Save the Dates (1st Run)

Technically this is my second run, but first OFFICIAL one since I actually needed to be able to use the save the dates that come out of this run. The very first run was just a sample run and I thought they were lousy, IMO, but my loving friends and fiance said they looked great (ehhhhh ;P)

Here is a pic of my work station: I lined it with some of that thin packing plastic that they wrap electronics with. hehe I have the roller set up in a jar of coins. On my sample run, I discovered that if I let the roller sit on the inked plexiglass, it's going to cause ink to peel off of the part where it sat (it could be the lousy ink, I heard that professional rubber ink is much more maleable and less fickle, oh well). I also taped the plexiglass down, which has made an enormous difference.

Tip to DIY-ers: Just suck it up and get the rubber based pound can of ink (where you'll probably end up with a lot leftover). Since I already bought my ink, I'm not going to give up on it.



Anyhoots, so Boxcar Press gave a few tips, one of which is to align bearings with your plate in order to ink evenly. So the picture below shows the strips that I used (strips that I requested to be included with the plate since they were just useless border strips that they would normally toss out but include for free upon request).


Conclusion: DID NOT WORK!! Through a series of inking and re-inking, I realized that I CANNOT use bearings, even if it means that it will come out uneven when I try to ink without. Reason being - and I did not know this - but the letters on my design are too fine and thus, I believe, my plate is microscopically lower than the border bearings itself - resulting in well inked bearings, but little to no ink on the actual plate. DOH!

Boxcar press says that you will likely never get a crisp print without bearers but I beg to differ. Out of twenty or so, I've gotten crisp inking on at least half and it's more about practice and patience if anything. Although it isn't CRISP throughout the design, my passing standard is that if the letters are crisp to the eye at an elbows length distance, they are ok to send. After all, it is DIY :P

Tip to DIY-ers: Make a bolder design. Mines is a little too "elegant," and it is starting to be become the bane of my existence. >.< Also, try not to have borders, borders make it so obvious when the alignment is slightly off. >.<

Here is me inking without the bearings - it took quite a few prints to get the pressure right, and it'll never be perfect but I think it'll be okay :)

Gauge pinning: Here, I am positioning the paper so it aligns with the plate properly. This part is actually pretty easy once you get it right the first time. Taping the press bed down, as instructed by Boxcar press, really helps too. Other than the first two or three times, I did not have any alignment issues.


Rolling it through, twice.
A wider view of my workstation. A bottle of goo-be-gone is my new best friend, along with some baby wipes.

A pic of some of the finished products. The pics aren't that good because of the lighting in my apartment and I haven't adjusted the camera properly. Good pics and more mistakes I've made will be forthcoming in later posts!


Thanks for reading!

Cutting Paper

The first step is cutting the paper. Yep, cutting the exact sizes of the save the dates, RSVP's and invitations out of large parent sheet. I got this idea from other bloggers as this is the most cost effective way to get the most out of the paper. It seems like a formidable task but once I got started, it was actually really fast and easy. Of course you can always get pre-cut paper but that I didn't see the benefit to be exponentially higher for the cost.

Essential to this part is having a guillotine style paper cutter. I was able to borrow my mom's, which was helpful since I probably would not endeavor to buy a paper cutter that I was not very likely to use again (I would just be very steady-handed when it comes to cutting paper for greeting cards!). I ordered 100 20x26 parent sheets in Ecru from Crane & Co, with a free shipping promo and 6% back from ebates. I waited for months to get the paper and I was so glad I did since the free shipping promo rarely comes around. Sign up for their mailing list and be patient!

I took some sample cards that I got from some printing companies that was the same size as my invitations to measure where to cut. I used scissor to cut approximate areas before I used the guillotine. I always made sure I began each cut on the guillotine measured against a pre-cut edge so as to have as much accuracy and as least slant as possible.

These are some of the finished products.

Overall, this task took probably five hours or so. I worked on it for thirty-forty five minutes each night for a week. But I'm sure if consolidated, it would probably take just two hours to do everything.

Short Thanks

Before I continue, I just want to make a small dedication post to some good friends that have lent their unconditional and actual support in this big project. I may not seek actual help (yet haha) because I'm so meticulous with crafts, but I am grateful for their moral support. :)

My bridal party, who may have given me looks of "wow you are pretty crazy," but quickly recuperated and did not hesitate to offer their helping hands. :) Stacy, thanks for pushing me every day to get the blog going, even if it's just because you are bored and want something to read :P

Karlene & Diana, soon to be wife and wife of my fiance's childhood-besties. Diana, who I had the honor of being a bridesmaid for and who shares my craft hoarding tendencies, and Karlene, who endlessly offers encouragement, ideas, and everything in between in wedding planning - I am looking forward to sharing my creations with you both!

And last, but not least, my fellow hobbyists, Colleen & Eileen. High school friends that I haven't spoken to in a while but as if years were nothing but a day because we can instantly connect over our passion for paper crafts! Who else instantly invites you over to their house just to work on making cards? I'm looking at you Eileen! ;)

And my soon-to-be-husband. Thanks for making tea and doing all that other stuff you do while I spend hours doing this kind of stuff. :)

Researching, Gathering, Creating

Let me start by saying that to endeavor to make your own wedding stationary is no easy feat. Out of the whole wedding, I think it is the only thing that I have put the longest amount of time and effort in thinking, envisioning and researching. After doing hours of research, I was determined to try my hand at DIY letterpressing. It is not the most cost-effective but I have no doubt it will bring me the greatest satisfaction in the end. In this post, I will summarize the preliminary steps towards where I am now.

To begin, my first step in foraging was actually buying the L Letterpress machine. Back in September of 2011, JoAnn Crafts was still carrying the machine but all discount coupons specifically excluded the product. I ended up buying it from Buy.com for 99 dollars, with free shipping AND opened a Chase credit card with a $50 credit towards the first purchase (which I haven't used since! score!). In total, I paid $50 for the machine.

Then, I ordered customized letterpress plates from Boxcar Press. Googling "DIY wedding letterpress" and you will be sure to find lots of helpful tips and information on their website. Designing and arranging was not hard at all and is an easy task even for a person who has never designed at all. I have a background in print-making, which came in handy when using Illustrator, but most programs are pretty user friendly anyway. In total, it took me about 16 hours (two days, when I was unemployed and pretending it was my job :) in total to design Save the Dates, Invitations, RSVPs. But that was probably because I went through a series of designs, a series of editing in word placement, font size, type and other knick knacks. I created something I was very pleased with and was OK-ed all around. With that, I ordered the plates at a cost of $60.

Other basic supplies I gathered before starting:
- a soft roller/brayer
- ink (this I just simply went with L Letterpress ink because it was cheaper in cost and I don't need a whole pound can of ink, even though the unit cost is cheaper and is probably the better ink to use)
- an exacto knife (haven't figured out what I need it for yet)
- bone folder (not sure if I'm using it yet)
- paper from Crane & Co.
- guillotine style paper cutter

First Post

Hi all,

I created this blog to chronicle my journey into making my own wedding stationary as well as other stationary projects. I was inspired by two friends and fellow bloggers, Stacy and Eileen. :) I hope to be able to get pics up soon as pictures are worth more than a thousand words. Stay tuned!!