Local Love: Tender Loving Empire

In May, we partnered with our friends at Egg Press and moved our printing operations to their studio in Portland, Oregon. Since we now have a Hello!Lucky team up north in addition to our design studio in San Francisco, we thought it was only logical to extend our Local Love series and showcase some of the fantastic shops in Portland! We're starting with Tender Loving Empire, which was founded in 2006 by Portland-based artists and musicians Jared and Brianne Mees. It began as a record label and print shop and a year later expanded to include a consignment retail shop focused on locally produced items. The walls of the shop are covered in illustrations, and a mural above the front door reads "You are part of this place", which captures the spirit of the store and its dedication to community.

 

Its current location on Southwest 10th and Stark houses a full screen print shop and the Tender Loving Empire offices as well as the retail store front. The store sells exclusively handmade items and strives to represent Pacific Northwest artists. We're proud to see a few of our own on the shelf alongside cards made by so many talented local artists!

The screen printing studio produces T-shirts and prints, album packaging for the TLE label's artists as well as commissions for local businesses.

  

Tender Loving Empire

412 SW 10th Ave, Portland Oregon (503) 243-5859

Local Love: Little Paper Planes & Owl Cave

For this installment of our Local Love series we headed to Valencia street and visited one of our favorite new stores, Little Paper Planes + Owl Cave books. Little Paper Planes opened earlier this year in May and it's such a great addition to the bustling Mission neighborhood.

Little Paper Planes is owned and operated by Kelly Lynn Jones, who ran LPP as an online shop for years before launching this brick and mortar version of her store. Kelly is joined by Viniita Moran who brought her online bookstore Owl Cave Books into the shop. Owl Cave Books has a wonderfully curated selection of hard to find art books and magazines.

One of our favorite things about the shop is the space, which was transformed with fixtures and hand built pieces created by Kate Pruitt.

The shop also has a  print gallery which features a new artist every month and a residency program which can be found in the back of the store. The residency program offers space to artists, makers and curators.

If you're visiting the bay area or if you're a local who hasn't been to LPP + Owl Cave Books yet definitely make a trip there. They have such a great selection of goods and they're so well curated and displayed, you'll definitely leave feeling inspired and hopefully with something fun you didn't have before.

Little Paper Planes + Owl Cave 855 Valencia Street in San Francisco,  (415) 643-4616

Filex & Milou

I have two dogs and thus can tell you, with some authority, that a truly fabulous dog bed (and by that I mean one that isn't varying shades of neutral or plain ol' preppy striped) is tough to find.  Needless to say, I was super excited to discover Felix & Milou, a brand new dog bed line by Tove Jakobsson -huzzah!  Finally, something with a little style!

Her cushions are all made by hand from lovely graphic Swedish fabrics. They're sized for a cat or small dog, hopefully soon, a bigger size to come! I fear poor Indy is getting the shaft, being more in the medium to large range. But wouldn't they make great floor cushions around a low table as well?

This is the one I purchased - a fabric by Cecilia Hall Åhlens that has a lovely Josef Frank vibe - beautifully made and adorable in person!

All the cushion covers are removable and washable.  Check out the rest of her products here.

Local Love: Tantrum

This year we're starting a new feature on the blog showcasing some of our favorite local shops, eateries, and spots in both San Francisco and London. We're kicking off with a unique vintage shop in Cole Valley called Tantrum. From the moment we first saw the circus themed window display and sign, to the precious stop-motion video of their shop, it's definitely a new favorite. Tantrum, located on 858 Cole Street, has a sweet collection of mid-century and vintage items for kids of all ages.

They not only carry awesome kids stuff, but one-of-a-kind housewares for moms and dads too! We're really digging all the rich colors in this photo.

We fell in love with them once we saw the sneak peek on Modern Kiddo, then when we saw co-owners Amanda and Michelle in these vintage get-ups and it kept getting better. They gave a fabulous Q & A and we can't wait to get our hands on some of their goodies.

Check out this stop-motion video of the space!

Tantrum from Paul Trillo on Vimeo.

They must have such a good time working together. Check out Tantrum at 858 Cole Street in San Francisco!

Cloud Parade Launch

We hope everyone had a nice holiday! Though there's still plenty of celebrating to be done with 2013 fast approaching, we're taking a moment to welcome a brilliant new resource for brides! Cloud Parade is an online site dedicated to all things wedding. Fabulous vendors from all around are setting up shop to help make planning your wedding a cinch. You can create Clouds with certain themes or products you love, share with friends and family, and purchase every item all from one place! It's any bride or grooms dream.

As you can see above their site is quite charming, and extremely easy to navigate. You can browse by color, category, style, and even search your favorite vendors by name. Having a destination wedding with a teal color theme? You're in the right place. We're delighted to have our own shop at Cloud Parade, packed with our printable invitations and wedding thank you cards.

Cloud Parade from Cloud Parade on Vimeo.

They released an adorable promo video with all the information one could need to get started. We love anyone that can make wedding planning this easy! Visit Cloud Parade here and start your own free account now!

Bazaar Bizarre San Francisco

Join us this weekend December 1st and 2nd for the annual Bazaar Bizarre Holiday Show! We'll be hanging out at our booth selling cards, gifts, and our new prints! If you haven't been to the Bazaar Bizarre before, prepare for total craftness. Vendors and retailers all gather to showcase their original gifts, just in time for your holiday shopping. There's also a huge list of delicious food vendors for your mid-day snacking pleasure. You can get your hands on awesome products like these printed totes by Shapes & Colors, and munch on some tasty cake pops by Sweet Lauren Cakes.

The event takes place at the Concourse Exhibition Center EAST HALL 620 Seventh St. (at Brannan) from 11am - 6pm and is completely free. And the first 200 visitors each day will receive a free limited edition tote bag with loads of goodies including letterpress cards from yours truly! Hope to see you there!

Small Business Saturday - November 24th

We support! Get your friends and family together and stroll the streets in your community. Hit up the local businesses that make your hometown unique. We're definitely fans of Small Business Saturday and for its third anniversary, we're thinking third time's a charm.

Our studio will be closed for the Thanksgiving holiday but you can shop on our site online anytime! Thanks as always for your support!

Shabby Apple Discount and Giveaway!

It's not very often that we host giveaways on our blog, but when we do we know it's something good. Something so good in fact that we wish we could participate! Shabby Apple, a new found favorite women's apparel and accessories outfit, is offering one lucky Hello!Lucky reader a $50 gift certificate to their online shop! As you can see from their website, Shabby Apple has something for everyone, from vintage inspired skirts to form fitting gowns. Only one participant will receive the $50 gift certificate, but don't be too upset. Shabby Apple is offering a 10% discount on all product online. We chose a few of our favorites (shown above and below) but trust us, it was hard to choose! To enter to win $50 to Shabby Apple, comment below telling us what you would order if you won. The winner will be announced next Wednesday, August 15th. Be sure to head over to the Shabby Apple facebook page for info and updates!

 

And for 10% off your order at Shabby Apple, enter the code hellolucky10off at checkout! Thanks for participating!

Shop Julia Kostreva!

We hope you haven't finished your holiday shopping yet this year because we have some exclusive Hello!Lucky news! Our lovely and talented junior designer Julia Kostreva just added some new products to her shop and we wanted to spread the love! Her brand new 2012 planner calendars and Mon Petit notebooks are the perfect mix of modern style and functionality.

And, if you're looking for some contemporary art in the bedroom, look no further! Julia incorporates her hand illustrated patterns on to 100% cotton pillow covers! They satisfy that desirable splash of color that every room needs.

We're so proud to have such a brilliant artist on our team! Great work J!

You can visit Julia's shop here, and keep up with her blog here

We Support Small Business Saturday

It's that time again! Department store catalogs, commercials, fliers, and billboards are popping up all over, and Black Friday is just around the corner. We love the idea of one-stop-shopping, but are always prone to browsing local businesses and shops for unique gifts. That's why we are proud supporters of Small Business Saturday. To celebrate its second anniversary, we encourage all of you to hit the town and support the businesses that make our communities shine!

Weekend in Paris: Part 3

Our final day began with beautiful and delicious pasteries from La Patisserie des Reves in the 6th...

Yum!

Bonton - one of the most inspiring stores in Paris!

Stationery and gifts at Magna Carta

Petit Pan - another Paris favorite!

Pretty window at traditional French print shop

Colorful children's scarves at Bleu Comme Gris

Beautiful Japanense-inspired children's clothes at Noro

Annick Goutal perfumes

A bar in the early morning

A classic Parisian street view

The journey home. A bientôt, Paris!

Kate Spade wedding!

Kate Spade just launched their first ever wedding line - let the swooning begin! Her line includes retro fabulous dresses for the bride, cute frocks for bridesmaids, and some pretty adorable numbers for the honeymoon! The shoes and accessories aren't too shabby either!

Double-decker mugs

Spotted some cute double-decker bus mugs on a fun UK design store called Our Shop.  Naturally it made us think of our Visit London save the dates and wedding invitations.

Fancy a cup, eh?

Be sure to have a peek at all our destination wedding invitations. More cities coming soon!

Jude's Big Top Birthday: Birthday Cake Banner!

A slightly tardy post on how make the little flags that topped Mr. Jude's Big Top Birthday Cake (thank you for your patience, dear readers, things have been a little busy here at H!L HQ!)   We thought these little banners were the perfect topper for a circusy cake!  That perfect stripey candle and equally genius napkins found at Shop Sweet Lulu...

Download the tutorial here (with printable flags!)

Trunk Show with Duchess + Elizabeth Dye!

We are thrilled to announce that we are hosting a trunk show with Duchess Custom Clothier (sartorial splendor!) and Elizabeth Dye (dreamy dresses!)  Please join us!

Elizabeth will be showing her full 2011 collection as well as some unique pieces, and Duchess will be showcasing gorgeous custom suits. Both are based in Portland so be sure to take advantage of this opportunity to meet them in SF!

Hello!Lucky will be previewing new wedding stationery designs and offering free wedding invitation samples.

For more information or to book an appointment, please e-mail info@hellolucky.com

Hooray! New DIY Papers!

We've just added some fab (double sided!) papers to our website, for all your DIY needs - cute, no?

These are papers we used on some of the projects from Handmade Weddings...

See the whole collection here...

Silly Buddy Bowties

Ah, sophisticated and stylish dog neckwear is a rare bird, s0 check out these sassy bow ties from Silly Buddy!

They'd be perfect for dog wedding attire - what a handsome ring bearer this little fellow would make!

A lovely selection available here.

Via Decor8

Jennifer Behr for Anthropologie / BHLDN

We thought that this fab head band  looked familiar!  Turns out, our great friend Jennifer Behr, has a few pieces in the new Anthropologie collection, like this one, originally designed for Eunice's wedding!

Now we are even more excited to see BHLDN given that Jenn is the queen of fabulous hair accoutrements!

Are You Serious?? Anthro for Wedding...

Anthropologie is launching a new wedding line called BHLDN on February 14th! For reals!

Wedding dresses, bridesmaids dresses, amazing sparkly shoes and more!  Needless to say, we are breathless with anticipation (and for those of us who are already married, a wee bit of jealousy!)

See more here!

Handmade Weddings!

We are SUPER excited to report that our new book, Handmade Weddings, created with the extra fabulous Shana Faust, is here!!

The book includes over 50 delightful (if we do say so ourselves! ) projects designed to inspire, whether your look is modern classic or retro homespun along with lots of guidance on choosing a look, sourcing materials, and working out timelines.

Better yet, 100 Layer Cake is giving away 5 copies (as we speak!) to lucky readers as well as a discount on the book!

Here's the cute trailer for the book! Woot! (very excited!)