I threw my first baby shower this year!… and my close friend had her first baby. Okay, one of these is more momentous than the other. The new mom is a laidback librarian-to-be, so she requested that for her baby shower guests bring books in lieu of other gifts (such a great way to build a library for baby!). From this we decided on a “bookworm” baby shower theme.

Inspired by Eric Carle’s The Very Hungry Caterpillar and all of the Paper Source circle card and sticker options, I started playing with baby shower invitation ideas. My first thought was to use 1 1/4″ circle stickers to create a little bookworm on an A7 folded card with hand written details on the inside, but I quickly realized my handwriting wouldn’t look so pretty after 50 invitations! This card idea, did however, turn out to work perfectly for coordinating thank you notes, which I presented to the mom-to-be as a gift.

Next I experimented with printable circle stickers Read the rest of this entry »

Who doesn’t love Halloween?… the perfect time of year to throw a spook-tacular party! This year we decided to dedicate an entire workshop to fabulous and festive Halloween Deadcorations. Mark your calendar for our workshop on Saturday, October 10th.

We will teach you to make frighteningly fun party decorations including coffin invitations, spider-webbed favors, bootiful candy corn placecards, and more. These Halloween goodies are sure to inspire a festive night of Trick-or-Treat fun for all ages! All you’ll need to come up with is the perfect Halloween costume!

Even if you aren’t planning a Halloween party, you’ll be able to use the tips and tricks you learn in this class for craft projects and party planning any time of year. Sign up now, seats are limited.

WHAT: Halloween Deadcorations
WHERE: All Paper Source stores
WHEN: Saturday, October 10. Times vary, see store for details.
HOW: Visit our workshop page to find your store & purchase your $45 ticket.

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

I just love the “aha!” moments when I make a discovery that saves time or turns the ordinary into the extraordinary. I had one of those wonderful moments when putting together my sister’s wedding invitations. My sister loved the richness of our satin ribbon, but the idea of tying a bow didn’t appeal to her. My solution? Use the ribbon as a decorative band for a pop of color.

In my quest to perfectly adhere our 1 1/2″ Satin Ribbon to the wedding invitations I reviewed all the standard options. Glue stick? Messy and time consuming. Double-sided tape? Would create visible ridge from the tape’s edges. Zots? Bumpy and lumpy. Liquid glue? Would soak through the ribbon creating splotches. Ugh! I was out of options.

Thankfully, I don’t give up easily. I spied our Baby Xyron, a great little machine that turns almost anything into a sticker – including ribbon… Aha! The results could not have been better. The ribbon adhered smoothly to the paper and the process was clean and quick. The final product was more than I’d hoped for – perfect wedding invitations with an elegant ribbon embellishment. I also layered on a 1/4″ Satin Ribbon with a little knot in reference to the happy occasion.

Read on for a list of materials and instructions needed to create wedding invitations in the style I did for my sister. The printed wedding invitation (so easy using our online print templates) accented with the satin ribbons is mounted onto a backing creating layers or textures and colors. A beautiful design for any special occasion!

–Sarah, Paper Source Oak Park Store
PS colors: rhubarb & moss
Latest fave: Owl Placecard Kit

Materials Needed:
A7 flat cards (backing) Read the rest of this entry »

During the planning stages of my wedding about a year ago I was looking for a way to carry a theme through elements like my wedding invitations, menu cards, etc. And although I am surrounded by inspiring design ideas and expert crafters everyday at work, I am NOT a crafty person myself, which means I needed a simple design solution. After ordering beautifully letterpressed Cottage Bloom wedding invitations, I turned to coordinating rubber stamps as something I could use to embellish other wedding decorations. In the end, the Cottage Bloom Rubber Stamps saved me and even made me a wee bit craft-savvy! I never imagined myself owning rubber stamps let alone using them in all aspects of my wedding day.

For an unexpected way to present my wedding invitations, I placed them inside A7 box mailers wrapped with a paper band stamped with the Cottage Bloom. This would be the first peek for my guests at the theme to come. Was the box mailer necessary? Maybe not, but expectations were high and my guests raved about receiving them in the mail! You can mail them in a number of ways – seal the box closed with stickers, then add a label and postage to the box lid…or wrap the box in cellophane and add a label and postage.

To incorporate the Cottage Bloom icon on my wedding day, I stamped them onto my menu cards and table tents. I printed the menu details onto Luxe Cream Fino 5” flat cards, then layered them onto Chocolate 5.5” flat cards, which were displayed at each place setting.

I used Luxe Cream Fino Table Tents to display table names, as well as to create a sign for the guestbook table. To create these I rubber stamped the Cottage Bloom design along the left edge of the table tent, then created a band using 1 1/2” Chocolate Satin Ribbon. Two layered flat cards contained the printed information – all super easy and high impact. I continued the theme by using the rubber stamps on our hotel gift bags, wedding programs, and even on our thank you cards!

All in all the wedding details looked beautiful (if I do say so myself), and all of the elements were very easy and economical to create. I’m now a rubber stamp believer – if I can stamp, so can you!

–Heather
PS colors: night & chartreuse
Latest fave: Satin Ribbon

I’m a sucker for a pop-up, so I knew I had to incorporate one into a spooky Halloween party invitation this year. There’s just something about the unexpected three-dimensional experience that instantly puts a smile on your face… and then, like a self-proclaimed geeky engineer, you can’t resist opening and closing it to see the mechanics behind it all. Creating a pop-up is actually quite simple, and once you learn, you’ll want to add pop-up elements to all your party invitations and greeting cards. Go ahead, let your inner geeky engineer shine!

–Annie
PS colors: eco-white & pool
Latest fave: 12″ Guillotine Trimmer — great for cutting large sheets of paper!

Materials Needed:
A7 Folded Cards Chartreuse Read the rest of this entry »

For fun and easy kids party invitations, we used our blank recycled printable invitations, and Smencils scented colored pencils to bring our robot rubber stamps to life. Be sure to use a fast-drying ink like Versa Magic to prevent smearing. Great for a kid’s birthday party, and the kids can help — they’ll especially love the scented pencils!

1. Rubber stamp robot images across the top of the invitation (here we used the robot chrome head, robot glass dome head, and robot square head).

Read the rest of this entry »