FFF - DIY Photo envelope liners and swimming again

Happy Fun, Free Friday lovelies!

DIY Photo Envelope Liners
I am not necessarily the most creative, especially when it comes to making my own stationary.  But I know a small touch here and there can create a big impact.   These photo envelope liners from Ms. Martha Stewart create that statement and it can be a fun, personal touch on your stationary as well.

Otherwise, this weekend, I am...

...going to start swimming again.  I live in a lovely complex with access to a pool and I should make the most out of it!  I'm also trying to build in a greater variety of cardio activities.

Isn't this pool at the Umaid Bawan palace amazing?

What are you doing this weekend?

Have a fabulous weekend!

FFF - Last minute Valentine's Day card downloads and e-cards and Valentino Retrospective

Happy Fun, Free, Friday!

The day of Hallmark love, cupid, and lots of chocolate is coming up soon!  We're not doing anything Monday but are going out tonight (err if the rain will let up!)

Free downloads
Mo posted about these adorable downloads from 74 lime lane (don't they have the cutest prints?)  Great all year round!

This is pretty random but Mulberry has digital Valentine's day cards with artwork by Danny Brown- you select a seed, write the message, and the digital card is sent on Feb. 14.  I'm kinda intrigued so sent my husband one for a fun Monday treat.

Otherwise, this weekend I am...
...going to a Valentino Retrospective with a few girlfriends.  The exhibit will have 100 of his most famous dresses over the last few decades.  I have one jacket from this couturier and will dream about how to make all the dresses on display mine.

What are you doing this weekend?

Have a fabulous weekend!

Chic 'n Cheap Living Contest: Night Owl Paper Goods - Wooden or Letterpress Stationary (Worldwide contest)

The wonderful world of Night Owl Paper Goods was introduced here.

Learn a little more about Night Owl Paper Goods below  (derived from a interview from Dash, Pinch, Smidgen.  See the full text here)

The image of two owls on a limb is a self-portrait of sorts.  Jennifer Tatham and Alan Henderson daydreamed about starting their own stationery company and would moonlight on projects for friends after hours.  In 2004, they started Night Owl Paper Goods with a devotion to creating handmade letterpress cards and eco-chic wooden goodies in a "modern yet folksy" style.  They created a company and product line that combines everything they love: design + printing + writing + paper + wood + nature + the environment + friends + family.

They have a wide selection of designs for every event available on letter press or wood.  Custom designs are also available and can be sent to custom@nightowlpapergoods.com.  Simply view the options and pricing online and work with the designers to make a custom design come to life (also don't be afraid to ask about any other options you may want to create!)

Samples are also available on the Samples Page so one can really get a feel of the dimensions and texture of these amazing little wooden cards.

Review
Night Owl Paper Goods kindly sent a few wooden and letterpress samples for my review.  I had no idea what to expect of the wood stationary and was pleasantly surprised - the colors were bright and it was both light, yet flexible and durable (minimizing extra postage costs!)

 

The letterpress stationary was whimsical and lovely on a heavyweight paper.

Deal alert

Save 15% when you order now with code chicncheapliving through September 30th! 

Win your choice of 3 cards, 2 jotters, or 1 journal.

{Le Rules}

This is for the Chic 'n Cheap Living family (aka blog followers - Blogger, BlogLovin, Google or other Reader) only because you rock!  New followers are always welcome too of course.

First entry:
Become a Night Owl Paper Facebook Fan and comment below on your favorite item.  If you don't have a Facebook profile, just comment below letting me know your favorite item.

Please include your e-mail address if you do not have a blog or Twitter ID.

Check the blog to see if you win.  If you win, please e-mail me within 3 days.  I would hate to redraw a winner but everyone deserves a fair chance.

Extra entries:

1.  (+1) Become a Twitter Follower AND tweet about this contest with this line: "Win wooden or letterpress stationary from @cncliving & @nightowlpaper http://su.pr/5OJF7n" (use the Tweet button below!)

2. (+1) Write on the Night Owl Paper Facebook Page telling them your favorite item from the store here
3. (+2) Become a Facebook Fan - for my friends who love to keep up via Facebook! (or remind me if you are already a fan, I changed Facebook fan pages, please come here!)

4. (+1) Blog about the contest/sidebar w/a picture on your page linking back here.

Note: Please WRITE A SEPARATE COMMENT FOR EACH EXTRA ENTRY, it will make the cross-referencing a little easier (esp. for people with different handles on different accounts).

I'll leave this contest up until September 30, 11:59 pm PST.   This is open to readers internationally!

Good luck!

DIY: Thank you, LOVE, and ♥ signs

I wanted signs in our wedding shots after seeing other couples holding adorable homemade signs.  That and I thought they would be a great picture for thank you cards.

I made the following signs: Thank you (we could print these for the front of thank you cards), LOVE (because who doesn't love LOVE?), and the simple but classic ♥ symbol.
This is the current decor for the top of our low bookshelf.  I love reusing items from my projects!  

A few tips I learned along the way:
1. Use cardstock.  I rushed and printed signs for our photobooth on plain paper and they were pretty floppy in photos.
2. Bold and increase your font whenever possible.  It looks large on the screen, but won't look large in your hand.
3. Don't  be confined to a single sheet.  You can always have your design overlap pages and cut it out later.
4. Printing on cardstock would be ideal, but if you want to cut out individual words or letters, read below.
5. Play around with fonts and see what works well (if you're cutting out the words like me, scripts are definitely harder!)  There are tons of free fonts at sites like dafont and 1001Freefonts

Start with this...

Here were my materials:

• Heavy (gold or whatever other color) cardstock
• Exacto knife
• Printed sign
• Newspaper (to act as a pad underneath your cardstock)
• Glue Stick
• Scissors

Follow these steps:
1. Design words in MS Word or Powerpoint.  Remember to print it out to get an actual feel for size and dimensions.  FYI, the "LOVE" letters are Calson Initials font, font size 300.  The "Thanks" is Coventry Garden font, font size 250.
2. Cut a wide outline of words/shape with scissors.

3. Paste words/shape onto back of cardstock.  Line the bottom of cardstock with newspaper to protect your cutting surface.
4. Perforate the entire outline of the words/shape with the Exacto knife.  This helps make the cutting easier later and guides the shape.

5. Cut out the words/shape with the Exacto knife.

6. Have fun with your signs!

It would have been a lot easier if the words were printed directly on the signs, but I still loved them.  That and I guess I didn't mind an afternoon of cutting.  But I am happy that these signs are durable (I plan on getting them framed or at least save them in my scrapbook.

Have you taken part in any time consuming projects that you still loved?

DIY: Useful and easy fan-ish programs with Mad Libs

I'd been meaning to post my wedding programs for a while and if it provides any inspiration for someone, I'm glad to be of service.  They were relatively simple to design and put together.  I'd also like to think they were kinda fun too (I mean mad libs and everything!)

Originally, I wanted fan-shaped programs with rounded corners that fit on a single sheet.  I e-mailed another bride to ask how she did it.  Apparently, it involved a Fiskar rounded cutting tool, another rounder, and lots of time (though I would have rounded the corners but didn't buy the right tool).  Eeeek.
I like the simpler way so at first I just opted for angled pages.  The Kinko's guy tried to cut it, but a bunch of text ended up getting cut off so I modified it to a rectangular format and had it redone.  I totally recommend a local printer if you're cutting paper - they charge $1.50 - $2 per cut and it's easy and efficient (and the one cut applies to hundreds of pages).

Our programs included:

• Ceremony Guide
• Schedule of events
• Wedding party and family
• Note to our guests
• Directions to the reception venue
• Mad Libs (I always want to provide amusement)

The materials:

• Printed cardstock
• Heart shaped hole puncher
• Ribbons

Directions:
1. I designed the programs on a landscape 8.5 x 11 page in Microsoft Powerpoint and printed a copy; Powerpoint will allow you to move sections of text easily and is easy when you make the Mad Libs.  I'd suggest making the Mad Libs one block of text and the corresponding words to fill in individual text boxes you can easily move under the text.  I'm not sure how to post my template online, but please send me an e-mail at cncliving{@}gmail.com if you would like it.
Note: It is useful to have a version with line cuts/borders printed out and a version without borders electronically for Kinko's to print.

2. I brought the printed and soft copies to Kinko's.  They printed on cardstock and cut the programs.

3. I (or rather my lovely bridesmaids because I was looking for my missing veil) assembled the 3 pages and tied the ribbon on each completed program.

It could have still been simple and lovely if the pages were staggered lengths or had a vellum overlay with our monogram. 

I still loved them though - our programs were informative, simple, and fun.
How did/would you plan your programs?

Fun Finds: Cut Paper Love: Rob Ryan creations

Because sometimes we need to give or get a love poem.

Can we? Shall we?

One day, very soon, 

let us go away

together, just you and me.

Call in sick, and go to the sea, 

and hold hands all day,

eat our sandwiches on the train, 

get drunk on fresh air, 

and come home tired and never tell anyone...

ever 

$3.95 here

Gorgeous cut art - sigh, if I had this skill...

That and it's like the artist Rob Ryan knows me - getaways and sandwiches.  Did I ever tell you when I got engaged on the Ponte des Artes, I was clutching a white plastic bag of Banh mi - Vietnamese sandwiches?  They're in all in our secret proposal photos...a lovely proposal in Paris, a bag of sandwiches on my arm, and my white floppy hat.

What would your love poem say?

FFF - Pretty pinstriped stationary, NYC Arts weekend (31 Women in Photography, Whitney Biennial)

Happy Friday lovelies!
Thank goodness it's going to be semi-warm this weekend in NYC (woot 50 degrees, good-bye winter coat!)
I'm probably going shopping with my brother.  Saks Off Fifth Avenue won't know what hit 'em with my 30% coupon in hand here.  Oh and Century 21 has 25% off at the Queens store only through March 21 - print it here.  I really hope I can hit the Whitney too with a few h.s. friends.  It's starting to look like a pretty awesome weekend

Everywhere
There's something about cute stationary that always gets me - I don't know what I'll use it for but I still want it.  I love it when designers share their cute designs for download.  I could definitely use this for something happy (hmm my brother's wedding? something for mom?).  Not sure yet, but I like the option in pink, yellow, or blue.  Thanks to Marry You Me for sharing.

New York
It's your chance to check out a few amazing exhibits!


Humble Art Foundation - 31 Women in Photography 

Ann Woo

Check out some some of the most innovative female new art photographers at the kickoff to this exhibit this weekend.  RSVP to rsvp @ affirmationarts.com

Affirmation Arts
523 W. 37th Street
New York, NY 10018
(212) 925.0092



It's the Whitney's Biennial!

 

 Scott Short

There will be an amazing collection to celebrate the biennial.  In the Whitney's words:


"familiar and less well-known artists from previous exhibitions are brought together in Collecting Biennials, an accompanying installation drawn from the Museum’s collection on view on the fifth floor. Balancing different media ranging from painting and sculpture to video, photography, performance, and installation, 2010 also serves as a two-way telescope through which the Whitney’s past and future can be observed."

Have a fabulous weekend!

DIY: Easy, Personalized Thank you cards/Stationary from DIY wedding invitation kits and other random stuff

Sigh, call me lame because I'm still working on Thank you cards for the NYC wedding.  But I moved to another country (and am moving to yet another another continent again) - that's a pretty good excuse right?  Ok and I get overwhelmed easily.
But I'm back now so I'm all over these cards now.  I think the thank you card may be the most important piece of stationary (some of our friends internationally didn't even get our invitations but they're getting thank yous in some form!)

Note: We also have a few video thank you cards for people who are far away or more appreciative of something digital.  We got dressed up in our wedding outfits again and sent a personalized thank you to a few people using private Youtube videos.  One of our friends cried when she saw her video.  This can be pretty labor intensive but cool.  It's obviously eco-friendly too so think about it!

I've had friends who have given gorgeous thank you cards - picture postcards with collages, personal hand-crafted/bound handmade paper and envelopes, and lovely monogrammed cards with ribbons.

I wanted to keep it Chic 'n Cheap and simple of course.  I also wanted to use stationary and other stuff I already owned but punch it up a little.

Bought some random invitation kit and don't know what to do with it?
Got tons of random ribbon lying around?
Have leftover tulle from random showers?
Stare at random stickers from scrapbooking parties from random showers?

Use it for your thank you cards or other stationary!

I began with these materials:

• Invitation Kit
• Tulle
• Ribbons 
• Scrapbook paper
• Edge press
• Glue stick

Tip: If you are a card-writing person and see these invitation kits on sale (I got these for $5/40 cards at Target) - GET THEM.  I use these regular, large cards as wedding cards and the RSVP cards as thank you cards.  I've been to 15+ weddings (and counting).  Can you imagine cards for all those weddings at $3 a pop?  This kit rocks and the card is pretty cute.  Anyway, it's the message and the gift that most couples will be looking at!

1. Take the 3" x 5" RSVP cards in the invitation card and use it as your base.  If you like to keep it simple, do nothing further! Or just stamp "Thank you" on the front with a stamp like Ms. Very Married.

2. Dress it up!
Edge press:
- Press evenly on stationary ensuring edges and pattern aligns as you continue

Scrapbook paper embellishment
- Cut paper 1" smaller on each side than base and glue to base stationary.  If adding ribbon/tulle, glue in back of scrapbook paper.   Use stickers on top of paper for extra textural element.  I cut out random hearts with contrasting scrapbook paper to add some fun.

Here are some examples:

Photo Personalization
Use your high quality digital photo and convert it into a 3" x 4" print (can be printed from a Kodak machine in this size).  Or take advantage of the free 4" x 6" offers tons of places give you for signing up and put 2  3" x 4" on a 4" x 6" layout using MS Powerpoint.  You can even write a thank you here too.

I sent a few to Walgreens, cut them out, and pasted them on top of some scrapbook embellishment.

Have fun with it.  You can still do thank you cards with simple things you already have and of course remember, it's the note (and maybe like some of our older relatives the picture) that they appreciate!