A while back on Oh So Beautiful Paper, Nolé featured these menus I created with Amber Moon of Pitbulls and Posies and Jill LaFleur for Jose Villa's 2011 (gulp) Mexico workshop. As always, it was a blast creating them with this talented team of folks.
{Photos by Jose Villa}
Hero and bottomless source of inspiration Dana Tanamachi stole my heart with her new year's resoltuion, as featured on Design*Sponge. And have you purchased one of her prints above yet?
{via Design*Sponge and Dana Tanamachi}
The other day after a visit to the Boboli Gardens, I was wandering around the Palazzo Pitti neighborhood when I happened upon the store &CO. Overflowing with vintage furniture and posters and books, handmade leather goods, ceramics, pillows, and little corners of delight (two above), it was clearly the work of someone with a special, gifted eye. There was beautiful, familiar calligraphy everywhere, on many of the products. It was overwhelming. "Who is responsible for...all of this?!" I asked. And there she was, Betty Soldi: designer, calligrapher and proprietor of &CO with her husband Matteo. And then, inevitably, we started the mile a minute yammering that only comes when you get two calligraphers in a room together. Betty is totally magical, and I can only attribute this, in part, to the fact that she comes from two centuries of Florentine firework makers. (Read all about her amazing life here.)
I am so excited to introduce you to Betty's work. She's penned for the top of the top: Hermès, Mont Blanc, Giorgio Armani. I feel like an overeager teenager, but I can't wait to collaborate with and get to know this kindred spirit.
My love for the folks over at Camden Printworks is no secret. I've been so fortunate to collaborate with them on this party invitation, this wedding suite, and this extravaganza of invite, menu, program, banner, ribbons, and on and on. The enterprise is a deliberate effort to bring more jobs and economic opportunities to struggling Camden, NJ, and I couldn't be more honored to give them my business. From top left to right: Brad, owner Adam, the Shellenberger Brothers (Nicholas and Jackson), and Joe are hands down some of my favorite collaborators. They invited me over the other day to silkscreen a bit (my technique is...lacking), throw back some beers and poke around the printshop. Just being in that infernally hot space with the riot of ink colors, blasting Katy Perry music and smell of clean cotton is enough to inspire me for weeks. The chaos of the shop is such a remarkable contrast to the impeccable, detailed, refined work they make for Neither Snow. And I adore this contrast. And most of all, I adore their company. You'll be hearing more about our partnership in the coming months. For now, some behind the scenes snaps.
Hello hello. I write from the green pastures of Connecticut en route to visit Rob and Loic in Provincetown and, most importantly, celebrate Rob's 30th birthday. I went pawing through the archives and came upon these photos from last year. The top is a good display of this couple's impeccable eye for decor; the next is Loic on the beach sketching out the float he will build for that year's parade (which parade? I can't keep track). He has a reputation for building the best. And the last photo, courtesy of Rob, is the view from the finished product. This scene about sums up why it is so fun to visit. Hope you're squeezing in a few more summer adventures too!
(Top to bottom, left to right: Fawnsburg notecards; love*jenna packaging for Ineke perfumes; Plurabelle Rilke quotation; Ligature edge-painged invitations by Paperfinger)
Last week, as is our annual tradition, I gathered with some of my favorite people ever: Bryn from Paperfinger, Patricia from Primele/Fawnsburg and Jenna from love*jenna. We decamped in the corner table of Rucola and, over six hours and just as many courses and beverages (we toggle between coffee and cocktails), gabbed about calligraphy, dream projects, our lives, ink, nibs, artist crushes, inspiration. If I were to make a list of the best parts of Neither Snow, forging a friendship -- a little guild -- with these extraordinary talented ladies would be at the very top of my list. Some corners of this industry that are catty, competitive and ungenerous. But our relationship is founded on just the opposite: an overwhelming abundance of kindness, collaboration and generosity. I add to this list my west-coast compatriot, Molly of Plurabelle, who I hope one day will join our table out east. Here's a snapshot of the badassness of each:
Bryn just launched a line of stunning hand-calligraphed and illustrated invitations called Ligature. Check them out here and at Oh So Beautiful Paper.
Patricia wows us every year with her delightful stationery designs (and she always brings us goodies!). Behold her new line of notecards. I chose the gray set and adore the tiny mouse.
Jenna's masterpiece is her scrumptious daughter Clementine who we had the good fortune to meet. She's embargoed some beautiful hand-painted work I hope she'll share soon. Until then, take a gander at this ridic set of perfume packages she designed (zoom in!).
Molly is headed to Paris this month (lucky, lucky). I can't wait to follow her adventures on her blog.