Tuesday, September 29, 2009

shower invites for Katya (by way of gocco)

Our friends Andy and Katya are getting married next month and because nearly all of Kayta's bridesmaids and family are coming in from out of town, we decided to have her shower just before the wedding. It seemed important to have the key members of her posse there, right?

Their wedding is on the beach in Del Mar, and even though it won't technically be summer anymore I decided to make her invites feel a little summery. Especially because it's the only season Katya likes. She's a professional triathlete with a major aversion to cold. If I had to ride my bike and swim and run for 8 hours a day I wouldn't like the cold either.



Back to the invites.

Here they are. After a nearly fatal gocco disaster (as always brought on by user error) I managed to squeeze the printed area into half of my stage to I could use my last 2 bulbs to burn the screen.

(Side note - I can't keep up with the gocco drama, people. First they quit making machines, but were still making supplies. Then they started making machines again. Then they decided to shut down the entire operation (turning thousands of plastic screen printers into paper weights), and now it appears that supplies are back on the market. Of course none of that matters when the only place to buy supplies is online and you need bulbs this minute. Plan ahead people. And always assume you'll mess the first screen up.)







I pondered using vintage stamps for these, but here's another tip. Counting them out and licking them and arranging them, even for just 40 envelopes takes, I don't know, at least 3 days. Soooo time consuming. And the king and queen stamps are just about the cutest things available right now. Aren't they?

Which reminds me, I should stock up before they sell out.

21 comments:

Joslyn said...

these are totally gorgeous and yes, those stamps pretty much rock. i just bought a slew of them!

Rachel said...

These are so beautiful! And I've been meaning to stock up on those stamps as well. I love, love, love them.

Kathryn said...

Hmmm.... stocking up on those king & queen stamps is probably a very good idea.

Katie said...

i applaud you! these look amazing. i've gone through way too many bulbs and screens just trying to get it right. one day...

E @ Oh! Apostrophe said...

These are beautiful! I hear you on the gocco drama... and these days I am so nervous about using up my supplies that I don't even dare break the thing out! I love the colors you used on these :)

Denise said...

SO pretty! I'm a little pouty these days since I don't own a gocco and can't seem to find one... You inspire me to get back in touch with my creative side.

Puppy said...

Lovely! The stamps are so pretty ;)
Kristina, I invite you to visit my blog and take a look at the funny contest we created...I would love seeing you there!

jamie said...

rly? supplies are on again? huh.


not that it matters to me, I have NEVER been able to get such clear, perfect gocco results. and have such, kind of given up. :/

iheartkiwi said...

i just sent out my wedding invites and the people at the post office keep trying to give me the lame wedding ring stamps. i'll take the king and queen thank you very much!

M said...

what absolutely lovely invites :-)

Johanna said...

Those invites are beautiful. Love the colors.

Hali Bey said...

i just bought a ton of these stamps. I find myself sending post just because of them.

Make.Good said...

Lovely! These cards are so delicate and femenine without being girlie. Inspiring!

Amy@OldSweetSong said...

I love them! OH how I want a gocco!

carolina postcard said...

I'm obsessed with those stamps too! I bought a ton to save just in case. You can never have too many pretty stamps and they totally make an invitation!

Kate said...

I can never get my gocco to turn out as crisp and perfect as yours always seem to!
I would love you forever if you could write up some sort of quick tutorial (how thick to spread ink, how hard to press down, etc) because I get so jealous of your lovely results, while I'm left with blotchy, half printed bleeding prints :(

Unknown said...

I am interested in getting a personal screen printer, a la gocco, but since the machines and the supplies are so hard to come by these days, I have been looking into a Yudu. Do you know anything about it or have any experience with it? http://www.whatdoyudu.com/default.aspx I wonder if it would deliver the same results.

kristina said...

I hope everyone receiving the invites likes them as much as you all!

Jamie - I'm SURE. You make amazing gocco prints! I've seen them with my own eyes on your blog.

Kate - re: crispness. Hmm. I don't really know why they turn out crisp. Do you use the blue filter when you burn your screens? I always do and it's supposed to ensure a crisper burn.

I also always do like 20 test prints to make sure the paint is coming through evenly before I move on to the final prints. There's definitely some finessing when it comes to how much pressure to use. I find that when the paint is coming through nicely, you really don't have to press that hard. As far as paint thickness... sometimes I really glop it on and sometimes I use less. It really depends on how much ink is coming through.

Hope that helps!

Rebecca - I'm not familiar with the yudu yet. I mean I know what it is and that it exists but I've never used one. Though I am sort of tempted. I like that it's non-toxic and that there's not a constant fear of the supplies being yanked out from under us. Plus, I bet the supplies are less expensive?

Amy said...

I just got my Gocco in the mail yesterday! You're invites are inspiration. Can't wait to start on our Save the Dates!

PS... Print Addict Japan on ETSY (or Ebay) is awesome- I got my used PG10 Super from an ebay auction and she has a wide array of supplies.

Amy said...

Re: Amy PS Your not You're. Love Me :-)

Katya Michael said...

These are some of the most beautiful invites i have ever seen !!!!! It was even more exciting for me because my name is Katya too :)