wedding save the dates {rhiannon + brandon}

I was so happy when my second cousin contacted me about helping them design the save the dates for their upcoming wedding this fall. They had an idea of how they wanted them to look, and I was able to create the save the date that they were envisioning.

The save the date, when folded up, was a 4" x 6" card (able to fit into a standard photo envelope for mailing). To hold the pieces that were folded in together, I created "save the date" stickers to be applied in the center. Also on the front, were male and female hiker graphics to represent Rhiannon and her fiancé, Brandon. The couple loves hiking together, and wanted to incorporate that into a fun save the date.

Once opened up...

...it revealed the date and place of the upcoming wedding on the left, their wedding website address on the right, and a picture of the adorable couple in the middle. :)

They wanted to use recycled paper for these, so I was able to find a 100% recycled heavy-duty brown construction paper to fit with the theme. I printed these on my wide format Epson photo printer, since they were 12" wide by 4" tall. For the stickers, I used Avery's glossy white 2" round labels, so it was easy to drop my design into their template for printing. I printed their photo on premium double-sided matte photo paper. These were then glued onto the brown paper in the center.

I was thrilled with how these super cute save the dates came together and happy that Rhiannon and her mother loved them, too! Best wishes to the future bride and groom!!

giveaway time!

Do you still have Christmas shopping to do this year? Or do you just love Target as much as I do?!? If so, read on...

I've partnered up with Janine's Confessions of a Mommyaholic today for a great giveaway! Please visit Janine's blog for all of the details by clicking on the picture below. Hurry, contest runs through Wednesday!

Good luck! :)

christmas card giveaway!

I am excited today to be teaming up with one of my favorite bloggers, Meredith, of Mom of the Year, to offer two of her lucky readers a digital, high-res, printable Christmas card that I have designed!

If you haven't checked out Meredith's blog, you are missing out! She is hilarious and as a fellow parent of a 3-year-old and 15-month-old, we are kindred spirits. Reading her words is comforting, knowing that I'm not the only one going through some of these experiences.

Please visit her blog to check out today's post and enter the Rafflecopter giveaway for your chance to win one of my designs. Here are a few that I designed this year, but there are many more on my Facebook page. I can also design something custom, just for you!

Good luck with winning a card and I hope to see you stop by my Facebook page if you haven't already!

welcome packet and web design {dewdrops by amy photography}

I completed my latest project for Amy, of dewdrops by Amy photography, a fantastic photographer in Auburn, Alabama. I was fortunate to have her take my youngest son's newborn photos when he was born last summer. Amy is simply amazing and she keeps getting better and better with each shoot that she completes!

Some of the gorgeous pics she took of our sweet Noah

Amy contacted me about putting together a welcome packet for her business. She continues to get busier and busier (check out the pictures in her Facebook albums and you will see why!), and she wanted something that she could send her new clients when they book sessions with her. She gave me free reign with the design, so I went to work to try to create something that would do her beautiful pictures justice.

The document contains multiples pages, so I thought it might be neat to be able to see the headings on each page if the packet is printed. So, the last page was created as a full size 8.5 x 11" sheet, and the 1st and 2nd pages were both smaller. When stacked on top of each other, they look like this and could easily slide into a folder's pocket.

The document is saved as a pdf, ready to be emailed directly to her clients. It is also posted on her website for clients to check it out there as well.

She also wanted a form created for her website that her clients could fill out before their sessions. The form would give her key information, like how many children (and their ages) to expect, their likes and interests, and what the client was hoping to get from the session. I came up with the following:

This was actually the first web form I have ever created, so I was happy with the results. I have since created another one for my blog here. I still have lots to learn when it comes to web design, but I am trying to teach myself as I go.

Amy was pleased with the results and I was excited to work with her on this project.

bridal shower package {natalie + ryan}

I had the pleasure of designing bridal shower invites for a friend of mine a couple of months ago. Her younger sister is getting married and as matron of honor, she was throwing her a bridal shower in their home state for their family and friends! She wanted a 5" x 7" invite that would convey the kitchen theme of the shower, by including aprons, spoons, bowls, etc. So, I started with the woman’s figure wearing an ivory apron to give it a “wedding” feel, while also incorporating the colors the bride had picked for her big day (ivory and navy). My friend wanted to include information about a raffle they would be having at the shower and we decided it would be cute to make the pocket of the apron an actual pocket in the invitation. I cut a slit above the lace of the pocket and we were able to slide the insert right in. By mounting the invites on an ivory cardstock, it held the insert in place, with a little bit poking out at top so that the guests would see it there.

She also wanted me to create coordinating 4" x 6" thank you notes as a gift for her sister. With coordinating return address labels for the envelopes, she will only need to write her notes and address them!

I also created coordinating return address labels for the invitation envelopes.

I was very happy with how everything turned out and my friend and the guests loved them too! You can check out my Facebook page for additional pictures of these products.

Now Accepting PayPal and Credit Card Payments!

I am happy to announce that I am now accepting additional forms of payment for your orders. I have set up a PayPal account, which is able to accept payments from your personal PayPal account or your credit card. This will allow for faster turnaround times and the convenience and security that credit card and PayPal payments offer. I am still getting everything added, but there are a few options that are ready to use.

Customer Referral Special!

Attention customers! As a thank you to the customers I have had my first year in business, I would like to offer you a special referral incentive. For each referral you send me (the new customer must mention your name when placing their order), I will give you $10 off your next order. (Limit of $50 total in referral incentives).

Photo Editing

I have been starting to learn more photo editing techniques to help enhance the photo products that I create for you. I hope that you will be as pleased with the results as I am. Please see an example below, which demonstrates how you can take an average picture and really make it pop!

Before:

After:

Before:

After:

July Special!

It's time to beat this heat, so here is a little Christmas present in July! Exclusively for my blog followers and FB fans, order any two or more items (i.e., invites and thank you notes) and receive 10% off your entire order! But hurry, offer expires 08.31.10.

Welcome to my blog!

I have decided to start a blog to post pics of current projects I am working on and also those I have completed in the past. They will be labeled, so if a customer is looking for something in particular, they should be able to find what they are looking for with the labels found on the left side. I thought this would be a nice addition to my current webpage on facebook.


Please feel free to leave comments on my posts and send me an email if you are interested in having me create something for you! :)