I’m guessing there are at least 1,001 uses for these darling chalkboard labels. Available at Terrain.

on a jar ...

on a flower bucket ...

images from shopterrain.com

simon doonan collection

Dempsey & Carroll has caught my eye of late with their inspired collaborations. Simon Doonan has lent some witticisms to a line of notecards, and if you’re looking for boxed stationery, you can have your envelopes lined in Schumacher & Co. prints. They’re inspired, luxe, and pretty, too! Either option will give your messages that extra punch.

dragon

trellis

images courtesy of dempsey & carroll

Portland, OR, artist Fred DiMeglio’s popup postcard is a work of art: full of detail, and screen printed in eight colors, I think it captures the spirit of one of my favorite cities. Available at Fred’s etsy shop, Manvsink, where you’ll find lovely screen printed posters, too!

images courtesy of fred dimeglio

Delightfully simple, stripey cards from Emily Ranneby at Salt & Syrup seem tailor made for summer greetings. Available in sets of six (3 pink/3 yellow, or 3 green/3 blue, or as singles.

images from saltsyrup.etsy.com

sonoma invite for bella figura

Maybelle Imasa-Stukuls’ calligraphy is distinctive: sweet, and yet refined. Whenever I come across it, it puts a smile on my face. (For example, her work for Coriander Girl, a Toronto florist.) I thought I’d give you a peek into Maybelle’s extensive portfolio ….

This save the date card, with keys from a Paris flea market and Maybelle’s lovely script on the tag, is heart-stoppingly gorgeous. (Can you imagine the anticipation for the wedding if you were to receive this?)

"your presence is key" save the date

Thinking about crafting your own invitation/announcement? A calligraphed rubber stamp with the pertinent information would be a great jumping off point:

rubber stamp baby announcement

Or go all out and have party information calligraphed and illustrated for your guests: (yes, Maybelle illustrates too)

cheese tray information card

image credits from the top: sonoma invitation from bellafigura.com, key save the date and baby announcement by angie cao, and cheese tray card by karen mordechai; all courtesy of maybelle imasa-stukuls

sugar cubes

I really like the packaging for Stonewall Kitchen’s new Basics line.

sugar sticks

And I’m eager to try this baked doughnut mix once I’m able to even think about turning on the oven!

cinnamon sugar doughnuts

images from stonewallkitchen.com

cinnamon

I don’t know about you, but I’m totally wishing these grosgrain flats came in my size! Adorable!! Come on, J.Crew ….

charcoal

images from jcrew.com

We’re in the midst of a hot + humid dry spell. So much so that I’m actually cheering on any rain forecasts that come our way (and so far, the weathermen have been wrong, by the way). Days like these make me want to curl up in the air conditioning and read a book. Thankfully, I’ve been finding great summer reads. This week, I plowed through (and highly recommend) Slow Love, by Dominique Browning. Reading about her  gardening was inspiring and pleasantly vicarious. I could feel the earth (and envision the flowers) yet didn’t have to venture out into the mugginess that is my backyard, until the sun went down and it was time to water. Again.

On with the Five:

1. week seventy-four
2. blueberries
3. À l’Épreuve du Temps
4. Drawing Lab giveaway winners
5. untitled

Photo #5 was found through ffffl*ckr, and has me so excited for London next month. The anticipation is delicious.

Have a fantastic weekend.

In the never ending parade of lovely things for little girls (I could write a memoir titled “Oh, the Money I’ve Saved”), this sundress from Makié is particularly charming.

image from makieclothier.com

When Rebecca, at  Moontree  Letterpress, posted recently that her work was featured in a magazine, I only had to read Japanese and letterpress to know I would be tracking down a copy for myself that same day. Dezain No Hikidashi 10 features myriad examples of letterpress (including Brooklyn stationers Moontree and Sesame Letterpress), the cover and inserts are letterpress printed, and for a bonus, a nifty little spy notebook tumbles out when you open it. (I may have to take up spying, ha ha.)

the nifty spy notebook

I wish I could read a lick of Japanese (I can’t), but the pictures are lovely and more than compensate. One new find from the issue is Letterpress 77: I simply adore their invitation for Tristan’s birthday, pictured below. It’s delightfully sweet.

letterpress 77

tristan's birthday invite (cuteness)

fyi: dezain no hikidashi is published by graphicsha. i bought my copy from uguisu’s online shop (have you seen it? so many tempting japanese items, from stationery to tape to magazines and books). there’s also a graphicsha blog here, although once again, i can’t read any of it.