Wednesday, March 2, 2011

Bringing the Wall to WHITE

If you happen to be engaged and in the hunt for a bridal show, this year's selection has undoubtedly made a huge dent in your weekend free-time over the past couple of months!
WOW – there have been A LOT of shows! We love to get out and mingle with the newly engaged couples of Kansas City and had a wonderful time doing so once again this year at
Michael Nolte's WHITE event! Despite the dreary weather outside, inside it was an exciting and successful day!

After several years of working with variousshow displays, 2011 was finally the year that we
brought the studio to life, well...outside the studio! In our cozy AJK studio, one of the walls serves as a beautiful display for many of our favorite or newest designs. It is such an effect
ive means of displaying our work that we have been dreaming what it would look like to give those we meet outside of the studio a feel for what coming to the studio is really like – and what better way than to take the wall with us! The new WHITE display was highly praised and turned out to be a great way to give prospective clients a little taste of what our studio experience is like.

With the wall in place, we needed some very special work to display – why not the brand new signature collection?? After several years of thinking through how to create a collection that is user friendly for those brides looking for a faster or less involved process and suitable for a "limited" budget – and yet true to our AJK ways – our collection has finally taken shape! We are beyond excited with how it has come together and cannot wait to reveal it to the masses once our new website goes live soon! If you would like to take a look before then, our collection portfolio is ready and waiting for a consultation!

With so many exciting new reveals, we saved the best for last – a special prize drawing to win 50% off a bridal order to commemorate the day. We are excited to announce the winner of this fantastic drawing:

Congratulations, Katie Abrahamsom!
We are looking forward to helping you set the tone for your special day!

To all of those whom we had the pleasure to meet at this year's WHITE event, THANK YOU for taking time out of your day to visit us! We immensely enjoyed meeting so many wonderful new brides and to dream with them about how their invitation truly can – and should – set the tone for their most special day! We look forward to the opportunity to help make your dreams a reality – on paper at least!


Tuesday, February 22, 2011

Change is in the air...

Mother Nature is throwing us hints – subtle as they may be – that spring is trying to break through! Here in Kansas City, we were blessed last week with "no-coat" weather that finally melted all of that "Blizzard of 2011" snow and gave the daffodils along my front walk the warmth they needed to finally break the earth's surface. And yet -- the past two days we are smacked in the face with the reality of February in Kansas once again as the temperatures have dipped below freezing and some possible snow is in the forecast. Maybe instead of "subtle hints" I should say that Mother Nature is really just testing our patience!!!

Much like the coming of spring, change is in the air here at AJK Papery too – with hints of the fun about to come now debuting on our website (www.ajkpapery.com)!!
Coming soon – keep an eye out for the big day! – a brand-spanking new www.ajkpapery.com is about to make a whole new statement about who AJK Papery is and what we have to offer! From the fresh design and user friendly flow to the the "grand opening" of our first-ever signature collection (so worth the wait!!!) it is bound to be a site that you are going to want to add to your bookmark bar :)

We are busting at the seams with anticipation for the big reveal – and hope you are too! Keep checking back for the big day – and you never know – you may just stumble upon some exciting new specials to celebrate the big occasion!!! We will keep you posted...!!

Thursday, February 4, 2010

A Busy Bee.....!

There is a fresh, new excitement buzzing through the AJK Papery studio as we have recently become a "Honey Bee" member of Kansas City's own "Wedding Hive" network (www.weddinghive.com)! Its an eclectic group of artsy and completely original local artists that we are already feeling right at home along side!

The Hive's vision is to serve as a wedding resource for local, independent and fine art based wedding professionals. The goal: "To make your day look, taste, feel, hear and smell like your dream come true!" Through hosting a variety of monthly meet-n-greet events throughout the year plus their own "Enchanted Evening" Indie Wedding Show, the Wedding Hive is an amazing resource for those couples whose style is anything but vanilla!


Credit: Blue Window Creative and Jamie Letourneau for illustration and design.


AJK's first big premier as a Hive member will be at this year's "An Enchanted Wedding: A Brothers Grimm Inspired Wedding Event" being held on Thursday, February 25, 2010, from 5:00-8:30 pm. Hosted by ArtsTECH, this whimsical and interactive fairytale inspired wedding event is the perfect place to meet Kansas City's local indie wedding vendors, enjoy a fashion show featuring work by Wedding Hive members, a wine tasting compliments of Boozefish, and step into a photo-booth to enjoy some fairytale fun. AJK Papery is so thrilled to be a part of the fun and would love to see you! Come browse our samples, talk invitation details, enter to win 50 free invitations and receive a special discount card off your invitation order - a special thank you for stopping to see us!


We hope to see you there!!

Thursday, January 28, 2010

Love is in the air....

....everywhere I look around! Just imagining John Paul Young singing that snappy little 70's tune I can't help but think about how the 2010 wedding season is in full swing! If you are a 2010 bride and groom, congratulations on your engagement and welcome to the adventure of planning a wedding!!!

No matter the style or scale of your wedding, your dreams of the day undoubtedly involve the love and support of your family and friends. You count heads until you can't think straight in that ever tedious process of developing your guest list. But what is THE pivotal element in ensuring those guests actually make it to the celebration? You got it---invitations!!!!


Knowing that invitations truly are the first impression, tone setter for your wedding, Michael Nolte of Nolte's Bridal hosted an invitation workshop -- the first addition of his "Wedding Wisdoms" events -- last evening -- and he invited me to join in the fun! It was such an honor -- and so much fun! Our small intimate group discussed everything from A to Z that you could think of when it comes to invitations......why they matter more than just the who, what, where and when, proper etiquette and specific wording questions, addressing and mailing and even the new-ish little sister to the invitation -- save the dates! We shared all the knowledge our years of experience had to offer and answered every question they could throw at us and by the end of the night our brides/couples walked away with a whole new appreciation and understanding, and hopefully love, for the invitation!

If you missed out on the fun -- no worries! Each Wednesday evening for the next few weeks in February, Michael Nolte will be hosting even more such workshops covering such topics as photography, cakes, flowers and the like. They are held each week from 6:00 to 7:30 at the Hawthorne Plaza salon in Leawood. For more information or to register, please visit www.noltesbridal.com or call 913.345.1122.
I am one of those designers who eats, breaths, and dreams invitations -- I LOVE them! If you ever wish to talk or just throw me a question about my beloved I would love to hear from you! There is no reason to be living in the dark or stressing yourself out with all of your questions....send them my way and I will do all I can to help you to love invitations too!

Tuesday, January 27, 2009

Bridal Shows -- The WHITE Event Diaries

The 2009 wedding season is now in full swing at AJK Papery as the annual WHITE event is now under our belts -- and what a wonderful kick-off it was!

Known as the creme de la creme among Kansas City's bridal show offerings, the 2009 WHITE event surely did not disappoint! Despite the chilly and dreary January weather outside, the bright and cheerful atmosphere at the Ritz Charles was full of energy and excitement of hopeful couples and their families. With the booth all decked-out, the "bellinis and browsing" time was of course my fav segment of the day as it is our opportunity to meet those brides that we hope to one-day know as friends. We met so many lovely brides, couples and moms -- and yes, even a dad or two -- and I left the show so hopeful of the fun projects that lie ahead based upon all of the wonderful new acquaintances we made! If you visited us at the show, thank you so much for stopping by to check us out -- we thoroughly enjoyed meeting each and every one of you and would love nothing more than the opportunity to get to know you better in 2009 -- and for you to take advantage of that 10% WHITE discount!!

During our three breakout sessions we had so many very attentive and eager learners about the world of invitations! If you didn't have a chance to join us, here is a brief synopsis of what we covered -- whether you choose to go custom or order a pre-set design from a book, the following tips are vital to your invitation success:

1....the invitation is intended not just to pass along information, but to SET the TONE for your wedding day. You go to such great lengths planning every little detail - and your invitation should be given NO LESS consideration! It is your opportunity to "MAKE A STATEMENT" -- literally with words, but also visually as you give your special guests a little glimps into what your day will look and feel like. Seize the opportunity to SET the STAGE!!!!

2....to ensure your statement is made, the following steps are careful considerations:
* Do your research! With the mass of invitations available on-line and in bridal magazines -- both custom and book -- your opportunities to research what you like and dislike as well as what it generally costs are endless! Be prepared to not only describe the "look", style and feel of your wedding so that the design can relate to it, but to also describe what you like and dislike about invitations in general. If you can articulate these general points, the design or selection process will run much more smoothly -- and could actually be fun :)

* In your planning, set your budget and prioritize the most important invitation elements that you hope to acheive with that budget. While researching, pay close attention to what things cost so you don't find yourself in a situation where you fall in love with a $10 invitation but you can only afford $3. That is the worst thing for me as a designer because I want to make your dreams come true -- and I can do that if we are both realistic about what those dreams cost! At the same time, keep in your sites what your likes and dislikes are so that within our custom options we can investigate new and creative ways to acheive what you are looking for at a different price point than originally thought.

* Be realistic about postage! I wish that the Post Office was our friend, but their system and equipment are NOT! With today's mailing standards, nearly all wedding invitations demand more postage than the typical $.42 stamp. I know that stinks, but it is just the reality. Additionally, while in the past we have always thought that hand canceling would ensure our invitaions are handled with the greatest of care, in reality that is a very small step in the process and not nearly enough to protect your precious works of art. For invitations with embellishments in particular, we suggest that you request they be hand canceled -- this eliminates the first set of rollers -- but then to also pay the extra $.20 or so to have them mailed as "non-machinable". While it is no guarantee, a non-machinable mailing gives your invitations the best chance possible to never see the likes of a roller and to arrive to your guests in the best condition possible. Also, it is worth the drive-time to mail your invitations at one of the larger "hub" post offices in the city rather than your small, neighborhood office. Due to limited staff resources, most neighborhood po's will not hand cancel anything more than 5 or so pieces of mail.

Last, but certainly not least, I want to say a huge HELLO and CONGRATULATIONS to Jessica Falbe of Overland Park, Amy Pickard of Wichita and Suzanne Pritchard of Roeland Park -- our custom invitation giveaway winners at each of our breakout sessions!!! I cannot wait to get started on each of your projects -- I will be in touch yet this week!

One last little fun note....each year WHITE host, Mr. Michael Nolte, premieres his new line of dresses for the upcoming wedding season. It is one of my fav parts of the show. This year, he has designed a new dressed named "aquamarine" that simply took my breath away -- I gushingly shared with him that seeing that dress alone made me want to get married all over again!! The line is so diverse and lovely....you really must go to Nolte's bridal or a local shop that carries the Michael Nolte line and check it out -- you will fall in love all over again :)

Friday, January 16, 2009

AJK Online....The Bliss List

I am a small-town Iowa girl....so when I got married there wasn't a whole lot to choose from by way of reception venues, florists and the like. While it was frustrating at times to be so limited, I must admit that it was nice to not have so many options to choose from.

Of course, planning a city wedding is quite the opposite experience...and so when I became aware of a new Kansas City wedding blog called the Bliss List (www.blisslistkc.com), I knew it was bound to be a wonderful new resource that every bride would find a necessary web bookmark in their wedding planning! Started in 2008 by Occasions Entertaining owner, Jenny Steffens, the Bliss List is a guide to the area's most qualified, creative, innovative and diverse specialists in the Kansas City wedding industry. It is a one stop "short-list" for brides looking for an insight on reputations, styles and capabilities of various wedding specialists. Unlike theKnot and other wedding websites brides may be accustomed to, the Bliss List members are a hand-selected group of local wedding professionals covering all of the main areas of photography, cakes, coordinators and of course, stationery! It is not a never-ending list of anyone who owns a camera and can take pictures....it is the creme de la creme of wedding specialists that Kansas City has to offer!

The Bliss Blog, written by Jenny with guest appearances by several of the top wedding coordinators in the city, is a daily must-read for the latest tips and trends for planning the perfect, most stylish and personalized wedding in Kansas City! The blog features information about what the various Bliss List members have been up to as well as tips from real KC weddings and information about Bliss Events which Jenny hosts throughout the city, throughout the year.

What's the best news of all? AJK Papery is oh so proud to have been selected as a Bliss List member as a stationery vendor!!! I hope that you will spread the word of what a wonderful resource the Bliss List is and keep your eyes on the lookout for blog entries highlighting what wonderful work AJK has been up to and where you can find us at a Bliss Event near you!

Thursday, January 15, 2009

Bridal Shows -- Save the Date!

AJK Papery is thrilled to invite you to the premier bridal event in Kansas City!

-- The WHITE Event --
Sunday, January 25th
12-4pm
The Ritz Charles -- Overland Park, Kansas!


For those engaged couples in search of more than just a trade-show setting, WHITE is the perfect bridal event like no other show in the city! Hosted by Mr. Michael Nolte of Nolte's Bridal, WHITE is the premier bridal event that combines both education and entertainment...and inspiration galore!! The ambiance is much like a wonderful party with live music, delicious food and fabulous flowers and decor.

If the selection of your wedding specialists if a top priority, WHITE will surely exceed your expectations with its selection of nearly 40 of the city's top bridal specialists. Unlike the traditional wedding "trade shows", each vendor selected for WHITE has been personally invited by Mr. Nolte himself for their above and beyond service and fabulous product. To find such an elite group of wedding professionals in one room, on one day, truly sets WHITE apart from the rest!

Check out the WHITE website for more details and to register for the event!

AJK Papery is so thrilled to be a part of the WHITE event for a second year and would love to see you! Come browse our samples, talk invitation details, enter to win 50 custom invitations and receive a special discount card off your invitation order - a special thank you for stopping to see us!

We hope to see you there!!