Flat Christmas Thank You Cards

I just love these dear little Christmas flat thank you cards by James Ellis Stevens.
Each one is delicately glittered and comes with it's own white envelope.

Perfect for children (or children at heart!)

... I have a couple of packs of my own ready for those special thank you's!

Business Cards

I have just created another batch of our business cards in two colourways... silver on beet and silver on plum... perfect!

After, designing a lotus flower using Adobe Illustrator CS4, then using my trusty Gocco (I so love it, it's such a joy to use!) our business cards have again been updated.
The design has been created so that the business cards can have different uses such as compliments cards and display cards and have enough room for a personal handwritten message.

I have great fun changing the designs every so often!

What do you think?

I also Goccoed a simple cropped lotus flower onto the tops of the spare cards for use as little tags, labels or display cards. I think I will use a corner punch to round the two bottom corners on the tags.

I am also going to create a lotus flower stamp with one of our ImagePac Daylight kits.

Imagepac Daylight

Wow!...

We said we have been really busy recently... well this is one of the fantastic products that we have been sourcing for you.

ImagePac Daylight is a revolutionary new product (ImagePac was invented and patented by PhotoCentric who manufacture it in the UK)
Imagepac Daylight enables you to create your own clear stamps at home from your own designs using light sensitive photopolymer!
We sort of fell over it while trying to source for ourselves a photopolymer plate making system for letterpressing. We have also been trying to source alternatives to the wonderful Gocco... I know it isn't a Gocco, but it does have a similar principle - it enables you to create clear stamps at home from your own designs.

You can also use the embossing kit to create a more rigid stamp for embossing.

We are pleased to say that we are now stockists of the ImagePac Daylight range of kits, supplies and accessories.

Yippee!!!

Kutuu

I have been so excited about Hannah Salomon's website Kutuu

... what a naturally talented person she is! I find myself constantly telling people about her work, it's just so beautiful!

I especially love her bracelets, (I have my eye on a certain purple one!)

and her Gocco'ed business and gift cards are great....

she says this is her first attempt at Gocco-ing, Hannah you're a natural!

Images by Kutuu

Busy, Busy, Busy!

We have been really busy here at Purple Greetings Cards... and that has meant that the Purple Blog has been a bit neglected!

But, we have lots of wonderful post's to come!... lot's & lot's!

Oversized Round Stickers

We have been busy creating these beautiful 2" oversized stickers, just perfect for sealing, sticking and loving!... see our stickers page for more!

Printing by Hand

I think I might order this new book: Printing by Hand by Lena Corwin. The cover makes me want to get my Gocco out and start stamping (and I haven't even seen inside yet!)

All I've got to do now is choose what to stamp on, now shall it be paper or fabric, paper or fabric, paper or fabric....?!

Image by Thayer Allyson Gowdy

Etsy Shops

I always seem to find myself over at Etsy whenever I'm feeling a bit "stressed"... I think it's the calming shopping feeling that kicks in when your looking at all those lovely creations that helps... before I know it I'm nice and relaxed again dreaming about what to buy next!

Seeing as I've been over there quite a bit lately!, I though I'd complile you a list of some of my favourite Etsy shops.

So here they are:)

curtie01.etsy.com
sarahparrott825.etsy.com
jenskelley.etsy.com
orangebeautiful.etsy.com
simplesongdesigns.etsy.com

Adana 5 x 3 Letterpress

I'm so excited... I've just given in and bought myself an Adana 5 x 3 Letterpress!

It needs a bit of TLC as it's in a bit of a state! I haven't got a clue how to use it or what parts it needs!... but it's going to be fun finding out!

I will post some more pictures of it soon!

Under The Stair Studios

If you looking for something a bit unusual, something magically memorable to mark an important day then have a look at Kat Whelan's etsy shop: Under The Stair Studios... which she has just opened!
Her etsy shop is filled with Paper Circus's designed, illustrated and hand cut by Kat, to little card's with delicate butterflies on that look as if they have just landed... I love them all!


... if I had to choose a favourite though, I think it would be the Dancing Hare Paper Circus. You can make the four little dancing hares dance by turning the little flag on the top, how delightful!

Kat's blogs are great too:

Under The Stair Studios
Kat Whelan Illustrations
Shoestring Garden

Images from Kat Whelan

A little peek inside!

Tiny doors and little windows... I gave my daughter, Kayleigh this Fairy Castle Lift-The-Flap Card for her fifth birthday, and she adores it. She keeps checking inside all the little doors and windows to see if the tiny birds, fairies and flowers are still in the same places!... how sweet!

... now why can't I have a Lift-The-Flap-Card for my next birthday (hint, hint!) It's not just five year old's that like unicorns and fairies and little doors and windows to open!... other ("slightly older") people do too!

Paper Source Perfection!

A few photo's of yummy goodies from our recent Paper Source order... all ready for creating with!

Yuzen Red Pool Plum Blossoms on Chocolate Japanese Decorative Paper. (This smell's fantastic!)

Eyelets, Snaps & #10 Flat Card all in Chocolate. Setter and Translucent Laser Vellum Sheets.

Envelope Templates & Envelope Liner Templates, Lick & Stick Glue & 5 3/4" Teflon Folder (never leaves a shiny mark, like a traditional bone folder can)

The Paper Source Shape & Colour Guide 2008!

Katazome Lavender White Flowers/Vines Japanese Decorative Paper. (This smell's fantastic!)

Eyelets, Snaps, A7 Envelopes & #10 Flat Card all in Beet. A7 Flat Cards & A7 Box Mailer in Luxe Cream. 1 1/2" Double-Faced Satin Ribbon in Black.

Leaf 2.5 Round Labels.

(The colour is a little out on some of the photo's...all the Paper Source goodies look far more delicious than we have managed to show here!)

We will post our creations as soon as they are finished!

Printing with a Letterpress

I have been meaning to write a post on Letterpressing for a while now.

This is something I have always wanted to learn.

I remember using a letterpress years ago at school to print some posters up (I think it was an Adana) and fell in love there and then! I am hoping to get myself a press... as soon as possible!

I have found a few sites that are really interesting, especially if you are beginner... like me!

They are:

www.handandeye.co.uk
www.britishletterpress.co.uk/machines/adana
www.snapandtumble.com
www.dolcepress.com




I adore this image from Flickr, I think its very provocative! Dosen't it make you just want to get printing... right now!

... and I just love the work of Sesame Letterpress check out their Flickr Photostream for more!



Envelope design by Sesame Letterpress

Gocco Sentiments!

Found these lovely cards on Etsy Shop Jess Gonacha.



Have you ever wanted to tell someone how special they are in the form of a card but couldn't find the right sentiment? Well Jessica has found the answer!

This set of 4 notecards has 4 different sentiments in the set:

"everything will be alright"
"you are my sunshine"
"you are so loved"
"we are all made of stars"

... these sweet little cards are sure to brighten the day of whoever receives them:)

Image from Etsy Shop Jess Gonacha

Ribbons Galore

Ribbons Galore is a site I heart today... especially their blue/brown dots ladybird (10mm or 3/8"wide) ribbon.



How cute!

Image from Ribbons Galore

Colour Guide

This is a close up of the current Paper Source Shape and Colour Guide. The colours are just wonderful and are designed to compliment each other beautifully.



Chocolate & Pool are my favourite colour combination... at the moment!



(Pool is actually a little greener than it looks in this photo)

Mr P... the purple envelope!

You just have to visit these great new accountants called Mazuma who have created an innovative pack designed to take the headache out of finances for small and medium-sized businesses.

Mr P (created by Mazuma) is "the purple envelope" You use it monthly to hold all of your accounts documents, sales invoices, receipts, bank statements etc. You then seal it and post it back to Mazuma who will then do all of your bookkeeping, payroll and VAT and then produce you a set of monthly management accounts and send them back to you. You then start the process all over again by filling a new purple envelope for the next month!

We just love Mr P!... what a sophisticated way to keep your accounts in order! Well done Mazuma for making bookkeeping fun... and a little less daunting!

A little sticky reminder!

This is the first draft copy of our new stickers that you will soon see on some of your orders. We will be sticking them onto our Jiffy Green envelopes and will make another version up to go onto our new Compost-a-Bubble bubble wrap... so you don't forget to be "purply" green!

What do you think then?



... it will be printed on a Leaf 2.5" round label from Paper Source, and is nice and simple.

There are a few adjustments to be made though before we print the final ones!... for starter's the opacity and font colours are not quite right. (The font we have used is Abadi MT Condensed Light... if you are interested!)

Paper Source Stockists!

We're so excited here at Purple Greetings Cards... as we are now Paper Source stockist's! Paper Source is a premiere seller of fine, handmade papers from around the world. Based in America they have several stores and can also be found online. Their trademark is "Do something creative every day"... a great reminder to keep creating!



We are great fans of Paper Source and their spectacular selection is sold in a wide range of forms - large sheets, pre-cut and packaged letter sized sheets, envelopes and accessories, their palette is uniquely Paper Source - with colours developed by and exclusively manufactured for them.



Have a look at this fun Paper Source ColourScope and let their colours tell you more about yourself!



Our current order is making it's way from America to us right now... with our favourite Japanese handmade silkscreened papers included in the order we are counting the days down until it arrives! You may have already noticed the beautiful paper appearing in your orders as we hand line our baby beet envelopes (another fantastic Paper Source product) with it and make our stickers our of it!



We will update our website with our new range as soon as it arrives and as we order regulary from Paper Source... please let us know if there are any special Paper Source products that you have fallen in love with and would like us order for you!

Images from Flickr

Hot Tips and Trends

I have been admiring the work of Chartula Studio for a quite a while now... their delightful bespoke wedding stationery is just divine! I adore their laser cut invitations...



and their Hot Tips and Trends are very helpful too!

Image from Chartula Studio

A Year of Flowers

I found this lovely blog today called A Cup Of Jo You just have to read her "A Year of Flowers" post!

52 little envelopes, were given to someone very special for her birthday by an extremely romantic husband...each with a handwritten love note and cash inside to buy fresh flowers every week for a year.

Make sure you check out the photos of the beautiful flowers she has bought so far!



How delightful is that!...

Image from A Cup of Jo

Handdrawn Peacock Print

I adore this Gocco'ed Peacock Print from Etsy shop SnowDropSense. It's a handdrawn image printed with a Gocco. I can't stop looking at it, the detail is amazing. I just had to show you it. (I've always loved peacocks ever since I was little!)



Oh...and if you haven't visited Etsy yet....hurry up! You don't know what your missing out on!

Image from SnowDropSense

02/07/08 - Keen to be "purply" green!

We are very keen to become more eco-friendly at Purple Greetings Cards... so instead of just automatically re-ordering our usual bubble wrap, we decided to take the time to see if there was any compostable bubble wrap available to pack our orders in.

We came across Compost-a-Bubble ("Compost-a-ble"...get it?) bubble wrap from
PH Flexible Packaging Ltd



So... from the end of next week we will start using the Compost-a-Bubble, bubble wrap at Purple Greetings Cards, you will notice the difference as it is matt white rather than clear... we will even put a sticker on it to remind you it's Compost-a-Bubble!

... and we have also just started to use Jiffy Green envelopes to pack your orders in as well!

Roger la Borde Stockists

We are now Roger la Borde stockists! and our new stock should be here within the week.

We have some lovely cards ordered and a range of notepads with beautiful designs which when folded become their own envelope...very eco-friendly!



Roger la Borde © 2008. All rights to Roger la Borde designs are reserved by Roger la Borde and/or the author of the design.

Behind Closed Doors childrens birthday cards now in stock.

New in today! The full range of the new Lift-The-Flap cards from James Ellis Stevens.

Just great for all those birthdays coming up.....don't you just want to peep inside the tiny doors and windows!

New Carousel Card from Gagatree

The amazing designers at Gagatree have done it again!

This is the soon to be launched new Carousel Card from Gagatree!

Isn't it what childhood dreams are all about, enchanting and magical. Not just a card but a beautiful keepsake too. This card is a Pop-Up card, which once opened turns into a very special Merry Go Round!



You can watch a video teaser of the Carousel Card on Gagatree's Blog page.

The New Gocco Guide is now in stock!

The New Gocco Guide by Claire Russell arrived today and is now in stock at Purple Greetings Cards.

Lotus Flower Seed Pod

I could'nt resist this Lotus Flower Seed Pod when I walked past the florists! Isn't it just beautiful!

Purple Greetings Cards has been Gocco'ed!

Our envelopes have been Gocco'ed!

The first layer has been done simply in black (not sure if black is too dark, but I shall see when the next layer of colours are on!) Black was choosen as it is one of the colours from the handmade paper that the envelopes will be lined from. I was going to use metallic silver, but did not what to introduce another colour. If all goes well... Purple Greetings Cards should just be visable under the lotus flowers that will be printed over the top!



(In the middle of printing)

The New Gocco Guide by Claire Russell available soon!

We have just managed to source The New Gocco Guide by Claire Russell. This highly recommended and informative guide to using your Gocco will be available to buy from Purple Greetings Cards in the next week or so.

Keep an eye on our Gocco page and we will add the book as soon as it arrives!

Purple Greetings Cards on Gagatree's Blog!

We are very pleased to have been mentioned on Gagatree's Blog page today.

Gagatree have said some lovely things about us and have also posted our photograph of the Winter Garden Cards range on their Blog. The cards were photographed hanging on a walnut tree branch, each one gently moving in the breeze. Very picturesque don't you think!



Check out our Blog entry on Gagatree's website here.

Gagatree Winter Garden Cards now in stock!

These wonderful innovative Pop-Up cards from Gagatree are now available to buy from Purple Greetings Cards on our New Designs page.

I have hung the purple one up as it is so delightful, it is fascinating to look at especially if it catches a breeze and starts to spin. I shall probably have them all hung up soon!



Check out our Blog entry on Gagatree's website here.

The Paper Source parcel has arrived!

I just had to take a photo of my Paper Source delivery to show you. This has got to have been one of the best parcel's I have opened in a long time! Everything in it is a delight. The silkscreened paper is just beautiful and is going to complement my lotus flower theme, my baby beet envelopes and luxe cream cards just perfectly.

Im so pleased!!!

Paper Sourced!

I have just placed an order with Paper Source in the USA... a highly recommended and intriguing website full of wonderful products.

I have just ordered my lotus flower paper, some more gocco inks, some baby beet envelopes, cream luxe cards and paper, extra screens and bulbs for my Gocco and a small lotus flower stamp for my envelopes. They were out of stock of the Color Box Eggplant stamp that I wanted so I managed to get that from The Perfect Stamp Store.

Everything should be here soon...I'll post some pictures when my parcel arrives (I can't wait!)



Small Lotus Stamp from Paper Source

Lotus Flowers Japanese Silkscreened Paper

Isn't this paper just beautiful. I'm thinking of lining some baby beet (purple of course!) envelopes with it, then I'll use my Gocco to print on the front, not sure what yet but has to be something to do with a lotus flower.



Lotus Flowers Japanese Silkscreened Paper from Paper Source

Here goes!

My Gocco

This is my first purple blog entry....so here goes!

I am passionate about unusual greetings cards...and most things associated with them! I am a perfectionist (I drive most people mad by it) Creativity inspires me. I adore printing especially if done on a magical gocco!

Letterpresses fascinate me. I have'nt got one...yet!

Oh...and I like purple!

There....thats a start!