Mirror Mirror

I have always wanted to do an outdoor movie in the summer. I hope 2012 is the year we actually plan and do it! I just took my son Jackson to see Mirror Mirror. Have you seen it? It's a great movie and as much as I love my girl Julia(we named a HPD shoe after her!) the prince played by Armie Hammer(you may recognize him from The Social Network) stole the show! I think Mirror Mirror would be a great film to feature!

Here's what I am thinking for the party. Big screen outside and I stumbled upon this popcorn bar idea on The Party Dress site that was inspired by Jessica Kirkland from Pen n Paperflowers. I noticed the carriage in the movie looks just like the one we did for William and Kate's wedding last year. It will be perfect for the invitations. Cant wait for this party!

Inspiration photo from Pottery Barn

                                                    How adorable is this popcorn stand?

Here's what I am going to use on the invitations!

Just in the Nick of Time

So excited about the arrival of "The Shops" at Target coming May 6- June 16. They are creating themed shops within the store based on shops they fell in love with. I cant wait to see the Candy Store. I hope it will be available in time for Thomas birthday party. The shops will include:
COS BAR - Aspen
THE CANDY STORE -San Francisco
THE WEBSTER - Miami
POLKA DOG BAKERY - Boston
PRIVET HOUSE - Connecticut

Look Who's Coming to DC!



Love this shot of George. Totally captures the moment.

Look who's coming to DC... yep  you guessed it, talented NY photographer Jay Ackerman. Jay reached out to me as he is going to be in DC on May 12-13 bringing his fine NY photography talents to our area. Jay has some open slots if you are interesting in setting up a session. In addition, we are working together so you can use photos from Jay and have Hampton Paper photo cards printed. The pricing is totally in line with what I typically pay for a photo session and a CD . So you can get exclusive NY talent at a great price.  Contact Jay to find out more info and to schedule a session. I pulled a few amazing photos from his site www.jayackerman.com. I love the photos of George Clooney and Tom Cruise. I am happy to see George smiling, I know he took it hard when I broke up with him!


Amazing Photo of Tom

This picture of Jay's boys looks like its right out of a magazine!!

Sample of Jay Ackerman photo on Hampton Paper Photo Card

Pool Party

We're working on our next party for the theme for Thomas' 9th Birthday we decided on a Pool Party. I have been looking at some of my favorite party blogs for inspiration. I am going to use the shark image for the invitations and include a gift enclosure also with the shark and a little note for the kids to bring their swim suit and towel! Cant wait to see how this comes together. Do you like the new layout? I love the blue and orange color combo!

A Little Bit Country

You know I love all the girls from my fav show 90210. I am so excited about Hampton Paper Fan Jennie Garth's new show, A Little Bit Country that airs tonight on CMT. Will we see some of Jennie's favorite Hampton Paper products like the correspondence cards or Santa stickers we made for her kids? Ohh I would like to think so. A girl can dream right?  Have a great weekend!

Brotherly Love

We are starting our morning with a little brotherly love! Jackson wrote this lunch box note for his older brother and drew a picture of the two of them. Love these peaceful moments between the two. I often remind my parents how lucky they were that my sister and I always got along (grin!)

Progress Has Been Made...

It's Tax Day. Do You Owe? I did and so I have spent the day thinking about a tax day party theme....of course on the invitation would have to be the martini, gimlet, or bottle of wine. I think whoever at your party owed the most should be the guest of honor.

Anyway, one great highlight to my otherwise bleak day was the installation of the valences and shower curtain in Thomas' room. We used Ralph Lauren Rowthorne Crest Admiral for the Valences (similar to the wallpaper in his bathroom) and the last 5 yards on the planet of my beloved Ralph Lauren Strand Stripe Tiger Lily. I love our new additions. We selected new carpet and narrowed down the bedding. Its coming together nicely! Sorry for the amateur photos.

The Inside Scoop

I had a brilliant idea probably about a year ago to segment my blog and have a theme each day of the week. One was a behind the scenes guide to running a small business. Not that I am an expert but I figured at a minimum those thinking of starting a business might be inspired to take it to the next level and maybe just learn from my mistakes! I was going to call it "The Inside Scoop" or "Behind the Scenes".
Like most of my ideas, it got pushed to the back burner as processing and shipping orders always has to come first! It's no surprise to me that I haven't gotten to it, when you break it down, I work 3 full time jobs and 2 of the 3 are 24 by 7! So, with that said I am forever grateful to the other ladies in the blogsphere who do manage to not only find the time but deliver amazing content in the process. Thanks to Vana from Le Papier Studio and Jena from Miss Modish. I took their pitching advice and am sending out a few of our new small round stickers to editors of my favorite magazines - FoodNetwork, Hamptons Magazine and Capitol File. Since I am a big fan of The Secret, I am putting my wish out to the universe for an immediate positive response!


I choose images for each editor that I thought corresponded well with their magazine. Food & Holidays for Food Network, Summer Theme for Hamptons Magazine and Summer and Fashion for Capitol File - Yes- included the two elephants in case the editor is a Republican!
Wish me luck! And stay tuned I will keep you posted on my progress

Thanks for Stopping By!

Love these cards we just printed for a local realtor. Two great house options to choose from, The House on Loop Road shown here or The House on Rose Grove. Did you know the House on Loop Road is actually my great-grandparents house in Monroe, LA? The House on Rose Grove is my current house. Lucy did an amazing job painting this for our new address cards. Tomorrow is our 4th giveaway and you are going to love it. I will give you a hint, its exactly what you will need to plan your next party!

Hampton Paper Correspondence Cards 24 for $40.00

April Giveaway... You're Invited!

You're Invited to participate in our April giveaway! I have party planning on my mind as I am getting ready to plan my son Thomas' 9th birthday. I am thinking of having an outdoor BBQ/Pool party. I think the blue grill image will be perfect!! What's the next party you are planning? Wedding Shower, Baby Shower, Birthday Party, 4th of July Celebration, Graduation? Is it a surprise? Maybe a big milestone birthday like 40, 50 or 80? Whatever your upcoming party plans may be, we would love to help you get you get started! Our April giveaway is 30 personalized invitations. You pick the image, font, colored or white envelopes send us the text and we will do the rest! Participation is easy. Scroll down to see and browse a few good ideas along the way to inspire you! You may even choose to use one of our new formats - striped edges or dots around the image. Cards measure 5 by 7. More ideas under "photo gallery" on our web site.

To enter, you must leave a comment on the blog or our Facebook page telling us which image you would choose for your upcoming celebration between today, Friday, April 13, 2012 and Friday April 27, 2012. A winner will be selected at random and announced on Monday, April 30, 2012.

For additional Entries - Read on!
•Share a link of this post on your blog. Leave an additional comment on our blog or Facebook page letting us know that you have done so. (include the link)
•Share this link on Facebook for an additional entry. Leave an additional comment letting us know you have done so. (include the link)
•If you aren't already a fan on Facebook "like" our Hampton Paper Designs site. Leave an additional comment letting us know that you have done so.
•Tweet about this giveaway. Leave additional comment letting me know you have done so. (include the link)

30 personalized invitations is a $105.00 value.

Celebrate Graduation Day!

Are you planning a big graduation party this year? We would love to help! Hampton Paper has everything you need whether you are planning a party for a kindergarten graduation (yes, I know there is a big celebration these days for kindergartners) middle school, high school or college. Here are just a few ideas! Send us an email if you would like us to send you some proofs for your upcoming celebration!
Square solid stickers are great for party favors.

Starting at 27 for $18.00

Kiss stickers can be personalized!! Congratulate your grad! 108 for $18.00

We can also do invitations. These are 10 for $40.00 and as always, no charge for proofs!

SWEET CANDY PARTY

We are working on a SWEET candy party with a Dylan's Candy Bar theme. I am thrilled with the new format option for these invitation. I would typically use the optional font color and another in the image but we had a custom request from the birthday girl for pink and green. If you have been reading the blog for awhile then you may recall we had mentioned this new design a while ago....sigh....there are never enough hours in the day. Send us a note if you want to see a proof for your next invitation order with this style!


Hampton Paper Designs Invitations 10 for $40.00

Welcome: The Back Porch North

Welcome to our new store, The Back Porch located in North Palm Beach, Florida. If you are not familiar with the store, it was recently opened by three good friends, Ann Kohlmeyer, Nan Nicklaus O'Leary(daughter of golf great Jack Nicklaus) and Ashley Frederickson. We are thrilled to have them carry Hampton Paper in their store and of course we now need to plan a "work" trip to Palm Beach to visit! If you live in the area please drop by and ask to see our line.

Under The Magnifying Glass

It's probably no surprise that someone who loves paper as much as I do loves a beautiful paperweight. I love the magnifying style and the dome on this hand crafted glass is beautiful. As always, any image is available. This is just an updated style to an existing product so it doesnt count as one of the 5 new products I will be releasing. :) Sorry for the delayed blog post, I was up in NYC checking out the shops on 5th avenue!

Hampton Paper Paper Weights 32.00. Avail on our Etsy Site.

On The Back Burner: Recipe Cards

These recipe cards have literally been on the back burner for a year! It's such a requested product and we have offered them on a one off basis but I want to officially add them to our portfolio. We have 4 options - solid border or no border and then the image on the bottom right or top left. I must say, I love these and have thought of some many great ways to use them. Read on for some good ideas. I bet you have a few of your own.

Basic recipe card. Simple and classic. Just like the ones your mom used before everything was digital. I think this is a great idea to have someone you love write down their best recipes to share with the family. It really means something when you can see a loved ones writing on recipe cards. Also, like a great very loved cookbook, ones that are imperfect and worn from use and the best ones! I have a recipe card from my mother in law with her amazing buttermilk cookie recipe. She makes these for me when I come to visit and always send a few in the car with cold drinks when my father in law picks us up from the airport!

Here's an idea that has been on my mind for a while. I love when a wedding shower includes favorite recipes from the attendees. What a great way to shower the bride - best loved recipes from family and friends. When I have done this in the past, I always share my favorite recipe for Sour Cream Coffee Cake from Cotton Country Cookbook. This is one of my mom's favorite cookbooks - talk about well loved, when she bought my sister and I our own copy, we didn't recognize the cover!!

Love the idea of the pineapple. Pineapple means "welcome".

I am already thinking ahead for holiday gifts for my neighbors. One of the ladies at my bus stop gave me this great jar filled with choc chip oatmeal cookie mix and a note on how to make them. This card would have been perfect!

Hampton Paper Designs personalized recipe cards, 24 for $40.00