Change: It’s a great thing

Change is a part of life. Everything changes eventually. Sometimes the change is within our control and sometimes it is not. Some changes seem like they should be in our control, but in reality have already been made for us.

Take my wedding for example. Last time we spoke, I told you that it was going to be a fall wedding at my mother’s house in central Virginia. Maybe we would have a harvest theme; maybe we would have a string quartet play us down the aisle…

Well, none of that is happening anymore. Now we are having a destination wedding at a resort in St. Lucia - pretty big change. This was decided by my fiancé who, apparently, did have a “picture perfect wedding” in mind all along (I’d told you that she did not).

At first, I was a little freaked out. I mean we had to scrap all of our plans and start fresh. Also, none of our extended family would be able to come to the wedding due to the added expense and time. But then I realized that everything would pretty much be taken care of for us. And once we spoke with our wedding planner, Sharon (who is included in the resort wedding package), I knew that we had made the right choice. Sharon has been amazing, we give her our vague ideas and half thought-out plans, and she gives us a finished product. She has had options for even our most random wishes. Working with a wedding planner is wonderful; she is a one-stop for all of our questions.

With a change of wedding venue comes a change of wedding theme. Here are just a few of the new invitation options:











L'Oiseau from Hello!Lucky












kurai from Smock.












Foliage from elum

So, what do you think?

Pretty different from the browns, oranges, golds and reds of an autumn harvest isn’t it? Different, but good. Change is taking me somewhere I probably never would have gone otherwise, that’s what change does.

Good times…

- Aaron

The Press of Tradition

Tradition is something that I have heard a lot about over the last year or so. When times are tough, families and individuals alike return to a “simpler time”; a refrain used over and over again on the news, in commercials, on talk-shows. Whether “simpler” means family game night or entertaining at home, people look to the past for both comfort and the reminder that we can and will get through these tough times.

There is no style of social stationery products that is more traditional than letterpress. With its crisp lines and beautiful antique styling pressed on rich, textured paper; letterpress conveys a look and feel that is comfortable, safe. Letterpress also has a unique elegance that lends itself to everything from birthday cards to wedding invitations, to coasters and gift wrap. And by its very tactile quality, something letterpressed adds an extra dimension, an extra sense, to the joy of receiving.

The letterpress contingent comes out in full glory at the National Stationery Show. From the bright, stylized nature motifs of Old School Stationers





to the simple,witty one-liners of Albertine Press,










to the elegant lace patters from Copper Willow Paper Studio,







to the luxurious invitation designs by Elum or Twig & Fig – to name but a few among the nearly 100 companies that feature letterpress in the Show - letterpress is as diverse and prolific as the industry itself.

We are seeing growth in the use of this very specialized printing process, and expect that the 2010 Show will delight buyers with new interpretations and uses of a process that has been around since the 1500’s. A process that, in my opinion, has aged quite gracefully.

- Aaron

“Client Visits”

Recently, Patti and I had the opportunity to visit with two NSS exhibitors while we were on a trip to California.

Our first stop was San Francisco (or, more accurately, Emeryville) to visit with the folks at Cardstore.com

Cardstore.com offers personalized cards for every occasion, and they license artwork from exhibitors in the National Stationery Show for its on-demand portion of the business. Some of these companies include Driscoll Design, Great Arrow Graphics, Spruce Avenue and Pipo Press – to name but a few.

Their offices are in this former industrial section of town, and they occupy a few spaces on the block – all just steps away from each other. They have one area for their offices (with loft ceilings), one for print and production and another for fulfillment. It was fun for Patti and me to see their printing equipment in action – and to see the custom orders coming out the other side. The VP of Operations, Paul Felber is amazingly knowledgeable in all kinds of printing equipment and inks (that’s years of experience for you), and he described how the different machines worked to Patti and me. I love this behind the scenes stuff! I’m sorry I can’t show you!

But here is a photo outside the office.

That’s Paul (L), Matt Cedillo, account manager (center) and Marty Reed, the company’s new CEO, (R) . (Matt has been my main contact at the company for 3 years and it was fun to see him in his home environment, so to speak).

Patti and I also met with Katy Borden, the Creative Production Director, but alas, only after this photo was taken. Katy has a great artistic eye, and I had a lot of fun getting to know her.

On Monday, I received this great, personalized thank you card from Marty. (I’ll just show you the front…)

The design is by Lilla Rogers Studio.

The next day, Patti and I went down to La Jolla, and got to stop in on Elum Designs! I have known Melissa and Brad Foster since before they joined the National Stationery Show for the first time back in 2002, so needless to say I was thrilled to have the opportunity to see how they create their beautiful line, and what it takes to store, pack & ship!

When we were visiting, we got to see Melissa finishing up an order of gorgeous letterpress invitations to a swanky fete that was being held in, of all places, White Plains! (That’s where we are, here at GLM). Her choice of paper and ink color and overall design – exquisite! It sure made me want to go to that party! (Don’t worry, I didn’t crash it!)

Elum has a few Heidelberg presses to handle the volume of custom letterpress invitations and announcements they create. I love these dependable machines – they look so big and clunky, and make a bit of noise, but they produce such lovely, even delicate results. Here’s one all inked up for a run. The press guys were shy about having their photos taken, though!

We also were treated to a tour of the warehouse. I was amazed by all the products there – staged to be shipped. I get to know exhibitors products by how they display it in their booths. So to see all the great giftwrap, notecards, journals and those amazing stationery desk sets (a Best New Product winner at the 2008 Show) on high shelves was really cool. I got a better idea of the sheer volume of products that this company is turning out. And to think, they got their start just a few years ago with a few lines of letterpress invitations. That Melissa, she’s talented!! (And she has a great team, too!)

When we were there, Patti asked about their efforts to be a “green” company. Brad told us that they use tree-free and recycled papers for their various products, and that they even recycle their steel-backed letterpress plates.

Here’s Melissa and Brad in one of their workrooms at the offices / warehouse.

You might be able to see that their workspace is clean, bright, organized and beautiful. What else would I expect from such a well-run company?

Thanks to both of these great companies for allowing Patti and me to have an inside look at their operations! We love to always be learning about how our customers do their business in order to fulfill the needs of their customers!

“Until next time!”

Kelly