Also if you are interested in the giveaway I spoke about in the video read on!
I'm really excited to be teaming up with two lovely ladies this week for a giveaway full of lettering goodies! Brooke Holden Calligraphy, Fete and Quill and I came together to do this giveaway where one lucky winner will receive:
Rhodia blank pad
Straight nib holder
Nibs
Dr. Ph. Martin's Fine Art Watercolor in Turquoise Blue
Pental Aquash pen
2 Tombow brush pens
Embossed cards
Envelopes and metallic paper
Journal
Calligraphy drill sheets and worksheets by Brooke Holden Calligraphy
HOW TO ENTER TO WIN
1) Visit www.instagram.com/kristen.brockmon
Like the photo (see below)
2) Follow @bhcalligraphy, @kristen.brockmon and @feteandquill (if you're not already!)
3) Share in comments below your description of a perfect Saturday! (Doesn't have to be related to calligraphy/lettering).
4) Repost this pic with hashtag #SaturdayGiveawayGoals
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For extra entries: Like Brooke Holden Calligraphy, Cut Above Stationery and Fete & Quill on Facebook!
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Giveaway ends Saturday, January 14 at 10 AM EST. Not affiliated with Instagram or Facebook. Open to everyone. Good luck!
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4 Parts Pearl Ex
1 Part Gum Arabic (powder)
4 parts water
One thing I did forget to mention in the video is after mixing the ink always test it on the paper stock you will be using, let it dry, and make sure it doesn't smear. If it does try adding some more gum arabic. I do this with all my inks, in my opinion it's worth the extra time. It's terrible when 35 envelopes in you realize the ink / paper stock are not interacting well and you have to start over!
Hope you liked this video and let me know how you like Pearl Ex Pigments!
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Looking back at 2016 it was quite a year for me personally and for my business. For those of you that don't know me personally my husband and I moved from Philadelphia, Pennsylvania to Saratoga Springs, New York. My husband took an amazing job and I got to head back to New York to be closer to my family.
That may sound like big changes and don't get me wrong it was but the biggest changes were in my career. Bringing in 2016 I made a decision that I was really going to devote a large chunk of time to continuing my creative education. I am a big believer in never stop learning. Throughout my life I have always had one creative hobby after another. I would master a skill (or at least get the broad stokes) and immediately want to move on and learn something else. I believe this is what fuels me, and keeps inspiration coming.
In mid 2015 I really lost site of that and began to feel burnt out on what I was doing. That is when I decided to put a few things on the back burner that were particularly draining and really invest in learning again. And it has been amazing!
Doing this has completely verified that I need to make time for learning and creative growth no matter how many other things I have going on. Not only do I feel doing this has improved the work I create but it has sparked some ideas for the future of Cut Above Stationery that I am very excited about.
I'm not quite ready to share everything I have planned but I will say I want to help people feel as happy and confident with their ventures as I am with mine. In the next coming months I will delve deeper into what I have in mind so keep posted and join the newsletter for the latest happenings!
Have a very Happy New Year!
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Bespoke Invitations typically have custom illustrations, calligraphy, gorgeous paper and ribbons tailored to the invitation design. They are designed by a professional stationer designer who can help you with every little detail when it comes to stationery. These invitations tend to reflect the event and the couples personality perfectly because the invitation is being designed for the couple. Lets face it they end up being absolutely stunning, one of a kind, and come with all the extras. Sounds amazing right? I mean they really are but the stationer also spends a lot of time designing and producing such a beautiful invitation suite which costs money. They will most likely end up costing more money than a pre-made design. However, a lot of stationers do have little tricks in their back pocket to help keep costs down if needed. So if this is something you are interested in I would try to contact a stationer letting them know your budget, what pieces and quantity you would like to see if they would be able to work with you.
Places like Bella Figura, Smock, or Crane have some very nice designs to pick from. They have options to get some add ons so you can have the envelope liners and the ribbon. They also let you pick out the fonts and inks colors giving you a little bit of customization. If stationery is not a big priority to you and you want a simple invitation with a font this may be the best option. They are fairly easy, quick to get ordered, most of them are printed on nice paper or have an option to upgrade the paper, and they can be more cost effective. The main downside with the pre-made invitations is they are a bit generic because they have to appeal to a broad range of couples and depending on how popular the design you pick is your guest could have already gotten your invitation from another couple for their wedding.
Let me know in the comments which direction you went with your stationery!
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No doubt this week you have thought a bit about what you are thankful for. Instead of sharing my long list of what I'm grateful for I'm going to share a piece I made to give to my family for the thanksgiving holiday. Below is a step by step process for making a watercolor wreath.
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Okay, so I may be jumping the gun, a lot of people don't know what hand-canceling an envelope is. Typically when you put a card in the mailbox to be delivered, the mail will then be brought to a canceling machine (this is most likely not the technical term) This machine has rollers that push all the mail through and cancel each stamp showing it has been processed.
These machines aren't necessarily meant to read beautiful modern calligraphy.... they also are not meant to push through envelopes that have bows or thick paper inside. Ooo silk ribbon and 220lb stock <3333. Envelopes that are pushed through these rollers go through some serious wear and tear.
You can actually request for your envelopes to be hand-cancelled this is where the post lady or gentleman will cancel the stamp by hand. This way your envelope will not need to be put into the canceling machine and will in most cases (I found nothing is 100% guaranteed when it comes to the Post office) be delivered in much more pristine condition than a machine cancelled envelope.
So if you are spending the money on pretty stationery always pay to hand-cancel them, it's totally worth it!
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