Holy moly, friends! Did you see that Minted makes fabric now?? I would never have guessed it, but of course, now that they’ve done it, it seems like a completely natural move. Unsurprisingly, they’ve done a stunning job, sourcing from the most talented independent artists to curate the most lovely designs, just like they did with paper. Man, this company can do no wrong. A few of my favorite patterns:

All of these patterns are available in four or more colorways, and each design is available in cotton canvas for $32/yard or linen-cotton blend for $34/yard (which is not cheap, but not that expensive considering the customization options and the cuteness factor). I’m seeing pillow covers, roman shades, crib skirts… so many exciting options, my head is spinning!

P.S. More Minted coming your way soon… it’s almost time to choose our 2014 Christmas card!!

Have y’all SEEN the new Puffin in Bloom books by Rifle Paper Co? They are perfection.

I love almost everything Anna does, and these books are no exception. I think they’re even prettier than the Penguin Classics! Anne of Green Gables is one of my very favorite books (I made an inspiration board here!), and I also love A Little Princess. I actually don’t think I’ve ever read Heidi or Little Women, so I guess that gives me an excuse to buy the books! :) They’re definitely going on my Christmas list.

All four books are available on Rifle’s site for $16 or for about $11 on Amazon.

P.S. All of these photos are from Anna’s instagram stream – so neat to see the paintings that became the covers!

P.P.S. My brother-in-law is Anna’s literary agent! So proud of him, too :)

The run-up to Natalie and Joe’s wedding was remarkably calm, from my perspective, but there was one aspect of the festivities that was a little nerve-wracking – my other sister-in-law’s due date, which was one week after the wedding! Today is our nephew’s official due date, but despite dancing up a storm at the reception he still hasn’t made an appearance. Though I’m not sure Marget would agree at this point, I’m glad I’m able to make a report of the shower in his mama’s honor before he arrives!

We held the shower in New York, where my sister-in-law lives. We went with a loose “adventurous little boy” theme, since that’s (loosely) the theme of the nursery. Here’s the invite I made to send to guests:

I printed the invitations at FedEx, and sent them out in kraft envelopes from Paper Presentation I had on hand. I actually decided to list these as a download in my Etsy shop, so if you have a use for them, they’re right here!

We kept the decor fairly minimal: one of M’s friends made an adorable gingham garland, we arranged colorful yarrow into little tin buckets, and we displayed some adventurous books, pine cones, and wooden woodland animals. (They were part of my shower gift to Marget – maybe the start of a collection!) I also picked up a few tree trunk slices from A.C. Moore (easy to travel with!) for displaying food and made a special sign with nephew’s nickname.

To make the sign, I spraypainted a wooden craft store plaque white, then hot glued on twigs. Easy!

The favors were little muslin bags stamped with “Adventure is out there” and filled with trail mix! I used a self-inking stamp from RubberStamps.com and it worked beautifully on the fabric.

I really dislike most baby shower games, so we went simple and just had one activity aside from eating, socializing, and opening gifts: we painted blocks for the baby! The blocks were from A.C. Moore, and I picked up craft paint in the nursery accent colors and a multi-pack of brushes. It seemed to go over well; my brothers-in-law even picked up a brush to complete the set post-shower. As a side note, if you’re trying this and planning to have a really young child who might put them in his mouth play with them, I’d recommend adding a food-safe sealant after they’re dry.

Now we just wait eagerly for news of our nephew’s arrival!!

Hi friends! Thank you so much for your thoughtful comments on my last post! I loved reading them!

Going back a few more posts, I had mentioned that I was considering DIY-ing this Sugar Paper note card set. And I did! It ended up turning out very well (if I do say so myself!), so I thought I’d share it here.

Supplies needed: white cards (I used A2), colored envelopes (my favorites are from Paper Presentation), metallic gold craft paint, a 12″ bamboo skewer, a small paint brush, something to hold your paint, and an old magazine

There are really no instructions for this project — you’re just making dots, however you think looks best! But I do have two very helpful hints. The first: I like the look of dots going off the card, but if you do so, you’re depositing paint on your work surface with every card, which can make finding a clean place for your next card difficult. My solution: use an old magazine you’re ready to recycle! You can turn the page after every card so you have a clean surface for each one without using an excessive amount of paper.

Second tip: When you use the base of the skewer to deposit the dots, it leaves a tiny peak. I wanted a cleaner look, so I went back over each dot with a small paintbrush to pick up some of the extra paint and smooth things out. It sounds fastidious, but only took a few seconds for each card! Before and after below.

And that’s it! I tied sets of six with satin ribbon for gifting after letting them dry overnight. They may not be letterpress like Sugar Paper’s, but I think they’re pretty fun!

DIY projects don’t always turn out that professional-looking, which can make them hard to give as gifts, but I think this stationery is the perfect candidate. Tuck this one away until next December, or make a set for yourself! :)