Now that Thanksgiving dinner has settled, one of the first things I like to address . . . no pun intended . . . is the stack of greeting cards I’ve carefully selected to send to family, friends, and clients. I don’t have a one-size-fits-all approach as to how I design an interior, so selecting cards shouldn’t be any different. I’ve got a mad passion for beautiful paper, patterns, and lettering. Email cards can be fun and fast but I love to send salutations which can be held in the hand. (It’s one of the reasons, if it were up to me, bookstores would still be thriving, too.)
If you need inspiration for your Christmas card list, all you have to do is log-on to the website, Etsy. I could spend hours searching through all of the designs! There is something to fit everyone.
Sweet Letter Press displays a peaceful image in current colors. There is a fab fabric from Lee Jofa and designer, Eric Cohler, which captures a similar, graphic aesthetic.
A fresh interpretation of the lodge look. I keep hoping to use one of these patterns for a client!
This fun card, from dodeline design, brought to mind a fabulous wall display I saw, below, in the Halo Styles Showroom at the High Point Market.
Almost hard to believe they all didn’t end up in the landfill! (Image courtesy of the Kandrac and Kole blog.)
Sentiments expressed, en Francais, always take on certain je ne sais quoi . I have a wish to someday make it to the Maison & Objet, in Paris, the city of lights. It’s a trade show of magnifique proportions. (Wonder what the French would think of my southern accent?)
One Etsy vendor, petitepear, enthralled me with breadth of her designs. I especially heart her gift tags, as shown below:
When I saw the fine examples of papeterie, above, it reminded me of tagging along with Eddie Ross, during one of our recent antiques’ shows. He shared a great tidbit about silver in the video I recorded, below:
A friend of mine, Beth Swanson, has a darling antiques shop, Olde Tyme Marketplace, located in the old mercantile building where the “The Color Purple” was filmed, in Marshville, NC. These gift cards would be right up her store’s alley!
Beth is the consummate recycler. Just look at what she’s done to this old pail!
The dog lover couldn’t help but to be won over by the little black pup with the wreath collar. Another friend, Tammy Taylor, is “owned” by her sweet black lab, Reagan. I just know she would share a big “AW!” if she opened this card.
Tammy is also a talented interior designer in the Charlotte area. She just recently created a room at the Southern Christmas show. She was recommended, by the folks at the show, to appear on a “Charlotte Today” segment. (Smart people, they are!) Tammy was so calm and cool and offered a lot of great tips for trimming the tree!
Any Eames enthusiast would be gaga over the “tree” of DCW plywood chairs! Santa can still get these from your Herman Miller dealer.
A design classic!
The card above, is reminiscent of English Transferware. It’s done in letterpress printed on antique presses using soy-based ink and 100 percent cotton paper - tree free and made from recycled fibers. Wouldn’t it be a lovely accompaniment to this? . . . .
The relief pattern, around the border of this charger, makes it extra special. At under $60, I think it’s a gorgeous buy!
Yes, I could find a whole universe of cards for, well, the whole universe on Etsy! . . .
Let’s hope you’re on a first name basis, if you decide to try the magic powers of the Mistletoe card! (Smile!)
I live not too far from the barbeque capitol of North Carolina - Lexington. As long-winded as we southerners can sometimes be, when we’re spinning a tale, we can also oddly enough assign a short nickname to a food which requires hours of cooking over a hot pit!
I hope you’ve had fun with me while browsing through the “card section” on Etsy! By now you might be able to tell, I love connecting the dots of design. A card is not just a card. It’s about the detail and thought which went into the design. It’s about the unique quality being shared with an individual. It’s about a gift from the heart!
From my heart to yours . . . All my best! ~ Wanda
Final Contest Alert! I’ll be giving away an autographed copy of Vicente Wolf’s “Lifting the Curtain On Design”! All you have to do to enter is to leave a comment on any two of my posts, beginning with the 2010 High Point Furniture Finds – Post 1 thru November 30th – Ends November 30, 2010.
I’ll announce the winner the first week of December 2010. I hope you’ll enjoy a festive month!
