Merry Christmas from my desk to yours!

So it's that time of year and I'm so thankful to be able to spend some quality time reflecting on the holidays this year and selecting the perfect gifts for each person on my list! In past years, my holiday season as been filled with sending email blasts everyday, traveling up and down I16 to Atlanta and working on catalog after catalog. Thank goodness those days are over and although I'm grateful for the experience, I'm kind of glad they are over. I was looking forward to this year so I could finish my list in plenty of time, knock out some baking and trim the tree in style. Just to recap a few things from this month:

Sweet Selections of the Season

Homemade Peppermint Marshmallows from Martha Stewart

and my Nana Lillian's Shortbread Cookies. Sorry folks, not sharing that recipe or my family would exile me!

Holiday Wrap Selections

Fabulous selections from Paper Source, Publix (yes, I said it!) and Paper Mart for ribbon.

Gift Tags designed me and printed by Twist Paper.

Decking the Halls

Here are a few snapshots of my home this Christmas. We didn't break out the Dept. 56 Snow Village this year due to space and I don't want to overwhelm any potential buyers of our home. My hubby's mom started a collection for each of her three children so we have an entire city full of glowing buildings, miniature storefronts, a bakery, an ice skating pond, church and even a tree house that lights up - I just adore it! Each child received a new addition every year of their life. 

Our main Peppermint-Style Tree

Our Mini-Stylish Red/Aqua Tree

Our mantel and stockings!

Typically, our mantel is lined with an army of colorful nutcrackers, but they are holding down the fort in the attic this year. Can't wait to break them out next year in our new home! (Hopefully...)

and last but not least, we attended a couple of Tacky Christmas Sweater Parties!

I don't have any photos of the 2nd party, but here's a snapshot of some of the girls! I tend to think I filtered Cindy Lou Who from Dr. Suess. My wine glass I designed for Swoozie's last year completed the ensemble! 

Enjoy and may your family have a wonderful and blessed holiday season and new year!

Tory Burch-inspired Christmas Card

Time to reveal my personal Christmas card for this year! As some of you know, I'm constantly inspired by fabrics seen in fashion and home decor. I have a few pieces from this collection of Tory Burch which I love and is still my favorite pattern she's ever released. You can see the dress in my photo above! :) This year, I wanted our holiday card to be something funky and unexpected so I chose to use the fabric as inspiration! The photo on the front was shot by my sweet mom and we were able to get a great photo of Dallas and Bailey for the inside! The cards were completed with red envelopes, custom chevron liners and calligraphy by yours truly. Enjoy and happy holidays!

Wreath + Custom Wedding Monogram Letterpress Wedding Invitations

Leigh and Ryan decided to marry in December around the holiday season, so we wanted a design that had a festive feel, but not over-the-top Christmas. Here's what we came up with and their choice of wedding monogram allows them to use the logo in the future for stationery and linens!

Crane Ecru Paper with Gold Letterpress + Save the Date

Spanish Moss Wedding Invitations { Savannah, Georgia }

Check out the Wedding Paper Wardrobe for Charissa and Brannon! Their wedding is New Year's Eve so the day is quickly approaching. What a great way to ring in the new year!

Crane Paper with Grey Letterpress

Twist Paper : Excited about 2011!

I'm thrilled to be finalizing the final collections for the spring release of Twist Paper! I'm been so inspired by home decor, bold fabrics, savvy typography and interesting color combinations. I can't explain how lucky I feel from the success of Twist this year. A big thanks to the peeps over at Whitney English for bringing my visions to life and handling my customers with such grace! I couldn't ask for better representation!

It's interesting to see how much life can change in a year. It seems like ages ago now, but it was just in January that I decided to leave Swoozie's as their Senior Designer to pursue emma j design full-time. It's been the most satisfying venture thus far and I can't believe it too me so long to make the step!  It was a huge door to close, but opened up many more doors of opportunity. As a designer, it's been so rewarding to guide my own creative journey without being watered down by other opinions and limitations. It is great to see how much one can excel without being held back. I'm such a lucky girl to see how much the nation has embraced Twist Paper. Ironically and thankfully, my presence remains in Swoozie's since they carry Twist Paper and many of the other products I design for Buckhead Betties and Peking Handicraft (Twist Party in-stores Spring 2011). Thank you!

Let's toast to a successful 2010 and I look forward to 2011!

Here's a little sneak peek to spark your interest!

Twist Holiday Cards!

It's that time of year! My pandora has changed to my favorite Frank Sinatra Christmas station, I've made my first purchase of peppermint coffee creamer, the emails have started arrive inquiring about holiday cards and I'm picking out my annual baking and drink recipes for gifts! These wonderful traditions spark the selection of holiday cards! This year will be the first year all of my holiday cards are online for purchase and I could not be more excited! Here are a few of my favorites this year - all come with coordinating party invitations, gift tags and address labels.

All available for purchase at your local Twist Retailer and online

www.getpapered.com  |  www.lemontreepaperie.com

Also, a few of my favorite holiday party invitations!

Local Savannah Retailers pick up Twist Paper Products!

SO excited to announce that 3 retailers in Savannah will be carrying the Twist Paper line!

Feel free to stop in anytime to check out the new line and place your orders for Holiday Photo Cards and matching accessories! Tell them I sent you! 

Introducing Twist Paper:

{ DOWNTOWN }

La Paperie

409 Whitaker Street
Savannah, Georgia 31401
No 912.443.9349

www.lapaperie.net

{ MIDTOWN }

Merry Times

5521 Abercorn Street

Savannah, Georgia 31405

No 912.354.6314

{ ISLANDS }

Polka Dots

107 Charlotte Road, Suite E

Savannah, Georgia  31410

No 912.898.3730

www.polkadotssavannah.com

Not only will they be carrying the imprintables that you can quickly order invitations and stationery in the store, but they are carrying...

Holiday Album

{Great for Holiday Cards, Invitations, Gift Tags, etc}

Baby+Child Album

{Birth Announcements, Birthday Party invitations, Gift Tags, calling cards}

Accessories Album

{Calling Cards, Gift Tags, Stickers, Melamine Plates, Placemats, etc}

My Office on English Paper Co. Blog

Hi fellow bloggers! The girls over at Whitney English recently asked me to submit photos of my office as a part of their 'desk' series. Here's a recap, but head over to the blog for more information! CLICK HERE to visit the blog - be sure to add it to your daily reads for new releases, party ideas and promotions!

this week's favorites : new kate spade

As most of you know, kate spade is one of my inspirations and I'm constantly blown away by the wit and creative journey the company takes us on throughout the seasons! Since I upgraded to the new iphone 4, I've been on the hunt for a new case. Finally, the day came when I discovered this gem - even matches the old kate spade dot dress I have!

kate spade iphone 4 hard case

Since the release of her new perfume, Twirl - { watch video here }, I've been wanting to try it! My mom enjoys her other perfume so how apropos that I adopt this new little prize! I ordered the mini-roller to give it a try! I'll keep you posted.

Not sure if you've ever ordered anything from katespade.com but their packaging and presentation is top-notch! 

Letterpress Business Cards { Azelle Photography }

I have had the pleasure of working with photography duo and oh-so-cute couple, Azelle Photography, to refine their brand and develop new marketing material. We started by just making some slight revisions to their existing logo like using a thinner and more feminine font while adding a touch of parisian ironwork below with the tagline. Next, we moved onto their marketing packet to present to brides that includes information/pricing cards, samples of their work and bios. The latest project was the business card design. They really wanted to push the envelope with a letterpress printed card along with creating a custom pattern of their logo elements to blind deboss in the background. Check out how fabulously they turned out - I couldn't be happier! Like what you see? Contact me at emily@emmajdesign.com to begin the design process. Cheers!

Letterpress Sneak Peak: Spode-Inspired Rustic Fall Wedding Invitations

I've been hard at work designing the wedding paper wardrobe for this upcoming fall wedding. The bride was inspired by her brown Spode Woodland china. We completed the look with a victorian monogram with male and female quails atop each letter. She's glamming up the look at the wedding with feathers and jewel tones. Here's a sneak peek of the wedding invitation printed in brown letterpress on Crane ecru lettre. More photos to come once the wedding is complete - food signs, programs, the whole nine yards - it's going to be beautiful and so unique!

Inspired by:

Lattice-Inspired Wedding Invitations {letterpress, savannah, georgia}

In an attempt to grow my wedding paper wardrobe portfolio, I would love to show you some designs I've been working on for new wedding invitations! Check out the designs below inspired by Chinese lattice work!

Safari-Themed Baby Shower for Jami

I have the pleasure of having such great friends here in Savannah! One of them is expecting a new little bundle of joy, Baby Liam!!! Now there is one thing I LOVE doing and that's hosting showers! All of us rolled up our sleeves and got to work on this fabulous jungle-themed shower for Jami! Her nursery is Jungle friends from Pottery Barn so we only thought this was appropriate! After a couple of weeks of the hubby's growing  honey-do list, we were able to make some of the decor changes to the house in time!

Here are the details!

The invitation

inspired by her nursery bedding from Pottery Barn:

Food signs adorned the delicious dishes our hostesses prepared:

Loved the Martha Stewart tissue ball kits at Michaels!

Of course we had to serve bellinis! Baby bellinis for the mommy-to-be!

The living room ready for guests!

Monogram utensil bands completed the table along with our always fabulous favors from Two Smart Cookies!

The framed monogram that all of the guests signed. Jami was able to take it home in a frame for the nursery! Also, welcome your guests with a sign on the front door!

The fabulous hostesses with the stylish mommy-to-be!