Printed in cool taupe and yarrow inks, we love this customization of our Harper letterpress invitations. Created for a super cool bar mitzvah, the set features Hebrew text and fun flat panel letterpress thank you notes.
It’s not every day that we get to print cool letterpress save the dates for a bar mitzvah, so we love these Balsam Calligraphy save the dates that we printed for Joel’s upcoming winter bar mitzvah celebration. This design showcases the gorgeous hand calligraphy of Patricia Mumau of Primele, letterpress printed in classic black ink.
This pretty customization is a letterpress Bat Mitzvah invitation suite, printed for a springtime celebration. The set features our floral Erra design, printed in fuchsia and pumpkin inks on our soft 1-ply cotton paper. We just love this combination of bright, fun colors – and the fuchsia envelope liner adds the perfect finishing touch.
We got a chance to chat with Ellen, founder of Proper Notice. Below she shares her creative journey to custom paper, and what continues to set Proper Notice apart after more than three decades in business.
Q: Tell us a little bit about yourself and how your studio came to be? What was your inspiration?
I am proud to say that Proper Notice is currently in its 32nd year in business and going strong!
I studied Fine Arts and Fashion at FIT as an undergraduate and I went on to live abroad, honing my fashion and textile skills for many years. Upon my return I saw a hole in the marketplace for custom, fine paper products. I fell instantly in love and developed a passion for beautiful, high quality paper products and translated my organizational, fashion-related skills to those of paper. My business has grown into a trusted provider of exquisite stationery, thanks in part to Bella Figura’s incredible inventory, and my commitment to craftsmanship, attention to detail, and exceptional customer service.
Q: What are some of the most rewarding aspects of your job?
My clients provide all the reward I need. I have the best job where I get to experience the pure joy and happiness alongside my clients during a momentous period in their lives. Many times, I have the unique opportunity to work with the same family from the creation of their baby announcements all the way through to their weddings! There is no greater joy than pulling out a baby announcement or mitzvah invitation suite during a client’s first wedding suite consultation – it feels wonderful to know that I have become a lifetime partner to most of my clients.
Q: What are your hopes for the future of your business?
As I look to the future, I aspire to continually innovate and expand our design portfolio, incorporating the latest trends and technologies to offer captivating stationery for our clientele. I am always researching new and exciting options in the world of custom paper goods. I attend and join forums created for stationery owners to share ideas and would like to continue creating new and innovative designs for my legacy clientele! My journey is far from over and I am excited about the future of the business. With dedication and creativity and a passion for excellence I strive to continue to provide first rate service to my clients.
Q: Do you have any current trends you’re loving?
Right now, I am loving sculpted embossing, watercolor artwork and die cut shaped pieces. All of these allow clients even greater customization to meet their unique, personal style.
Q: What do you think your clients enjoy most about working with you to create their event stationery?
We are a completely custom company, so every job is unique. We work closely with our clients to understand their unique needs and preferences, offering multiple, personalized consultations to guide them through the process. We turn our client’s visions into reality offering a wide range of customizable options to suit each client’s individual aesthetic. Our clients repeatedly tell us how grateful they are for our guidance and organization. We provide constant client support and provide timelines and on-going reminders for each family so as to ensure nothing is forgotten along the way.
Q: Anything else we should know or that you would like to share?
We provide custom consultation by appointment only out of our design studio located in Jericho, NY. We often work with clients across the globe via Zoom and are happy to ship samples and work long distance if you are not local to our studio. We don’t just stop at invitation suites – we handle all of your “Day Of” needs as well. From cocktail napkins and coasters to escort cards and hotel welcome gifts – we do it all! From elegant, traditional designs to modern, creative layouts, our invites and “Day of” products are crafted with the finest materials to ensure they leave a lasting impression.
We worked with our friend Staci from Sincerely Staci to create Emily and Robert’s stunning invitation suite. Our Euphrasia suite inspired the blind embossed and gold matte foil stamped monogram. We paired the serif font with a classic script- Aston. The suite was finished with a crisp black envelope, lined with our Adeline pattern in white.
letterpress ink: black | foil stamping: gold matte | embossing: blind | fonts: aston + addington | paper: bella smooth cotton white 2-ply + 1-ply | invite size: f-8 | liner: adeline pattern in white | envelope: bella black | customization #67134
We worked with AGI Events to create these gold foil bridal shower invitations for Dina. They used our Fedora design as inspiration for the layout.“Girls Night Out” reversed out in Gold Matte foil set the tone for the event to come. They opted for black letterpress as the secondary color for legibility. Finally, the envelope liner in our petite dot pattern added a feminine touch to the set.
Letterpress color: Black | Foil: Gold Matte | Fonts: ITC Franklin Gothic Demi | Design: Fedora | 2 ply Bella Smooth Cotton White | Size: F8 | Customization: 50182 | AGI Events
From weddings to mitzvahs, we always love seeing different kinds of invitations made for a variety of special occasions come through our shop and bridal showers are no exception to that! The host of this particular day, Joan Bergen, worked with Fete Collection to create these romantic letterpress bridal shower invitations for the bride to be. They chose a color palette of Prussian Blue letterpress and Carolina letterpress with our Bella Blue envelopes to match creating an overall sense of monochromatic harmony. Our popular Sophia script font made sure the bride to be’s name stood out from everything else while hydrangeas printed in Carolina gave this sweet invitation an added touch of romance.
Letterpress ink colors: Carolina + Prussian Blue | Fonts: Sophia + Moravia | Design: Custom Library | Paper: 2 ply Bella Smooth White | Size: A6 | Customization: 42239 | Fete Collection
This month, we’re featuring Ian Koenig as our December Designer of the Month. Take advantage of 10% savings on any design in Ian’s collection this month – and combine this offer with our other current promotions for added savings! Ian’s designs are bold and typographic – we love the way his Avery letterpress wedding invitations look reimagined as custom holiday cards (the design works also well for Bat Mitzvah invitations!), and Clarus makes a great holiday card, too.
There’s still plenty of time to take advantage of our current custom holiday promotion (which includes complimentary rush service + free digital envelope addressing when you order by December 12!), so take a look at some of Ian’s holiday cards or browse his entire collection for inspiration. Our Designer of the Month promotion can also be used on any custom invitation order, calling cards, social stationery, birth announcements, or anything else you can dream up. Be in touch if you have questions!
Avery (right) by Ian Koenig, pictured with our Good Show Hanukkah cards by Patricia Mumau.
Custom Clarus holiday cards in a festive red and green check pattern.
This month, we’re shining the spotlight on Jamie Lea Bertsch, our June Designer of the Month. Jamie’s invitation designs reflect her background in fabrics and textiles, taking on unique patterns and textures reminiscent of different hand-dyed fabric techniques. Right now, we’re particularly obsessed with her new marble design – Onyx – and we love the cake that Madison Lee’s Cakes designed after this invitation! (Check out this post to see more invitation inspired cakes from our recent collaboration with Madison). Shop Jamie’s entire collection during the month of June and save 10% on any order – whether you’re looking for invitations, save the dates, or social stationery, you’ll save on all of her designs. And as always, you can combine this offer with our 6+ printed pieces discount for an added 10% off!
We also love Jamie’s designs for Bar and Bat Mitzvahs! How cool is this copper foil take on Shibori?
The fine print: this offer is exclusive to designs by Jamie Lea Bertsch and does not apply towards the purchase of other designs. Discount is applied automatically – no code required. Orders must be placed by 11:59pm Eastern on June 30, 2016 in order to receive this offer.
It’s time for a sample sale! Today only, we’re offering all of our samples on sale for $1 each, and we’re planting a tree with American Forests for every sample purchased. Samples are normally $3 and are available for all of our wedding invitations — and for some of our new Bar Mitzvah and Bat Mitzvah invitation designs, too!
To purchase samples, browse through our invitations and click on your favorite designs. Then, click the “order sample” button on the right side of the page (you can also add samples to your cart right from the wedding invitation gallery by hovering on each image and clicking the “order sample” button). After you’ve selected all of the samples you’d like to purchase, click on the shopping cart in the upper right-hand corner of your screen to proceed to the checkout.
Our samples are sent via USPS unless upgraded shipping is selected. Please allow 2 business days for turn-around. Earth Day sale ends at midnight on Friday, April 22, 2016.
This March we’re featuring Kyle Laatsch as our designer of the month! Kyle’s collection is new for 2016 and includes the romantic Sweet Christine, which features hand calligraphy accents by Nicole Black and an elegant blind deboss honeycomb pattern, as well as Hemsworth, a masculine, type-based design that’s sure to make a statement. We recently re-imagined these designs as Bar Mitzvah invitations, and they take on a brand new look — see the before and after below! For the entire month of March, you can save 10% on any order featuring one of Kyle’s designs, and save an additional 10% when you order 6 printed pieces or more — this includes invitations of any kind, save the dates, announcements, business cards — you name it!
The fine print: this offer is exclusive to designs by Kyle Laatsch and does not apply towards the purchase of other designs. Orders must be placed by 11:59pm Eastern on March 31, 2016 in order to receive this offer.
We love seeing our letterpress wedding invitation designs customized into Bar Mitvah invitations and our Linden Summer design (by Lindsy Aragona) is no exception!
inks: olive + vine | fonts: luster roman + buttermilk | paper: 1-ply ivory | invite size: SQ7 for pocketfold | edge painting: vine | corner rounding | customization #: 15196 |
