Thumbprint Tree Guest Sign

Tree thumbprint signs are a great alternative to guest books.  When completed, the sign, filled with guests’ thumbprints and signatures, becomes a lovely memento of the special day.

It was a pleasure to be asked to create this for an upcoming wedding– I love contributing unique touches like this.   I chose a tree from my collection of personal photographs.  This one happened to be from the Dallas Arboretum. I drew the tree on a small scale and then had an enlarged print made to 24″x 36″.  I then used my light table to ink in the tree on archival art paper. This size tree will fit up to 300 thumb prints.

Additional details include:  the couples’ names and date, as well as their initials “carved” in the heart on the trunk.  On the second lowest limb, I drew bride and groom birds.  They’ll add their thumb prints in blue.

I did some online research to find the best ink pads to use for the prints and landed on Distress Ink.  The ink promises to create an aged look on paper and will add a nice combination of colors. The Pigma Micron .03 size archival ink pens are also suggested for this project.

I also created this sign instructing guests to “leaf” their thumb print and sign their name.  The bride and groom will leave their prints and signatures here to demonstrate for the guests.

I can’t wait to see what it looks like when it’s all filled with using two colors of green ink pads.  I’ll be sure to post a pic.

Happy Wedding Kate and John!

And as always my calligraphy font, Belluccia, one of myfonts Most Popular Fonts for 2011, is available at : myfonts.com and fontbros.com.

More Unique Guest Book ideas

I love creating things that are non- traditional.   So when Julie Weaver of the Ritz Carlton contacted me to create this Unique Guest Book for her sister’s wedding, I was thrilled.  The funny thing was, the picture she sent me to show me what she wanted was one of a book I’d already done for another client!  So I definitely knew the process to create it:)

She chose the “LOVE” book published by National Geographic and authored by Ferdinand Protzman.  The paper she brought me to use was from Paper Source ( my heaven on earth).   I used brown and red to bring out the colors in the paper and coordinate with the cover of the book which was red. She had me inscribe a saying by John Lennon on the inside cover.  She presented it as a gift at a bridal shower in her sister’s honor.   Love was definitely in the air that day!

Personalized Guest Book

"love" book cover

I actually purchased one of these “love” books for a future contest give away:) I have DIY instructions on how to duplicate the look of  this Guest Book in my older posts from April 14 and July 15, 2011 .

Another client came to me with an idea she’d seen.  She wanted me to paint the bride and groom’s initials on a platter.  I’d never done this before, so of course I jumped at the chance to do something new!   I used Gloss enamel paints in brown and deep salmon.  The platter can be “baked” in the oven to better adhere the paint.

Her guests signed the platter using brown sharpies.  The end result will make a beautiful display in their new home.

Guest "Book" Platter

Here’s the platter all filled in!

Platter signed by guests

Still a third client opted for a Matted Photo of the Bride and Groom to be signed by guests.  These are available at any craft store and relatively inexpensive to do.  I hand lettered the saying “better together forever” as well as their names and wedding date onto the mat.

Matted Photo for Signing

Here is a sample of the invitation, addressed envelope and place cards that I did for this couple who got married in the beautiful land of San Diego!  I loved the simple, clean look they created.  I chose an all lower case, modern lettering style to compliment it.

Invite,envelope and place cards in lower case modern lettering

As always my calligraphy font , Belluccia,  is still available for purchase at Myfonts.com.  I am slowly working on the next font.  It’s a challenge to do my regular work, which I love, and add in time to work on the font.  I love it all!! If I could eliminate eating and sleeping, I’d have all the time I needed:)

My calligraphy font, Belluccia

My next “Intro to Calligraphy” workshop at Paper Source in North Park Center will be October 8 from 1-4 pm.  There are only a few spots left. You can call 214-696-4400 to reserve your seat.  This workshop is very beginner and a lot of fun.  We use calligraphy and brush markers to learn basic strokes.  Then play with Paper Source products to see what the possibilities are!

My next give away for new subscribers to my blog will be coming up soon.  In addition, if you tell someone about my blog and they subscribe you will be entered in a contest as well.  I’m still working on the details but I’ll let you know soon.

To connect with me here are the following links:  Letterheadgirl on Twitter, Lettering Art Studio facebook page, My pics on Flickr, Lettering Art Studio website

Thanks for reading!

Unique Guest book with calligraphy font

Guest book chalkboard signage

To wind up coverage of the July 3 wedding of Caroline and Rob, here is the Guest book and the darling Guest book sign I promised to show you.  First a little background story.

Deni ( The lovely and talented Mother of the Bride) shared the proposal story with me.

If memory serves me, Rob came over to Caroline’s and asked her is she wanted to take a hike in the nearby Blue Ridge Parkway where they often went for such ventures.  She was cranky and tired but agreed to go.  She kept complaining the whole way up until they finally  reached a favorite scenic stopping point, which is where he proposed.  I’m certainly not giving it the flair it deserves but the point is, the book they picked to use as their Guest book is a photo montage of the Parkway.

Page from the Blue Ridge Parkway photo book

So without further adeiu, here it is:

Blue Ridge Parkway Guest Book

As always I used the Belluccia font style ( I hand lettered it in this case).  ( Here’s the link to see the whole Belluccia font family: http://new.myfonts.com/search/Bellucia/fonts/ )

I lettered on cover stock paper that matched one of the tannish gold colors on the book then added the blue and white for a nice pop.

You can easily create this look yourself by hand or on the computer.

Layout the design using the Belluccia font. If using the computer, print on an 8.5″ x 11″.  If you are going to try your hand at tracing the font, you’ll need a light table. ( This is how Deni created all her projects- by tracing the font.)

Place the printed design under the final paper you’ll be lettering on.  Trace lightly with a pencil.

Go over the lettering carefully using either a regular or brush marker, gel pen or paint pen. If you feel really adventurous, you can try your hand at using paint and a brush!

You’ll want extra sheets of the final paper for testing and just in case it doesn’t turn out the first time.  It happens to the best of us:)

Once it’s done, cut out the design ( if you used an 8.5 “x 11″ for printing- if you hand lettered on  a 12″ x 12″ you’re ready to attach to book) and attach to a larger scrapbook paper (12″ x 12″).

Cut and attach that paper to fit the inside page of the book.  Double sided scrapbook tape or spray adhesive will both work.  The adhesive can be tricky to work with though.  Find pics of  instructions on this blog in the older entry dated April 14th, 2011.

Here’s a few more pics to show the steps for this one.

Drawing out the design before hand lettering

When I’m going to hand letter a design, I first do a pencil sketch to look at the size and placement of the words.  Then I put this on my light table placing the paper I’ll be lettering on top.  This ensures the final design is exactly where I want it.

Final design with pencil sketch

Final design attached to the first inside page of the book

When attaching the final page into the book, I think it’s good to leave about .25 ” all around.  It frames it nicely and gives you a little wiggle room when attaching.

I just love the whole idea of having a Guest book that can sit on your coffee table filled with lovely wishes and recalling such a sweet moment in your life:)

This idea is becoming popular.  I just had a client call me and send me a picture from the April 14th  post I created  to show me what she wanted  for her sister’s guest book.   She is giving it to her as a gift.  Lovely idea!

I may have to do this for the next shower I’m invited to:)

I told her she was in luck, since I was the creator of it:)  So I know exactly what to do. I can’t wait to see which book she chose.

Do you have any books you think would make a great guest book?  I’d love to check them out.

Give away alert!  When I return from my calligraphy convention, I’ll be giving away an illustration from my Country Chic themed ornament set ( Still being created.) to all my subscribers.  All you need to do is either subscribe to my blog  or, if you are already a subscriber, simply  make a comment on any of my posts !