Meet the Makers: Sablewood Paper Company
At Evergreen Custom Gifting we focus on curated, elevated, and locally-inspired keepsakes that create a meaningful connection to our destination. Partnering with fellow creative small business owners whenever possible. In our “Meet the Makers” series we feature the local artisans and makers that provide products for our gifts.
Today we highlight Sablewood Paper Company, founded in 2015, Sablewood Paper Company is an all-inclusive, story-focused, and award-winning design studio that focuses on wedding invitations and other paper goods. By illustrating, calligraphing, and designing all of her creations by hand, Holly helps clients create "branded" pieces to not only get their guests excited to attend their event, but to leave no doubt as to who the event is for!
Our Favorite Products
We love working with Sablewood Paper Company to create custom welcome notes and notecards to compliment our custom gifts. Holly’s design skills are endless and her ability to print or calligraphy on various mediums from print to paper and everything in between inspire us to design outside of the box.
Meet Holly
Both of Holly’s parents are entrepreneurs, so starting her own business came naturally. Education is a huge part of Holly’s life and she loves learning, so she earned a degree in Hospitality Management (she totally thought I wanted to be an event planner!) and then returned to school a couple of years later for a second degree in Graphic Design. Holly got a job at a design firm and loved the fast-paced work days, but something was missing.
But it wasn't until she found parent's wedding invitation that she truly found her calling. Holly realized she could use both of her degrees in a new way, so she taught herself calligraphy and started selling wood signage to start. Over time, her craft and systems grew and she added invitation design to her services. While she still creates signage each season and it will always be her first love in her business, invitations have her heart and she loves the unique challenges posed by what she creates for her clients.
What is your favorite part of doing what you do?
My absolute favorite part of what I do is branding my couples' weddings from start to finish: from save the dates to invitations to wedding day pieces, I want their guests to know exactly whose wedding they're attending from the moment they arrive at the ceremony. That's because we've sent out save the dates that introduce the couples' style, the invitations expand on that idea, and the wedding day hammers the point home. A well-thought out design leaves a lasting impression, and I want my couples' guests to be talking about their wedding for years to come!
That means finding a way to incorporate my client's dreams for their marriage and their future into their invitations and other paper goods. Oftentimes this is easy: someone is getting married at their parent's home and they would like to illustrate the home for their invitations, or they love being out in nature and hiking so we incorporate a design reminiscent of mountains or forests.
Sometimes it's more challenging – I recently worked on an invitation suite for a couple whose only request was a couple of colors and incorporating a deer (the fiancé is an avid hunter). Finding a unique way to include this in my design was a head scratcher at first, especially since I needed to strike a balance between the couple's style and my own.
But the work doesn't stop there! The design needs to be carefully thought out in anticipation of future pieces. If the couple wants calligraphy on their invitation envelopes, will they also want calligraphy place cards for the day of? If we've sourced a unique paper for their save the dates, will we need to carry that paper through the invitations and the wedding day paper goods? If the couple loves acrylic but they're getting married in a rustic location, how can we make that work?
It's an endlessly fun and creatively challenging career. I can't imagine doing anything else!
What new products are you most excited about?
I release new products in my Etsy shop weekly, but I have an upcoming digital education series that's getting a lot of my love lately!
Other products that I'm excited to release are signage rentals and new wax seal designs for my wedding clients, and more greeting cards and tissue paper for my wholesale clients.
What else should we know about Sablewood Paper Company
?
Like Evergreen Custom Gifting, Sablewood Paper Company thrives on the details! Check out this custom gift table Holly created for a Graduation Gift we recently designed. The gold 2020 charm was the detail that added that pop of WOW!