PiperSimone Papers

A Few New Things to Look At

2010-10-28T21:54:00.000-07:00

Stamped cherry blossoms
Water-color painted
with glitter detail

Inspired by my grandmother

New embossing tool

Dragonfly in a new way

The blossom stamp in green

Packaging!

2009-12-04T10:47:00.000-08:00

I'm having so much fun packaging my stationary. It's one more opportunity to design something creative. I like the "designing" part of this the most. Too bad it makes the postage so much more expensive. I haven't offered the "gift wrapping" to my customers on Etsy as of yet because it bumps the shipping cost to more than double (from $2 to $5) and it does cut into my "profit" on each set... It just seems silly to me to ask $5 to ship an item that cost the buyer only $10!

In any event, when I have the supplies handy, I do enjoy having some fun with the packaging.

The Bee Silhouette here is embellished with a Swarovski crystal.

It corresponds with the Bee stationary inside.

I love the way this pillow box turned out with the ribbon and fleur-de-lis together!

Though difficult to see in this picture, the image of the tree is shadowed in chartreuse. The envelopes for this set are also chartreuse.

The red crest is enlarged for this box top and layered with the ivory linen card stock used for the stationary set inside. The set comes with red envelopes.

The Bella

2009-10-25T08:13:00.000-07:00

One of my best "customers" is also a good friend. She is the kind of person that says, "Would you make an order for me? The little girl likes horses." I love that... the perfect amount of "direction" with the majority of the creative freedom left to me.

I wanted to do something special for her daughter who is having a birthday soon. Usually, Bella is giving the cards to her friends as gifts but this time it's Bella's turn for a set--from me.

Here's what I labored over:

It's a horizontal folded card on ivory cardstock. The scalloped circle is cut from an "apple green" linen-textured card. The top coin (with the daisy image) is the same ivory as the base. The gingham ribbon is black and cream which really works well with the bug. The envelopes are a great way to pull the set together.

Here is a close-up of the graphic:

I really fell in love with these cards. I am so happy they are going to such a sweet girl! The work involved in making a set like this is time-consuming. In order to make a decent profit on selling this design, I would have to charge what I consider "too much" money. So I modified the card to the style I use more often. It is a simple flat note that can be personalized and purchased for a much more reasonable cost:

I added this graphic of a simple daisy to the sides of the name at the foot of the card:

And here's a close-up of it:

I think the simplified flat note is a good representation of the original, more detailed version.

What do you think?

Look for "The Bella" card to hit the Etsy shop very soon!

LOOK, LOOK, LOOK! ------------>

2009-09-23T22:42:00.000-07:00

The PiperSimone Paper store is finally on Etsy.com! It took some time to figure everything out... but it's a great first step. I hope to get the "shop" up to the high standards I hold for myself sometime soon. Between potty-training, preschool, parenting, blogging, crafting, etc... (!!!) it will happen. (Nothing like a little positive self-affirmation!)

Safari Shower

2009-08-26T09:24:00.000-07:00

My cousin is having her first baby in a couple months. A new baby boy to kiss and cuddle and squeeze. I'm so excited. I made these little cards for her to celebrate her Monkeyboy.

The cards are a flat note on linen cardstock. The big image above is just the cover of the gift box I made.

For her baby shower, I made a version of "Helpful Hint" cards I had seen online. Here is where shower guests can give advice to the new mom and dad-to-be.

I also made a little pillow box to keep the advice cards organized.

And lastly, a few sweet bookplates for the little booger.

;)

Invitations Invitations!

2009-07-15T14:48:00.000-07:00

A friend of mine asked me to come up with a few designs for a Bridal Luncheon and Bachelorette Party she is hosting for her cousin.

It was a great excuse to make some samples for my book.

(above) A simple and elegant luncheon invite with black scroll detail along the bottom.

(above) This is a fun summer theme for either a bridal luncheon, shower, or bachelorette outing. The lime and tangerine colors really pop on the white cardstock and the green envelope is a nice addition.

(above) Cherry blossoms are a favorite of mine. I found this great graphic of tiny white blossoms in a salmon background. Once I added the clip to the invite it looked a little "bottom-heavy" so I popped on a couple salmon stripes at the top to help balance the card.

(above) In the sample for my friend, this card is a bachelorette invite. Here I've made it a dinner and cocktail event for both bachelor and bachelorette. Duel parties are becoming more and more popular and this would be useful as a rehearsal dinner invite or dinner party as well.

(above) I think this card turned out so fun! I love the pink with the green--and who doesn't appreciate a nice cocktail with a lime wheel garnish? Great for the bachelorette party, a cocktail party, or a 21st birthday celebration.

And last but not least, the invitations I made for my sweet girl who turned 4 this last weekend! The red ladybug is a punch atop a scalloped circle nestability punch.

We gave her a "Bugs in the Garden" backyard birthday bash. If you want to see more details on how that turned out, visit our family blog here.

Pillow Boxed Thank You's

2009-06-29T11:27:00.000-07:00

I made these awhile ago and plan to send them as thank-you gifts this week to the friends and family who hosted us when we were in California so I thought I should take a picture to show you!

This is a set of folded notes with ribbon, paper, and fabric flower embellishments. The card base is white linen cardstock and the envelopes are kraft paper. The box is one I bought and decorated to coordinate with the card set.

This is a set I made from recycling my calendar (I've used a few pages to make card sets and pillow boxes. You can see another here at my "family blog"). I punched a circle out of the patterned part of the calendar page and added a white punched-dove to each card. All of the cards are slightly different and they fold on the horizontal.

I Know Why the Caged Bird Sings

2009-06-28T08:29:00.000-07:00

... Because she's so pretty!

Here's a box of notes I made for a recent order.

It's a flat note on white linen card stock.

The font for the text was inspired by an old-fashioned typewriter.

The stamp is one I've had and you might recognize a smaller scanned version from our Halloween cards last year.

This time, I embossed the stamp:

I really like the way these cards turned out.

Beautiful Blue

2009-06-17T20:53:00.000-07:00

These swirly folded notes turned out so well!

My friend Shaley actually designed them... she just got married (congratulations, again!) and wanted some simple notes to send as thank-you's.

She described the style and "look" of the cards she had in mind, then I made several "samples" for her to choose from.

Within the scrolled stamp is a crystal glitter embellishment.

The box was sweet too!

Coin Invitations

2009-06-05T15:44:00.000-07:00

A few of my girlfriends are expecting their first babies right now. It's always so exciting for me to see my friends go through the amazing experience of making a baby.

Here's an invitation that was inspired by my friend Amy who is expecting twins.

The coins are punched from kraft paper (like a brown paper bag) and affixed to a flat card.

Here's the same idea in a different layout with a green accent color.

And of course, I needed a pink representation.

The punch for this elephant actually as a little raised ear (very sweet).

Embossing--Who Knew?

2009-06-03T19:48:00.000-07:00

Who knew how much fun embossing could be?

The thing with embossing, is that you have to work from stamps. Stamps are tricky... if you're a perfectionist like I am. The ink has to be just right; the pressure needs to be "even" for a clean mark; the placement can be off with wood blocks if you're not careful... But aside from all that--it really is fun!

Here is a simple horizontal flat card.

The stem and chick were in the same stamp set that I had purchased recently.

Embossing involves several steps and can be time-consuming; however, I think the result is worth the effort.

Here's a close-up:

The process results in the pigment becoming glossy and rising from the paper.

Here are a few I did with a stamp that was more "substantial" when pressed.

The card is a vertical fold; kraft paper on heavy white cardstock with a kraft envelope.

Obviously, the stamp and embossing has been done in white.

Here's a close-up to show the texture of the printing when the process is finished.

I liked the white set so much I followed the same format to create a chocolate embossing on "natural" cardstock (vertical fold) with a chocolate envelope and pink embossing on white cardstock (horizontal fold) with a pink envelope.

Oh my... now that I have this new crafty way to spend my free time... I wonder just how high my laundry pile will get?

New Invitation Ideas

2009-06-01T19:30:00.000-07:00

I'm participating in an "Opportunity Party" this weekend and trying to figure out how to market what I do. Usually, I make gifts with my cards and occasionally I make a gift of invitations for my friends. Here are some "sample" invitations I made for the event to give folks a little idea of what I can do.

Caterpillar

(with complimentary green envelope)

Pink Cupcake Cloud

(with chocolate text and corresponding chocolate envelope)

Rocket Ship

(with green envelope)

Classic Car

(on natural cardstock, rather than white)

All the cards are flat A2 size (4.25 x 5.5).

On the Fly

2009-05-20T07:47:00.001-07:00

Here's a card I put together on the fly. It's just like me to make cards as my passion and yet to not have one to accompany a gift (typically cards) that I'm giving!

I just made one of these. It's a folded card: pink card stock (rounded corners), green scalloped square, and a tiny pink and cream silk flower fastened with a green "button" brad. I could easily see this card personalized in a set with a name or "Thank You" printed or stamped. Of course, plain is quite nice too! The envelope is white with a matching pink scroll stamped along the edge.

Happy 4th Birthday!

2009-05-20T07:31:00.000-07:00

Geneva (my 3-year old) was invited to her first "Chucky Cheese" birthday party a couple weeks ago. Wow. She was excited and overwhelmed. It was great!

The base is pink card stock (horizontal fold).

It's embellished with a green scalloped circle under the butterfly graphic circle.

The card is finished with a black satin ribbon.

This set I put together with matching pink envelopes and the storage box (right).

Preschool Cards

2009-05-20T07:27:00.000-07:00

These were also done during "Teacher Appreciation" week.

I put this simple design together for the Director, Teacher Michelle.

Teacher Appreciation Day III

2009-05-06T20:23:00.000-07:00

These are for Geneva's primary teacher at school, Teacher Jessica.

The cards are in the stack on the left; the gift box I made is on the right.

I used some nestibilities in the scalloped circles to make the center cutouts. The white circle is punched through the middle with the apple so the red circle shows through the center.

The green ribbon and text were not quite enough...

... so I added some green dots to the scallops. They don't show up very well in the photo, but I think the overall effect is really cute.

Teacher Appreciation Day II

2009-05-06T20:15:00.000-07:00

These are some simple cards I have made in the past that turned out really well. I have a set that I made for myself.

These are for the teacher that does all the wonderful, organic cooking at Geneva's preschool.

The graphic is another clip art. I added her name in chocolate brown script and paired it with brown envelopes.

Somewhere along the way, I picked up some gold pear seals.

Teacher Appreciation Day

2009-05-06T20:10:00.000-07:00

My 3-year old is in preschool.

She has several "teachers" depending on the situation.

These are some flat cards I made for her music teacher.

The graphic is clip art and the text reads:

"A little 'note' from Teacher Kara"

Here's a close-up of the graphic.

I decided to do two cards in each of the colors that were represented in the graphic by mounting the white card stock to separate sheets of colored card stock with matching envelopes.

Masculine Cards?

2009-04-13T14:09:00.000-07:00

My adorable husband is "Metro" enough to appreciate a set of personalized note cards for business correspondence...

... and masculine enough to want them to be plain and straightforward.

Flat cards: white linen-finish with name print in "boy" colors attached to brown-bag kraft stock with matching envelopes.

Simple.

Gettin' Fancy!

2009-03-17T18:03:00.000-07:00

A friend turned me on to Paper Source here in Portland. I loved it. It's located in the shopping district on NW23rd--which probably added to the inflated cost of the merchandise--but my goodness did they have GREAT stuff. I was very inspired.

Here's a set of cards I made for a birthday present this week.

Obviously, the recipient was a little girl.

I "watermarked" the envelopes to match the stamp on the card.

Then I packaged them in this sweet pink box (I bought a set of pink and one of white at Paper Source) that I decorated to coordinate with the cards.

Very sweet--don't you think?

Long Time No Post

2009-03-17T17:32:00.001-07:00

So I've definitely been keeping myself busy with stationary projects. However, I've clearly been hopeless in keeping the blog up-to-date on what I've been working on.

Sorry.

Here's a sweet flat card I made for both Avery (my 2-year-old) and her sweet friend Abby (also 2).

The lower boarder is a row of smiling flowers.

Centered at the top is her first and middle names in a curly font.

While the photo is definitely blurry, you get the gist.

Note to self: invest in some red envelopes.

Holiday Gift Part I

2008-12-14T15:20:00.000-08:00

Horizontally folded cards with coordinating paper stacks and matching brads for Lia:

And another set for Amanda:

A birthday set I made for my mother-in-law to give to her sister with matching stamped stationary:

These are holiday cards I bought discounted at Michael's and embellished a bit with personal text, ribbon and punches:

Another embellished set with my new favorite "tuxedo" bow:

More paper punching, stamping, personalization, and glitter in this set:

Simple, holiday cuteness--yes?

And a close-up shot of the "texture" in this card that is featured below.

I do love coordinating envelopes!

Amazing Giveaway

2008-11-22T14:23:00.000-08:00

There is this crazy-crafty cool Momma who makes amazing clothes for little girls... here's another amazing thing: she then gives them away! Check out the link below for the latest:

Downtown Holiday Jacket and Pant GIVEAWAY!!!!

Variations

2008-11-21T18:12:00.000-08:00

(above)

The last bits of a favorite spool of ribbon become a colorful variation on my revised monogram design.

Below is the card you've recently seen (chocolate font with chocolate polka-dotted organza ribbon). Above is the same design done in black with a black and white gingham check ribbon.

Stamps, Watercolors, Glitter, and Ribbon

2008-11-15T13:33:00.000-08:00

Here's another catch-up post... and another soon to follow.

Below is a card I recently made for my friend Amy's birthday. I've made this card in the past and I really like it so much. I'm sorry it doesn't represent well here...

The close-up is a little better in illustrating how pretty the stamp is. These cards can be tricky... and not all of them turn "perfect" because each one is hand stamped after the text printing is done on the computer and the card has been cut and folded (in other words, if the stamp doesn't come out perfectly--I don't remake the entire card).

Here you can see how I've used the watercolor paints to enhance each large blossom and the tiny dot of silvery-pink glitter that graces the smaller blooms.

Below is another sample from a set I made for Amy. I saw this ribbon in a discount bin and thought it was so striking. Unfortunately, it was the only spool they had and the spool contained only one yard of ribbon... so once it's gone (soon) it's GONE.

I didn't want to do too much to distract from the ribbon. I used my large square punch on some heavy black textured cardstock, printed Amy's monogram in a font I liked, and then punched those out with a simple round punch (to compliment the circles in the ribbon pattern). I printed her full name in the same font on the card face at the bottom edge.

While I love to make cards as gifts and for barter, I rarely take the time to make cards for me. I was needed to send a few things off this week and realized that I should represent my work in the cards I used for this purpose!

Below is a simple design I've used before with monograms. It really represents well in different colors with complimenting ribbon bows or knots. This time, I tried it with one of my favorite basic fonts and all lowercase-condensed printing. It came out so well, I made a small set like this for Amy too!

Can you believe the holidays are literally around the corner?

I better get started on my gifts!

Catch Up

2008-10-28T09:07:00.000-07:00

Here are a few designs I've been gifting lately.

I made a set of these for a 5th birthday (thank you cards):

Here is a "welcome new baby" set I made for Baby Breslin.

I love this western print.

Some holiday-themed cards...

I really wanted to use the organza ribbons and foiled paper I recently purchased.

Here is a similar set in a different color pallet:

Happy Halloween

2008-10-06T14:44:00.001-07:00

I got a new stamp... and a new printer! My new printer also copies and scans. Because of this fabulous new tool, I was able to scan my new stamp and make it the size I found ideal for putting together this Halloween card:

The stamp is a tiny bird in a cage (so sweet). I was able to shrink it down to fit my medium sized round punch. I backed each birdcage punch with a square in orange and a black scalloped square.

I wrapped the cards with some striped ribbon I found at Michael's in the dollar bins and affixed the punched embellishment to the top.

The printing was done with Microsoft Word and I added the small jack-o-lantern from the clip art collection...(I thought the card needed an extra little pop of color at the bottom).

I think it's the right mix of spooky and fun!

Birthday Gift

2008-10-06T14:36:00.000-07:00

Our favorite babysitter turned 13 last month. I made these cards for her. White silk flower over the following stack of punches: small pink circle, chocolate flower, medium white circle. These are held in place with a tiny pink brad.

The polka-dotted boarder and her name are printed in chocolate ink. I glued a pink scalloped square in the upper left corner. Around this card, I wrapped coordinating ribbon (another favorite) and affixed it to the back, then attached this to the actual card. The flower set was glued in place as the last step.

I finished by stamping the envelope closures with her initials in chocolate brown beside a small pink flower.

Fall is here!

2008-10-06T14:19:00.000-07:00

I couldn't resist the dollar bins at Target this week. I found a tiny roll of assorted "fall" ribbon for $1. None of the ribbon choices were very long so I made an assorted collection of fall cards. There are four cards in a set. The tiny spool made 16 cards (with two additional ribbons I did not use).

Stamped berry twig in cranberry ink on white cardstock with "texture" stamp in mustard over the top, laid over a chocolate punched cardstock square to coordinate with the cranberry circle ribbon.

Stamped leaf in evergreen ink over a small chocolate punch, larger green square punch, and a mustard square with embellished corners (corner punch - lace). This mustard/green ribbon says, "Family."

Pumpkin stamp in orange ink over a burnt orange circle, atop a chocolate square with "laced" corners. Brown ribbon reads, "Friends" with tiny pumpkins between.

Small acorn stamp in chocolate ink over a small green circle punch, atop a burnt orange square with "laced" corners. Ribbon is white with two thin green lines and orange in the middle.

"Happy Fall!"

I've been so neglectful!

2008-10-06T14:06:00.000-07:00

I have been making cards lately... I just haven't posted any in awhile. Here are some that were made for a friend expecting a new baby girl (name undetermined). The bird stamp is a favorite and is painted with water color pencils to match the ribbon.

In this next photo. The same stamp is used for some flat cards I made to accompany a gift for another friend expecting a baby (sex unknown--yea!). The top of the flat cards say "Baby Morse" (my friend's last name).

The painted bird is more vibrant in color that the muted tones of the appliqued onesie (that I made to match my favorite stamp) and the burp clothes... but I think it's a cute "set" despite this.

Cute as a Button

2008-08-01T17:37:00.000-07:00

A simple flat card to attach to a baby gift, accented in purple hues.

Here's a closer look at the embellishment:

The font I chose is "childish." I bought a stem of these purple and white daisy silk flowers then decapitated them (!). The "button" in the center is a brad from a set I found at Target. Very simple; I like it quite a lot.

Thank You Note

2008-08-01T17:11:00.000-07:00

I made a set of 8 of these cards to accompany a gift for a little girl back in June (before I started this blog). I was able to photograph one for you today because I came across the one she sent back to me in a stack of paperwork while I was organizing my desk.

The canvas is heavy white cardstock; the sentiment is printed in a bright pink "curvey" font to coordinate with the other design pieces (the inside is blank). I used one-inch squares cut from a bright pink sheet of paper that was accented with silver swirls (not visible in this picture). I punched holes around each square and used a silver pen to create "stitches" around each one. To finish the card, I added a pink and lime green transparent ribbon, tied in the front.

New Baby (gift)

2008-07-30T17:37:00.001-07:00

This is a sample from the set I made for our neighbor down the street who just welcomed a baby girl. These are flat cards; useful for a quick note or a simple thank you. New babies receive many gifts, these are nice to have on hand for anyone, I think.

The cardstock is a heavy white linen finish. The font is whimsical and sweet for a little girl. The carriage image is simple and has a soft pink sweep of color through the center.

T0 add a bit of a "punch," I paired these flat cards with a coordinating pink envelope. The result is very simple and sweet.

Third Birthday Thank You's

2008-07-30T17:18:00.001-07:00

I made these cards to use for my daughter's thank you's. I started with a heaving in a linen finish. Her name is printed in a chocolate brown. I added the aqua cardstock from some sheets I had on hand and separated the space with a satin ribbon that has chocolate, gold, white, and aqua stripes. The flower was made from staking two different flower-punched pieces of heavy gold paper in a foil finish. It is attached with a brushed gold brad.

To add a bit more whimsy, I hand stamped aqua swirls in the lower portion of the card face. This card is a vertical fold.