A Stripey Rainbow Party (giveaway)

Perhaps a better title for today's giveaway would've been, "raid my party drawer."  I have the habit of tossing well-priced party supplies in my cart with no particular party in mind.  Target had some great supplies this summer featuring colorful stripes and I couldn't resist!

Downsizing from a 4 bedroom home to a 2 bedroom shoebox apartment has me in the mood to give stuff away.

I'm sure a rainbow party has a place in my future, but not immediately.  Perhaps you're planning a little party and could use some extra supplies?

The winner will receive:

-2 rainbow striped paper lanterns*
-10 striped straws: 5 yellow & 5 red
-Pack of 16 striped plates
-Pack of 24 striped napkins
-10 "Celebrate" invitations (made by me) with vellum envelopes

To enter:

Leave a comment on this post anytime from now until Monday 8/15/11 at 12 pm PST.  The winner will be announced on this post the next morning on Tuesday.  I hope someone can enjoy this stuff!

*(full disclosure: when removing from the packaging I discovered a teeny, tiny tear in the big lantern, not a big deal, but thought you should know!)

Congratulations to Liesbet-you are the lucky winner!!!  Please email me at swoonpaper@gmail.com to claim your prize.  Thanks for playing everyone!

Currently working on:

We're pretty much living in the middle of chaos right now.  We're gathering boxes for our move and getting everything squared away on the other side.  Just to throw some more fun into the mix, I decided to take on a custom wedding suite that will be finished up about the time we move.

Here's a little sneak peek at how it's coming along.  I can't wait to show you the final product!

I finally sent my bracelets off to three new friends....

And have been working hard on the branding for the upcoming opening of my little shop:  Swoon Paper Studio.  Once we get settled in our new place, things will be up and running.  I do hope you'll take the time to visit!

Stay tuned this week for a tutorial and a little giveaway action.

August list: eat peaches

(recipe for Lemon Verbena Ice Cream and Poached Pears found at Tartlette)

  Between projects and moving out of state, August is threatening to get crazy over here. As an attempt to enjoy the last drops of summer, the last days of living in my little hometown, and to take my mind off of stress, I'm starting a new series called August list.  I'm hoping to remind myself to stop and breathe along the way.  I'm sure your August is busy too.  How do you plan to squeeze in some end of summer fun?

 

Street style

It's such a busy day over here, but I thought I would pop in and share some awesome photos my brother (in-law) took in Korea recently.

Isn't he great?  I'm already trying to figure out a way we can squeeze in a trip to see them this year.

These photos, and many more, are featured in an article about Korean Street Fashion over at Fashion Network Seattle.  Hop on over to take a peek!

*all photos by Ross James

Fresh Ink

While doing some research for a client, I ran across some new ideas for a tried, but true little tool: the rubber stamp.

It's time to re-think the rubber stamp, folks.  I'm kind of amazed by the fact that anything can be made into a stamp by carving it yourself or having a professional do it for you.  When in the hands of capable designers, the rubber stamp can go from tacky scrap-booking tool to classy tool you want to stamp on everything.

I love these hand carved speech bubble stamps from EATPRAYCREATE!

Or, how about these impressively detailed photo stamps from Kozue?  I think they would make a great addition to a modern wedding invitation.

Better yet, have your whole invitation made into a custom stamp like these gorgeous ones from MaeMae (click over to see all the pieces).

These well-designed personal stationary stamps by Present&Correct make me want to sit right down and write a letter.

What are your thoughts on rubber stamping?  Thing of the past or better now than ever?

Matter of Food

The other night we made pizza again.  This time as a "thank you for letting us stay so long" treat for my in-laws.

They had a gorgeous stack of pears sitting on their window sill,

so we decided to run to the store for some Brie.

Have you tried Brie?  The appearance and name tend to scare people off, but it's actually not too hard to work with and tastes great with something sweet, like fruit.

We also picked up some fresh mozzarella to make a good ol' fashioned Margherita pizza-which is a fancy name for a very simple pizza (tomatoes, mozzarella, and basil).  Yum!

Thanks to a great garden outside, we had access to fresh basil.

The pizza turned out great (as always), mostly because Jeremy has really perfected his crust.  A while back I promised you a little tutorial and "tips from Jeremy" type post on his pizza and crust, and today is your lucky day!

There's one small catch: you have to go over to his blog to read the recipe.

I was out with friends last week when, unbeknownst to me, my husband became a blogger. 

I came home to see a cream puff perfectly positioned on a plate.  It really reminded me of something I would do for a blog picture.  After eating the lone cream puff, I found him upstairs in the office creating his first post.  Adorable :)

So, I hope my pictures have enticed you enough to head over to Matter of Food to read all about the perfect pizza crust.  Pretty please?  I promise it won't disappoint!

Highlights from a Seattle weekend

The truth: we're still weekending here in Seattle. 

I thought I would share some highlights from our relaxing stay so far:

We've been spending a lot of time in Grandma's garden and the sunlight is amazing.

The raspberries are ripe for the picking,

and somehow Grandma's toys seem better than the ones back at home.

Yesterday we spent some time on my husband's Aunt and Uncle's property.  The gorgeous land is nestled in the woods and is a retreat for sure. 

We ate, talked around the fire pit, and walked the grounds.  I was impressed with the huge flower and vegetable garden, which we picked cupfuls of raspberries from. Whatever they don't use of their crop goes to a local food bank, which is incredibly generous and thoughtful.

I can't believe I've never been to their place before.  Now, I want to go back!

Meet me here tomorrow for a little surprise?