New York Trunk Show Sneak Peek and Promotions

The Spark team has been hard at work preparing for our New York Trunk Shows to be held at Kate's Paperie and Judy Paulen Designs! We've put together some bags full of letterpress goodies for attendees, as well as prepared lots of product displays and samples that will be around the stores and prominently displayed in the windows. We can't give too much away, but here's a sneak peek of the new Spark poster that will be making its debut at the shows!

Our designer Andrea developed the poster based on many of the illustrations and design elements offered here at Spark. As a custom letterpress stationery shop, we encourage our brides to make their stationery unique - and we hope this poster will be an exciting start to get you inspired!

Now the shows are coming up! Click here for dates and times.

So here are the deals the attendees receive for the week of the trunk shows:

Our 25 free sets offer: This offer is currently running through November 1st for all our retailers. Receive 25 complimentary sets with the purchase of 75 or more custom wedding sets and matching accessory pieces.
Offer does not include Spark's pocketfolds. Redeem by signing and dating the "25 free" coupon found on our promotion page and present at time your order is placed. Not valid with other Spark offers. Not valid for orders already in progress. No cash value.

For trunk show attendees, please place your order at Kate's Paperie or Judy Paulen Designs during the trunk show week.

100 free Thank You Note Sets: With your purchase of a 3-or 4 piece invitation suite. A thank you note is a flat or folded card in A2 or 4bar size with a matching printed envelope.
Redeem by noting "trunk show special" on the order form. This offer IS VALID with the 25 Free Sets Offer. The note card must be designed and printed at the same time as the rest of your suite. If you purchase a 1 color set, your thank you note set will be printed in the same one color. If you purchase a 2 color set, your thank you note set may be printed in 1 or 2 colors for the thank you note set. Envelopes will be printed in one color only. Offer not valid for orders already in progress. No cash value.

25% off Flat & Folded Notecard Sets (for those not needing 100 quantity or not getting married)
This offer is NOT VALID with the "25 Free Sets" offer.

Retailer Profile: Fabulous Affairs

Fabulous Affairs
Normal, IL

Owner: Cally Shane
Length in business: 5 years

Why did you choose to carry the new Spark albums?: We love the line, letterpress is so popular, great price points, and the customization is huge.
Favorite new Spark design: Well my favorite THING is having envelopes with blind embossing

Facebook: Fabulous Affairs

Other thoughts about the albums: I love the pockets, I love that the entire suite is shown, all the different color options....Oh I love the die-cut business cards...I want them for myself!
Average client: I don't know...they all want a lot of color!
Strengths as a retailer/store: Knowledge and experience in the invitation business, a good creative design sense, and I try to stay up with market trends.

We love working with Cally and Kacy at Fabulous Affairs - they are definitely a dynamic duo ready to provide you with their expertise in all things paper! It's obvious to all of us at Spark that Cally and Kacy enjoy what they do and their excitement is sure to rub off on their clients. The projects they have sent our way have turned into stunning pieces, thanks to their keen design sense and knowledge of our products. Fabulous Affairs is aptly named; we encourage you to stop by and experience for yourself!

Insight: Colors

:: Colors ::
Hello All!
As we all know, colors are a big deal in wedding planning. Spark has a wide variety of colors in the Design Book that will help you make your special day even better.


Warm Colors!
Red, yellow, orange and pink are most known for being warm. Why? Because we refer to objects that are these colors to be warm. Lets see... the sun, fire, and salsa! Warm colors are considered to be more cheerful, exuberant, and somewhat aggressive.

Cool Colors!
Blue, green and purple are in the cool category. Once again... the ocean, grass, and the sky. Cool colors are considered to be more clean, inviting and relaxing.

Earthy Colors!
Earthy colors are those found in the rocks in the nearby stream - the coffee beans in the morning - the sand between your toes. Choosing a palette based on these colors can produce both a warm or cool feel depending on your selected shades and other colors you choose to accent with.

Analogous!
This is simply using colors that are very close to each other on the color wheel or shades that are very similar.

Complimentary!
These colors are located straight across from each other on the color wheel. They have the highest amount of contrast and produce very vibrant color palettes.



Color Trends!
Lately we have seen brides mixing up our metallic inks! Using copper, silver and gold. These colors look great on a wide variety of papers! Darker purples, oranges, bright greens have been very popular. *LOVE ALERT* Choosing blind as one of your colors works great and can bring in a subtle pattern by just adding dimension! Blind is where we put the impression on the paper without any ink. Sometimes we use a transparent white to give it a very small tint. Ask your retailer to see some samples.
Happy planning and all the best,

Alyssa.

Holiday Love: Spark's 2010 holiday collection

Happy Holidays everyone! Even up here in the arctic tundra we have a hard time thinking about holiday cards when it is still clearly fall weather. Nonetheless, we are excited to announce 10 new Spark designs within our Holiday Love album which was shipped to all of our retailers early this week. I will release additional photos of the designs over the next few days, but here are a few to get you inspired.

The collection features some brand new designs along with others that use some of our favorite artwork from our custom line. The designs are (of course) customizable so you can always create a one-of-a-kind piece by changing the paper color, inks and wording. Or maybe you want to show off your family with a letterpress photo card or a mounted photo on our custom cards.

Choose from flat or folded cards, A2 (5.5X4.125) or A7 (5X7) sizes, and your choice of bright white, soft white, or cream colored envelopes, which are included in the price.

No matter what Holiday your friends and family are celebrating, they will love to see your letterpress love! Place your order today at a Spark retailer near you or contact spark@letterpresslove.com if you have questions.

One week left of FREE calling card offer!

So actually it is 9 days, but technically there is a weekend in there.

For the months of August and September Spark has had a deal going when you order a 4 piece suite, you can receive a one color standard calling in the same amount for free.

October 1st is fast approaching.....get your order in!

If this doesn't work for you, we do have our other offer that runs through November 1. Earlier this month we introduced our 25 free sets offer when you order a minimum quantity of 75. Read about this promotion here.

For any questions on our promotions feel free to email spark@letterpresslove.com!

Letterpressed photos- your greatest design!

Maybe some of you out there don't go for letterpress because you want to use pictures of you, your child, couple, building, etc. Well guess what? We love letterpressed photos.

Looking at these images of past work you can see that your photo in the form of letterpress is really a great work of art. You can and should use those spendy engagement/wedding/baby pictures as much as you can!

Here is a mini list I just created of ideas of when to use photos:

• Save the dates (the first two images)
  
• Custom invitations
• Wedding Day picture on the thank yous
  
• Parties (Chyna and Renny)
  
• Baby Announcement (like Val and Jim's little Lucia in the last photo)
  
• opening of a new building, business, etc. (example: our Isabel pocket)
  
• on other items such as coasters, gift tags, programs

Things to keep in mind when sending Spark your image:

• Hi-res images look the best, so a Polaroid might not cut it. ;)
  
• Please no thumbnails, we can take a great large photo and make it smaller, we can't make a too small image larger and still look great.
  
• Send ahead. Even before you place your order with the retailer, send the image to us and we can let you know if this image will work for your piece.
  
• Snail mail is cool. You can send us the image and we can scan it for you. (yes we will send back the photo)
• The photo to letterpressness takes a bit more time and magic to become a quality piece. We love photos but if you are in a rush,....well you can't rush magic like this!
  

Additions to your photos:
Colors are a fun way to play around with your photo. Remember you are paying per color so plan ahead what other colors or patterns/designs will be apart of the piece. (Chyna and Renny is a great example)

Your pictures are the best design there is and we want you to use them.

Yours truly, Joy

:: TYPE ::

Hello All!

In my experience, more recently then ever, I have noticed that font (or typefaces) seem to get put on the back burner. Unless you are a designer, choosing fonts probably isn't your main priority. However, it should be up there on your long list of things to worry about.

Fonts have personalities. Although there are thousands out there to choose from they all have something to portray and a certain "feeling" they give off. For example: our most popular font is "Bickham" - this says classic and elegant. The style of font used in your invitation suite can drastically change your stationery's personality.

Here is a sample of Ava from Spark's Wedding Love Album. It is the exact same artwork just with very different font choices and colors. (Click on the image to view larger.)Rules to remember:

• Avoid combining fonts that are too similar in appearance. Choose one that is really bold and one that is really light. Or one that is really clean and simple with a fancy script.

• Don't get too crazy with the number of fonts you choose to use. Try to keep it down to a maximum of 3 - using 2 is very common and works well.

• Make sure the font you choose for your body text is legible. If you choose something that is too fancy no one will be able to read it. From the font selections in our design book some good choices are: Bodoni, Gotham, Futura, Mrs. Eaves, Neue, Neutra and Roman Classic to name a few.

• Avoid orphans! Orphans are when you have a paragraph of text and one of the lines just
has
1-3 words on it following a long line of text. It becomes very distracting and throws off alignment.

• Avoid text over loads! Yes, we know you have lots of information you want to put on the small card - but just know that if you do have lots of text that we are either going to have to compromise on the text or the design. Make sure you compare your invite wording to the example in the book you have chosen - is there 2 times as much information?

• Don't be afraid of white space! Type and design don't like being too close to each other or the edges. Give them room to breathe!

• If you are not sure about fonts have a look at the design book. There are tons of different ones to choose from. After that, if you are still unsure feel free to ask for our assistance!

• Type up your wording. This is always helpful to our designers and eliminates spelling errors right off the bat. Since Andrea and I are setting your type and are mainly concerned with the design itself, sometimes those small errors can get overlooked after we've been staring at the same piece for hours. We try to catch as many things as we can but you will most likely get your proof sooner if your information is provided right when your order is placed with us.

I hope all of that helped!

Until next time,

Alyssa.

Retailer Profile: Big Day Design Lounge

Big Day Design Lounge
San Francisco, CA

Owner: Paula Gloistein
Length in business: We opened February 17th! Brand new!

Why did you choose to carry the new Spark albums: drawn to the designs, they have personality, great details, unique!
Favorite new Spark design: Don't really have a favorite, love all the patterns!

Social Media
Website: www.bigdaysf.com/
Blog: http://bigdaysf.com/blog

Other thoughts about the new albums: they are easy to work with
Average client: looking for something extra, little more modern, more bright colors
Strengths as a retailer/store: personal attention to detail, focused on whole wedding plan, not just their wedding invitation, we go for the overall approach for the wedding day

We are thrilled to be working with Paula at Big Day Design Lounge. She offers her expertise to help clients create the perfect invitation suite that truly reflects the couple's style and personality. Take one of her workshops to get schooled in letterpress and invitations, a helpful idea when planning a big affair - it's great to know what your options are! Thanks, Paula!

Goodbye Diedre and Hello Deutschland!

Today Diedre and her family fly to Germany for their 11 month adventure in Marburg. We all held an awesome party at Valerie and Jim's place on Saturday which was a really nice opportunity to visit with them one last time.

We will miss all her, but look forward to her blog posts on the German experience and her European inspiration and finds!

Mark your calendars!

Roadtrip time! Okay, not really...because they are flying. Some of our New York retailers, Kate's Paperie and Judy Paulen Designs (at Bloomingdale's), asked us to come and do Spark's first ever trunk shows! Valerie and Andrea are thrilled to make the most of this trip meeting some of our new retailers and prospective clients as well as showcasing some of our new products for 2011! Here is the scoop:

Wednesday October 13 @ Kate's Paperie 57th St
140 West 57th Street
4:00 to 8:00 PM

Thursday October 14 @ Kate's Paperie Soho
72 Spring Street
4:00 to 8:00 PM

Friday October 15 @ Judy Paulen Designs at Bloomingdale's
1000 Third Ave (@ 59th Street)
6th Floor
4:00 to 8:00 PM

Saturday October 16th @ Kate's Paperie Third Avenue
1282 Third Ave
12:00 Noon to 5:00 PM

Stay tuned to find out more about the specials these retailers will be offering at the shows.

Early Bride Get the Worm...25 free sets!

Early Bride gets the great deal!

Receive 25 complimentary sets with purchase of 75 or more custom wedding invitations and matching accessory pieces on orders placed by November 1, 2010. Visit our promotions page on our website to print our 25 Free coupon to redeem this special offer on your Spark order.

We at Spark want you to know that this coupon applies to all event invitations such as mitzvahs, anniversaries and other special occasions - so even if you aren't a bride, you'll still be an early bird!

Joy's Black Hills Adventure

One of our blog goals is to teach our readers about the great state of South Dakota. And as we go into this Labor Day weekend I wish you all happy plans! So many of you are shocked, and yes, some appalled that a creative stationery shop can be located here. Some of you may have (hopefully) already laughed at my blog "South Dakota - facts for the shocked". I thought we could each share a real life experience of living on the prairie. So...here I go!

So....I now officially live in South Dakota and I had never been to the Black Hills and seen Mount Rushmore up close and personal. So my boyfriend (see top image) took me camping. I can't say I'm a tent kind of girl. However, I love to hike and nature (minus bugs and snakes) so I knew we would have a great time.

Road trip!! We live in Sioux Falls, SD. Custer, SD is a least a 6 hour drive across the prairie and Badlands. The Badlands were really creepy looking! It is totally flat land of the prairie and BAM- weird looking mountains. When we got to an overlook, there was a sign that said "Beware: Look for Rattlesnakes" I about didn't get out of the car I was shaking so bad! My boyfriend was great and looked out for them before we walked out. It was 110 degrees. We could have melted. Anyway, then we hit Rapid City and BAM again- trees! Millions of pine trees appear out of nowhere. It is one of the most beautiful places I have ever seen. We camped within Custer at Center Lake Campground. I don't know about you, but I like soap after I go to the bathroom. (this was really the only thing to complain about all weekend)

Saturday we hiked Harvey Peak. It is the highest point east of the Rocky Mountains. It was a grueling but amazing hike. So gorgeous. We learned we are both out of shape and need to work out more. We got to the top and the view is just incredible. You can see so far, you see the prairie! We ate lunch at the top before making the trek back down. (We learned there was the hard path which we took up and the easy path which we took down) Afterward, we swam in Sylvan Lake and watched a wedding taking place on the other side (aww....) Then it was onto Mount Rushmore. The history of those faces is just incredible. Take the time to read a bit about it. On the way back we drove the Iron Mountain Road which winds and twists it way through mountains while every turn lets you see Mount Rushmore again. That night, I don't think I have ever fallen asleep so fast in my life. (Needles Eye- image 2)

Sunday we woke at 6 am to get ready for the horses. We both like horseback riding so we decided to take a 2-hour trail ride. (see image of me on Ike!) One of our guides was the classic Western rancher. The man practically lives on his horse. He is around 70 and told amazing stories during our beautiful ride. Afterward, we took the Wilderness Loop road back to I-90. The road is covered in herds of buffalo, burros, horses, among others. We had a burrow stick his head in my car trying to get a snack!

On the way home we stopped at Wall Drug. Enough said. Read more about this classic American tourist trap. We had a great time! This now SD girl can check those landmarks off her list!

Wedding Invites- to Wedding Cake!

We at Spark cannot say enough how happy we are about our retailer, Gateaux (Plymouth, Minnesota) who first and foremost specializes in wedding cakes! Our Arianna design was used throughout the couples wedding- their invites, day of, even wedding cake!

According to Gateaux's website:

For over 10 years, Gateaux has been designing wedding cakes as beautiful and individual as the couples for whom they were created. We are now able to offer invitations as unique and individual as our award winning wedding cakes. Combining your cake and invitation consultations with Robin allows a free flow of ideas as we incorporate aspects of both into the general theme and color scheme of your wedding.

Robin Martin, the owner and cake designer, states, "I love the challenge of incorporating a couple's style into their cake design. Besides, it's fun to get to rifle through our client's wedding files for inspiration."

Robin doesn't brag enough about herself. Her cakes and use of combination invitation design and cakes have been seen in countless wedding publications: Brides, Minnesota Bride, among others. She also competed in the Dr. Seuss Cake Challenge on the Food Network. The link is the YouTube with her experience.

If you would be interested in incorporating your wedding invite design into your wedding cake, email spark@letterpresslove.com for more details!