custom botanical stationery inspired by paris markets

this lovely stationery set was commissioned by my dear friend, andie. i'm kind of obsessed. she has a great eye for design and a love for all things french. 

pink, purple & gold - christmas cards

i was rummaging through the piles of stationery and found last year's christmas card. obsessed with the envelope liners... hand-printed gold ikat!

custom return address stamps now available at charm & fig

the shop is growing (oh so much more to come soon) but i had to get these custom return address stamps out ASAP. with holiday cards coming up, (you're sending them, right?) you can save some serious time and hand cramps with a return address stamp. 

AND it's a great gift for your best pen pal. i will undoubtedly be gifting some of these this year! xo

now available at charmandfig.etsy.com.

the weekend itinerary for your best gal's bachelorette party

why the bachelorette weekend itinerary? the party planners already know who is going, who is on the fence -- but this mailed piece gives the guests an idea of what's in store for the big weekend.

these weekends take so much planning and commitment by everyone attending, so the bridesmaids usually know who is 'in' or 'out' far in advance. and suddenly, a generic invitation becomes a bit arbitrary. 

...but there's still so many details to communicate to the guests and an email can be a little lack-luster. the bachelorette itinerary is an easy way way to get the guests excited and convince those on-the-fencers that the weekend is not to be missed!

foil print bridesmaid cards: sophia-inspired confetti & calligraphy...

bonjour! we've got new & improved darling cards! gold foil and pastel confetti: maybe they're a little inspired from sophia coppola's marie antoinette. the ladree macarons, the insane louboutin shoes, powdery pastel up-dos... i could watch this movie all day long.

these gold foil print calligraphy bridal party cards come in two styles (bridesmaid & maid of honor) and three colors (pale pink, mint and black). take your pick!

garden dreams in the texas heat

i've been totally inspired by rose moss. it's a hardy plant with succulent leaves that can withstand the texas heat and days without water. the bright blooms are right up my ally: neon shades of pink, poppy, yellow and orange. my iphone couldn't event register the brightness of these colors... #nofilter, y'all.

when we purchased our house, i had no idea how much i would enjoy gardening. i've been turning down some late night partying in order to get up early and hit the dirt. must be growing up. 

i pinned this photo a few months ago, and i keep going back to it. we're definitely going to spend the next few months trying to re-create this backyard. it's sustainable and just looks so damn cool. kudos to my good friend elyse who coined the term partio.

i'm torn between creating a modern, sleek backyard and an overgrown hill country garden. texas wildflowers need to 'planted' in september for spring blooms. i've been reading up on planting wildflowers and they just say to drop the seeds on dirt, don't bury them. how easy is that? you can order seed packets from wildseed farms.

here's a little peek of our backyard. blue agave, african irises and rose moss so far. still so much that needs to be done. can't wait to share the full picture.. when it's complete.

late to the party.

so sad to see google reader go, but i'm now using bloglovin to stay current with my favorite blogs. while pinterest and instagram satiate my need for constant visual stimulation, there is nothing like curling up in bed and reading an old timey blog post! will our children ever know what it was like to read a blog? or will they just zoom on through their pinstagrams and be none the wiser? now that i'm looking at the internet through rose colored glasses and have tugged on your heartstrings, you can follow me on bloglovin. Pin It

easy, cheap & festive party decor + house update

first things first! here's a picture of our house. it was built in 1937 and took a beating over the years. someone bought it late last year, flipped it and sold it to us. we were so lucky to jump on this house when we did - love at first sight and in a neighborhood we're excited to explore. 

..and now to more fun stuff. jon's sister graduated high school this year and all of her brothers and sis'-in-laws got together to throw her a little bash. we were all on a budget, but pulled off a pretty festive fajita soiree in our back yard.

with four kids and lots of birthdays to throw, my mother-law-in-law was smart to invest in a helium tank years ago. the balloons were a last-minute addition to the decor, but they were the best part! we taped fringed tissue paper to the base of the balloon to create these geronimo balloons-inspired floaters.

for the table, i used a dip-dye table cloth and crepe paper to create this striped runner. double-sided tape kept them in place.

to finish the ends, i simply cut out a little wedge.

and throughout the house, i made tissue-paper flowers. they brightened up the windowsills, tables, bathrooms and anywhere that needed a little pop of color.

here's the graduate with her bearded brothers. congrats callie! i was thrilled she happened to match the color scheme with such a pretty yellow dress.

my little nephew max is up-and-running these days. we tied a balloon to him so we easily spot him when he ran off. i think i might utilize this little nugget for when i have kids. my sister-in-law, chelsea, took the most precious photo of max with the balloons. 

that's all, kiddos. xo

no pattern dip dye ombre pillow

it's been a LONG time since i touched my sewing machine. i had every intention of sewing curtains, but instead i just bought tons of unbleached, un-dyed denim and hung it up with raw edges. i love the way it looks.. but more on the curtains later.

it's feeling pretty hot here in houston. we've had such a long spring (actually used the heater in early may!) that the 85 degree feel like a sauna. i don't even want to think about july right now.

in the spirit of summer, i decided to make a bright pink and orange ombre pillow with the extra curtain fabric. i took an old, orange silk pillow and cut fabric for my new pillow with an extra inch for sewing. the old pillow was my 'pattern.'

for this pillow, i only wanted one side to have color -- i think it looks a little more custom and less reckless that way. i busted out my rit-dye... did one end orange (sunshine yellow with a splash of red) and the other bright pink ( red with double splash of yellow).  the i got the fabric completely wet and let it sit in the dye for about half an hour. this will let the dye bleed up the fabric easier. if it's totally try it will have a hard time bleeding and will be a less smooth gradient.

once it was dry, the denim was pretty thick and warped so i needed to put it to the iron.

time to pin and get that pesky zipper out of the way! pin the zipper (zipped!) to one piece of fabric, with the outside of the zipper facing the outside of the pillow. sew the zipper to the first side, then pin the other piece of fabric to the other side of the zipper. 

sew up the rest of the of the sides., before you sew up the last side, make sure you unzip the zipper enough to turn the pillow inside when your sewing is complete.

success! i love the colors it adds to our house.

 

celebrate mother's day, your baby mama, that foxy mama or just because...

i've been playing with illustration a bit more lately. stepping away from the computer and doodling... that's how my interest in art began a long time ago. doodling, in school, probably while i was supposed to be learning my time tables or long division.

enter my foxy mama card. i was brainstorming a cheeky baby shower card and came up with something that applies to nearly any occasion. this foil-stamp foxy mama card works for mother's day, baby showers, your friend who needs a pick me up or even just a birthday card. it's blank inside so there possibilities are endless. enjoy!

p.s. mother's day is sunday, may 12, 2013 :)

paired with coral envelope

foil stamp detail of the illustration

comes with three envelope choices! coral, mint & kraft. available in the shop!

 

you & me watercolor valentine print in the shop!

yup, it's time to start thinking about valentines. don't be a scrooge. i love it.  my ideal valentines is a good homemade meal (that we make together) a rented movie and a dessert that we don't typically have very often (cremem brule.. a fruit tarte?) no dressing up! pajamas required. 

in the spirit of the holiday, i made these geometric watercolor prints.... with a simple you & me. nothing fancy. adds a nice little pop of pink to your art wall that you're working on, yes? prints can be purchased in my etsy shop!

 

sparkly surprise bridal luncheon invite

i forgot to post these! and i promise it's the last installment of andie's wedding paper :) 

the day before she got married her mother's best friend threw a fantastic bridal luncheon for andie & her ladies. andie was sweet enough to recommend me to make the invitations. we went with girly & light to reflect the relaxed luncheon.. and of course, had to add some metallics. 

i stashed some gold sequins in each envelope for a little sparkly surprise.

here's the detail of the invite....pastel confetti & pastel confetti pattern on the back.

to order custom shower invitations, email me at charm and fig (at) gmail (dot) com.

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baby shower games - 3 wishes for baby & advice for mom

i've been trying to find the time to make some baby shower games for charm & fig. here they are! something cute and simple with advice for mom and wishes for the baby.

the great things about these is the mom can keep them for years to come, put them in her scrapbook or just stash them away for a million years and pull them out when the child is grown up and read all the fun notes from family and friends. RUN ON SENTENCE, much? yes.. but my mind is going a mile a minute these days.

these cards come in lots of colors and are customized for both mom & baby. available for purchase here.