2011 Holiday Collection

Blue Ribbon's 2011 Holiday Collection is now available on Tiny Prints!

Little Book of Letterpress

I am delighted to be included in Charlotte Rivers's new book, Little Book of Letterpress. Whether you are new to letterpress or an old pro, this book is filled with recent letterpress creations in a range of styles, making it a great addition to everyone's design library!

Phillip Lim Collage Video

It's amazing how much work goes into producing an intricately constructed dress. I love Phillip Lim's clothes and regularly haunt the Mercer Street store, but after watching this video, I've developed a deeper appreciation for his design process - he is ridiculously talented.



www.31philliplim.com

J.Crew Bridal Boutique

Hooray! Finally! The J.Crew Bridal Boutique opens on Madison today. Read all about it and see some interior shots on Racked NY.

Stylized Flowers

Some new stylized flower designs... these are going to look adorable on a baby announcement or garden party invite.

Florisity Floral Gallery

I'm happy to report that the floral designer formally at Utowa is still making gorgeous arrangements at his new shop, Florisity. The staff there is so accommodating and the quality of the flowers is top-notch. It's definitely one of my go-to places for flowers and gift-worthy plants.

Florisity
1 West 19th Street (btw 5th & 6th Avenues)
212.366.0891 | www.florisity.com

Spring Flowers

Thank goodness it's finally Spring...

New Design: Timeless Ardor

And here is the second new thermography design available through Wedding Paper Divas:

It's called "Timeless Ardor", and I just love it in the celery-green colorway. Visit weddingpaperdivas.com to view additional components and for further information about how to order.

New Design: Paisley Bliss

There are two new thermography designs available on Wedding Paper Divas! The first is called "Paisley Bliss" and it comes in four colorways: chocolate brown, robin's egg, mandarin, and (my favorite) gold.

If you're not familiar with thermography, definitely order a sample - the raised printing is just gorgeous. Below is a detail of one of my thermography holiday cards that was printed in gold - lovely!

To order Paisley Bliss or to view additional invitation designs by Blue Ribbon, please visit Wedding Paper Divas.

L'heure bleue

Place de la Concorde and the Eiffel Tower during l'heure bleue by Paris Breakfasts

I learned something new this morning while reading Paris Breakfasts's post about Guerlain. Apparently the French expression l'heure bleue refers to the brief time of day where there is neither full daylight nor complete darkness and there is a special quality to the light. I particularly like this time of day here in the city, when it's not completely dark, yet the lights have turned on and all of the buildings and street lights have a soft glow.

One of Guerlain's fragrances is named L'Heure Bleue and here is a flowery description of the scent's origin from the company website:

L’Heure Bleue was born in 1912 of the fleeting sensation that inspired the Impressionist painters whose works Jacques Guerlain collected. He pictured this bouquet of roses softened with iris, violet and vanilla, which evoke his favorite moment of the day when, as he put it, “the night has not yet found its star” and all of nature’s elements are cast in blue light.

Dreamy, no? I've also heard this time of day called golden hour or magic hour, but I think I'll call it l'heure bleue from now on.

Vintage Gown Patterns

I love the way vintage sewing patterns illustrate how pattern pieces can be combined to create different looks. The wedding gown pattern below is a great example of how simple changes (such as shortening a hem or choosing a different fabric) can dramatically alter the look and feel of a dress.


The following designs are not wedding gowns, but could easily become so if done in the right fabric! I love that all the models are shown wearing gloves - I wonder if that will ever come back in style...



All the images above are from So Vintage Patterns, www.sovintagepatterns.com. Ebay and momspatterns.com are also good sources for old patterns.

J.Crew Weddings & Parties Sample Sale

Yesterday evening I attended a preview of the J.Crew wedding & parties sample sale. The bridesmaid and party dress selection was limited, but there were racks and racks of beautiful wedding gowns to choose from. If you are looking for a beautiful dress at a discount, this sale is definitely worth a visit!

J.Crew Weddings & Parties Sample Sale
Flatotel Hotel
135 West 52nd Street (between 6th and 7th Avenues)

Friday, February 19 and Saturday, February 20, 9:00 am — 8:00 pm
Sunday, February 21, 10:00 am — 6:00 pm

alexis bittar Spring 2010

The newest addition to my collection (Thank you M.!)

I have been collecting Alexis Bittar's jewelry for couple of years now and I am completely obsessed with this Spring's offerings. Most editors favor the chunky sculptural pieces from the Miss Havisham Collection, but I almost always go for designs from the Lucite and Elements Collections. Below are some of my favorites from the new collection:

GOLD IMM. CORAL CHRYSOPRASE ABALONE EARRING IN WARM GREY

LARGE GOLD CORAL & CHRYSTO. METAL MESH HINGE BANGLE

SHORT GOLD SQUARE SECRET GARDEN NECKLACE

If you have the opportunity, definitely visit one of the stores. There are always pieces available from the current collection that are not shown on the website and there is usually a mix of one-of-a-kind editorial pieces and vintage pieces for sale as well. Plus, the staff has an amazing flair for accessorizing and I'm always impressed by how creatively they wear Alexis's designs.

www.alexisbittar.com

Alexis Bittar - Soho
465 Broome St. (between Mercer and Greene)

Alexis Bittar - West Village
353 Bleecker St. (between W10th and Charles)

Alexis Bittar - UES
1100 Madison Ave (between 82nd and 83rd Streets)

Warm Thoughts

It's a slushy mess in New York today and it's no fun going from place to place when you have wet snow blowing in your face. I have no idea where the photo below was taken, but would like to be there now... it would be awfully nice to be somewhere sunny and warm.

Photo from an old Laura Ashley (!) lookbook, c. 1993

Digital Valentines I'd Actually Like to Receive

A super-cute collection of e-Valentines via the super-creative people at kate spade:

Untraditional Valentines

Some creative Valentines by clothing designers via Vogue.com (I think the pug is my favorite!):

By Lisa Mayock of Vena Cava

By Philip Crangi


A sketch by Jason Wu

Letterpress Holiday Cards

Pssst... Blue Ribbon's letterpress holiday cards are on sale. Click here to order.

Thermography Holiday Cards for Tiny Prints

Here's two additional pieces I designed for Tiny Prints' holiday collection. These cards are printed using thermography, so the text and border designs will have a lovely raised appearance. These cards are an elegant option for those of you who are not into the whole photo-card thing, but still want to send a custom printed greeting. Click here for ordering information.

Things to See this Weekend

If you like works on paper there is an awful lot to see this weekend!

A Woman's Wit: Jane Austen's Life and Legacy opens at the Morgan Library (225 Madison Avenue at 36th Street).

The exhibition Polish Film Posters: Girls, Love, Fear, Sex, Typography opens at Philip Williams Gallery (122 Chambers Street, between Church & West Broadway).

IFPDA Print Fair at The Park Avenue Armory (643 Park Avenue at 67th Street).

And last but not least, the 2009 Editions|Artists' Book Fair will take place at X Initiative (548 West 22nd Street, between 10th & 11th Avenues).

New York Chocolate Show

The chocolate show turned out to be lots of fun and there were some interesting displays including a vitrine filled with vintage chocolate molds and whimsical costumes constructed completely of chocolate.

After tasting lots of delicious samples, my two favorite exhibitors by far were Oliver Kita (www.oliverkita.com) and Chocolate Springs (www.chocolatesprings.com).

Oliver Kita's chocolates were visually stunning; many had interesting metallic patterns and gem-like shapes and surfaces. The Scarlet Caramel and Lavandre Citronade were delicious. These would make impressive individual favors or would be lovely served with coffee at the end of a meal.

Chocolate Springs's individual chocolates were also intensely flavored but had an extremely light texture which went well with the delicate Japanese-inspired surface illustrations.

I especially loved the special New York City illustrations created for the chocolate show. This assortment would be perfect to include in a welcome bag for out of town guests...

New York Chocolate Show

I can't wait to attend New York's Chocolate Show this weekend. I don't think it's going to be as over the top as Paris's Salon du Chocolat (as deliciously documented by Paris Breakfast), but I hope to discover some new producers/chocolates I haven't tasted before and get some new ideas for favor packaging and display.

Visit the Chocolate Show's website (www.chocolateshow.com) for show details and tickets.

J.Crew Weddings Moves Downtown

I'm so glad J.Crew is finally expanding the number of locations where brides can see the weddings and parties collection in person - and now you don't even have to go uptown! I like that they used an illustration in this email blast as opposed to a photograph - it's a refreshing change of pace from the usual glossy (albeit charming) photo and has a nice vintage feel.

Blue Ribbon for Tiny Prints - Holiday Collection

The vintage-inspired photo holiday cards I designed for Tiny Prints are now available for purchase online! Click here for additional designs.