Friday, December 28, 2012
(Left to right: NPR reporter Elizabeth Blair, Heather Noss, NPR producer Liz Baker)
If you heard a recent interview on NPR with a local wedding invitation designer in DC who got her start on Etsy, it was in fact me, “Rose”, aka Heather Noss! Since I have heard from a lot of friends and clients who heard the story and had other questions, I thought I would expand on the story here!
NPR’s Elizabeth Blair came to the Digby & Rose studio in NW DC recently to talk to me about my experience starting the business, from a the perspective of a seller who successfully grew a business through Etsy. The story focused on Etsy’s growth and how it has changed over the years. Although it’s true that the focus of the site and profile of sellers has changed, when I started my own business at the end of 2008, it was a perfect place for a “micro” business to get a start. (At the time calling it a “small” business would have been too generous!)
I read once that every small business entrepreneur has had a moment of insanity, which strangely enough happens to coincide with the very moment they decide to start the business. My moment came when I decided that October 2008 was the perfect economic climate in which to quit my government job as a Foreign Service Officer at the State Department, become a professional artist and inventor, and start my own handcrafted paper business out of my home. The kitchen table became my workspace, and over time every other available space in my apartment became the home of boxes of envelopes, printers, paper cutters, and stacks of paper. Thankfully I had early encouragement, as within 3 weeks of starting the business I had my first sale, a box of 6 handmade thank you cards.
As a generous boss, I gave myself a lot of opportunities to work on all the sections and departments of the business. I was the head of Accounting, Chief Photographer, VP of Customer Service, IT guru, lead consultant for Special Projects, and of course “the one who makes the stuff”. Once I even scored Employee of the Month! For a long time it was on Etsy alone that my sales grew, and at the same time I was able to grow as an artist and a business owner.
At the beginning of 2010 the limit of operational capacity in my apartment was reached, and I was able to move into a first studio space, which is now one of three studio spaces at the current Digby & Rose retail location in NW Washington, DC. The business naturally moved beyond just selling on Etsy, as referrals from previous clients and a local reputation grew. (Also a worldwide reputation, as I’ve now done invitations for clients as far away as Uganda, Switzerland, and Argentina…and we’re really big in Australia!) By now I think we’ve graduated from “micro” to “small” business!
So I now get to work with customers that are at a particularly happy moment in their life, on a very personal item, their wedding invitations. It’s a chance to be creative and indulge a love of letterpress, where every finished order is like a new present. A big thank you goes out to all of my clients who have put their trust in me to make invitations they love. There was a lot of hard work involved with many of the ups and downs you’ll hear from many small businesses, but getting started was really made much more possible by the ability to sell my first items through Etsy. For all it has changed and all of the criticisms mentioned in the NPR piece, for myself I can only say Thanks Etsy for Helping Me Grow a New Life!
Posted in Washington DC Event Resources, Wedding Resources
Friday, December 21, 2012
Summer has been associated with weddings for years and, in fact, prices and availability for wedding venues, flowers, tuxedos and just about everything else tend to spike, especially during high wedding season in June. As a result, plenty of wedding parties are beginning to look for inspiration in other seasons and winter is quickly becoming the new summer when it comes to a beautiful seasonal backdrop for wedding ceremonies and parties.
Winter and Holiday Themed Weddings
Winter weddings can be a heck of a lot of fun because they often take on a Christmas or festive theme in order to play up to all the aspects of the season. Holiday themed flower arrangements pop with color thanks to the deep red of poinsettias against the vibrant greens and bright whites of other Christmas flowers like holly and mistletoe. The colors for winter and Christmas themed weddings can be anything from the ultra-traditional red and green to more modern takes on the season which incorporate white or silver with a crisp light blue and brown or a deep burgundy against a forest green with gold accents.
Christmas Themed Wedding Invitations
Wedding invitations sent out for Christmas-time weddings need to stand out so that they don’t get jumbled up with the usual round of Christmas and Holiday cards that become commonplace after mid-November. You can make your invitations stand out just by using soft cotton or bamboo envelopes that are addressed by a calligrapher. Another way not to get lost in the shuffle is to consider a royalty size invite (6 X 9).
- Sending out Save the Date cards at least 9 months in advance, will put the event on the calendar by April and then send out the invitations by the beginning of November to ensure ample notice and to allow time for an RSVP;
- Using a unique and memorable, single non-folded card with and elegant script font with simple information of who, what, when and where. It’s usually-Save The Date-Lisa & Steve-Are Getting Married-December 21st 2013-Washington, DC. There are no rules to follow for a Save The Date, just have fun with it; they don’t even have to match your invites. We suggest that they’re interesting and pretty enough to be displayed for the months leading up to the event. Here’s one we did that features a calligraphy style DC Metro map.
It’s the Most Wonderful Time of the Year… And Your Life
Planning a winter wedding can make your special day truly stand out – not only for your guests but also for you and your future husband or wife. So embrace the holiday aspects of the season to make your wedding unforgettable – all the way from your initial Save the Date and Invitation cards through to holiday inspired decorations and the cake. There are plenty of themes to play on through the winter and best of all in cities like Washington, DC the winter months are off season so hotel rates and packages can add up to quite a savings with plenty of things to do including a brand new ice rink in the heart of Georgetown that’s bigger than the one in Rockefeller Center in NYC.
Posted in Wedding Resources
Friday, December 14, 2012
Men (and women) have been getting down on one knee and asking for their girlfriend’s hand in marriage for generations. From the awkward to the sublime, there are thousands, even millions, of different ways for guys to pop the question. And, thanks to the internet, there are now more than a few engagement videos out there which show off some of the more inventive ways people have gotten engaged. To some, these videos, pictures and stories are heartwarming, but for the guy looking for the mind-blowingly unique way to propose they can be pretty intimidating. Luckily, all of these videos work to illustrate the three simple rules to asking the question in the perfect way.
Set the Scene
Remember to choose the setting carefully. If the woman you love is a bit shy, you may not want to ask her in the middle of a crowd or where you’re likely to attract a lot of attention. But, if she loves attention or a certain public event or venue, play to your strengths. There’s a great story about a guy named Matt Still, who used a public place to his advantage when proposing to his girlfriend. Matt had always told his girlfriend, Ginny, that they would make the movies jealous. So, he hired a filmmaker to help him create a movie trailer, rented out a local movie theater and then offered to take Ginny out to the movies. Matt had invited Ginny’s close family and friends as well as some theater employees who were in on the surprise. When his engagement proposal trailer ran, there wasn’t a dry eye in the house and, when the lights came up, Ginny accepted and they were able to celebrate with their friends and family, which in retrospect was quite private compared to the attention the proposal would soon receive. The engagement was video-taped and played on YouTube and it wasn’t long before global news channels and talk shows, including Ellen, were picking up the story.
Make it Personal
While Matt’s proposal may have gotten him and his fiance into the national spotlight, the key to a truly memorable proposal is to simply make it personal. Inside jokes and shared passions are the best foundation for proposals that will have her not only saying yes but remembering that special moment each time she glances down at her ring. One of our favorite proposal stories around here is the infamous New York Times crossword puzzle proposal. Back in 1998, Bill Gottlieb actually hired crossword puzzle Guru Will Shortz to sneak in a personal message and proposal to his then girlfriend Emily Mindel in the New York Times crossword. Bill knew Emily was a huge fan of the daily puzzles and he sat quietly and nonchalantly reading the newspaper as she filled out the Wednesday crossword, as he knew she would that morning. Emily begin to take notice of coincidental clues and answers like her’s and Bill’s names, “A Modest Proposal”, “This Diamond Ring”, and then the answer, “Will You Marry Me?” to a clue. The final answer, and the one Bill had been hoping to hear for months, was “Yes” to 57-down.
Just ASK!
Don’t drive yourself crazy – or give yourself a case of cold feet – by over thinking the proposal. While creative proposal stories are fun to read and hear about, at the end of the day it comes down to the two of you. No one knows your girlfriend better than you. Plus, a simple proposal can be the best thing possible. Who needs a giant flash mob when you can propose over Twitter? While some people may say that proposing over the internet is tacky, keep in mind that it worked for Greg Rewis. Greg made it into the history books – and down the aisle – when he popped the first proposal via Twitter in 2008.
When you ask a girl to marry you, you’re giving her more than a ring. You’re literally giving her one of the most memorable moments of her life. No matter if your proposal takes place while curled up in front of a fire, sitting atop a Ferris Wheel or in front of a million football fans through the magic of Jumbotron, just remember to ask from the heart. It’s the only ingredient you need for a truly memorable engagement.
What’s your favorite proposal story? We want to hear about your own crazy proposals. How’d you get your girlfriend to say yes? Or what was it that he did that you just couldn’t resist? Tell us about your unique stories or amazing proposals you’ve heard about that left you laughing, crying or just completely shocked.
We’ll start… here’s a video of our clients, Ben and Kristi. Ben popped the question through chorus, choreographed dance and complete surprise at Disneyland! We’re proud to say we did the wedding invitations (fleur de lis) for this wacky and lucky couple, who even had their wedding at the happiest place on earth. Talk about a fairytale come true!
<iframe width=”420″ height=”315″ src=”http://www.youtube.com/embed/CorSQGLzwak” frameborder=”0″ allowfullscreen></iframe>
Posted in Wedding Resources