National Stationery Show Recap

Jun 11, 2013

nss entry A few weeks ago, I ventured from West Texas to attend the National Stationery Show in New York.  On the plane, someone asked if it was my first time in NYC and I said no, but it got me thinking…  Since I graduated college and started working in the invitation/paper gift industry, I’ve traveled to New York for the National Stationery Show (NSS) 11 times now!  Eleven times!  It’s hard to believe that time has flown so quickly!  I’ve only been a buyer for the last five years (before that I worked for a vendor and learned the ins and outs of show set up, tear down, and the grueling hours of “show feet” in between).  All that to say, I’ve been around the block a time or two at the show and I don’t have time to waste when I’m there.  I’m kind of a speed-shopper, so I can pretty much get all my buying done in about a day and a half (which allows me a sliver of shopping time in NYC and helps me get back to the store to wrap up graduation season pretty quickly).

Since the business at Calligraphy Etc.  has shifted from blank stock to more custom invitations, I don’t buy many invitations at the show.  I still get a little (just for the sake of variety), but by and large, most of the invitations we’re doing are our own.  So this year, I was mainly on the lookout for unique greeting cards, gifts, stationery and wedding albums.

Here are a few of my favorite finds:  zombiecard

1.  Fun letterpress cards from Hello Lucky like this one.  It’s perfect because zombies are so hot right now (a phrase I never thought I’d say)!  The Walking Dead and Warm Bodies fans, this card’s for you.

rewined2.  Rewined candles.  Their concept is really clever!  The candles are hand-poured in recycled bottles, and each “flavor” has the same notes in the candle that are in that particular wine.  So if your friend loves Pinot Noir (like I do), she’s going to love the Pinot Noir candle (and no, it doesn’t smell like wine – just the NOTES, remember?).

3.  Adorable letterpress calendars from 1Canoe2.  Each month has really cute graphics AND a unique “stump” holder.  Come on 2014, hurry up and get here so I can use this pretty little baby!  1canoe2calendar

Happy to have found lots of other great items coming to the store soon!  You can see brand new items as they arrive if you’re a fan on Facebook or follow us on twitter (@calligraphyetc) or on Instagram (@calligraphyetc).  On a side note, I didn’t find *exactly* what I was looking for at NSS to broaden our custom stationery selection, so I’ve decided to make my own program.  For awhile it’ll just sit on my big fat “To Do” list… but once it’s on the list, it WILL get done.  Eventually.

Did you attend the show?  What were some of your favorite finds?

Lunchbox to Mail Organizer

Lunchbox to Mail Organizer

May 1, 2013

DSC_0529I found this “mailbox” lunch box at an antique store in town and instantly snapped it up…  I especially love the “Mr. Zip” on the side (hehe).  While I don’t take my lunch to work much these days, I did think that this could be the perfect vessel for housing outgoing mail…  DSC_0504We often write “thank you” notes at work to customers, and having a way to organize them seems pretty perfect.  I’m just excited that now I have a cute way to do it!

This adorable little mailbox only cost me $14 (but honestly I would have paid more).  I completely love the graphics on it, as well as the overall design.  With the “mailbox” look on both sides (including the flag), I think it’s a pretty special piece.

To act as a divider for the outgoing mail, I cut some kraft cardstock and added Avery tabs with the name of each month.  I love that these tabs are self-adhesive and the title can be changed easily too!  To keep with the colors of the box, I only used the red, white and blue options from the package, and I think it works well.

Here’s a shot of the inside, showing the monthly tabs and a few cards already filed in place.DSC_0539

My grandmother, who sent a birthday card to EVERYONE she knew (maybe that’s where a love of paper), taught me a pretty cool trick when I was in college.  She used to label each envelope (in the top right corner) with the date that it should be mailed to get to the recipient ON their birthday.  If all of the cards are filed away nicely, all you have to do is pull out the card to be mailed (on the date listed), place a stamp over the written date, and drop it in the mail!  DSC_0543Such a simple (but totally genius) idea that has stuck with me for YEARS…  It’s been really helpful!

I’m so excited to have this little treasure as my “mail organizer”.  It’s WAY better than a boring office filing system, don’t you think?  🙂  Happy mailings, all!

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