Employee Spotlight: Lia

Lia is our next lovely employee under the spotlight! She knows all there is to know about putting together a stellar wedding suite. If you are looking for something custom, Lia has the answers to your questions. We love Lia because of her graciousness when working with brides, and for her extraordinary ability to find the best items at local thrift shops. Plus, she occasionally brings our favorite furry friend Charlie to the office for a visit! We asked her a few questions:

My role at Hello!Lucky is....

To oversee the little elves that keep our brides and grooms happy!

I can't get through the day without....

Pandora Hip Hop radio in the morning and a box of Lemon-Head & Friends in the afternoon.

My ideal weekend activities include....

Thrift shopping, reading books, eating snacks and training my puppy to behave like a person (standing on hind legs, sitting in chairs, closing doors and the like).

Most memorable bride-zilla moment you've encountered....

Bride-zilla? Never heard of it ; )

Secret insider info you might not know about Hello!Lucky.....

We have a very attractive water delivery man.

What's your best advice for brides? Or what do you wish you could tell all brides?

Be organized, plan ahead but also accept that something will always go awry and the most awkward bloopers can become the best memories.  And if all else fails, make sure to serve strong cocktails at the reception.

Employee Spotlight: Kelly

Kelly is next in our employee spotlight series and we are so excited to share a little bit about her. Kelly has been with Hello!Lucky since the very beginning. She has done just about every job here from working with brides to shipping and folding greeting cards. These days she helps keep our website running like a well-oiled machine, while graciously allowing us to use her son's photo in almost all of our sample birth announcements. We love Kelly for her sense of humor, effortless style, and the stories she can tell about the early days at Hello!Lucky!

My role at Hello!Lucky is...

To help keep things chugging along.  I am focused on operations and our website right now.

I can't get through the day without...

Drinking copious amounts of water and eating snacks on a regular basis.  I'm a tad cranky when hungry.

My ideal weekend activities include...

Having no plans whatsoever, movies, good food, good company, and daytime cocktails.  Now that I have a 1-year-old?  Precious and elusive sleep... and daytime cocktails.

My favorite Hello!Lucky memory is...

Calling the studio with ideas for the Barbecue Parade card while on the bus. I got more than a few glances when I suggested that the card needed an ear of corn shucking itself.

Secret insider info you might not know about Hello!Lucky.....

The head honchos are former fashion models. I've seen pictorial proof.

Hello!Lucky Open Studio

We're just loving these photos by Rikki Ward Photography taken of our open studio event on SFMade Day! She captured the day perfectly - from the letterpress printing tutorials to our furry little visitors. If you missed out on the fun, on May 12th we opened our doors on a sunny Saturday to all of our San Francisco friends and offered first hand printing techniques, discounts on our cards and gifts, and even invited super stylish Leslie Yang - owner and designer of Feistyelle - to come and sell her killer accessories. We had such a good time that we are already planning the next event!

The original Vandercook press.

Handmade accessories by Feistyelle.

The spread!

We're thankful for such an amazing turnout.

Here's James giving a lesson about letterpress printing.

Even our curious customers got a chance to crank the press and make their own birthday card!

Leslie Yang looking fabulous.

Our favorite customer! Sending a big thanks to everyone who came and supported us. If you missed out last time don't be sad - we're planning on opening our studio for days like this more often, so stay tuned for details!

Photos by Rikki Ward Photography

Open Studio Success!

Thanks so much to all of you who came out on Saturday. It was a sunny day and we know you had a lot of options on how to spend your day.

We'll be posting some photos from the event (taken by the lovely Rikki Ward) soon, but here's a couple of shots in the mean time. We had so much fun opening our doors we're thinking of doing it every couple of months.

Let us know what you think and if you would prefer an open studios in the evening or a weekend afternoon again.

Studio Shapshot: New Window Display

It's a beautiful day for a new window display! We decided to get crafty and enlarge our San Francisco Skyline into full-sized window art. Throughout the process we learned first hand that paper cutting is a true test of patience and craftsmanship. First, we drew the skyline on 3 full sheets of pool colored text weight paper. Then with a ruler and craft knife, carefully followed the lines revealing our cityscape.

The bridges were definitely the most difficult, but they are the most iconic!

Double-sided tape did the trick - we hung the skyline so it greets the passers-by on Howard Street.

The final product! What do you think? We had so much fun paper cutting this skyline we also made an SFMade sign which Jon is holding here. Can you tell we're getting excited for our big event tomorrow?

On Press: Overprinting

For this year's new trade releases, we are doing a whole mess of overprinting, but Max's registration is super clean. By overprinting one color smack on top of another, we can turn two colors into three, and it looks super cool. But it can be a difficult process that allows no room for error.

On Eunice's new hand-drawn "Thanks A Brunch" card, the overprinted third color outlines the images and is the color of the text. So, even the slightest shift in registration would not go unnoticed.

 Max is an exceptional printer, and they look amazing. Great Job!

Shop Local on SFMade Day

Did you know this week is SFMade Week? All week long the city will be celebrating locally made products and manufacturing with events, warehouse tours, and parties. We're joining in on the fun this Saturday, May 12th when our studios will be open from 11am until 5pm. We'll have the presses running, gifts and cards on sale, and local artist FeistyElle selling her beautiful jewelry in the studio. Tell us if you can make it here.

Our address is 977 Howard Street (btw 5th & 6th streets) in San Francisco.

Hope to see you all Saturday!

Featured: Brides Magazine

We always feel honored whenever our name is featured throughout the growing realm of wedding magazines, blogs, and resource websites. We also love to cater to our community by offering one-on-one consultations with brides when making the big decision to buy wedding stationery. It truly is a joy to be listed in Brides Magazine as one of the "people and places you need to know to plan a wedding in San Francisco!"

The issue highlights all of the places throughout the city that offer helpful advice and inspiration for your wedding. Our beloved Faye even made her way into the spotlight!

The current issue of Brides Magazine is available now!

Employee Spotlight: Meet Max

Technically, Max isn't at a desk all day, and that's the way he likes it! He's one of our pressmen here at Hello!Lucky. He keeps our vintage presses humming along and masterfully cranks out our letterpress greeting cards. He knows all there is to know about letterpress and we love him for his easy going attitude and sense of humor.

My role at Hello!Lucky is...

Print-Wallah.

I can't get through the day without...

apple and peanut-butter.

My ideal weekend activities include...

sleeping, walking, separately.

My favorite Hello!Lucky design to print is...

Wiser, and anything by Julia Rothman.

If I wasn't a pressman I'd be...

a fishmonger.

Secret insider info you might not know about Hello!Lucky...

it used to be a billiards supply.

On Press: Dinosaurs--Trimming and Packaging

This week On Press we show the final steps in the process of creating Hello!Lucky's birthday card, "Dinosaurs." This sweet card was designed by Julia Rothman for Hello!Lucky. Max trims them down on the guillotine and folds a few to make sure each cut is perfect. Then each card is folded by hand, packaged, and bundled in packs of six.

Stewey's Knitted Coasters

Do you have extra yarn laying around from unfinished craft projects? Take a tip from Stewey who turns his yarn scraps into colorful coasters for the cast of Hello!Lucky. Knitting is a bit daunting for Stewey, so to get practice and keep things manageable he whips out these small practice squares. It's a great way to use up extra yarn while preventing coffee and other drinks from making a mess on any pretty H!L stationery. And we love all the pops of color these sweet coasters bring to our desks!

Employee Spotlight: Heather

The next lovely lady on deck for our employee spotlight series is Heather! With her calm-cool-and-collected presence, Heather manages our wholesale department with constant grace. Not only does she have an impressive wardrobe of vintage clothing, she keeps a record player at her desk! We admire her patience and consider ourselves lucky to have her on our team.

My role at Hello!Lucky is...

Wholesale Manager/Card Wrangler

I can't get through the day without...

A trip to Sight Glass Coffee.

My ideal weekend activities include...

Going for a long bike ride, browsing record bins at Amoeba, or picnicking in the park.

My favorite Hello!Lucky design is...

The Big Ideas journal but stay tuned for our next release in May! There are some hilarious new designs in the works reminiscent of another favorite of mine, the BBQ Parade Father's Day card.

Secret insider info you might not know about Hello!Lucky...

There are a handful of home brewers among us.

On Press: Dinosaurs--Paper Cutter.

Here is the next installment in the series of videos on the production of our “Dinosaurs” birthday card designed by Julia Rothman. Max is now cutting down large parent sheets into smaller sheets to be printed on.

On Press: Dinosaurs--Paper Cutter from Hello!Lucky on Vimeo.

The Every Girl

Eunice and Sabrina are featured in The Every Girl today! It's such a sweet review and we're delighted to be a part of their collection. The Every Girl is an online resource for the working woman and offers inspiration for a life well lived. With a lovely assortment of topics from finance to health, there's something in there for everyone. And we can definitely relate to their manifesto:

Whether she is searching for her dream job or a new city to call home; is saving up for a down payment or a trip to Europe; is learning to cook or speak another language, she wants a little guidance. She wants to be inspired.

Check out the slideshow here! Thanks The Every Girl!

Photos by Edyta Szyszlo

Employee Spotlight: Anna H.

Continuing along with our employee spotlight series, this week we put our talented designer Anna Hurley in the hot seat. Anna has graced the Hello!Lucky studio for four years now, and her cheerful demeanor and witty jokes continue to keep us smiling. Anna reveals below that there are many talented bakers and chefs in our studio, but the truth is, she takes the cake for most talented when it comes to baked goods.

My role at Hello!Lucky is.... 
design ninja.
I can't get through the day without.... 
coffee and music.

My ideal weekend activities include.... 
lolling about, reading, riding my bike.

My favorite Hello!Lucky design is...... 
Marquee is a new one that just came out and it's lovely. Especially the save the date card.

I prefer to listen to a lot of classic rock really loudly while designing. 

Secret insider info you might not know about Hello!Lucky..... 
Everyone working here is an amazing chef/baker—I never ever pass up a dinner party invite. 

On Press: Dinosaurs--Polymer Plates

This is the first in a series of videos on the production of our "Dinosaurs" birthday card designed by Julia Rothman. Here Max demonstrates the polymer plate making process.

To create the plates, we first start with a film that has a clear image area and an opaque non-image area. We place this film on top of the polymer plate that has a layer of photo sensitive emulsion and expose it to UV light. The light that shines through the clear image area of the film hardens the light sensitive emulsion. Then we scrub the unexposed soft emulsion away, leaving a raised relief plate. After rinsing the plate and putting it on a heating tray to dry, we expose the plate to light again for added strength. Lastly, we apply an adhesive backing to attach the polymer plate to a boxcar base.

Stay tuned next week for the next step in creating this letterpress Dinosaur greeting card.

Employee Spotlight: Stewey

So you want to know more about Hello!Lucky?! Now you can see the faces of our hard working employees and learn a little bit about the daily life as an H!L member. To kick it all off, we're delighted to introduce Stewey. His optimism and cheer light up the entire office, and his can-do attitude keeps this place running smoothly (especially on rainy days like today!). When you place a custom order, Stewey is one of the fabulous design consultants who will walk you through every step of the process and help guide you if you need a little extra help! We asked him a few questions:
  
My role at Hello!Lucky is.... 
Design Consultant.

I can’t get through the day without.... 
a run to the local corner store for a Green Tea Ginger Ale.

My ideal weekend activities include.... 
Tartine Bakery’s Quiche and an exploratory SF neighborhood walk with Matt.

My favorite Hello!Lucky design is.... 
Visit London (I lived there for 2 years), or Hearts-and-Arrows.

Secret insider info you might not know about Hello!Lucky.... 
There are a few Undercover Karoke Superstars working here- but you didn’t hear that from me.

Studio Snapshots!

Here's Jon working our vintage Vandercook press. This is the press that started it all, originally manufactured in 1947, it lived in Eunice's garage when Hello!Lucky was just beginning.

We strive to stay organized, and being the visual people we are, color coding and alphabetizing envelopes make assembly much more efficient! Above is just a portion of our envelope collection. We're really loving the Clover (kelly green) color right now.

Another way to stay organized with ribbon storage. We are always looking for a particluar shade or pattern, so it's helpful to have them side by side!

Our designers Anna H. and Shauna looking sharp and stylish!

Faye was created by a talented employee years ago. If you look closely, she's made up of Cherry Blossom wedding invitations! She likes to keep watch atop our studio stairs and greet all of our visitors. Can you say pretty in pink?!