We finally printed some new business cards! Business cards are one of those things that are constantly put on the back burner around here. Sadly, we don’t have any excuse for this given that everything we need to make them is right at our fingertips. Hmm… what’s that old adage? Something about the shoemaker never mending his shoes… or is it that the shoemaker never has new shoes…? Well, in any case, you get my point. When you run your own small business, you find yourself constantly trying to do too many things at once. However, when you finally cross something off that forever growing to-do list – it does feel great.

What you see:  Chocolate ink and what we like to refer to as “Oslo Press Green” ink on Pearl White cotton paper

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]]> http://www.oslopress.com/blog/2010/letterpress-business-cards/feed/ 2 http://www.oslopress.com/blog/2010/custom-invites-for-a-lake-tahoe-wedding/ http://www.oslopress.com/blog/2010/custom-invites-for-a-lake-tahoe-wedding/#comments Wed, 27 Jan 2010 23:59:52 +0000 Jen http://www.oslopress.com/blog/?p=342

Last summer, we had  a couple come to us and request that their invitations reflect the scenery of their wedding location by including a single large pine tree.  Always happy to take on the challenge of a custom job, I was eager to accommodate their wishes.  Honestly, I was a bit surprised that this was the first time a pine tree had been requested by a client (you know, given all that wood you see on our website!).

Before I began working on the new illustration, I searched around a little bit online in order to study photos of actual pine trees.  It wasn’t long before I realized I didn’t have to look very hard at all though.  Here in North Carolina, there never seems to be a lack of pine trees.  Just a quick glance out of a window around here will reveal quite a few nearby.  Really, they are everywhere and so are their needles; but it’s okay because their silhouettes against the setting sun are quite a lovely sight.

To further enhance the woodsy feel of the invitation set, the couple chose to use walnut wood for the invite.  A warm chocolate brown ink was used for the text and a pop of color was added by the use of olive ink.  To wrap it all up and create a cohesive feel,  ecru cotton paper was  selected for the paper elements.

Curious about our custom design process? Just send us an e-mail or visit our process page for more details.

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]]> http://www.oslopress.com/blog/2010/custom-invites-for-a-lake-tahoe-wedding/feed/ 3 http://www.oslopress.com/blog/2010/studio-friday/ http://www.oslopress.com/blog/2010/studio-friday/#comments Fri, 22 Jan 2010 22:06:39 +0000 Jen http://www.oslopress.com/blog/?p=293 We thought it would be fun to start posting a few photos from around the studio. Despite any lazy blogging habits of the past, the plan is to continue with this every Friday. Who knows what will show up – just whatever looked interesting through the viewfinder that week. Be sure to stop by again for a little peek!

Clockwise from top left:  a printer in his natural habitat, close-up of ink knife and ink, close-up of the sucker bar on a Heidelberg Windmill

P.S.  Be very glad I went with black and white. Otherwise, that photo of the ink looks more like a scene out of a horror film rather than a press room.

Here you can see a little envelope detail in action – teal ink on pearl white cotton paper with a combination of Lily Wang and Arabic typefaces.  Enjoy!

If you were to look out of our studio window right now and spot all of the green leaves on the trees, you would never guess it is officially fall.  It has been a hot and sticky summer here, but it seems to finally be cooling down a bit.  Let’s hope those pretty fall colors will be on their way soon.

Until then, this photo above will just have to hold me over.  At the request of a recent couple I was working with, I created this motif based on aspen trees for their invitations.  Also incorporated throughout the set, were the pair of aspen leaves that can be seen in the background.  Perfect for fall, they chose to combine copper ink and ecru cotton paper.  Not seen in this photo are the actual invitations, which were made out of walnut. In addition to the invitations, we also created some table cards and place cards – all out of walnut as well.

Nicole and Taylor were recently married in Aspen, Colorado – so congratulations to the happy couple!

As mentioned in the last post, I will try and upload several sneak peek images of the new designs that are on their way. Above you see a sample utilizing a combination of spring green and chocolate inks, maple wood, and crisp white cotton paper. The selected typefaces are Bolivar and Trajan – a combination I find elegant with  just a touch of attitude.

I would like to mention that this motif was created at the request of a bride. We felt it would be a perfect addition to our catalog, so we are keeping it around.

Enjoy!

As mentioned in previous posts, we have some new designs on the way. For the most part, all the details are finalized. Now begins the next step: producing samples and getting the photos ready for the website. Yes, we know we could just plop some renderings up and call it a day, but well, we just don’t find this acceptable. We must have photos! And apparently, we like making more work for ourselves.

So now begins the brain storming process… we get to select colors and wood species for each design that we feel will make them look that much better. This is exciting to me, as I have spent quite a bit of time staring at, for the most part, black and white illustrations on my monitor. Truth be told, I always visualize color combinations as I work on something, but this is no comparison to seeing the finished product.

Selecting the ink colors always involves flipping through the handy Pantone formula guide. I love it when the color I have been visualizing is there in front of me. Other times, sadly, it is nowhere to be found. In any case, decisions have to be made and the show must go on. We’ll keep you updated and hopefully update the blog with a sneak peek or two in the next couple of weeks.

Speaking of colors, I do want to remind everyone that custom blended ink colors are always an option. If you don’t see the right color listed on our process page, please let us know what you are looking for! Whether you send us a fabric sample to work with, or you send me to the grocery store in search of strawberry Mentos pink (yum), we will always do our best to accommodate your wishes.

Now, if only we can hurry this process up a bit…