Tonight I stumbled across my newest obsession - rubber stamps. Who knew they could make such gorgeous designs. I promised myself these would make an appearance on the new ELP website one day when it is launched!
Newest Obsession
Tonight I stumbled across my newest obsession - rubber stamps. Who knew they could make such gorgeous designs. I promised myself these would make an appearance on the new ELP website one day when it is launched!
CALLING ALL BRIDES!
If you are a bride that I've had the pleasure of working with (or CURRENTLY working with) and have a couple of moments - please click on the link above to be taken to my Wedding Wire site. Once ELP receives 3 reviews, I'll be able to put the Wedding Wire Rated badge on my blog and site.
Thanks so much!
Personalized Postcards
Thanks to Susanna and Christie (two customers and friends!) ELP is rolling out personalized postcards! I was working on Christie's wedding invitations (very classic and cute) and we talked about the growing popularity of response cards in the form of postcards as opposed to traditional cards and envelopes. I loved the idea! Then, my friend Susanna asked me to design personalized stationery for her - also in the form of a postcard.
I just love this new design! I'll be adding a few more soon, but really love the simplicity and clean lines - plus the ease of writing your note on a postcard, sticking on a 27 cent stamp (yep, that's right - saves you postage!) and putting it in the mailbox. Never underestimate the power of a personalized note :)
Here are prices for these paper lovelies:
25 postcards $18.88
50 postcards $29.88
100 postcards $49.80
+ $4.00 shipping
If you're intrested in ordering these before I have them on the website, email me at emily@emilyleypaper.com and I'll get you set up!
Cheers!
Emily
Movin & Shakin!
Ladies and Gentlemen, it is official! I’ve just signed the contract to start the building of a brand spankin’ new Emily Ley Paper website. I knew since I started this adventure that a strong web presence that really represented ELP and my style would be very, very important. I’ve been using Squarespace for my website (a wonderful resource for any of you that are looking for an easy-to-use interface at a reasonable price) and have learned more about HTML than I ever needed/wanted to know. But it’s time to take my website up a notch.
I also knew that websites aren’t cheap, so I contacted a couple of web designers to get quotes and ideas from all of them. They all came back fantastic and it was really hard choosing which to go with. In the long run, I decided to work with the ladies of Hi Design House in Los Angeles. The girls are so great and they’re from Florida also! Their previous work (Urbanic and Vie are really great) really reflects an edgy but simple style that I’d really like ELP to evolve into.
It’s going to be a busy few months because I’ll have to force myself to finalize and photograph some products for the ecommerce side and photos of some custom work for the portfolio side. But I’m really excited to get started. Kendra, my contact there, told me yesterday that we’ll start with brand definition to create a filter through which all of their design work, styling, etc will be put through. It’ll be a long process and we’re going to work through this in phases (so that the website grows as ELP grows) but I plan to update regularly on the blog to let you guys know what’s happening. I’ve loved reading other blogs written by small business owners with insight and advice into how the process works… and the growing pains and milestones achieved along the way.
Cheers! Emily
I also knew that websites aren’t cheap, so I contacted a couple of web designers to get quotes and ideas from all of them. They all came back fantastic and it was really hard choosing which to go with. In the long run, I decided to work with the ladies of Hi Design House in Los Angeles. The girls are so great and they’re from Florida also! Their previous work (Urbanic and Vie are really great) really reflects an edgy but simple style that I’d really like ELP to evolve into.
It’s going to be a busy few months because I’ll have to force myself to finalize and photograph some products for the ecommerce side and photos of some custom work for the portfolio side. But I’m really excited to get started. Kendra, my contact there, told me yesterday that we’ll start with brand definition to create a filter through which all of their design work, styling, etc will be put through. It’ll be a long process and we’re going to work through this in phases (so that the website grows as ELP grows) but I plan to update regularly on the blog to let you guys know what’s happening. I’ve loved reading other blogs written by small business owners with insight and advice into how the process works… and the growing pains and milestones achieved along the way.
Cheers! Emily
50 BRIDES!
50!
The post below and reliving my own wedding through that slideshow reminds me how honored I am to work with each and every bride I've had the honor of working with. I'm learning that the personal contact, the stories, the personalities that I'm able to design through my products are what I love most. I love custom. And I've only been doing this for a short while. But ELP has just celebrated working with its 50th bride!
There is so much to come for ELP in the near future... and I have had so much fun working on and growing this business since January 1, 2009. Thank you all so much!
XOXO
The post below and reliving my own wedding through that slideshow reminds me how honored I am to work with each and every bride I've had the honor of working with. I'm learning that the personal contact, the stories, the personalities that I'm able to design through my products are what I love most. I love custom. And I've only been doing this for a short while. But ELP has just celebrated working with its 50th bride!
There is so much to come for ELP in the near future... and I have had so much fun working on and growing this business since January 1, 2009. Thank you all so much!
XOXO
My Very Own
ELP has big news... but first... I was inspired today to post this link and share my very own wedding and to share a company that is near and dear to my heart. And when I say company, I mean it in two different ways. Meg & Charles Baisden - the dynamic duo behind Meg Baisden Photography are two of my dear friends... I love their "company" - they are such wonderful people and friends... and so extremely talented. And their company, Meg Baisden Photography, does such amazing work. We met when Meg & Charles were working on a Bridal Edition of Pensacola Magazine (where I was working during college). We quickly hit it off and I knew that when my day came, I'd have to have them there to capture it.
I was working on the invitations for a wedding in Australia {can you beleive it? ELP has gone international! :)} for a bride who's style very much mimics my own. I started to think back to my not-so-long-ago wedding and had to watch this over again. I was reminded of Meg & Charles - whose business-savy and endearing encouragement helped inspire me to start Emily Ley Paper.
The evening we received this slideshow of our amazing photographs via email, I made my husband, Bryan, promise not to watch it without me. I got home, all dressed up from work, and sat in our dark office watching it with him. After the first three photos, I was speechless... and covered in tears. I kid you not when I say that I sat and watched it for hours. My mom, who lives about 7 hours away, and I sat on the phone coordinating the moment to hit PLAY so that we could watch, laugh, discuss, and cry together.
What an unbeleivable day.
Today I am Happier Than a Bird With a French Fry
This card from Studio Mela just made my day. Seriously... you have to be really happy to be THAT happy. Today is a great day. I am setting invitations and stationery aside for a few days to spend a girls weekend with my mom and best friend, Taylor. They'll be here in two and a half hours for three days. I am beyond excited. I havent seen my mom since Christmas and my best friend in about a month. It is going to be a beautiful, glorious, shopping and fun fillled weekend! ELP is going wonderfully right now. I've had a lot of inquiries into custom business and Etsy shop logo/banner design lately. So this afternoon, I decided to list a few in my Etsy Shop. Almost immediately two of them sold!
Additionally, I had a few conversations with some of the brides I'm working with. I am so lucky to work with such great ladies. Most of my brides are summer brides, so the colors we're working with right now are so bright and cheery. Everyone have a great weekend!
I'm just not sure...
I'm just not sure how I feel about this. I'm all for random and off-the-wall designs, but this is interesting. Kind of funny actually. This design is called Ants on my Spoon and is from Bailey Doesnt Bark on Etsy. If you click through their shop, they have Ants on my Cup and Saucer, Ants on my Cream and Sugar Bowl... hmmm...And now for something YUMMY from The Cupcake Mint, also on Etsy
and the winner is...
EMMA!!!
Congrats! Emma was chosen at random and will receive a free boxed set of personalized stationery! Emma, I'll contact you today to set up your gift.
Everyone else who entered qualifies for 25% off their purchase of personal stationery - so just email me if you're interested!
More updates to come - lots of exciting things happening for ELP right now!
Congrats! Emma was chosen at random and will receive a free boxed set of personalized stationery! Emma, I'll contact you today to set up your gift.
Everyone else who entered qualifies for 25% off their purchase of personal stationery - so just email me if you're interested!
More updates to come - lots of exciting things happening for ELP right now!
: : : CONTEST - New Personal Stationery : : :
I'm so excited about this new bride-to-be stationery I'm working on. I think my favorite product to design is personal stationery. I love simple designs and have had a lot of fun designing these. They'll be on Etsy and the website soon!
I wanted to have my FIRST blog contest soon and think these are the perfect way to do it. PRIZE: 1 boxed set of personalized stationery (personal sets or bride-to-be) including 16 cards with envelopes in signature ELP packaging.
HOW TO ENTER: Leave a comment on this blog (1 entry only) commenting on your favorite ELP personal stationery design (can be personal or bride to be) OR a new product you'd like to see.
ADDITIONAL ENTRIES: Follow me on Twitter or leave a note (if you've been a past customer) on the Praise section of our website (http://www.emilyleypaper.com/) or make a post about Emily Ley Paper to Project Wedding OR Link to our website or blog from yours (1 entry for each additional option). Please post the link to your additional entry(ies) as a comment to this post.
Contest will end on Wednesday, March 11 @ 6:00pm
* Note: To all you entrants with websites and blogs - I will be posting a thank you post at the conclusion of the contest linking to each of your sites and blogs.
THANKS! Now ready, set, GO!
Pricing is HARD
I have finally, finally, finally finalized my prices. And oh does it feel good to have that complete. From the beginning, I was very unsure about perfect price points. I wanted our products to be made of the highest quality materials and at the same time, still be affordable. That, my friends, was a challenge.It's taken me the past two months to find supplies and vendors that match those two things. I've had to order most of my supplies in ginormous bulk orders in order to keep costs down for our customers. But it's paying off. Today, I finished backing out of all of my supply costs and narrowing down quantity costs to repost on the website. All of you brides who are reading this that I'm already working with - your prices still stand if they're lower and are subject to change if these prices are higher - contact me at emily@emilyleypaper.com for more info.
I wanted to be able to offer a discount (per piece) for brides who order in bulk. Most designers will tell you that the hard work comes with the design process - thus lower quantities often cost more than higher quantities. Well, we're very comfortable with these prices now and are stamping our approval on them and putting them on the site today. Personal stationery prices are finished too and should be up shortly as well.
WHEW! Thank goodness for STARBUCKS!
The Story of {ELP}
At first, I intended this blog, formerly (and probably future-ly) named "Clementine Bride" to be a style resource, of sorts. But the more I search the internet for inspiration for my stationery and artwork, the more I find myself drawn to blogs about small businesses, all things handmade, and style in general. So for now, I'm going to let this blog grow organically into whathaveyou.
The story of Emily Ley Paper starts with my personal obsession with paper. I love it. I got my hands on some double thick, 130lb stock the other day and wow. I'm such a dork, but there's something so luxurious about nice paper and nice stationery. I'll be the first to admit that when I got married, I decided to craft my own invitations and paper products because I wanted to A) save money and B) bring the style I couldn't find from other vendors into my wedding.
I've put a lot of work and thought into pricing and quality. Finding a balance has been tough, but I think I've gotten there. I beleive in the you-get-what-you-pay-for idea and FIRST made sure to purchase only the highest quality supplies. My paper is heavenly. It's Mohawk Via 100lb cover with a vellum texture. Vellum is not only a transparent paper but a term used to describe a soft texture (who the heck knew?) It was pricey for me to purchase, but is absolutely amazing when its used for a finished piece. I also invested in a Xerox Phaser 8560 which uses solid ink. This thing is a rockstar of a printer. Instead of using liquid ink or toner, it uses blocks of solid ink (they look like hardened play-dough). The printer has to heat itself up for about 15 minutes before you can use it (as it softens the solid ink). Then the finished product has a slightly raised feel similar to thermography. The colors are really vibrant too. I {love} this printer.
So anyways, my style has really grown and changed since Emily Ley Paper was launched just two short months ago. I'm totally in love with etsy as its brought me many clients and AMAZING brides to work with. I am so lucky to have worked with such great girls! I've even been comissioned to work on a few corporate logos and etsy shop banners also. So as my product line grows from just custom wedding invitations into an actual line of wedding stationery and (my new favorite) personalized stationery, ELP is sure gorw and change quite a bit in the coming months.
Monograms have become a huge favorite through my etsy shop too. I've been creating custom monograms as well as redesigning my current monograms for brides to use in making their own DIY projects and paper goodness. I really love these monograms and used one throughout our entire wedding as well. It brings a consistency to not just your paper pieces, but your entire wedding as well.
My goals now are to learn how to operate this new Canon camera I bought and learn Adobe Photoshop (o geez!) in order to put really great photos of my products online. And there's the doorbell. God bless Paper Source - or Waste Not Paper for that matter. :)
The story of Emily Ley Paper starts with my personal obsession with paper. I love it. I got my hands on some double thick, 130lb stock the other day and wow. I'm such a dork, but there's something so luxurious about nice paper and nice stationery. I'll be the first to admit that when I got married, I decided to craft my own invitations and paper products because I wanted to A) save money and B) bring the style I couldn't find from other vendors into my wedding.
I've put a lot of work and thought into pricing and quality. Finding a balance has been tough, but I think I've gotten there. I beleive in the you-get-what-you-pay-for idea and FIRST made sure to purchase only the highest quality supplies. My paper is heavenly. It's Mohawk Via 100lb cover with a vellum texture. Vellum is not only a transparent paper but a term used to describe a soft texture (who the heck knew?) It was pricey for me to purchase, but is absolutely amazing when its used for a finished piece. I also invested in a Xerox Phaser 8560 which uses solid ink. This thing is a rockstar of a printer. Instead of using liquid ink or toner, it uses blocks of solid ink (they look like hardened play-dough). The printer has to heat itself up for about 15 minutes before you can use it (as it softens the solid ink). Then the finished product has a slightly raised feel similar to thermography. The colors are really vibrant too. I {love} this printer.
So anyways, my style has really grown and changed since Emily Ley Paper was launched just two short months ago. I'm totally in love with etsy as its brought me many clients and AMAZING brides to work with. I am so lucky to have worked with such great girls! I've even been comissioned to work on a few corporate logos and etsy shop banners also. So as my product line grows from just custom wedding invitations into an actual line of wedding stationery and (my new favorite) personalized stationery, ELP is sure gorw and change quite a bit in the coming months.
Monograms have become a huge favorite through my etsy shop too. I've been creating custom monograms as well as redesigning my current monograms for brides to use in making their own DIY projects and paper goodness. I really love these monograms and used one throughout our entire wedding as well. It brings a consistency to not just your paper pieces, but your entire wedding as well.
My goals now are to learn how to operate this new Canon camera I bought and learn Adobe Photoshop (o geez!) in order to put really great photos of my products online. And there's the doorbell. God bless Paper Source - or Waste Not Paper for that matter. :)
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