Made with love for my dad

Today is my dad's birthday, so it seems like as good a time as any to share some more details about the photo album that I gave him for Christmas.  

My dad started to get interested in photography back when I was in high school taking some photography classes.  I taught him some of the basics, and he started incorporating the rule of thirds into almost all of his pictures (including lots of off-centered pictures of me at graduation).  But since then, he has become a really talented photographer with a great eye for capturing unusual sites around the historic city of Charleston, South Carolina.

Each time I would come to visit, my dad would pull out his camera and to show me his latest pictures.  I'd flip through one by one admiring his work on the tiny camera display screen and wonder why he never made prints of any of his photos.  Showing them off in this way just didn't do the pictures justice, so I decided that he needed a better way to display them.

After I gave him the book, my husband and I helped my dad pick out all of his favorite photos and we added them to the book with photo corners. He's taken some great photos like the one above where he chose to photograph the back of a statue, or some complex reflected images inspired by my photos of store window reflections.  I'm glad that he now has a proper way to display his pictures, and I'm sure he'll soon be ready for a companion album to store his newest shots. 

Handmade baby books with a personal touch

Much of what I've been working on in the studio lately has been custom work. I've made quite a few wedding guest books and photo albums this summer, but personalized baby books have been keeping me busy these past few weeks. I wanted to show off a few of the details that make my baby books extra special keepsakes.

I showed a little sneak peek of this particular baby book on my blog a while ago, but never officially unveiled the final product. My husband and I collaborated to write the book, and then I designed it. I added little envelopes to hold Abigail's hospital bracelets and a lock of hair from her first haircut. I also constructed handmade photo corners from coordinating paper to hold treasured photographs in place.

Because every baby book is made individually, I can customize each detail. Parents can select the color scheme of the book, from the decorative paper used for the covers and the ribbon or thread used to bind the book together, down to the colors of the printed pages. 

This particular book uses a light pink cherry blossom paper for the cover, satin ribbon for the binding, and pink printing on the pages. I've also made some baby books recently using handmade, rustic papers and using bright modern prints for a completely different feel. 

I include the baby's name throughout the text of the book, creating a personal effect that can't be matched with store bought baby books. And the nameplate on the front cover can be customized to include the baby's name, birthday, or any other message.

While I have a standard selection of pages that I typically use in my baby books, I can add extra pages if there's something specific you'd like to include. I've added pages to include religious traditions, for grandparents to have extra space to share their words of wisdom, and to accommodate multiple baby shower invitations. I can add extra pages for siblings or pets. And I've even designed a special version of the book for twins. 

If you're interested in ordering a custom baby book, please visit my etsy shop. Or for more information, you may e-mail me at linenlaidfelt {at} gmail {dot} com. And check back soon for photos of my other handmade baby books here and on my facebook page. 

A gift from her bridesmaids

This book will be making its debut at a wedding in upstate New York this weekend.  The cousin of the bride contacted me about placing the order for this custom photo album, and it will be a wedding gift to the couple from her and the other bridesmaids.  The bride's cousin also designed the wedding invitation suite, so she supplied the artwork for the custom nameplate on this album so it would coordinate with all of the other printed materials. 

Like all of my albums, this book is built with a double-thick spine.  This allows for photos to be added to the pages without the book "yawning" open or appearing over-filled.  I bound the album with orange waxed linen thread in the Japanese stab binding style.  

I selected a light blue bookcloth for the edge of the book closest to the spine, and I used a navy paper for the covers.  I actually ended up gluing a slightly transparent piece of navy paper on top of a blue lokta paper to get exactly the shade of blue I wanted for the covers.  

I wish Anne and Kevin a joyous wedding day and a lifetime full of happiness.  Congratulations to you both!

A wedding memory book for Tiffani and Nathan

In my last post, I shared a few photos of this guest book that I made for my best friend's wedding.  My husband was able to take a few pictures of guests signing the book at the reception, but I also wanted to include some pictures of the book's details.  

I still haven't tired of this gorgeous marbled paper, and it was a perfect fit for her oceanside wedding ceremony in Hilo, Hawaii.  I purchased a large sheet of this paper, and then carefully selected my favorite portions to use for the covers this book.  I like how the swirling patterns on the front and the back of the book each seem to have a different personality.  

I was pleased to see that many of the guests took the time to write lengthy, heartfelt messages.  By the end of the wedding, the pages were filled with well-wishes (in several languages!).  I prefer using blank pages in my guest books, instead of lined pages, because I think the blank canvas of the page invites guests to do more than just sign their names. I love flipping through books and seeing elaborate messages in elegant cursive mixed in with light-hearted doodles and more casual congratulatory notes.  This variety adds such character to the book and makes it so much fun to flip through years later. 

I also made a large set of photo corners to accompany this book.  The opening page of the book was reserved for Tiffani and Nathan to display their favorite wedding photo.  On the second page, I included one of their wedding invitations.  And then on the rest of the pages that weren't filled with guests messages, they can add more photos from their wedding.  I think this guest-book-plus-photo-album is the perfect solution to keep all of their wedding memories together in one handmade keepsake. 

Congratulations, Tiffani and Nathan!  I wish you all the best in your adventures together. 

Two decades of friendship

Last week my husband and I returned home after a fabulous trip to Hilo, Hawaii.  From Virginia, it took us four flights and about 24 hours to get there, but nothing could have stopped me from making the trip to celebrate with my oldest friend at her wedding.  

Just a few months shy of twenty years ago, I sat next to Tiffani on the school bus on our first day of kindergarten and we've been friends ever since.  We even joked that I could be her "something old" on her wedding day, since she already had the new, borrowed, and blue under control.

Of course as Tiffani's oldest friend and matron of honor, I couldn't let her use a generic store-bought book as her wedding guest book.  So as my gift to the couple, I made this personalized book for their wedding.  The marbled paper used for the covers perfectly matches our bridesmaid dresses, and the cover is adorned with paper cutouts of two dolphins forming a heart shape.  Dolphins have been Tiffani's favorite animal for as long as I can remember, and the other part of our wedding gift to Tiffani and Nathan was the chance to swim with dolphins on their honeymoon. 

I'm glad my husband was able to snap a few photos of guests signing the book at the wedding.  It's always nice to have some photos of my books in use.  And this is also the second guest book I've made for a wedding I attended (this was the first), so I actually had the chance to write a message in my own book. 

This particular book is designed to be both a guest book and a photo album to hold all of their gorgeous wedding photos.  In a future post I'll share some photos I took of the book in my studio before heading to Hawaii so you can see some of the details I worked into Tiffani and Nathan's book. 

Congratulations, Braeden and Chika!

It's been a while since I've shared a custom book here, with all the blogging I've been doing lately about teaching workshops and exhibiting at craft shows. But I'm thrilled to show this custom wedding album that I created for Braeden and Chika, who got married last week. 

The couple has been living in Japan, but flew back to the US for their wedding. Coincidentally, my best friend and her fiance have been living in Japan since last year, and they'll also be coming back to the US to tie the knot later this month. (I'll be making a book for their wedding too, using one of the marbled papers shown here.)

I used a chiyogami paper printed with a cherry blossom pattern for the covers, and the book is bound using the Japanese stab binding technique. The first page features a space for Braeden and Chika to display one of their wedding photos, as well as some flower illustrations created by me. 

They also wanted to include the phrase "The best memories are made with the best people" on the opening page. What a fitting sentiment for a wedding album. My wedding day was truly one of the best days of my life, and a huge part of that was being able to spend the day with all of my favorite people. My friends and family live all over the globe, and it was amazing to have everyone I care about in the same place at the same time for one special weekend. I hope Braeden and Chika had a similar experience and were able to celebrate with everyone who means the most to them.

Braeden and Chika were planning to have a photo booth at their wedding, so they wanted a guest book that would double as a photo album to hold the photos taken of their guests. Each page of the book has space for two 4x6 photos. I made more than 300 photo corners by hand to hold all of the photos in place. The photo corners were made from the same brown cherry blossom paper that was used for the covers of the book. There is space beside each photo for guests to write a message to the bride and groom.

I'm so pleased with the way all of the details came together for this book. I love the delicate design of the pages, the one-of-a-kind photo corners, and the soft edges of the paper created by tearing each page by hand. I hope Braeden and Chika are as happy with the result as I am, and that this book will be a cherished keepsake from their wedding day for years to come. 

For the bride and groom

My husband and I surprised his cousin, Joy, and her fiance, Chris, with this book a few days before their Key West wedding.  I don't think Joy and Chris had any idea that I'd been working on a book for them, or that their family members had been secretly gathering photos for me to place in the book.



I chose bright tropical colors for this book, with a fun circular print inside for the endsheets, which I felt matched the tone for their sunny beach wedding. Photos are attached to all of the pages with photo corners, starting with a photo taken on their first date. I think guests enjoyed flipping through the book at the reception and seeing photos taken on their vacations abroad, their engagement weekend in Arizona, and their visits to vineyards closer to home.



Wedding guests wrote messages to Chris and Joy throughout the book next to the photos placed on the pages. My husband and I both signed near photos of them taken at our wedding a year earlier. So often when I complete a custom order, I ship the book off in pristine condition with blank pages waiting to be filled with photos and messages. This book was the first guest book I made for a wedding that I attended. It was so exciting for me to be able to see this book as it was was filled with memories, and to include my own message to the bride and groom on pages that I bound by hand.



After the wedding, there were still a few pages with room for messages.  Joy and Chris had another celebration once they returned home from their wedding cruise to visit with everyone who wasn't able to make it for the big day.  I imagine after that gathering this book is now filled and will hopefully be a treasured keepsake for years to come.

As my husband was helping me fill the book with photos, it was his idea to leave the last page blank so Joy and Chris could include a wedding photo in the book as well. I thought it was a great idea because now the book documents their whole journey from budding romance to wedded bliss.

Custom orders made easy

It's now easier than ever to place an order for one of my custom books! I've created custom listings in my Etsy shop for my journals, guest books, and albums in all of my standard sizes, which you can view right here. In each of those listings, you can see examples of previous custom orders in that style to spur ideas about the possibilities.

You can pick the colors and decorative paper used for your book, and I can also design a personalized label for you that I will place in a recessed cutout in the cover. The possibilities are endless, and I will work with you to make sure you get exactly what you want.

These custom listings are just the beginning. If you have a specific idea that doesn't fit into one of the categories here, just send me an e-mail to discuss your ideas: linenlaidfelt {at} gmail {dot} com.

You can also visit my new custom order page to view a portfolio of past custom work and to read the FAQs about ordering a custom book from me. 

Inspired by the invitations

Before I begin sharing all of the custom order books I made for the holidays, I want to share a few other books that I completed in 2010. I've had the honor to work on quite a few wedding guest books and photo albums since founding linenlaid&felt (and even a few before then). It is really special for me to be able to create a book for such a monumental life event, and to make something that will likely become a keepsake for years to come.

This album was commissioned by Ryan, a former co-worker of mine, who gave the book to two of his friends as a wedding gift. The design of the book was heavily influenced by the couple's wedding printed materials. When Ryan placed his order, he gave me a copy of their invitation, which I brought with me while shopping in order to perfectly match the shades of pink and green when purchasing paper.

The couple's names and pink patterned paper in the recessed nameplate on the cover actually came directly from the wedding invitation. For my custom orders, I usually design and print the label for the cover myself, but in this case I really liked being able to use a portion of the invitation to personalize the book. The book itself is classic and fairly understated, but the pop of the bright pink pattern adds just the right amount of excitement. Plus, I think it will make the book an even more memorable keepsake.

Elegant album for wedding memories

I'm taking a break amid the holiday rush to share a few more custom orders I completed this fall. This photo album was given as a wedding gift by Emma, one of my best customers. (She also ordered this photo album for her cousin, and this journal for a friend.)

Emma is often hands-on with the initial design process for her orders, which I enjoy because it's fun for me to see someone who is as excited about books as I am. She scoured the Paper Mojo website to find this red and gold Japanese paper for the cover. From there, I selected the cream bookcloth for the spine and the gold accents for the endsheets, giving the book an extra-special gleam. And once I had determined that the book needed to be bound with gold thread to complete the elegant look, I couldn't let the idea go until I had found the perfect option.

Emma was very pleased with the way this album turned out, and told me that the couple loved it as well. She even had them open the gift at the end of their wedding reception so they could see it right away. I hope Kathlyn and Leland enjoy filling this book with photos and memories of their married life together.