscape and porch of the inn where we were married inspired our color scheme, including green striped wedding favor bags for the kids and petit chocolate bars – an edible favor for the adults! Read the rest of this entry »

For the design team, working on the Paper Source calendar collection is a true joy and privilege. Having all of us work on the 2011 calendars results in a creative variety of design and illustration styles, tied together in look and feel by the PS color palette. Like clever little squirrels, we spend the year gathering inspiration and sketches so that come spring, we have a surplus of creative ideas for our new calendar designs!

You can see some of our favorite illustrations, patterns and designs in our 2011 Letterpress Calendar, Wall Art Calendar, Mini Desk Calendar and Academic Grid Calendar. Have you seen Archie the dog? Or the classic cruiser bicycle (see Elaine’s bike inspiration)…or the serene forest? You’ll also see our new colors­ Persimmon, Peacock, Sunshine and Paper Bag featured prominently throughout the designs.

This year, we were given the opportunity to create brand new calendar formats! So, without further ado, please allow me to formally introduce 3 new additions to the Paper Source calendar collection:

1. Great BIG Calendar: Clean, classic typestyles in bright bold colors on our lovely new Paper Bag. As the name implies, it is nice and BIG so you can see it halfway across the room! The Great Big Calendar is perfect for a classroom or office.

2. Booklet Calendar: To be truly honest, Read the rest of this entry »

It’s funny “living” in a space – you tend to overlook things after awhile, especially when it’s busy (which at Paper Source, it always is!). But all around our office space in Design, there are inspiring moments, some of which we have created. The old doors Sue, Paper Source founder, use to collect for our very first stores, now serve as a “bulletin board” for the inspiration gathered by our Design team – magazine pages, fabric, print outs from the web, etc. And Ms. Linda, with her artistic photographer’s eye, has captured their grit and beauty – a gentle reminder to pause and look around every so often!

P.S. Take a close look at what inspires our team, perhaps you’re somewhere up on our inspiration doors!

– Cindy
PS colors: persimmon & paper bag
Latest fave: Keep Calm and Carry On Water Bottle and Colored Dots Insulated Lunch Bag