Christmas Giving: A box full of letters.

My Grandma is notoriously difficult to buy for at Christmas. She is such a treasured member of the family that I always try to find something special for her. Most years, I end up failing in doing so. She claims to only need/want gift cards for eating out, but I tend to avoid gift cards as much as possible. As a result, I end up purchasing books or sweet treats for her. Some years, I make a gift for her.

This year, I was inspired by Design*Sponge to write a stack of letters to her. I scribbled some notes before I started the project, so I wouldn't get stuck trying to think of topics to write about along the way. I decided I would write one letter to open each day between Christmas and New Year's Day, making for a total of eight letters. I reminisced about visiting her when I was little, revealed some secrets and insecurities, told stories from recent travels and local adventures, and shared New Year's resolutions with her. I included photos and an article I thought she might find interesting.

I decided to go the extra mile with packaging these letters primarily because, as a stationery designer, I have a healthy stock of envelopes available. I stamped on both the envelopes and cards and tied everything together with baker's twine. I hope these letters will not only make her smile each day, but that they give her a glimpse of how much she is loved.

Are you creating any handmade gifts this Christmas? Happy Holidays!

Free shipping for Cyber Monday!

Valid until midnight tonight!
etsy.com/shop/maidavale

As seen on...

Hi everyone! Today, you can see Maida Vale's Scandinavian-inspired holiday cards on Paper Crave. Kristen put together a fun collection of geometric cards and I am proud to be part of it. Enjoy!

Holiday 2012: Gift tags galore.

For this final post of holiday goodies, I'd like to share some gift tags with you! These tags will pretty up simple packages (think kraft or solid metallic wrap). The bird and peppermint stripe tags were both printed on my vintage letterpress, and can be used as a bookmark after the holidays. The other two styles are die cut from woodgrain embossed cardstock. All tags are now listed in the Maida Vale Etsy shop. Here's hoping for a delightful holiday season!

Holiday 2012: Classic holiday cards.

Hi again! I'm back to share some favorite holiday cards that are now in stock in the Maida Vale Etsy shop. These are all yummy letterpress cards that have been printed on 100% cotton, tree-free cardstock. If you'd like to order more or less than you see listed, just send me a email with the quantity you desire. Thanks!

Holiday 2012: Chalkboard cards + more.

The Maida Vale Etsy shop is all prettied up for the holidays! Stop by to see new chalkboard and abstract tree cards, as well as old favorites. I'll be sharing more goodies throughout the week. Here's a peek at what's listed:

Budget-friendly monogram stationery.

Looking for a gift that is less than $20, but still feels like a custom item?  These lovely new flat-printed stationery sets are more than budget-friendly. Because they are printed on 100% cotton, tree-free cardstock, they feel luxurious too. Each set is sold in a pack of 8 with your choice of envelope color (see below). Enjoy!

Come see me at Let It Glow (November 10th, Seattle).

Hey Seattle! Start (or finish!) your holiday shopping by supporting local artists in one day and one stop. I'll be at Rejuvenation's Let It Glow event on Saturday, November 10th, from 10-5. I'll have a large selection of holiday cards, letterpress notes, gift tags and other goodies. Visit the link above to see who else will be joining me. I hope to see you there!

Back in August.

Hi everyone --

The Maida Vale studio will be closed until late August. As with last year, I'll be taking some time off to travel. Please be sure to visit the shop when I return. Hope everyone is having a fab summer.

Thanks again,
Heather.

20% off until 7/20!

It's time for a summer sale over at the Etsy shop! Enter SUMMER12 for 20% off until 7/20. Thanks!

Airplane baby shower invitations.

Remember the baby shower I hosted in March? Baby Jonah has now arrived (!), so I thought I'd finally share the invitations. Jonah's daddy is really into RC planes and cars, so the shower's transportation theme was introduced through this design. I picked up the envelopes at the Regional Assembly of Text in Vancouver and reused letterpress scraps for a registry insert. Welcome to the world, Baby Jonah! Click images to enlarge.

Arrow letterpress notecards.

Hi everyone! I'm just back from a much needed trip to Maui. We are so lucky to have Hawaii just a short flight away, so my husband and I took advantage of it. I'm also excited to share some simple new cards with you! These arrow cards are letterpressed on 100% cotton Crane Lettra (in soft white). I paired them up with kraft envelopes. You can find full details in the shop. Thanks for looking!

A very punctual ring bearer pillow.

I *love* this ring bearer pillow DIY on MS Weddings. It matches my Punctual save-the-date so well, too!

Trains + Planes for Baby.

I hosted a baby party for very good friends this weekend. They are expecting their first child (a boy) any day now and we are all so excited! Anyhow, I hesitate to call it a shower because it was a tad unconventional. No games or finger sandwiches, spouses and significant others and plenty of beer... you get the idea. Because the father-to-be is very into RC, I went with a trains and planes theme. I'll post the invitation in the near future, but in the meantime, here's how the buffet table looked. This look was inspired by a shower I loved on Amy Atlas' blog. Sources follow below, but you can also check out the Pinterest board for the big day. Enjoy!











Sources:
Custom Buttons (my design)
Chevron Bags (which we filled with sweet potato fries)
Airplane Cookies
Nutter Butter Ball Recipe (so easy to make!)
Oh Baby! Banner (my design)
Train Toothpicks
Blue Poms (not shown)

Butter Home.

I'm excited to announce that you can now find my letterpress Valentine's cards at Seattle's Butter Home! The shop is located in Capitol Hill at 1531 Melrose Ave. If you live in the area, drop by! If not, they also have an online shop... Enjoy!

Etsy find: Valentine treats by BB Sweets.

J'adore these cute cookies from BB Sweets on Etsy... especially the love letters. I could see these working really well for a "special delivery" style of shower, as well.

Heart you.

Sending a big thank you to Nole from Oh So Beautiful Paper for featuring Maida Vale's Heart You card this week. It's exciting to be included in such a great round-up of Valentine's Day cards!

The winner is...

Congratulations, Modern Buttercup! Your number was chosen by www.random.org to win the letterpress notecards. I'll be in touch via email...

Many thanks to all of you who entered. I hope you'll drop by the shop soon. Have a great weekend!

Have you entered the giveaway yet?

If you haven't entered the giveaway yet, what are you waiting for? Tomorrow (Friday) is the last day to enter. See the original post for full details. Thanks!

A little press.

I was super excited to see my Heart You Notecards featured on Paper Crave yesterday. If you haven't visited Paper Crave before, take a peek. The site is full of yummy inspiration. Thanks to Kristen for featuring Maida Vale!

Enter to win a set of letterpress cards!

Happy Friday! As we head into the first full weekend of 2012, I'm excited to announce a little giveaway. If you would like to win a set of my blind debossed letterpress heart cards, simply do the following. A winner will be drawn at random on Friday, January 13 at 5:00 PM Pacific. US residents only, please. Good luck!

To qualify for entry:

1. Leave your name and email address in the comments below AND
2. Follow me on Twitter or favorite Maida Vale on Etsy

A Maida Vale Valentine.

Happy New Year! Of course now that the holidays are over, it's almost time for another one... Valentine's Day! In addition to the collection I've already developed, I've also created these new letterpress notecards. They're perfect for slipping into your kiddo's lunch bag or hiding under a sweetie's pillow. Printed on 100% cotton, tree-free cardstock. Thanks!