In these days of email and facebook, I’m often asked the question, “Are baby announcements really necessary?” It’s true that you can easily send an email to your family and friends letting them know about your new arrival. And facebook and personal blogs make it so easy to post updates with photos of how the little one is doing. So... necessary? No, I suppose not. But I still contend that there is something really nice and special about receiving a baby announcement in the mail. (And you can’t put an email in a baby book. I mean, you could print it out, but it’s not exactly the same, you know?)
I remember fondly the process of designing my daughter’s baby announcements when she was born (picture TK soon...). They were a little more involved than most, perhaps. And I was told by some of my friends, especially the ones with kids, that I was crazy for attempting it. I had the front side of the cards letterpressed at a great shop in Chicago called Accucolor. (If you are in the Chicago area and ever need anything letterpressed, call on Gary there, he is wonderful to work with. And tell him I sent you.) I decided to letterpress only the front side with her name and leave the back blank, and I ordered extras. This allowed me to also use them as thank you notes for the many generous gifts she received, and I have a lot left so she still has her own personal stationery. For the announcements, I printed the backs of the cards on my Epson R1800, then I ordered wallet sized photos and affixed one to each announcement. And I lined the envelopes. Looking back on it I’m still not sure how as a new mom coping with sleep deprivation and new adjustments I made the time to do them, but I’m really glad I did.
So, my cousin Jeanette just had an adorable baby girl, and I was so excited to design their baby announcement for them. When Jeanette sent me 50 plus photo options of the gorgeous baby Isa, I thought it would be so hard to choose just a few. But the ones I picked for our first draft happened to be her favorites too. The color scheme was easy, I just matched Isa’s nursery colors of violet and sage green. We went through a few rounds to get the design perfect, but it came together quickly and smoothly.
I would be remiss if I didn’t mention the printing. I think the one valid argument I've heard against paper announcements is the environmental impact. Nobody wants to waste paper. But I don’t consider announcements or invitations a waste of paper (obviously, I design them for a living), and I really do think that if you are conscious of your footprint elsewhere and if you try to print as green as possible, that it's not irresponsible. For these announcements I went to Greener Printer, a great company with a commitment to environmentally-friendly printing practices. Jeanette chose their digital option, which came out really well, but they also offer 4-color offset printing. I’ve worked with Greener Printer before and have always been pleased with the results. So there’s proof that you don’t have to suffer quality to get a beautiful, earth-friendly choice.
So go ahead, send out baby announcements. Or call me and I’ll design them for you. ;)
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