A little Zentangle for you

{image via the zentangle blog}

If you have not been introduced to Zentangle yet, I would love for you to meet! Without further ado, Zentangle is the creative expression developed by Rick Roberts and Maria Thomas. The image above caught me eye and made me take a deep breath. This is Maria's blotter from her workspace, where she is a master calligrapher. I am sure there is a story behind this blotter. There is always a wonderful story. One day while working with them, I had the pleasure of sitting with Maria and Rick in their home studio for a photoshoot. If you know Zentangle you may know about their home. A story in and of itself, or many stories of a lifetime of unbelievable art, work, life and creativity. Their home studio is their workplace and their home, filled with incredible visual inspiration and quirky interesting artifacts. So, we were there in Whitinsville, Massachusetts and Maria was doing some freestyle writing for us to capture on video. While writing and chatting, Maria tipped her ink and it spilled on to the blotter. I immediately looked for something to clean with, while Maria sat me down and told me to watch it. "No, no, watch what it does", she said. So I did. In my amazement she continued to work with the ink spot and create the most amazing drawing from it. She created a Zentangle mixed with her free and whimsical flourishes. I was in heaven just watching her hands and seeing what came from her imagination to the blotter in mere seconds.

When they are not spreading wonder around the world in the form of Zentangle, Maria and her company Pendragon create beautiful invitations. They have been a colleague of our's for years. We have been lucky to watch little Zentangle grow into a worldwide phenomenon in a very short time. Please take a minute to visit their site and take in some of the amazing creativity. Their new blog is growing so quickly, no doubt every person nipped by the Zentangle bug around the world is waiting everyday for a new post. {Take a peek.}

Graduation Time

Congrats to all who are completing a chapter in their lives. No matter if it is kindergarten, high school or college, a party is the best way to celebrate!



{L to R from the top: Photo Stripe Graduation Announcement; Hats Off Invites; Graduation Tassel; Graduation Cap Dyecut; Modern Vertical Graduation Announcement; Female Graduation; Play - Learn - Grow graduation invitation magnet}

New Type on the Rise

It's hardly a surprise when a Hoefler & Frere-Jones typeface gains popularity amongst designers, but the popularity of nine year old Archer has grown faster than many of the faces created by the most famous contemporary foundry in the world. The popularity of Archer is quite interesting, given the slab's quirky terminals and modern but hardly passive shapes. When perusing Archer variants recently on Typography.com, I noticed that H&FJ recommended a combination of Archer and Verlag.

I have to say, this is a beautiful combination of faces. Check out this pairing courtesy of the wonderful interactive test drive tool on Typography.com:

Hoefler & Frere-Jones' Archer, Light Italic Specimen

Hoefler & Frere-Jones' Verlag, Medium Specimen

Birds of Fancy

Images via Flights of Fancy, Weddingstar, Green Wedding Shoes and 100 Layer Cake.

Hello fellow readers, I’ve got some good news for you on this beautiful sunny Thursday. You’ve still got four more days to snatch up a lovely wedding invitation for 25% off on eInvite.com, before the Spring Sale ends on April 19th! During the sale, we have about 44 select wedding designs to choose from, but I have to say, this Juliet invitation is probably my most favorite. I just love the tiny birds and the cheerful color combination of turquoise and emerald. In general, I think birds make for such a fun wedding theme. Not only are they romantic, but they’re whimsical and suggestive of nature, which makes them perfect for a back yard wedding, or a casual affair. Are you considering a bird theme for your wedding, or perhaps know someone who is? Well I’ve shown here, just a few ideas to inspire you…Enjoy!

A Blush Pink Wedding

{images: couple, tent, candy and seating: michèle m. waite,

amnesia roses: sprout, meringues: cookie creatives }

We are so happy to share some inspiration from Checkerboard today. With so much emphasis on color in weddings for the coming year, this blush inspiration board sets the tone for a stunning use of this earthy pink hue. You will be seeing it everywhere this coming year.

Checkerboard has been collaborating with some outstanding wedding professionals to bring a little innovation to the world of invitations. With images from Washington photographer Michèle M. Waite a premiere wedding photographer here in the U.S., whose amazing work really fired up the collection. The exciting project is about to lift off at the National Stationery Show in May. Michèle's images are celebrated all over the wedding blog-o-sphere. She is incredibly talented at capturing the true essence of each wedding with a playful and fresh perspective. Her eye for color, light and location really give her clients something to cherish for generations. Also featured are images from Dom Miguel Photography of Boston whose talents recently captured moments from a wedding close to our hearts here at eInvite. {Click here to peek.}

All this wedding imagery in this collage board is complimented by incredible mocha kissed amnesia roses from florist Cathy Walsh of Sprout, a local designer we work with all the time. Trendy meringues from Jennifer Burkhart of Cookie Creatives, round out this champagne taste of wedding celebration. Wedding cakes from Worcester designer Michelle Bohigian from Something Sweet by Michelle are also featured throughout the project. Michelle's cakes have recognition of their own, as top choice in Bride's Magazine, her life-like sugar florals are second to none!

Each of these wedding pros contributed their work to the making of each of 18 collage boards for the Unveiled project, something new and different in the search for the perfect wedding invitation. Creative imagery can really get your wheels turning, and these girls are the best of the best at their craft!

This portion of the mood board is a little sneak peek that gives you a sounding board of inspiration. This board was created to compliment a new invitation suite from Checkerboard, which will be Unveiled in a few weeks at the National Stationery Show in New York City. There is more, a lot more. We can't wait to share!

Bridal Shoes

{stunning wedding shoe choices by zanotti, valentino, and jimmy choo via net-a-porter}

With Bridal Fashion Week in full swing, I just wanted to accessorize a little. Since I am a "practical" shoe girl (meaning I can justify almost any shoe purchase), I thought it would be quite logical to purchase wedding shoes that you may wear again. Since weddings are a time to splurge a little, I found some great choices on net-a-porter that compliment alot of the trends we are seeing this week in dresses. Blush is a big one, that ballet pink, or barely there hue is a favorite of mine. I love the earthy pink, it's fashion forward and compliments any skin tone so well. I also like all the textures, feathers and touches of glitz. Think of how great these honeymoon shoes would be! From aisle to isle, choosing a great pair of shoes that peak out from under your dress can really make a statement. If you want to go with the short dress trend, they are a must! I can't wait to see what the week unfolds!

Font Love

I have easily over 500 fonts on my mac at home, added through the years, but like a true addict I am always plotting ways to add more. Here are a few of my recent cravings.



{L to R from top: Memoriam; Aphrodite Pro; Mousse Script; Buffet Script; La Carte; Liza Pro}

Cherry Blossom Elegance

Images via Martha Stewart Weddings and Weddingdresses-4u.

Hello and Happy Friday everyone! Today I’ve got a fresh breath of spring fever for you! Here on the east coast we were blessed with a beautiful week; full of sunshine, blue skies and warm breezes. Today however, it is rather grey and rainy, but my head is still filled with springtime lovliness. So, to keep the spirit alive, I thought I would share with you one of my favorite springtime sights…cherry blossoms!

There is just something so magical about walking along a cherry blossom lined sidewalk; with a canopy of beautiful pink flowers above ones head and below ones feet, it’s hard not to stop and appreciate nature’s beauty when doing so. Did you know that cherry blossoms are an omen of good fortune and are considered an emblem of love and affection? For this reason, I think they would make a wonderful theme and/or a beautiful backdrop for any wedding. Thinking about a cherry blossom themed wedding for you and your beu? Be sure to check out the lovely “Spring Cherry” invitation shown above. It is currently available on eInvite.com at 25% off until April 19th and would be the perfect introduction to such a wedding! Enjoy!

Land Art

As creatives, much of our inspiration comes from our environment, whether that be urban, rural, college, the workplace, or the limitless expanse of our own minds. Interestingly, while our inspiration tends to come from our environments, our creative materials rarely do - we work on computers in the virtual realm, or with supplies we've had to order, import, or acquire through a myriad of means.

Less common is actually relying only on a single location's environment to provide the creative materials. In the case of land artist, Andy Goldsworthy, the landscape provides all of the required materials and often nothing is imported at all. As a result, though the landscape is often transformed (and then photographed) there's an oddly primitive sense to his work, like the ordering of edible plants into agricultural rows for farming.

The Neuberger Cairn, ©Andy Goldsworthy, 2001 SUNY Purchase

This intervention is a distinctly human behavior but because it is so rare for us to see "man-made" things that don't specifically rely on artificial materials, Andy's work seems like it simply belongs in its location. Many pieces take on an air of the supernatural.

©Andy Goldsworthy

Andy's work varies from the subtle to the spectacular, and from relatively permanent to fragile and ethereal. His most stable forms are stone cairns, often his most recognizable work. My impression has always been that his "sculpture" translates beautifully to his photography (as he is practiced in both) but that something is probably lost in the translation. It needs to be seen to be "believed." Nonetheless, I've collected some images from around the web to try capture some of his aesthetic. Enjoy.

Icicle Star, ©Andy Goldsworthy

Rowan Leaves and Hole, ©Andy Goldsworthy

Pebble Circle, ©Andy Goldsworthy

©Andy Goldsworthy

©Andy Goldsworthy

©Andy Goldsworthy