Ruby Jewelry

Three years ago I did a boutique show at the Salem Country Club, at that very show is where I met Megan Shepherd owner of RUBY JEWELRY. I've done a handful of these types of events and there is never a shortage of jewelry vendors, funny thing is I'm actually really not a jewelry person but still have attended plenty of jewelry home parties and always thought the products were pretty but not something I would buy. When I went over to look at Megan's table the first thing I notice where all her funky rings and these stunning keys that you would hang from a necklace.......her products were different, trendy, stylish and had a fabulous price point. As a graphic designer the next thing I notice was Megan's logo it was a huge "RUBY" ring.......I loved it! Over the next couple of years I ran into Megan at different events and was always under the impression that "Ruby Jewelry" was like the other home jewelry businesses.

Recently, I discovered that Megan does all her own buying.........OMG it totally made sense now why I was originally drawn to her product, Megan knows her clients and what they are looking for but instead of sending an email to corporate expressing that; she gets on a plane to New York and goes and finds it.....that requires a creative and stylish eye which Megan seamlessly incorporates into her product.

Megan and I recently got together to brainstorm about her business and how she should start blogging about her products. She has an eye that a lot of people do not, she can look a piece and know exactly how it should be worn, what it should be worn with and where to wear it to. Megan has the vision that a potential client may not..........by the time she left she was so excited to start her new BLOG. 

Next up was her logo, she really wanted to give it a mini makeover! For me her original ring was a powerful symbol that overtime would be able to stand on its own. Megan already had a fabulous color scheme but I felt her name needed a new font and to be incorporated with the ring. I began by creating her a completely new ruby ring, then found an equally stylish font to go with it and joined them so they could now be a pair. I truly loved her logo from the moment I first saw it and believe it really has come full circle. Overtime as Ruby Jewelry grows I can see that ring standing alone just like the target in "Target" so iconic it no longer needs the name written beside it.

Lingerie Shower

I recently designed wedding invitations for Jana & Richard, around the same time I received an email from Jana's neighbor who was throwing a Lingerie Shower for her. Most clients give me a bit of direction but Beverly had a tall order. She wanted the invitation to have a piece of lingerie on it, a horseshoe and could we find a spot for a pair of flip flops too! Jana LOVES flip flops and she wanted every guest to bring a pair wrapped for her as an added surprise. Yes, my first thought was "how am I going to make this work" my biggest challenge was coming up with a fabulous way to tell people to bring the flip flips without having it look like it didn't belong.

I started with the color scheme, the main backing card was in boa, the invite was linen white and the envelope was in envy. I had a cute bra that was on a hanger so I decided to hang it from the horseshoe at the top of the invite and finished with hot pink glitter. I was so proud of myself when I conquered the challenge of including the flip flops while still keeping the flow of the invite. "Jana loves flip flops.......colorful and sweet kindly bring a wrapped pair for her size 6.5 feet."

There is know way I can finish up this blog without talking about the favors for Jana's shower.....Beverly hired Janeen Donati of Paige-Reese Designer Bakeshop. It's no secret that I have been a fan of Janeen's since the moment I saw her work. She is truly talented and cares more about her product than her bottom line. Look how fabulous these cookies are...........LOVE HER!

Wedding Season 2011

The 2011 Wedding Season is officially in full swing and with Valentines Day being tomorrow I thought what better time to introduce some new Wedding Invitations and Save-The-Date options for 2011. I wanted to know what the most popular day to get engaged was, so I did some research. Funny thing is there is not much available with regards to "real statistics" but from year to year about 10% of Americans get engaged on Valentines Day followed by Christmas then Birthday.
The best decision I ever made was becoming an authorized Envelopments Dealer, they offer premium paper and card stocks in 231 colors with 90 shapes and sizes to choose from. Whether you need matte, metallic, textured metallic, vellum and Pattern they have it all. The other thing they offer are incredible samples meant to inspire not only you but your client. Just like there is a lid for every pot I believe there is a designer for every bride and no two are ever alike. I refer to Envelolpments samples as inspiration because that is what they are....they do not provide them so you can copy them they provide them to inspire you, to make you think how can I apply my creativity and take this to another level.

These days I have a LOVE/HATE relationship with my mailbox; one because this years New England winter has destroyed it and at this very moment the only thing holding it up is a large snow bank and two......bills, bills and more bills. Today is Sunday so I finally had to face my mailbox but amongst the bills was a little glimmer of HOPE ..................my new inspiration samples from Envelopments had arrived....................YEAH! I was so excited to open my package and once I saw what was inside I immediately took photos so I could blog about it.

Over the winter I introduced you to the "TWIST CARD" and because they were such a big hit Envelopments has decided to make them available in all colors, patterns and card stocks; I cant wait to use them they are going to be perfect for Save-The-Dates. The next NEW item is actually a COLOR called Soleil available in a bright yellow matte card stock! The pictures I included in this blog are just some of my favorites and every time I look at them I am so inspired to create using these incredible components.......the only thing missing is the vision of a bride.......the lid to this designers pot.

Jana & Richard's Wedding

When it comes to Weddings no matter the culture or religion there is always some sort of symbolism present. I first met Jana one evening while at her neighbors house who I was doing some design work for. Jana told me she was getting married in March at Willowdale. I asked her what she was envisioning for her wedding invitations, her response was she wanted to incorporate a horseshoe. For most people the horseshoe is a symbol of luck but for Jana and Richard it was not only a symbol of luck but a symbol of love. Jana owns three horses and Richard is a Veterinarian to them......which is how the two met....how fabulous is that!

 

Jana and Richard loved the idea of having their own logo which would be used on all the components of the invitation. I first created them a horseshoe then used the pattern from their chosen wedding card stock inside of it. The main invitation was a 5x5 square pocket fold, the exterior was a white raw silk that displayed their custom logo on a two layered button. The interior of the invitation shows the stunning black paisley pattern that is used in the horseshoe. The invite was mounted on a beautiful pink card stock called boa, Jana did not want the pink to be over powering so I only used it in certain parts like on the response card the word "accepts" is written in pink. The left pocket of the invitation held the directions card and the response card. The logo was also used on the return address envelopes, thank you notes, and favor tags.

When designing invitations that are a unique size, have multiple layers or pockets I can pretty much guarantee you that the postage will not be your typical wedding stamp. Thankfully you no longer have to put multiple stamps across your envelopes, there are many options now available for custom postage. Jana had all her envelopes custom printed using the same font from the invitation, she also decided that having her logo on the stamp would be a nice touch and create a finished look. A week ago I got an email from Jana reading "Houston.....we have lift off" the invites were in the mail. I actually spoke with Jana today and she was so happy with the amount of people that have called, texted and emailed letting her know how much they loved the invitations. As a designer that's exactly what you want your clients to hear!

Lots of things I design or create are done because someone or something inspired me but with the two designs below it was actually a mistake that gave me the inspiration. When I ordered Jana's card stock they first came in with the pocket at the bottom instead of on the side. I was looking at them thinking what could I use them for..........I first designed a menu card to be inserted in the pocket but instead of putting it in the napkin which is typical I decided to add ribbon so that it could hang from the chairs of each wedding guest. The next design plays two roles, the front is a table number then on the other side there is a pocket which can hold a menu. This is a nice option should you not want to do a menu for each individual guest.