Goldfish Handmade Books

Another personal edition favorite, the Small Handmade Goldfish Book, $8 I remember when I first bought this paper after walking by it every day in the school store my last semester. I've made now 3 books with it, none too grand in size because of the intricate, tiny details of the bright orange fish in the pale blue water. This inside is lined with a lighter orange paper, which looks amazing against the pale blue water.

I've started an edition line with these small books: the first edition sold immediately at the Sidewalk Sale in May 2010, and I was so fond of the style that I made another. This actually was a product of recycling: after folding enough signatures, I realized I didn't want the book to be quite as long, so I cut the excess off and decided to make a book out of that.

As a result, the book can be used vertically, for to-do or grocery lists, or horizontal, which is great for quick, short writing - notes or for poets on the go. And it's size makes it great to throw in a purse, or even pocket.

I love not only the design of this particular edition, but also its size: I plan on making quite a few more color variation and themes. Trying to find a precious, handmade gift for a reasonable price? These mini notebooks are perfect! Get started on your personal book project today..

Handmade Book With Japanese Screenprinted Paper

The latest online sale was a custom made handmade book that was modeled after a listing my my etsy shop, Handmade Journal, $16. The book was requested in an A5 size, which is pretty close to the original listing. I just shipped it to the customer in Taiwan.

This is one of my favorite handmade books, and I was actually inspired by the papers I used for the cover. While shipping for unrelated supplies, I picked out these two toned Japanese papers that go so perfect together and made this blank journal out of them.

The book is covered completely in a soft blue-green paper embellished with metallic gold dragons. The front cover is also embossed with a strip of pale blue paper with metallic gold leaf decorations.

The inside pages are made with 100% recycled paper - I chose a cream color to match the tones of the cover and I felt it was less harsh on the eyes. This particular, medium sized journal measures 5 3/4" by 7 1/4" with a little less than 200 pages. Available in smaller and larger sizes.

These journals with the cream paper are my signature handmade book, and come in many different color themes. Also be sure to check out my Daily Agenda editions to help keep you organized.

Contact me to get a custom made book today. Don't forget that the holidays are coming up... :)

Calligraphy for Wedding Envelopes

Another recent calligraphy job for wedding invitation envelopes completed a few weeks back for a client that I actually met on Etsy, and did a Featured Etsy Shop Blog Post for! We connected when I interviewed her and featured her shop, ScrapHappyLyreBird, in a post over the summer. We re-connected when we found that we were local to each other, (Boston) and she happened to be getting married and needed a calligrapher to do her wedding invitations for her!

"Ashley did a fabulous job with our wedding invitations. We were so pleased with how they turned out. She was very easy to work with and we would highly recommend her to our friends and anyone looking for calligraphy services." - Tess, 2010 Wedding

I loved working with her envelopes: they were thick, and linked with a beautiful metallic gold scrolling detail on cream paper. I made the suggestion that she use the dots to embellish the spread out zip code (above) as it matched the theme of her invitations.

I've recently completed another outer envelope job and place cards over the past few weeks. Also in the works are commissioned professionally written invitations for a private party to be completed over the next few weeks on stationary. Stay tuned for updates and images!

If you are in need of calligraphy for a wedding, special event, or even to add a professional touch to party invitations, please contact me to get a job quote. Also be sure to visit my Calligraphy page to get more information!

Seaglass Rings

Seaglass Rings, $12 are one of my favorite products that I offer. They are a huge hit at jewelry parties and craft shows, because I keep them inside a real shell "bowl" where customers can try them on until they find the one that fits them. I recently had the opportunity to make a custom ring last month through an order placed on Ash Tree Creations, and wanted to remind my followers that this is a total possibility.

I use found sea glass from my collection from the Boston Islands over the years. My rings are made with silver plate wire to keep the price reasonable, and no two rings are the same. If you'd like a Custom Seaglass Ring made just for you, please contact me with your ring size and preferred sea glass color and I will hand-wrap it for you!