KevinGraham – Page 5 – custompaper.com/blog

January 3, 2014

HAPPY NEW YEAR – 2013 IN REVIEW and ON THE HORIZON FOR 2014

2013 was a monumental year for our business: we moved, our shop and clients received a wide array of press, we have segued back into the tradeshow circuit….oh, and did we mention we are rebuilding our website? All in all, much has been accomplished and there is much to look forward to in 2014!

Here are a few additional highlights:

We started printing on our ribbons! Think: custom business packaging and wedding personalization.

We are now offering a finished edge silk ribbon (not just bias cut).

We have added many new papers to our already large line, including these papers from India.

There is much to look forward to in 2014 including the events and tradeshows we will be attending!

Seattle Wedding Show
Washington State Convention & Trade Center
Saturday January 11th, 2014 10:00am to 5:30pm (ticket sales open at 9:30am)
Sunday January 12th, 2014 10:30am to 5:00pm (ticket sales open at 10:00am)

Seattle Gift Show
Washington State Convention & Trade Center
Saturday January 18th, 2014 9:00am to 6:00pm
Sunday January 19th, 2014 9:00am-6:00pm
Monday January 20th, 2014 9:00am-6:00pm
Tuesday January 21st, 2014 9:00am-6:00pm

New York Now
February 1 – 6, 2014
*For times and location information see the NY Now website.

UW Bridal Show
University of Washington Club
Sunday, February 23

We hope to connect with clients old and new in the next few months, until then Happy New Year!

December 19, 2013

Silk Flower Hair Clips for Flower Girls, Brides and Bridesmaids

We announced earlier this year a partnership with Sashaco, a local (Kirkland, Washington) startup company who began buying our silks last year and makes beautiful hair clips and pins out of our ribbons. Here we have a collection of photos of their wonderful work!

As 2013 winds down, we find ourselves without much time to reflect on what a crazy year it has been as we are looking forward to what 2014 has in store for us. We expect big things to come from this and our other (soon to be revealed) partnerships as we keep our eyes on what is next.

I am sure you will agree, these silk flowers are fantastic! We have over 170 colors now in our silk line and there are so many that would work beautifully in this clip format. Imagine the brides who can color coordinate their whole suite of paper goods with their bridal party attire, just by tying together the ribbon on their invitation with the ribbon in their flower girl’s hair. What do you think?

These hair clips (or pins, they have both hardware on the back) measure 3.5″ in diameter and sit 2″ tall. You can find them for sale right now on Etsy here: https://www.etsy.com/listing/173418350/. They can be ordered in any of the colors shown here: http://www.custompaper.com/earthsilk/hand_dyed_blends.html

Each color we make comes out so uniquely on these flowers, we can’t wait to see them all!

3" silk flower clip — Lavender silk flower pin

December 17, 2013

WRAP IT UP

Our green flower print handmade wrapping paper was included in a round-up of holiday wrapping options in Artizen Magazine.

“Artizen magazine’s goal is to spread the love with inside scoops on the artisan and handmade industry.” The magazine is free to readers and offers myriad of inspiring images and projects. We love seeing the creative holiday uses for our papers and we also love being recognized by our fellow artisans – what a compliment!

While we don’t like to contribute to the frenzy of the season, we know there are only a few shopping days left and hope you consider using handmade, beautiful packaging this year. A thoughtful and lovely finishing touch to even the most practical or impractical of gifts – you can check out our selection of papers here.

Happy Holidays!

November 22, 2013

COVET GARDEN HOLIDAY GIFT GUIDE

We were pleasantly surprised to discover our handmade wrapping paper included in a list of “Fantastic under $50 finds” on the front page of Etsy last week!

The list was curated by Covet Garden, an Etsy Tastemaker and online publication based in Toronto that “peek(s) into the homes and lives of some of the city’s most interesting people”.

We love the concept behind the magazine, profiling “spaces that have not been styled by interior decorators”, focusing on the “inspirational not the aspirational”. That is a mantra we can get behind!

We also love the selection of wrapping papers we are offering this holiday season! The extra touch of packaging a gift in something beautiful and handmade not only adds a lot to the presentation, it illustrates the time and thought that went into every last detail.

At least, that has always been our experience.

November 7, 2013

VERSATILITY: RIBBONS FOR EVERY OCCASION

We know we are biased, but we are consistently amazed by the projects our clients create. Luckily, many of them are eager and excited to share said creations and generously send photos our way upon completing a project.

Jewelry designer Amanda Ace creates one-of-a-kind pieces and delivers them to clients in beautiful packaging (if we do say so ourselves) featuring our handmade papers and ribbon.

It is an enormous compliment to know your designs are being chosen for a first impression.

We recently worked with another client who created this gorgeous bridal bouquet using our silk ribbon, shown here in her wedding day portrait. Any of you brides and creative folk reading this; be sure to share your work with us so we can feature it here.

October 25, 2013

Northlake Wedding Event Programs

Here is a quick look at the Northlake Wedding Program for the Center for Urban Horticulture event space. We are using our Earth Silk ribbon blend #016 in conjunction with the lotka seed paper, black print and a light weight slate background. We think this says Whimsical Romance! What do you think?

October 24, 2013

NORTHWEST WEDDING & EVENT TOUR

We will be exhibiting at the second annual Northlake Wedding & Event Tour on Sunday, November 10th!

Spend the day “cruising around the Northlake Area in limos and party buses while visiting an array of beautiful venues and talented wedding vendors along the way”.

Tickets are $20 and include transportation to each venue, a sampling of the amazing featured catering options and gift bags for the first 50 guests!

The Tour will begin at UW Center for Urban Horticulture with registration taking place from 10:00am – 12:30pm. Transportation will be provided from 11am-4pm.

Be sure to stop by our booth at the first stop on the tour – the Center for Urban Horticulture (where our earth friendly goods will be fittingly displayed). Say “hello” and check out a few of our favorite invite samples and the most popular designs of 2013. OH, we will also be offering a sneak peek of next season’s collection – something you will not want to miss! See you there!

October 15, 2013

WEARABLE RIBBON

It appears we have officially segued into the fashion industry: we have launched our very first silk ribbon wrap design! This is a one yard length of our hand dyed silk that is finished with two pointed ends and a seam stitch along the entire length.

Our modern take on the classic “fairy ribbon” design is available in over 150 color options. These Earth Silk ribbons are made by hand in our Seattle studio. We measure, mix, dye, rinse, wash, dry, fold, iron, stitch and sew to bring you this great wrist accessory.

The wrap is a thoughtful, eco-gift idea and an easy and affordable accessory option to elevate any ensemble. After years of inquiries, we are excited to offer to offer a hand dyed silk ribbon option to our jewelry-designing and accessorizing clients worldwide!

October 2, 2013

THE GOOD EARTH CANDLE COMPANY

We often write of the custom orders we create for clients’ worldwide, commissioned projects remain to be some of our favorite and most memorable endeavors. Recently we had the pleasure of working with Jeanette Maurer of The Good Earth Candle Company.

“The Good Earth Candle Company features a thoroughly sustainable product, it is carefully crafted in the US in collaboration with a number of skilled artisans and small companies. All candle components are made of natural and renewable materials.”

Jeanette discovered us at a trade show and worked patiently with us to create the right combination of petals and seeds to pair with her line of soy candles. The paper we make for her acts as both a label and a protective cover for her product.

“The last touch to her candles is the unique cover. Jeanette partnered with a creative “eco” printer Jen Merrill, and Kevin Graham who handcrafted the beautiful paper. The paper is infused with real flowers, ferns and seeds that can be planted into the soil to beautify our wonderful planet even more. Jeanette has passion and pride in everything she creates and is very excited to pass this on through offering high quality, very special, “Eco Elegant” products to her customers.”

Upon completion of the project we chatted with Jeanette about her experience working with us to create unique packaging for her candles.

“Kevin and his team have been amazing! When I came to him with my custom project I was impressed with his ability to seamlessly design and execute the elements for my candle covers. He continues to be gracious, generous and helpful even after our project has technically been completed.”

Thank you, Jeanette! We so enjoyed working with you!

September 16, 2013

Summer 2013: A Recap

The end of summer always marks the winding down of our busiest season, and this year was no exception. There was no shortage of productivity; in addition to the usual fervor of the wedding season, we moved to a new location, continued working on our website redesign and found time in the sun with our kids. Whew! We are exhausted just talking about it. We cannot wait to “officially” share our new space with you, but until then take a look at highlights from the last few months:

In June we made it on to the front page of Etsy! As you can imagine it is the dream placement for any crafter/maker selling on the site. Our hand dyed silk ribbon is featured above.

Here we are again in July! This time our ribbon was included on the craft supplies browse page.

Finally, a lovely feature by Canadian blogger Janick in mid- July had us blushing; it is always an honor (and an exciting surprise) to receive praise from fellow designers and crafters.

We hope you enjoyed a lovely AND relaxing summer; keep an eye out for news on our open house to showcase our new space!

We can’t resist sharing this image from our summer fun.

Lake Dorothy - North Cascade Mountains — Looking for mountain lake trout