woodlands wedding

Our most recent bride, Miss Katelyn, came to us with her invitation concept already dreamed up. She is a freckly brunette and her fiance is a bearded red-head so she loved the idea of using their portrait in the design. This was a first for us, but they're mighty cute so our job was just to make 'em look as good on paper! Their color palate, think violets and greys on recycled stock, is muted so we desaturated everything a bit to give it the mood she desired. We think it turned out very sweet and wish this adorable pair a happy, sunny day this Spring.

sneak peek : save the date

A little preview of a save the date we've been busy working on in the studio. Currier's had her watercolors out so you know it's going to be good!

cocktails & cookbooks

After a little sketching and concepting, we cooked up a new shower invitation for a client last week. The hosts wanted to throw a kitchen & stock the bar so we came up with Cocktails & Cookbooks. Kinda fun and the illustrations we created could even stand alone. Check 'em out & they're in the shop as well!

martha, lady bird, and vintage stamps

Y'all know we love stamps. We practically hoard them, waiting until the right invitation comes along just begging for that perfect collage of stamps (new or old). It all goes back to a Martha Stewart article about using vintage stamps and artfully arranging them. It was an ahh-ha moment in the office for sure! Martha is one crafty lady and we adore her.

Anyway, the Postal Service just reissued these original 1960s stamps honoring Lady Bird Johnson. Originally engraved and adapted for printing today in offset lithography, they would be so lovely on a spring invitation. Hmm… stashing these away for now, but they will certainly be put to good use very soon.

Here's some other great examples of mixing and placing stamps creatively.

last 3 images from 100layercake & plurabelle

Americana Music 2013

This will be the 7th year Tenn Hens has partnered with the Americana Music Association. Each year we come up with a new design for their annual conference & festival. Something colorful, and fun, and reflective of the the music they represent. We create all their advertising, marketing, and promotional pieces, and do it with glee! It's truly a dream job. For 2013 we painted textures and patterns with a folk art feel.

painted ponies, flowers, cocktails, and sunsets

February has already kept us busy around the studio lately. Some pretty exciting weddings coming up + etsy shop orders. Currier's been painting ponies and illustrating borders, while Bonnie's been sprucing up her Dallas digs. The weather is changing every day from hot to cold as buttercups are blooming from the garden outside. Tiny touches of Spring. Inspiration is everywhere it seems.

albert hadley

Last year we got the chance to work on a library invitation in Nashville featuring work from Albert Hadley (a Tennessean). I actually wasn't familiar with his interior design work, but once I delved in I was in awe. He designed this knock out red-lacquer library for Brooke Astor that became pretty infamous. He was full of personality and loved pattern & color. Anyway, I went back to the invitation after I saw this write up on Interior Canvas (a very cool blog about all things interior design in Nashville). The Antiques & Garden show is doing a tribute to Albert Hadley this year. Looks like a great show - very colorful, just like the Mr. Hadley.

{ sketch by Albert Hadley + red thermography }

nashville bachelorette party

Nashville is on fire lately. Just check this New York Times article. There's even a little network TV show that has everyone buzzing about. Well, a friend of ours in Greenville called us up because she's throwing her little sister a bachelorette in Music City. Who can you resist the honky tonks, karaoke, boots, and country drawl of downtown? Not us darling!

holiday moving announcement

The holiday season is well behind us now, but I never got around to sharing my personal holiday card/moving announcement. I'd been thinking about doing a moving card ever since we moved to Dallas - it only took me a year to actually do it. Procrastinate much? So, when Christmas was coming I rolled it all into one and figured I'd do something a little extra special. My husband painted the flags to symbolize all the places we've lived lately and then I used some of Currier's special painting details as borders. A little labor intensive tying all the cards together, but hopefully as fun to get in the mail as it was to make 'em!

stock the bar

A couple of our festive cocktail party invites. Kinda gets you in the party mode right? Too bad it's only Tuesday! Cheers!

here and there

We had a very big meeting yesterday. Like, super big so crazy we can't believe it. So big we want to holler out to everybody we see, but of course we can't. It's hush hush for a bit. I flew into Nashville for less than day. I was there and now I'm here. That seems to be our trend. What's happening there and what's happening here and we like to swap pics of it with one another. Big things happening all over the place and our lucky horse shoe is pouring out some good charms. Keep your fingers crossed for us!

white feather - nashville

White Feather, Nashville's ultimate spiritual resource center, threw a grand opening shindig over the holidays. We created a special invitation welcoming a small group of folks into their store for the evening. Currier sketched a beautiful bird feather from one she'd found out on a morning hike. When it came time for printing we decided to do white foil on this dreamy, duplexed gray paper. Other items we included were stickers for packaging and these gorgeous napkins (silver foil stamped). All of these elements created a cool and ethereal tone just in line with the White Feather vibe.
Event Planner: Elizabeth James