News Archives - Page 2 of 6 - Elum Designs | Paper Obsessed BlogElum Designs

Introducing the Bijou Desk & Stationery Collection

4.11.2016

It may seem like we’ve been quiet here at Elum but behind the scenes we’ve been working harder than ever. Our team of uber-talented designers was asked to create a line of stationery & desk products for Paper Destiny, to be sold exclusively at Papyrus stores, and of course we jumped at this amazing opportunity. We couldn’t be more excited to finally announce the arrival of the new Bijou Desk and Stationery Collection, available now at Papyrus.

[typography font=”Cantarell” size=”10″ size_format=”px” color=”#a3a3a3″]The Bijou Collection[/typography]

We were inspired to create a line of products that exudes confidence but has romantic and feminine touches that bring the elements of hard and soft together seamlessly. Multi-colored designs use bold color blocking in coral, pink grapefruit, lagoon, and striking black to drive the color story. A touch of white oak wood veneer provides and unexpected natural element. Warm gold foil adds a subtle elegance and the hand brushed typestyle fashionably finishes out the collection. The name Bijou felt like the perfect fit, with every item being an elegant little jewel for your workspace.

[typography font=”Cantarell” size=”10″ size_format=”px” color=”#a3a3a3″]Gilded Notecards, Tres Important Square Notepad, 3 Pack Paper Journals[/typography]

Products like the luxe ultra-thick Edge Painted Note Boards, cleverly called a “vintage text message”, are one-of-a-kind additions to the Bijou collection. Foil stamped on 1/16″ thick soft-textured stock and carefully edge painted by hand, no other products on the market can compare to their quality and design. (pictured below)

[typography font=”Cantarell” size=”10″ size_format=”px” color=”#a3a3a3″]Edge Painted Note Boards[/typography]

Every detail has been thoughtfully crafted, like the artful coptic stitch binding on the Exposed Bound Journal, filled with soft cottony sketch paper that you can’t help but run your fingers over with every turn of the page. Once you make it through your first volume you can head back to Papyrus stores, where this product will be a staple of their stationery department and we will continue to add new beautiful designs. (pictured below)

[typography font=”Cantarell” size=”10″ size_format=”px” color=”#a3a3a3″]Exposed Bound Journals[/typography]

The Bijou collection is elevated beyond an ordinary stationery line in both quality and design, with the addition of several new unique products. We adore this line so much it’s hard for us to pick favorites but the 3-dimensional Topographic Notepad that mimics map topography (pictured below) and the Macaron Erasers, inspired by our favorite Parisian treat and finished with a delicate gold bow definitely rise to the top of our must-have list. With 41 pieces in all, it’s easy to mix and match to find the perfect combination of beautiful office gems.

[typography font=”Cantarell” size=”10″ size_format=”px” color=”#a3a3a3″]File Folders, Topographic Notepad, Gilded Notecards, Exposed Bound Journal[/typography]

Of course, true to Elum’s roots in creating the highest quality letterpress cards & invitations, the Bijou collection includes six exclusive letterpress & foil stamped box notes, proudly designed and printed at our studio in San Diego, CA. (pictured below)

[typography font=”Cantarell” size=”10″ size_format=”px” color=”#a3a3a3″]Letterpress and foil stamped box notes[/typography]

This collection will create a truly chic workspace in any home or office or make an unforgettable gift.

[typography font=”Cantarell” size=”10″ size_format=”px” color=”#a3a3a3″]The Bijou Collection[/typography]

The Bijou Collection is now available for a limited time, only at Papyrus stores or at http://www.papyrusonline.com/

We’re absolutely in love with the new collection, let us know what you think in the comments below. Don’t forget to connect with us on Instagram & Facebook to get up to date information about what’s coming next from Elum, new product releases, promotions and more. Check back soon to get a sneak peek of the Elum Desk & Stationery Collection, coming in July!

ELUM IS UP FOR SEVEN LOUIE AWARDS!

3.26.2015

There are fist bumps and high-fives all around Elum. Why? Because we are finalists in seven different categories for this year’s Louie Awards put on by the Greeting Card Association . Congratulations to our talented team of idea makers, designers and artisan letterpress print makers for your dedication to ensuring Elum creations are NOTHING short of small works of art. You touch lives everyday through the work that you do and the cards that shared all over the world because of the passion you put into your creations. Sniff, sniff. . . Now, let’s meet the finalists!

Louie Award Finalist No. 1 BIG DILL – in the Congratulations category
Yes, Melissa’s family is pickle obsessed. With one child nicknamed “pickle” (and her own original pickle theme song to match) and her younger sister citing pickles as her favorite meal, it’s no surprise that a pickle greeting card would be created at some point. Every single person that walks by this card smiles. And now a possible Louie Award? This is a really big dill people, a REALLY BIG DILL.

Louie Award Finalist No. 2 WINGTIPS – in the LGBTQ category
We were asked to design a small collection of Same Sex greeting cards for Barnes & Noble. We wanted to do a play on words with the term “soulmates”. The idea for the rainbow wingtips as the pair of shoes came after and when it did, we knew we had something special. When this beautiful card came off the letterpress, we all felt it was one of the best LGBTQ cards we had ever seen; t’s simple, sophisticated, endearing and truly iconic.

Louie Award Finalist No. 3 GALACTIC –in the Friendship category
Sometimes a really great message is all you need, and we worked as a team to draft this totally awesome one. This card has connected with so many people and it’s so ridiculously awesome read over and over and over again. And just to prove that inspiration truly come from anywhere and everywhere, April’s inspiration for the design came to her via a pair of galactic style leggings for sale at Urban Outfitters. Go figure.

Louie Award Finalist No. 4 LAWFULLY ANNOY – in the Wedding category
We needed to add some letterpress wedding cards to our greeting card collection, but we decided we needed some with some personality. The “happily ever after” messaging had all been done. So, we dug deep into the minds of couples married for no less than 15 years. The result is a classic statement that will stand the test of time. But the real kicker is when you open it. . . See inside message on our site here.

Louie Award Finalist No. 5 PURPLE POTATO CRISPS –in the Friendship Humor category
While visiting the Bay Area, Amy was reading a local magazine on the topic of Dry Harvesting. As she read, she found herself pondering the ever growing movement toward safe & healthy agriculture and the terminology that we adopt as these descriptions appear on food labels. And, so the over-the-top idea for this totally hilarious and truly unique letterpress friendship card was born. Try not to laugh. It’s ridiculous, you gotta love that.

Louie Award Finalist No. 6 MUSHY GUSHY –in the Wedding category
How do you say it all without saying a single word? I think we have that covered here. We wanted this letterpress Valentine card to be everything one would expect from a quintessential old school Valentine; frilly and red with a scripted message. The idea was that you would really have to read it to realize that it was basically a spoof on itself. The irony is just flat out fun.

Louie Award Finalist No. 5 3D POP-OUT GINGERBREAD HOUSE –in the Christmas Holiday category
Honestly, it’s true, we were all so bored with the same-old same-old photo cards for the holidays that we decided we needed to create a clever (and of course letterpress) alternative to re-invent the idea of the holiday card all together. So, we thought, what would bring a smiles to both adults and children alike? Well, the answer was simple; this ridiculously adorable interactive 3D Pop-Out Gingerbread House card, of course! It’s kind of like the cutest thing ever.

Elum Featured in The Knot, Spring 2015

1.31.2015

A special thanks to the Knot for their mention of our Fifth Avenue couture letterpress invitation in their spring 2015 fashion issue! Chic black and white with delicate details of blind debossing and crystal silver metallic dusting give this made to order set a whole new level of sophistication.

Elum In San Diego Style Weddings Magazine

11.21.2014

We are thrilled to see some of our Elum letterpress wedding invitations featured in the October / November issue of San Diego Style Weddings Magazine! Flip to the Invitations & Favors section to see our Alchemy, Fifth Avenue and Luxe letterpress invitation designs featured in their mix of favorite wedding stationery. Look for their magazine in stores, or check out the Digital Version.

Elum Letterpress Invitations Featured

Elum Letterpress Invitations Feature

Elum Letterpress Invitations Featured

Hostess Gifts for the Holidays

11.04.2014

Whether you’re headed to a holiday party with co-workers, a White Elephant gift exchange or an Ugly Christmas Sweater rager, bringing a hostess gift shows good party-going form. Instead of turning to the usual hostess gifts for the holidays, like wine, flowers or scented candles, first consider these en vogue alternatives:

Letterpress holiday gifts

[typography font=”Oswald” size=”18″ size_format=”px” color=”#8d8580″]BIG STACK NOTE BARS[/typography]

Our line of Big Stack Note Bars (our fancy way of saying uber-thick & totally awesome note pads) is a fan favorite, particularly this time of year when shopping lists, To-Do lists and Honey-Do lists are in abundance. We have a spectacular “Butterscotch” metallic gold dipped version or you can go with our fun new “Naughty or Nice” Big Stack with bold red painted edges, offered especially for the holidays.

Hostess gift ideas for

Nate Berkus Gold Scissors

[typography font=”Oswald” size=”18″ size_format=”px” color=”#8d8580″]GOLD SHEARS BY NATE BERKUS[/typography]

These high style Nate Berkus brassy gold tone scissors are a shear genius gift, especially now, with the holiday wrapping madness that is about to begin. And? They’re offered at Target. Win-win.

Photo Credit: Studio Neat

[typography font=”Oswald” size=”18″ size_format=”px” color=”#8d8580″]NEAT ICE KIT[/typography]

We are in love with this item (family and friends, don’t be surprised if you see this under your tree this year). With this Neat Ice Kit, you can chisel your own giant ice cubes or any custom size cube for that matter.

[box]IT’S CERTAINLY A [highlight]GREAT CONVERSATION PIECE[/highlight] AND IF YOU GIVE THE GIFT PRE-FROZEN, THE HOSTESS (and party guests) CAN HAVE THE IMMEDIATE SATISFACTION OF WATCHING THIS SUPER COOL GADGET IN ACTION![/box]

Journal Hostess Gift

[typography font=”Oswald” size=”18″ size_format=”px” color=”#8d8580″]REFLECTING JOURNAL[/typography]

A gorgeous linen wrapped journal with super soft cotton rag paper is an awesome for gift for any hostess. She can use it for memoirs, recipes or daily planning. Or, put a creative spin on it by scribing “Deep Thoughts” provoking questions on a few of the inside pages, then leave it out at the party for guests to comment. For example: Red or White Wine? or If you had to describe yourself in one word, what would it be? Or, What I really want from for Christmas this year is . . . Your hostess will get a kick out of reading through the responses the next morning.

[typography font=”Oswald” size=”18″ size_format=”px” color=”#8d8580″]ORB COPPER SHAKER[/typography]

Metallics are where it’s at this Holiday Season so consider giving the hostess with the mostess one of these uber-cool metallic shot glasses or a copper martini shaker from Crate and Barrel. All season long she can channel her inner Don Draper and prepare martinis in style.

Celebrating Love in All the Ways It Manifests

4.28.2014

Boy In a Fairy Tale

Today we received a letter in the mail that touched our hearts and felt that we must share. Here at Elum are proud and excited to be a part of this revolution and love to hear from those who share our sentiments and how stationery and letterpress can still touch our hearts.

Gloria writes:

“Dear Clever Team of Elum Designs, Around Valentine’s Day I found a card, Boy in a Fairytale No. GC683. I cried. I don’t usually cry over paper. I love paper. I love stationery and pens, good design and thoughtful ideas. I also love and adore my husband. We have a lovely marriage and are a lovely heterosexual couple. We have gay friends. Our gay friends are getting married in May and finding a card to congratulate them on the engagement has been… difficult. I was going to make something and as I was just resigned to the task I found your card. ‘Once upon a time there was a Boy who fell in love with a Boy and their fairy tale lasted a lifetime.’ I got all misty.

We live in a time where daily I argue that gays, or people who love or are attracted to someone of the same sex, deserve all the same rights and privileges as someone like me. I argue that “tolerance” is not acceptable, that we need to realize and celebrate that love comes in many ways and we are better for it… we shouldn’t just be “tolerant” of love. It is exhausting and often makes me sad that many folks still don’t “get it.” But YOU!!! YOU GET IT!!! You get it and you designed an absolutely lovely card that I was so proud to buy. I felt I was doing my civic duty and
forwarding a cause close to my heart. And really, I just wanted to congratulate Brad and Alejandro on their coming wedding. They are the sweetest couple and my husband and I so enjoy their friendship. Thank you for your work. Thank you for your thoughtfulness and open hearts. Thank you for making Brad & Alejandro feel just like every other normal engaged couple. Thank you for celebrating love in all the ways it manifests. I plan on being a frequent customer for sure! May your kindness, generosity and good sense inspire more folks.

With a thankful heart, Gloria”

Our hope is that we can bring a little joy and love to everyone. With our new releases, we’d like to show that here at Elum, we celebrate love in all its forms. Its the little things like hand written letters that inspire and motivate us daily. Handwritten notes are always welcomed and we encourage you to keep this beautiful tradition alive.

The Art of the Written Thank You

10.07.2013

my_first_Thank_You

Now that school is back in session I am reminded that the life of a parent is busier not just during the week, but all weekend long. The reason? BIRTHDAY PARTIES. The onslaught of invitations to these precious events has prompted me to write this post for a product that is not only near and dear to my heart, but one that I think parents (OK mostly moms) would benefit from immensely. I know I did. This is the story of the creation of “My First Thank You Notes.” These awesome kits are my personal attempt to keep the art of the written thank you note alive!

my_first_Thank_You_bg
Growing up I was taught that you always wrote a thank you note for any gift. In fact, I remember not even calling my grandmother to thank her for the twenty bucks, but immediately sitting down to draft her a written thank you note. But Noni was ALWAYS sending us twenty-dollar bills, even on St. Patrick’s Day! So that meant I had to get creative. I remember developing a systematic and foolproof method for thank you note writing. I never actually thought that I would have a use for this until it came time for me to instill the “art of thank you note writing” in my own children, hence preserving the good manners my own mother tried so desperately to grace us with.

[box]GROWING UP I WAS TAUGHT THAT YOU [highlight]ALWAYS WROTE A THANK YOU NOTE FOR ANY GIFT.[/highlight] IN FACT, I REMEMBER NOT EVEN CALLING MY GRANDMOTHER TO THANK HER FOR THE TWENTY BUCKS BUT IMMEDIATELY SITTING DOWN TO DRAFT HER A WRITTEN THANK YOU NOTE.[/box]

So it all started when my daughter, Uma, was in Kindergarten and she was writing thank you notes for her birthday gifts. As any mom these days knows, one is pretty much commanded by politically correct standards to invite every student in the class to the party, so in this case that meant 16 thank you notes. . . all hand written. . . by a five-year old. Needless to say, that took some time, about 2 weeks from what I recall; roughly one per day. It also took some serious effort and determination from both my daughter AND me. I began by drafting a fill-in style version of the thank you note, a cheat sheet so to speak, that my daughter could use. She copied the words on the card and when she got to the line left blank, we filled in the specific name, gift, etc. for each card.

The day that poor kid finished drafting her last thank you note, it sparked a whole plethora of emotions, but mostly pride in my daughter and motivation to make a product that would mean WE NEVER had to go through THAT again. The next day, I began the conception our My First Thank You Note card kits. I loved the idea for the fill-in note cards only slightly fill in photo more than I loved the idea of doing my part in society to keep the art of the written thank you note alive for future generations!

BELOW ARE MY RULES FOR THANK YOU NOTE WRITING, each of which has been incorporated into these totally awesome modern thank you cards for kids. And even cooler (OK, not a word but just go with it), Uma got to put her own artwork and handwriting on the back of the box. She thinks she’s famous now. And in my eyes, she’s right.

Most Sincerely,
Melissa Foster
Founder

Elum Real Weddings: Amy and Frank Green

8.23.2013

Amy&Frank_blog_header We are delighted to share the stunning wedding photos of Elum’s own Art Director, Amy Kreft Green. Amy was thrilled when she had the opportunity to design her own one-of-a-kind and truly out-of-the box wedding invitation suite for her October wedding to Frank Green III.

AMy&Frank

Winner of the “How International Outstanding Achievement Award in Invitation Design”, the completely custom designed (and gorgeous may we add!) wedding stationery was all letterpress printed by Elum – a designer’s dream! The wedding stationery and decor combined layers of textures & patterns, creating an eclectic, romantic and organic atmosphere with the teeny-tiniest details that made the charming wedding one that was totally unique.

[box]WE ARE THRILLED TO ANNOUNCE THAT AMY’S WEDDING INVITATION SUITE IS THE WINNER OF THE [highlight]”HOW INTERNATIONAL OUTSTANDING ACHIEVEMENT AWARD [/highlight] IN INVITATION DESIGN”![/box]

To brand the event, Amy designed her wedding stationery as a series of vintage inspired books. The Save the Date (which was Volume 1 in the book series) was a letterpress printed mini-book which tucked safely into a tiny letterpress pocket, complete with a die-cut window showcasing the cover that read “And so our story begins.”

letterpress book invitations

Letterpress_book_invitations2

The Invitation, Volume 2, continued the book-themed suite with a larger book including original illustrations inspired by vintage floral linens, earthy floral like moss, delicate ferns, and mixed patterns of kilim, moroccan & persian textiles, all deeply letterpressed into luxurious soft cotton paper. We fell even more in love when we saw the 3 bookmarks that outlined the weekend’s events and the adorable library styled reply card.

Letterpress_book_invitations_3

The program, Volume 3, and Menu, Volume 4, completed the book series reverting back to the petite format of the Save the Date. With a love & appreciation of all things paper, the escort cards were miniature pieces of letter mail with no two quite alike. Each personally addressed pint size envelope sat on the tiny shelves of an antique printer’s tray.

Letterpress Tray Wedding

At the table, guests found terrariums filled with moss, maiden-hair ferns, flowers and toadstools along with vintage colored glass goblets, collected by the bride and her family & friends. The family-style fare & signature cocktails had touches of culinary lavender, paying homage to the romantic venue.

Lavender Farm Wedding

The bridal bouquets were loose, romantic, delicate, and wild with bunches of Maidenhair ferns, garden roses, spray roses, tracheliums, feverfews, ranunculus, lisianthus, veronica, bupleurums, ferns, and queen anne’s lace.

Lavendar_Farm_bouquets

The ceremony & reception site, Keys Creek Lavender Farm, just north of San Diego, was surrounded with rows and rows of lavender, wildflowers, rosemary and not to mention a wonderful collection of vintage furniture distributed throughout the property.

Lavendar Farm Wedding

Lavender Farm Wedding Gown

Take a look below at a selection of breathtaking photos from Amy and Frank’s big day and click here to see the entire Martha Stewart Real Weddings feature.

Full Wedding Coordination: Francine Ribeau Events

Style Me Pretty features: Labyrinth Invitations

7.11.2013

We are excited to share that our Labyrinth invitations from our affordable Umi letterpress invitation collection were featured on Style Me Pretty! The lovely bride Ashlee married groom Devin at a stunning destination wedding in San Juan Puerto Rico (talk about a gorgeous setting!). We letterpress printed their invitations in soft Charcoal gray and sandy Shell inks on luxurious 100% cotton rag paper, perfect for an elegant and modern beach wedding. Ashlee mounted the invitations on charcoal gray backers and made belly bands out of handmade paper that complemented the design beautifully. We’re so thankful that we’re able to be apart of these special moments and it’s always such a treat to see photos of the happy couple on their wedding day. Congratulations to Ashlee and Devin, we wish you all the best!

Click on the pictures below to read more about Ashlee and Devin’s gorgeous wedding or visit Style Me Pretty.

Older Posts

Newer Posts