rock paper scissors

decadent decoupage!

we love when our customers send us before & after pics of their projects! see what happens when you refurbish an old coffee or console table (before):

using our colorful papers (and maybe a coat of paint!), now it's a handsome accent table!

what project are you working on?

a christmas classic

we're branching away from the first 3 holiday winners with a special selection for an all-around awesome holiday card... it gets gold stars for being a classic photo with a classic message: the cute couple (with professor in sweater vest and all!), a bike; adorable dogs; in the fall leaves; saying "Merry Everything"... one of our fave photographers, sarah cramer shields, was shot by another one of our fave photogs, Lucy O photo! then our very own dani antol crafted a simple, classic card design. we suppose it could also win the category of most use of local vendors!

printed by our friends at Tag & Company using a giclee art print process.

merry everything to everybody!

holiday winners, 3rd installment

in what some might consider a gutsy move, willow tree apps went out on a limb with their holiday card this year:

letterpressed on sumptuous, 110# crane's lettra cotton stock with a willow-like tree made from apps, with hanging droids and tablets and smart phone ornaments, we applaud their greeting: "appy holidays" - thank goodness letterpress machines don't auto-correct!

hav a gr8 xms evry1!

holiday winners, 2nd installment

continuing our thought from yesterday that this year's holiday card wording was more playful than years past, we're bringing you our top 3, in no particular order. see below for #2:

if you can't read the fine print, it says, "From our den to yours, wishing you a roaring holiday season!" also printed by our friends at tag and company, this one combines our favorite furry friend with fun wording - we'd be lion if we said we didn't love it!

holiday winners, 1st installment

last year we chose winners in 4 different categories (1, 2, 3, and 4) to highlight the best (and our favorite) holiday cards by our customers. this year, we noticed a trend... cards wishing other families peace & joy definitely had their place, but we got the sense that people were being more playful and clever with their wording. was it the stinking economy that made people want to pick others up with a fun line? we can't really say, but we liked it! 

so here is the first installment of the holiday winners (first of 3; not in any particular order!):

printed by our friends at tag & company with the line, "hope you are happy as a clam this christmas season" - it truly had our eyes watering with salt water tears... we were digging it... so much so, we're not sure we want to talk about it, we're clamming up!

happy holidays everyone!

on our bookshelf...

well, on the bookshelf in our shop at least, so get your book worm on! designers of all kinds will appreciate this retrospective of the "color" company!

calling all agencies & art directors: this one claims to solve any creative brief:

the 2nd edition of thinking with type is an essential design tool:

more artistic? push yourself with this fun, prompting book of drawing challenges! 

the who's who guide of letterpress companies... (and a good summary of cards found in our store!)

and if you're familiar with Uppercase, you'll be very excited about these editions that are on their way!

 

 

happy reading!

Southern Living Holiday Elegance

Have you checked out the December 2011 issue of Southern Living?

flip to page 98 to see Lynn Easton Andrews of Easton Events featured in a story on 3 chic ways to deck the table! the theme? "earthly elegance." this soiree came together with a neutral palate of silvers, golds and creams; cedar log candles contrast the mother of pearl napkin rings. what to greet your guests with? spiced egg nog, of course!

dani antol of RPS enjoyed creating the menu and place cards for this event, featuring a silver pattern reminiscent of a pineapple - the southern symbol for hospitality! Pat's Floral Designs worked their magic as well!

here's wishing you a picture-worthy holiday table!

locally grown

at RPS, we love supporting the local movement... in addition to local vendors we highlighted awhile back, check out these great new local additions:

with both physical books and handwritten notes on the decline, Maria Adelmann hopes to preserve both with her cards featuring paintings of some of her favorite books while studying English and Psychcology at Cornell (undergrad) and fiction writing at UVA (grad).

 

 



Lola & Bella designs, by Lauren Stangil, are bright & cheery. her illustrations turned into notecards will bring a smile to your face and make you want to send a note to an ol' pal (especially your animal-loving friends!).

 

Meg Runion Studios offers frames covered in gorgeous paper (some from our very own RPS) - the perfect fit! (photos by meg)

  

 

 

Tim O'Kane's bird sketches have birders chirping about his talent....

 

you may have seen the cable-knit goodness post we did recently - some of those items are from Julia Farrill of Red Bird Ink, who grew up here in Charlottesville! she resides in Atlanta, now, but we'll let her count!

 

and be sure to check out the latest & greatest from Laurel Denise. she's got some home decor (sweet bud vases with her signature phrases) and an *awesome* planner - if you're the type to write down books you want to read, goals for next year, restaurants to visit etc., this is the one for you!:

 

thank you!

pssssst.... you're about to get a lot of presents... you might want to read this feature on page 13 of the latest C Mag issue:

here's the cover in case you need a visual reference!

new storefront window: hope your holiday hits the mark

keeping in line with this year's holiday theme ("10 points to a great holiday" and "hope your holiday hits the mark"), we wanted this window to feel warm & cozy; with winter whites and the comforts of warm blankets and hot cocoa with marshmallows... add in some presents that make up the hay bale marked by a bullseye and some arrows; some antlers, some products with antlers on them, and cotton balls for snow, and voila!

complete with reindeer doormat:

Happy Holidays from RPS to you!

PROP MALFUNCTION ALRERT!

but it didn't necessarily all happen so easily. we had grand plans to string marshmallows to make the snow. but our props weren't cooperating. the marshmallows were all goopy and sticky and gross. so we tried taking them out of their bags & drying them over night... not enough. we had to swap for cotton balls!