We have some exciting news to share! We have finally opened an online shop!  For quite a few years now I have been interested in offering ready-made stationery. By ready-made stationery, I mean things like thank you cards, note cards, gift tags, and even holiday cards! So, this year we finally decided to pull the trigger.

Be sure to head on over to our shop! You will even find some holiday cards for the upcoming season, including our Merry & Bright card as seen above. Each holiday card you see is available for purchase as a single card or in larger quantities.  Don’t see exactly what you need? Feel free to inquire about a custom listing!

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We just wanted to pop in to wish you a happy Halloween! Our thoughts are also with those that have been effected by Hurricane Sandy. Please keep safe, everyone!

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It’s not uncommon for our clients to request that the address for their wedding website be included on their invitation. However, I always like to find a more discreet place for it whenever possible – as opposed to including it on the wedding invitation itself. In the case of a project I worked on earlier this year, I was also looking for a way to avoid the cost of adding an additional card to the set. On a whim, I suggested adding a little extra length to the reply postcard and perforating it so as to create a detachable website card. Fortunately, the bride and groom loved the idea as much as I did!

I made sure to design the website portion of the card so that it would work as a card on its own once separated from the reply card. The first line announces the marriage of the couple, followed by the URL for their wedding website and directions that remind you to tear along the perforated line before placing the reply card in the mail. Once the card is separated, it’s perfect for hanging on the refrigerator, attaching to a bulletin board, or can even be used as a bookmark!

If you have an idea for incorporating something a little bit different into your invitation set, or think you might be interested in some perforated letterpress cards, please let us know!

As usual, we try to keep addresses private – so please excuse the lack of photos showing the full set in its entirety.

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We hope everyone is having a wonderful fall! This is always the time of year when things are a little less hectic and we can take care of some things around the studio that are normally pushed aside when we’re extra busy. Currently, I have several boxes of invitation sets from past projects that need to be organized and stored properly. While looking through a few of the boxes, I spotted this letterpress invitation we printed for a wedding that took place last fall. Not only did the couple choose our Willow design, which is perfect for fall and winter weddings, but they requested gold ink as you can see in the image below.

Now, metallic inks have been pretty popular lately, but it is good to know that if you want a metallic ink to look exceptionally shiny, then you are probably better off choosing foil stamping as your printing method. Don’t get me wrong though, metallic inks can look lovely with letterpress and there are some tricks that some printers use to prevent the ink from losing so much of its shininess. In the case of this project, the bride was interested in gold ink, but did not want the end result to be too flashy.  Fortunately, she trusted me when I told her it would look great – and she was very happy with the end result!  The gold ink we used is what I would describe as an antique gold and goes really well with our pearl white paper.  I think the end result is quite subdued and sophisticated.  What do you think?

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I have always found it hard to throw away any sort of personal letter or card that arrives in the mail. I even like to keep the envelopes that letters arrive in, for there is something about the look of a postmarked envelope that I have always loved. Whether it’s an illustration on a vintage postcard or the gracefulness of a handwritten note – there is always inspiration to be found in this ephemera I’ve collected throughout the years. So, I thought it would be nice to share a few images of some of my favorite items I have kept along the way. (Oh, and in case you’re wondering, while some of these items were sent to me personally, I found the vintage postcards in the back of a used book store quite a few years ago. Not only are they fun to look through, but they can also be a great source of inexpensive art for your home!)

We would love to hear from you!  What sort of things do you like to hang onto?

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While I’m still hoping for some actual winter weather, I have to admit, seeing the trees budding (in February!) is making it a bit difficult to not yearn for spring. To hold me over a bit until all the flowers start blooming again, I thought it would be nice to share this invitation suite we printed last summer. These were actually printed for a local couple that were married in Raleigh, North Carolina this past fall. When going through some of our samples, the bride spotted some hydrangeas I had drawn for a previous invitation project. I made a few small changes to the illustration and after discussing some different layouts with the bride and groom, they settled on the design you see below.

Instead of the usual reply card and envelope, they chose to go with a reply postcard. We left some open space on one side for any guests that felt like writing a message.  Also, near the bottom of the postcard, we found the perfect place to list the wedding website.  To coordinate with their wedding, the bride and groom selected a pale blue ink and pearl white cotton paper. They also ordered pearl white envelopes with coordinating blue liners, as well as a box full of matching thank you cards!

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We recently added a new script to our typeface collection. Hiatus, designed by Stephen Rapp, is a connecting script that has a less formal feel than many of the scripts in our collection. It has a slightly casual, hand-lettered feel to it, while still maintaining a bit of elegance and readability. It can easily be dressed up or down – since it comes with numerous alternative letters and ligatures. It even comes with a handful of coordinating ornamental flourishes – perfect for adding a decorative touch to your wedding invitation, baby announcement, or calling card. Though we haven’t had a chance to add Hiatus to the list on our website quite yet, you are more than welcome to request it for your project! Below, you will find an example of Hiatus in use. Enjoy!

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We recently printed new business cards for the studio and thought we should share! We’re also working on adding a page to the website that will provide information on business card and calling card printing. If interested in ordering business cards, or if you are in need of a quote, feel free to send us an e-mail! Just be sure to specify whether you are interested in wood or paper cards, the number of ink colors if interested in letterpress, and the quantities you would like quotes for. Also, it’s helpful if you let us know if you will be providing a print-ready file or if you are in need of a custom design.

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Happy new year, everyone! As per usual, this is the time of year when inquiries start coming in more heavily and we find ourselves answering numerous questions about the ordering process. One of the most common questions we receive is, “When should I order my invitations?” Since we’ve never added a guide regarding invitation timelines to our website or blog, I realized it was time to do so. With that being said, here we go!

We recommend mailing your invitations approximately 6 to 8 weeks before your wedding date. If time is tight, don’t panic! It’s okay to mail them out a little closer to the wedding if need be. Just try to allow enough time for your guests to mark their calendars and reply back to you so that you can get an accurate head count before the big day arrives.

If you are having a destination wedding, you may want to consider mailing your invitations even sooner – such as 3 or more months prior to the wedding. In this case, you want to make sure your guests have plenty of time to plan for travel, accommodations, and time off from work if necessary. If the location of your wedding happens to be a popular tourist destination, or if your wedding is occurring around a holiday, then it is especially important to give plenty of notice so that plans can be arranged. Also, by being able to plan early, your guests may be able to save on airfare or may be able to book group hotel rates. Just keep in mind that if you send your invitations out too early, there may be a risk of them becoming lost or even forgotten.

If you want to spread the word about your wedding many months in advance, you may wish to send a save the date card. Save the dates are typically sent about 4 to 6 months prior to a wedding, or about 6 to 9 months in advance for destination weddings. Again, keep in mind the amount of planning that will be involved based on the location of your wedding, as you may find you want to send a save the date out even sooner.

Once you know when you would like to mail your invitations, you can easily figure out when to order them. First off, I suggest figuring out when you want your invitations in your hands. You need to consider the time it will take to address and assemble them.  If you plan on working with a calligrapher, be sure to check on their schedule and turn around time. In general, you will probably want to allow 2-3 weeks for the assembly and addressing process, though I know some clients have them ready to mail in just a few days. Keep in mind you may have to track down some addresses, so it’s always nice to have some wiggle room!

After figuring out when you would like your invitations to be in your hands, work backwards to find out when you need to order them. Recommended times may vary from one stationer to the next, but here at Oslo Press, we suggest placing your invitation order about 8 weeks prior to when you need them if choosing a design from our collection. If ordering a custom design, then we suggest ordering your invitations about 12 weeks or more before you need them in your hands. Also, it’s important to keep in mind any holidays, events, or travels that may fall during your order time. For instance, if you know you will be taking a weeklong vacation and won’t be checking your e-mail during that time, then definitely add an extra week to your ordering schedule.

Hopefully, this information will be useful to some of you! Again, if you’re on a tight schedule – do what works best for your circumstances when considering when to mail your save the dates or invitations. If you don’t feel like you have enough time to place your order, don’t be afraid to contact us anyway! When possible, we try our best to accomodate tight schedules.

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In celebration of the arrival of spring, we’re offering a special! If you order 100 or more wedding invitation sets before July 1, 2011, you will receive free shipping with your order. In fact, you will receive FedEx 2-day shipping completely on us! You can order either our wood invitations or our letterpress invitations to qualify for this special. Please note that all eligible orders must be shipped to an address within the United States in order to qualify. If you have any questions regarding this special promotion or our stationery products in general, please feel free to contact us!

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