comic sans strikes again!

exhibit A: Christmas Eve service program

a font overused and loved by teachers and church administrators everywhere, 

comic sans finally has its say here.  

be warned:  this is not for children or those who do not like unsavory language

 or who take their fonts too seriously.  

he's on his way!

Santa's on his way!  

From all of us at Good Press, Merry Christmas.  

We hope you have a safe and happy holiday.

We'll be closing at 4pm Christmas Eve so we can get to our families, and will be closed December 25th and 26th.  See you again on Monday the 27th.  Ho Ho Ho! 

we've hit the big time

my graphic designer's work has caught the eye of richard petty who is considered to be the King of NASCAR racing.  

imagine the kind of quality you can expect for your own custom invitations.

fa la la la la

i never get tired of this christmas album.  

i could listen to it every day.  in december or july.

get yours at sidetracks here in town.  

on the TWELFTH day of christmas

my mailman/handyman/baker gave to me...

TWELVE MONTHS OF

CALENDAR GOODNESS

Not only is Linda & Harriett's calendar pleasing to the eye,

but the images at the bottom of each month double as postcards to send.

Keep track of your life AND stay in touch!  GENIUS.

Perfect for:

the gal who loves form AND function

the virgo in your life

your mom who can't keep her appointments straight

on the ELEVENTH day of Christmas...

my better half/ball and chain/significant other 

gave to me...

ELEVEN books

including

Sally Mann's Deep South

David Sedaris' Me Talk Pretty One Day

Rolling Stone Interviews

perfect for:

bookworms

kids who don't read enough who should

dads

boyfriends

those in need of a laugh, trivial knowledge or a little culture

on the TENTH day of christmas...

my all-knowing spouse gave to me...

TEN WOOD VENEER RECIPE CARDS

yes, you CAN write on these wood veneer recipe cards

set of 10. 

pairs nicely with a cookbook from Seasonal Cook

perfect for:

the foodie who wants to learn to cook

the non-foodie who already cooks

sharing recipes amongst the fam

on the NINTH day of Christmas...

my roommate/granddad/barista gave to me...

NINE holes of golf and a handy RULES OF GOLF BOOK

these little rule books in lime or hunter green leathers make a great golf bag complement and can diminish any squabble on the course.

great for:

the guy or lady who wishes he/she was tiger (before the scandal, of course)

any sports buff

on the EIGHTH day of christmas

my true amour/amore/rakkaus/szeretet/amor gave to me...

EIGHT ECO-FRIENDLY NOTECARDS

these fabulous notecards are made of bamboo paper and printed using vegetable-based inks.  

bamboo is considered the most sustainable tree because of how quickly it grows.  

perfect for:

grandmas, note writers 

and the hostess with the mostest

on the SEVENTH day of christmas

my true love/partner/neighbor/student gave to me...

 a SEVEN year pen and sticky note block

700 sticky notes made of bamboo paper (which is good for the environment) and a pen with a cartridge so big it only needs to be replaced every seven years.

perfect for:

earth science teachers

those concerned about their impact on the environment

and sunday school teachers

on the sixth day of christmas

my comrade/mom/therapist/driver gave to me...

SIX SUNPRINT KITS

these cool kits use the sun's light to make art.  great for the cold, sunny days of winter.

super and regular kits available.

perfect for:  all the kids in your life.  no matter the age.

on the FIFTH day of christmas...

my true love gave me to me...

FIIIIIIIVE LETTERPRESS STARS

these five stars look great as a mantel garland, wrapped around a present or hanging in a window.  

perfect for:

that person who wants a little more embellishment on their gifts

needs some quick and easy decorating ideas

likes letterpress on super thick paper 

on the FOURTH day of christmas...

my teacher/brother/sister/coworker/secret admirer gave to me...

FOUR kinds of field notes

sturdy little notebooks made in the USA inspired by old school agricultural memo books, ornate pocket ledgers and the well-made grocery list.  

a 3 pack is going for $10

perfect for: 

the guy in your life (whatever his title)

secret santa recipients

the consummate list maker

dear santa...

last week my friend sent me her kiddos' wish lists for santa.  what they asked for and how they went about asking for it made me smile, and i just had to share...i especially love josie's crafty list of requests.

Sycamore's Christmas List:

1. a docking system for my iPod.

2. a vickings foot ball jersay.

3. a Ghana soccer jersay. eney soccer jersay would be fine.

4. a laptop.

5. a bike pump.

Josie Mae's "crismis list"

(with stars drawn next to the most important)

1. A drum sett *

2. Apples 2

3. A per of worm boots

4. Yarn

5. seshells

6. A worm blaingkit

7. A swetr

8. A ameracin grl dol *

9. A strobere plent *

10. A nit lit

Josie's crismis List (part II)

1. A staft anaml lam *

2. A staft anaml scwrul *

3. A box of bloc crans

4. A sag bush that lak lik a crismis chre *

5. sinamin

6. A wdin spoon And bowl

on the THIRD day of christmas...

my secret santa/sister/bff/mailman gave me to me...

personalized journals from paper + cup

choose from nine different colors and THREE silhouettes: boy/girl/birds.

perfect for: the monogram lover in your life

on the second day of christmas...

my true love/boyfriend/girlfriend/mom/dad/grandma gave to me...

TWO ipad cases

these fabulous ipad cases are made of 22 oz. waxed cotton canvas, Latigo Leather, and brass rivets and are lined with a non-abrasive synthetic, similar to a car-cover fabric. 

made in the good ole U S of A.

perfect for the guy or gal in your life who wants old school rugged durability to complement his/her modern sleek technology.

on the FIRST day of christmas...

my true love/friend/neighbor/mom/dad/significant other gave to me...

one stendig calendar

In 1966, the furniture company Stendig commissioned Massimo Vignelli to design a promotional calendar. The result, a 3-foot-by-4-foot black-and-white grid of numbers and letters, was snapped up by the Museum of Modern Art for its permanent collection before a single calendar was printed.  

And it's been in print ever since. 

Perfect for:

 the architect, graphic designer, twentysomething in need of cost-effective wall art on your list.  

buy art give art

it's friday.  come kick off your weekend and holiday season at sustain, good press' downstairs neighbor.  they're showcasing the flora and fauna work of local artist lindsey oberg, who uses caustic wax and other mixed media.  

530-9pm.  

you won't want to miss this.

meow

a new crop of mikwright cards just hit the shelves.

inside: cougar need some catnip?

happy birthday.

sugary goodness

if we're being truthful here, i admit that i pretty much only go to weddings for the cake.  yes, of course i'm there to see two friends commit to one another, but really nothing gets me excited like the cake does.  ask anyone who knows me.

  

so you can imagine my excitement when i was recently invited to a cake tasting with maliha creations.  i couldn't wait to see and experience the behind-the-scenes action.

anita, the sheer genius and talent behind maliha creations, set us up with two plates: our own little plate of five different cake slices and one big plate of seven or eight different fillings and icings to pair.

whew.  

what an endeavor.  

after much trial, and the occasional error, my friend and her fiance came up with a great pairing for their august wedding. 

the aftermath.  

water and coffee proved to be much-needed palette cleansers.

small business saturday!

keep small business alive in america (like good press).  

come check out good press' wares all day today.  

406 west main street, upstairs from sustain in the main street market.  

the holidays are upon us

here's a quick snapshot that's part of a card i'm working on with a dear client...

is there a holiday card we can help you with?  

...and celebrate we did

thanks to everyone who came out last night to celebrate good press.

what fun we had.  

time to celebrate

love this

Save the Date: Blair and Maggie from Squid and Beard on Vimeo.

found this save the date video on sarah cramer shields' blog.

love everything about it. job well done.

don't let me down

i do believe these gift enclosures from hammerpress would do reba proud.

set of five with glassine envelopes.

the eagle has landed.

here's a quick progression of the shop and how it went from a before to an after.

had an appointment in the space when there wasn't much there. my client was such a good sport.

trying to figure out the credit card terminal situation and other admin details.

my friend kathryn was enlisted to help me move a table to the new space. little did i know, she had other plans in mind. after picking up said table, we made a quick side trip to the greenwood country store (not the grocery). we came away with 4 chairs, two tables, a rug and a because sign.

me: "why do i need a because sign?"

kathryn: "because."

enough said.

three iced teas, two diet cokes and trip to blue mountain brewery for lunch later, we were ready to take our finds back to the shop albeit a little jittery and a lot over-caffeinated.

with the help of a master merchandising friend, good press went from a before to an after:

=

november 2nd.

make it happen, people.

it's starting to feel like home

today was my first full day working in the new space. i wasn't open for business, but wanted to be in the space to get a feel for what worked and what didn't in actuality compared to the "vision" i've had in my head. one lesson learned: the many windows that make me love the space also provide QUITE a bit of light in the morning. blinds will be installed shortly. here are some quick shots of the space in its infancy; the "before" shots if you will. i'm still waiting on some key pieces and finishing touches but for now it's a good start.

counter/checkout area

display board and greeting card corral

it's ok

when you're feeling overwhelmed/overworked/over whatever, remember...

it's what i like to call "organized chaos"

whew, the last few days have been a whirlwind of phone calls, research (who knew there were so many credit card terminals out there?) and order placing. even though the to-do list seems to get longer instead of shorter, i can see the progress being made.

while i did cave and make one of my first spreadsheets ever, my ordering style is still old-school (see below). on the left is said spreadsheet, and on the right are some of the orders coming our way. it's true, they're written on little pieces of paper; once written, they were cut out and then arranged and edited to create a fun mix of goodies. in case you're wondering, yes, i'm slightly type A.

and my trusty tape measure is never far these days in my constant quest for shop furnishings.

happy weekend everyone!

drumroll please...

big news, people. good press has found a home! we will be shacking up with our dear friends at SUSTAIN, inc beginning tuesday, november 9th. so not only will there be a go-to place for your custom printing needs (the holidays are right around the corner) and note cards, wrapping paper and desk necessities, but while there you can also peruse all of the eco-awesomeness that SUSTAIN has to offer.

good press + SUSTAIN are located in the mainstreet market, next to feast, calvino coffee and orzo, to name a few, right on main street. and the best news of all: PARKING. LOTS OF IT.

oh the good news is endless and will be forthcoming in the coming days. in the meantime, i'm a busy bee writing orders, getting credit card machines and outfitting the space to be top notch and fun to be in. stay tuned and thanks for your love, patience and patronage this past year.

summer fever

(this was the best i could find. from the hook)

sorry to be so delinquent on the blogging, i've had a serious case of summer fever the last couple weeks. seem's like the hook was feeling the same way. imagine my delight when i picked up this week's issue, and it turned out to be a guy'd of cville in the summer, aka, what to do in charlottesville over the summer from the male perspective. oh, how i love a good pun. but my favorite part was seeing people i know involved, from friends on the cover and inside to a friend behind the photography of the story, which to me is the fun part of living in a small town.

collections

i happened upon an old vanity fair the other day and read an article about the late, great john hughes. within the article was this picture of a selection of his notebook collection, of which it's thought that he has at least 300, all either full or partially full of notes, sketches and general thoughts on life. i can relate; i have a similar collection. in addition to the notebooks, i looked around and realized that i also collect calendars. at the moment, my tiny little living space boasts four different wall calendars! FOUR! and this doesn't include my trusty planner, which i can't live without. despite my love and affection for the iphone, i just can't commit to the ical. seems too impersonal to me and not nearly as trustworthy as my planner. like hughes' notebooks which we can now look back on as a chronicle of his life, i feel the same way about calendars and planners: they act as storyteller for a certain period of your life. which is something you can't do as easily with the ole ical.

sunny on the inside

it's pretty dreary here in virginia so i've got she & him's volume two on repeat while i work. it's a cheery album that makes me think of sunny california on a day like today.

(image by sam jones via she & him's website)

If so Inklined Calligraphy

i've been working with jen maton of ifsoinklined calligraphy on a recent project, and here's a sample of her handiwork. instead of traditional table numbers, the bride and groom chose song titles for each table representing different stages of their relationship.