End of Year Wrap Up

Well here we are at December 31, and what an AWESOME year it has been!! I still have 2 more weddings from 2011 to post, but they will have to wait for January. For now, let's do a little looking back at some of the smaller projects we did this year!!

This was Josh and Amanda's thank you card/Christmas card! They were married so close to Christmas they wanted to combine the two, which is such an adorable idea!

Some art deco stationery done for Mr. Rich Mattingly over at Nickel City Studios for his "Oma." 

More personal stationery, this time a gift for a lovely lady who is actually getting married ON New Year's Eve! This one was fancy schmancy letterpress though, the metallic purple ink made us swooooon!

We love when people give stationery as a gift, I hate to think that hand-writing notes is a thing of the past. Even as much as I love my menagerie of technology, nothings warms the cockles of my heart as much as receiving a hand written card or letter!

We also had the opportunity to design some awesome biz id for a pie company! (This is the only sample photo I got #sadface)

Now that your mouth is watering, check out this menu card for the amazingly talented ladies at Thelma and Louise Catering (again, no samples, wah waaaah):

Some stuff we did in-house this year, the birth announcement for our little fire cracker:

And her baptism invitation (we may have gone slightly overboard, but we couldn't help ourselves!)

An library-inspired e-vite for a book club friend's baby shower:

A business card for my Uncle-In-Law, if you are in the Lockport area, you can find him playing his GUI-tar at Pour Boys most Wednesday nights!

Holy hell, I almost forgot one of Buffalo's greatest triumphs of the year. It's barely worth mentioning from a design point of view, seeing as the guidelines for the branding on these events are the strictest I've ever seen, however it represents one of the most AMAZING acts of determination I've ever witnessed. The fact TEDxBuffalo even happened is a testament to the solid people of this city, and I feel honored to have been a [small] part of it, and the incredible group of people that actually pulled it off. You can check out a full recap and more about it here.

Well, that's it for us this year, we are still in hurry mode for BridesWorld 2012, coming up January 8th - if you haven't gotten your tickets yet there is still time! We hope to see you in the Convention Center! Until then, have a happy and healthy new year, from all of us here at Rust Belt Love! xo

Because That's How the Italians Roll

Mangia, mangia! If there is a fault to be found in Thelma and Louise's (AKA Karen and Sandy) cooking, it is that they always make too much. AL.WAYS. Whether it's for six people, or sixteen (a normal family get-together when everyone is in town) or, apparently, sixty... which is approximately how many we had at Cole's Christening Party. Although it's hard to call it a fault when it means everyone takes home leftovers... So without further ado - to the DELICIOUS photos taken by the very talented, Miss Seren Davis...

The ladies themselves, getting everything together.

Paul Jr. helping with [or getting tangled in] the balloons.

Libations...

Now for the appetizers:

Pinwheels of deliciousness...

Buffalo Chicken Wraps...

(If your mouth isn't watering by now, check your pulse...)

Whatever your dip fancy, we've got a cold, hot, veggie, seafood, sweet, or tangy dip for you!

Now for the main dishes...

All the gloriousness of a chicken caesar salad... on a ciabata roll... does it get much better than that?

And don't forget the rolls, brisket, rosemary potatoes, baked mac and cheese, and jambasta (a delightful substitution of pasta for rice in a traditional jambalaya.)

So, as you see, a feast fit for... several kings... Unless you are a Gluten-free-er (Sorry Pammy) in which case, don't worry, we DO offer wheat-free options, despite what you see here!

Where's the party?

We like any excuse to go a little overboard for a party, even a baptism where the guest of honor doesn't understand what the heck is going on!

You saw the invitations, now here are some pictures from setting up the night before!

We got flowers and made small centerpieces, with ribbon and "God Bless" tags on glass vases. By using the same graphic, font, and colors from the invitations on the vases (and the menu tags) we kept a unified theme for the whole event.

Paul is a volunteer firefighter, so this shindig was held in the Brighton Fire Hall. Even the simplest events and venues can be given that little something extra by something as small as using linen table clothes and napkins. You can usually rent the linens through a company, or ask if your caterer offers them, often for a little more than plastic table clothes and utensils, and paper napkins would cost. It's also "greener!"

Setup is usually easier with a few extra people to each take on a small job, rather than leaving lots up to few. Kevin was in charge of remembering which centerpiece went on which table. You can see what an excellent job he's doing!

Here you can see a bit of the menu tags, one went in front of each dish to let people know what exactly they were in for. And by that, I of course mean the deliciousness that was about to take over their senses! Tomorrow I will have just what deliciousness was offered, with some equally delicious food photography (NOT taken by yours truly!)

Cole's Christening

Aw, that has a nice ring to it! Well, as I am digging out my past samples of invitations to post (things around the soon-to-be studio are in a bit of an upheaval, as you can see here) I can post what I am working on at the moment. The great thing about an invitation is it sets the mood for the whole event, and starting off with a good color palette is key to tying everything together. So when Megan told me she was loving dark brown with shades of blue, I was thrilled! Here's what we came up with...

Hmm... my photography leaves a lot to be desired...

Well, practice makes perfect, I guess I'll have to practice on my other samples!

I love the way the opening and cross "decal" are off-centered. I'm excited for the tone this sets, I can't wait to do the centerpieces!