Rustic Wedding Inspiration Board

Cowboy boots and mason jars. We love the little touches that set the tone for a rustic barnyard wedding. We put together an inspiration board full of details and accents that will help get your guests in a down home mood. For more inspiration check out our Elegant Equestrian board on Pinterest, where many of these images were pulled from. We’ll be doing more theme weeks on our blog in the future - if there’s a theme you’d like us to focus on let us know in the comments!

We also asked you (via Facebook & Twitter) what you thought made for the best rustic wedding decor. Here’s what you told us: Sharla - Sheriff badges with wedding date & couples names to adorn cowboy hats. Napkins from brown western bandanas. Wedding favors from my wedding. Ruth Anne - Burlap definitely!!!! One True Love Vintage Rentals - Chippy paint cabinets + farm tables! Juliann - Baby's breath + lace...swoon! Pomp & Plumage - Wheat fields, chalkboards, paper straws and twinkly lights....love. Shana - Mismatched chairs & burlap tables runners.

Image Credits: 1. Bridesmaids Ruffle Dresses: Crush Cul De Sac  2. Champagne and Kraft Paper Flags: Style Me Pretty 3. Tartan Wrap and Big Bow: Alexan Events  4. Wheat Boutnniere: Wedding Bee 5. Coral and Peach Flowers: Crush Cul De Sac   6. Peach Cake: Martha Stewart Weddings 7. Horse Ribbons: Velvet Strawberries  8. Strawberry and Peach Vodka Popsicles: Endless Simmer 9. Flowers: Martha Stewart Weddings 10. Our Kind of Horse: Style Me Pretty 11. Pendelton Blankets: Country Living 12. Groomsmen: Men of Habit 

Thumbs up for Paws Up

Western Montana really does have one of the most picturesque landscapes in this country. Aside from being surrounded by national forests and inhabited by incredible wildlife, Montana is becoming a hot spot for romantic getaways. The resort at Paws Up outside of Missoula, Montana is gaining quite a rep, and fast. Its rustic homes and glamorous camping tents (claimed "glamping") set the ideal stage for a luxurious country getaway. It just so happens that during our rustic farm week, Green Wedding Shoes is hosting a bachelorette party giveaway for 3 nights and 5 ladies to spend "glamping" at the heavenly Wilderness Estates. If only they were hosting a company vacation giveaway, our Hello!Lucky team would be there in a heartbeat....sigh!

Yes, you could be lounging in these luxury leather beauties and relaxing in the spa tents underneath the Big Sky. Since some of us have ties to the Treasure State, we know what wonders that fresh mountain air can do for the body and soul.

If you'd like to win a bachelorette party at Paws Up, be sure to check out the giveaway here!

Gaga for Gingham

In celebration of Rustic Farm week, we're channeling all the details that make us love country weddings. One of the most recognizable patterns has to be gingham, and we're going gaga for it! At the first glance of these gingham patterned plates we envisioned a large picnic style table setting with lots of fresh fruits and garden flowers. Paired with simple white linens or vintage lace, these dishes would be downright adorable.

Jcrew knows how to pull off patterns the right way. Matching your fiance might seem cheesy at first, but these gingham patterned getups could definitely dazzle in a photo save the date.

We absolutely need these gingham cupcake liners!

Can't you see this gingham washi tape as the ultimate decor accessory? There are endless ways to spruce up a simple setup by adding a little patterned tape. We can't get enough of it!

Inspired by: Wedding Invitation Suites

With wedding season about to kick off, we're gearing up for some amazing additions to our collection. Wedding invitations serve as the first source of inspiration for the big day, and with all the pieces in check, you can really start to see all the details come to life. Frequently we find ourselves browsing through the photo database for inspiration drawn from particular invitations, and we wanted to share a place where you can do the same. Whether your wedding has a rustic farm theme, a sleek and modern theme, or a whimsical and playful theme, these photos will have you planning in no time! Click on the photos for a larger view!

Southern Belle (above) and its darling motifs will make that sweet southern wedding that much more charming. The delicate watercolors by Anne Smith are calling for lots of floral garland and white daisies!

 Rolling Acres is just right for a summer celebration. And the pennant liners (available soon!) will add a festive flare to your party invitation.

Figs has more rustic and natural qualities. Perfect for an outdoor wedding where locally sourced food and flowers are the focus.

We love the crisp and clean details of the Desert Skyline invitation suite. Bouquets of succulents and dried flowers arranged among rough wooded tables would complement this style beautifully.

Heartland is another favorite and best for the down-home country weddings we all dream about. We've seen lots of brides customize the colors and layout of this design, but it always stands out with some amazing farm-chic accessories.

 Big Day is one of our most popular suites, with its playful wording and simplistic hand-drawn icons, it's definitely a party starter. We've replaced the Golden Gate Bridge icon with other simple motifs, and it's still just as sweet!

We can't imagine a Cape Cod wedding without lots of nautical accompaniments. This maritime suite designed by Anne Smith was made just for our brides ready to wed by the ocean air.

A custom design gallery with all of our invitation suites is in the making, along with lots of brand new designs. Do you have a favorite style or wish we would create a wedding suite around a certain theme? Let us know in the comments!

All photos by Edyta Szyszlo

8 Most Colorful Cities on Earth

Manarola, Italy

We're loving this roundup of colorful cities that we spotted on Curbly. There is something magical about a city that embraces color into its architecture, and these cities have us begging for a visit. Who wouldn't want to scope out the spectrum of such vibrant skylines, especially when they are in places like Italy and Argentina.

Guanajuato, Mexico

Willemstad, Curaco

La Boca, Buenos Aires

St. John's, Newfoundland, Canada

Of course, we couldn't imagine a list of colorful cities without thinking of San Francisco. It didn't make the cut this time, but with images like these, we're certain it will top the charts next time.

Check out the whole list on enpundit!

Gifts from Esther Aarts

How cute is this silk screened tote bag from Esther Aarts!? We received a special holiday package from our friend all the way in the Netherlands and can't wait to fill it up with our favorite farmers market finds. And her X-mas controller card had us giggling right away. Another brilliant design!

Inspired by Beyonce

Can she be any more fabulous? When our H!L design team was caught huddled around the computer watching Beyoncé's "Countdown" video, we knew it must have been something good. The video's contemporary ode to the 1970s includes split screen videography, hotter than hot dance moves, and amazing color block snapshots. We're particularly in love with these neon body suits paired with the striking black and white striped hat. Definitely an inspiration! Props to you Beyoncé!

Calligraphy + Letterpress = Brilliance

What can we say? Michele Papineau has done it again. For her holiday cards this year, Michele hand wrote the lyrics to "I'll be home for Christmas" and we letterpress printed them in festive red ink. We just received a hand addressed card with a little note inside. It's so wonderful to be friends with such a talented artist! Thanks Michele!

Featuring EIEIO and Giveaway!

Today we're delighted to feature the adorable Jean Orlebeke of eieio papers! We love Jean's designs because she has a totally unique style, and her collection stands out with it's embellished and geometric flare. Not only did eieio come up with these awesome designs for our holiday collection this year, but she also designed a few of our most popular wedding invitations! Check out her shop of prints here and scroll down for a holiday giveaway!

What inspired your design for the holiday collection?

To get in the holiday mood I put the sound track for Charlie Brown's Christmas on and chose a few eieio 'classic' wraps to translate into cards. Usually I try to design wraps that are more embellished or festive than the rest of the eieio designs. I typically don't use classic holiday color palettes, as my customers are small shops, and want the wrap to work in January as well. Instead I add a metallic ink, a gloss varnish or draw a motif that is ornate. I had so much fun re-coloring some of my favorite designs into classic holiday colors.

What are you currently working on?

My work is around 70% branding and identity. Right now I am working on two new identity projects: a perfume label and a film festival. I'm also working on some textile designs and the interface for an educational Earth Sciences product.

What influences your style the most?

Modern sculpture, natural forms, fiber art.

What's your favorite holiday tradition?

My family's Christmas Eve casual dinner. My mother always made a big buffet, which included everyone's favorites. We would make up our plates (several times) and eat sitting around the fireplace. Before we went to bed we had a funny ritual that my dad would tape each year: each of us would enter the room doing silly improv dances and make a grandiose presentation of hanging our stockings up on the fireplace. My mom's was always the most dramatic performance. She would hang up a thigh-hi stocking -- which in our family was a punchline that never got old.

Best holiday memory?

I always wanted a cat when I was growing up and on one Christmas Eve (I was 13), as I walked through the kitchen I saw a tiny gray paw reaching out from under the basement door. My parents were planning to give her to me on Christmas morning, but there was no way that little kitty was going to spend the night in the cold basement alone!

To enter to win a 2 boxes of Hello!Lucky letterpress holiday cards, leave a comment below telling us your favorite foods to eat during the holidays. We will choose a winner on Monday November 14th at 12:00pm. Good luck!

**A winner has been chosen! Thanks for participating!**

Featuring: Darling Clementine & Giveaway!

Today we're featuring the lovely and charming duo behind Darling Clementine! Ingrid Reithaug and Tonje Holand are too cute for words, and have a mod style that we are crazy about. In addition to graphic design and illustration, these ladies make beautiful stationery. You can order their adorable and customizable digital holiday cards here, but as a special offer, the DC ladies are giving away 2 boxes of the limited edition letterpress cards! We want them all for ourselves, but know you will love them just as much! Darling Clementine has its own shop in Norway, but if you can’t get there you can purchase their illustrations, trays, cushions and other stationery products online here. Enjoy!

What inspired your design for the holiday collection?

The inspiration for Darling Clementine's cards for Hello!Lucky is a combination of objects that have a traditional Scandinavian Christmas feel and objects from our modern ways of celebrating the holiday. We wanted to express the expectations we have for the holiday by indicating present shopping, Christmas decorating and finding traditional objects from the loft.

What are you currently working on?

We are both on our maternity leaves at the moment, so currently we are both spending the days looking into the beautiful faces of our newborn babies; our proudest creations so far!

What influences you the most?

Our Scandinavian design heritage combined with our modern color palette.

What's your favorite holiday tradition?

We love taking part in a Christmas fair for designers that is hosted in Oslo every first weekend in December, having a chocolate gift box workshop with red wine and dark chocolate overload, as well as putting up favorite baubles in our windows!

Best holiday memory?

Christmas present shopping in London and the wonderful smell in childhood homes Christmas morning!

To enter to win 2 boxes of limited edition letterpress cards designed by Darling Clementine, comment below and tell us your best holiday memory! The winner will be selected Friday, November 11th at 12:00pm. Good luck!

**Thanks to everyone for participating! The winner of the Darling Clementine giveaway has been chosen. Stay tuned on our blog for more fabulous holiday giveaways to come!**

Featuring Esther Aarts and Giveaway!

Today we're featuring our friend Esther Aarts! Esther lives in Nijmegen, Netherlands, and runs an illustration and design studio called Esta. We love the playful stories her designs tell and her use of bold color combinations. In addition to illustration and hand lettering, Esther also enjoys experimenting with "small press" projects, like making mimeograph and Gocco prints. We've had the pleasure of working with Esther over the years and always admire the designs she dreams up. Her retro cards are sure to make your friends and family smile this season!

What inspired your design for the holiday collection?

Dutch graphic design from the 50s and 60s mixed with contemporary illustration styles and my tendency to stick eyes on non-living things.

What are you currently working on?

Some cool client work, and I'm working on a new set of prints containing 4 dueling characters. They're a bit different than my usual prints, and I'll be working with overprints a lot (when two colours printed on top of each other create a new third colour), which makes the project a bit unpredictable in an exciting way.

What influences your style the most?

I'm a total sucker for traditional print with a limited amount of colours. Hello!Lucky is a great fit for me with the letterpress! Even when doing work for offset or web, that old school aesthetic influences me on a subconscious level. There's also a lot of seriously good work from other designers to look at—which has a continually butt-kicking effect!

What's your favorite holiday tradition?

We've got our typical Dutch variation on Santa Claus, called Sinterklaas. He celebrates his birthday on December 5 by giving lots of presents and candy (typically marzipan, chocolate and gingerbread-like mini cookies). Tradition is giving and receiving the first letter of your name as a chunky chocolate letter. If your Sinterklaas is very generous, you get your entire first name in Chocolate Letters!

Best holiday memory?

New years eves, playing records with friends and selecting all sorts of silly tunes and generally having a good time!

To enter to win an assortment of 20 letterpress cards by Esther Aarts (assorted occasions) head over to Esther’s blog today where she’s hosting a giveaway! Gooood luck!

**A winner has been chosen! Thanks for participating!**

Featuring Karin Soderquist and Giveaway!

Happy weekend everyone! Today we're featuring the talented artist Karin Söderquist! Karin is an illustrator and recent grad currently living and working in London! Her latest interest is working with colored paper collage. We can't get enough of her friendly animal characters and must admit, we share a true love for "bubblegum colours, snowy mountain tops and endless summer days."  Another jolly holiday card genius! Check out her shop here!

What inspired your design for the holiday collection?

Making holiday cards in the middle of summer felt bizarre, but I listened to a lot of holiday music to get me in the mood (A Christmas Gift for You, Phil Spector's Christmas album was a favourite). I wanted to create something that felt like Christmas did when you where a kid. Full of expectations and fun. I want people to look at the cards and be reminded of all the good things about Christmas, having some time off to spend with the people you care about.

What are you currently working on?

I've just started working on a piece for an exhibition. The theme for the show is to create something that fits into a matchbox, so it's going to be tiny!

What influences your style the most?

My style has developed over many years, and it is still developing. Right now I work a lot with paper cut collages. I started doing that because sometimes I felt very constrained when I was drawing and I was looking for a way of working that I would feel more comfortable with. Subject wise I'm inspired by a bit of everything, music, movies, art etc. The process of creating is inspiring in itself; it's like the more you make the more you want to make. Creativity breeds creativity!

What's your favorite holiday tradition?

I live in London and the rest of my family lives in Sweden. Since moving here I don't get to see them enough so my favourite tradition is going home to Sweden and spending some time with them, eating and drinking too much.

Best holiday memory?

In Sweden Christmas is celebrated on the 24th of December. When I was a kid my family lived in the countryside and on the morning of the 23rd, after we had breakfast, we'd put on warm clothes and go out into the snowy forest and cut our own Christmas tree. The 23rd of December also happens to be my birthday!

To enter to win a $100 gift certificate to Hello!Lucky (which you could use to order Karin’s holiday cards!) head over to Karin’s blog today where she’ll be hosting a giveaway! Good Luck!

**A winner has been chosen! Thanks for participating!**

Featuring Jacqui Lee and H!L Giveaway!

Today we're checking in with our featured designer Jacqui Lee! Jacqui is an illustrator currently enjoying life in Vancouver, BC. Much of her work is inspired by decades past, and she hopes to take some of that retro charm and add it to her own creative endeavors. We love her hand drawn text and illustrative qualities in each of her holiday cards. It must be fun to live inside her head when she's coming up with such hilarious designs like Fa la la and Animal Sweaters. Who doesn't love a band of musical woodland creatures? So glad Jacqui is a part of our collection!

What inspired your design for the holiday collection?

To be honest, there wasn't any specific thing that inspired me. It was more of a group of things. What I can definitely say is the enthusiasm shown by the Hello!Lucky team when we were first going through ideas was a huge inspiration. It was a great starting point that propelled me through the whole process. Oh, and I may have listened to some holiday tunes on repeat.

What are you currently working on?

Something really exciting that I can't talk about (yet).

What influences your style the most?

This is a tough question! I feel like I'm always being influenced by the new and different things coming out of the creative community. If I wanted to try and pin a specific influence down, I would have to say mid-century illustration, especially children's books. During my time in art school I was definitely influenced by all of the amazing work surrounding me, but I think I've always been drawn to the whimsical and charming work done by illustrators like Art Seiden, Cliff Roberts, and Charley Harper. Visually devouring all of this work has probably made a mark on my own to some degree.

What's your favorite holiday tradition?

Baking cookies! I must have my gingerbread men.

Best holiday memory?

My childhood home had a very large hill in the backyard where we would have all-day-long toboggan parties with friends and family. We would hurtle ourselves down that hill all day long until it was dark out. Then we'd retreat inside to eat cookies, drink hot chocolate and warm up by the fireplace.

To enter to win a $100 gift certificate to Hello!Lucky (which you could use to order Jacqui Lee’s holiday cards!) head over to her blog today where she’ll be hosting a giveaway! Best of luck!

**A winner has been chosen! Thanks for participating!**

Featuring Morris & Essex and Hello!Lucky Giveaway!

Today’s feature is about Morris & Essex! Morris & Essex products are all designed and printed by the mastermind Eliza Jane Curtis in her farmhouse studio in the small historic district of Limington, Maine. Her work is a combination of letterpress, linoleum cut block-printing and silkscreen, using both traditional screen printing techniques and a Gocco machine. It's obvious Eliza takes extra special care when creating her gorgeous cards and patterned prints, because they are impeccably made! We love that her production process includes carving with her bare hands and that she takes advantage of all the wonderful possibilities of printmaking. For more fabulous designs, check out her Etsy site here!

Q: What inspired your design for the holiday collection?

A: Each of the cards has a different look, and my inspiration was pretty diverse for each of them. I was thinking of beautiful Nordic fair-isle knitting patterns while drawing the "Stars" card. "Folk Tales" is definitely inspired by traditional folk arts too. I happened to be staying in Barcelona while working on some of the other designs, so I think some of that city's gorgeous tile patterns and busy colors found their way into the designs.

What are you currently working on?

I'm sketching up some cute Valentine designs, and I've been working on lots of patterns. I'm silk screening some really bright, fun patterns on canvas for sewing into tote bags and zipper pouches. I'm hoping to have those up in my Etsy shop in time for Christmas.

What influences your style the most?

History. I have a big collection of old cards and magazines, craft books and junk from the past hundred years; a lot of them I got from my grandmother. That's one of my favorite places to look for inspiration. And of course I'm also inspired by nature; I live in the country, and I spend lots of time taking pictures of flowers, leaves, seeds and stalks and vines and weeds, and those forms always find their way into my work.

What's your favorite holiday tradition?

Christmas at my parents' farmhouse in Maine; my cousin Lisa's buttery, fresh homemade cinnamon rolls for breakfast; a day spent cooking and lounging around with family and smells of food and pine needles filling the house; a sumptuous feast in the middle of the afternoon (especially my mother's cranberry-orange relish and my father's homemade fruit pies!) and then after dinner, a long afternoon walk in the snowy fields to work off a little of the food, with all the dogs running alongside and tumbling in the snow.

Best holiday memory?

Northern lights in the sky on Christmas night.

To enter to win a $100 gift certificate to Hello!Lucky (which you could use to order Morris & Essex holiday cards!) head over to Eliza’s blog today where she’ll be hosting the giveaway! Good luck!

**A winner has been chosen! Thanks for participating!**

Shannon May Giveaway!

Today we’re featuring the lovely designs of Shannon May! Although Shannon spent her childhood on the coast of southern Connecticut, we're excited to have her as a neighbor illustrator living in Berkeley. Her designs are inspired by science and geometry, and still maintain a whimsical quality that we just adore. Not only is she a killer card designer, she spends her free time making fabulous jewelry (lintu) and fine art (themooncraft), all available on Etsy. We can't wait to see more of Shannon's work in the future!

Q: What inspired your design for the holiday collection?

A: I've always been interested in math and science, finding beauty in the simplicity of equations and diagrams. But, being more of a visual art person than a physicist, I try to use that same imagery to describe other things, like the holidays!

What are you currently working on?

Illustrating a cookbook for an amazing publishing company here in San Francisco, but it's still under wraps... Shhhh.

What influences your style the most?

Math and outer space!

What's your favorite holiday tradition?

Finding the pickle ornament! My mom would hide it in the tree and all the kids would scramble to find it. The one to find it first got a gift, and I was very, very good at finding it.

Best holiday memory?

Hearing hooves on the roof.

To enter to win a $100 gift certificate for Hello!Lucky (which you could use toward any of Shannon May's lovely designs!), comment on this post telling us your favorite part about the holidays! The winner will be selected at 12:00pm Friday, November 4th and we will email you with the exciting news!

**Thanks to everyone for participating! The winner of the Shannon May giveaway has been chosen. Stay tuned on our blog for more fabulous holiday giveaways to come!**

Featured Designer and Jolby Giveaway!

In celebration of the new website and the beginning of the holiday season, we will be featuring the amazing designers that collaborated with us on our new 2011 custom holiday collection! Each artist or group truly inspired us with their festive illustrations, and after months of collaborating behind the scenes, we're ready to shine a little light on our dear designer friends. We've gathered some Q&A about the creative minds behind our spectacular collection, and the first to the spotlight? Jolby!

Jolby began in 2005 when design duo Colby Nichols and Josh Kenyon joined forces in Portland, Oregon. Their jolly illustrations and super colorful combinations create the perfect mix for holiday merriment. We're more than excited to feature their cards this season, and hope you all find as much fun in their designs as we do!

Q: What inspired your design for the holiday collection?

A: For us the holidays have always been about celebrating with family and coming together to recharge. We wanted both cards to reflect that and to make whoever was receiving it smile. As far as style goes, we are both heavily inspired by mid-century children's book illustrators and especially their holiday pieces. Hopefully a little bit of that comes through on these cards!

What are you currently working on?

Each year we try to take some time to work on a solo art show for a gallery, and we're up to our ears in one right now. The new collection of work is called "Shapes & Smiles" and it explores everything in our lives that makes us happy. It's really refreshing to take a break from our client work to produce art and explore new mediums.

What influences your style the most?

So many things: Our favorite artists, the amazing creative community that surrounds us in Portland, nature, our family and music. We are always trying to push one another to try something new and to take something further. What's your favorite holiday tradition?

Colby: When I was a kid, my dad used to make these homemade cinnamon rolls and they are amazing. I always look forward to those. Josh: For me it's Thanksgiving dinner. It was my mom's favorite holiday, and it just rubbed off on me. I love gathering with my family around the table to talk, eat and be with each other. Nothing is better. Best holiday memory?

Colby: Finding a Mega Man NES cartridge in my stocking one year. It blew my mind! I played it all day. Josh: When I got "Denver the Last Dinosaur" pajamas and a fake guitar as presents.

To enter to win a $100 gift certificate of customizable Jolby designs from the holiday collection, head over to their blog here!

Mark your calendars!

We're thrilled to be a part of the upcoming Lab Event taking place January 14th, 2012 at the Cline Cellars in Sonoma, and after Monday night's inspiring kickoff party at The Collection ES our heads are bursting with fab ideas for the event. Stay tuned here for more information or you can visit their soon-to-be-released blog. Tickets will go fast so be sure to book in advance! Looking forward to seeing you all there!

(above: The Collection ES, below: Cline Cellars in spring)

Tickets available here!

DIY Paper Quilt!

We can't believe this beautiful paper quilt was crafted entirely out of misprints and unsellable papers from Linda & Harriett's deliciously patterned calendars.  Gorgeous and green!

We're always looking for new ways to use scraps of paper and old letterpress samples (too pretty to toss away!) and this just might be in the mix for our next craft night.

Well-Groomed Guide

We must admit, we're aware of the feminine nature of wedding and stationery blogs, but figure today is the perfect day to shine a little light on the men's style. The perfect web destination for the wedded guy? The Well-Groomed blog.

It's not only a site for endless style inspiration (and adorable eye candy) but there are gift guides for every kind of dude. What a perfect way to get inspired for grooms gifts or groomsman favors. The founder and author Darren has delivered everything we look for in a wedding blog:  sophisticated, stylish, and somewhat romantic inspiration for all its readers, man or woman.

Check out the Well-Groomed blog "The Guide to Tying the (Windsor) Knot"  here!

Featured: No Cal Brides!

If you haven't had a chance to pick up Northern California's Brides fall/winter 2011 magazine, now would be a good time! This issue's Style Review features four favorite design movements and the noteworthy pieces that make them stand out.

One of the segments highlights the romantic and intricate characteristics of Art Nouveau, which fits quite perfectly with our Nouveau Peonies wedding invitation.

We love working with our local Northern California brides! You can pick up a copy online here!