Eclectic & Elegant: Accessories from We Dream in Colour ...

Launched in Brooklyn, New York, in 2002, We Dream in Colour is a collection of beautiful, handmade jewellery and accessories designed by Jade Gedeon. Jade showed early promise as a Designer; developing a talent for drawing and fine art at a young age, before winning a major art award. Since then Jade has gone onto display her work in prominent galleries, illustrate several publications, and study at America's prestigious Pratt Institute and Denmark's Design School in Copenhagen. Inspired by world cultures and a nomadic lifestyle, Jade is putting her artistic skills to good use designing We Dream in Colour's eclectic accessories. Today the company is based in Boston, and employs a team of talented women to create the unique designs in a socially conscious, environmentally responsible manner  From the elegant to the quirky, there are plenty of gift ideas for all; I've picked a few of my favourite pieces to share with you - see what you think ...

Featured gifts: Fine Feathered Necklace, $58; Horse Bead Necklace, $98; Octopus Necklace, $78; Begonia Mini Necklace, $40; Demeter Single Necklace, $40; Gael Necklace, $78; Valencia Cuff, $52 and Vessigny Cuff, $54. To see more, or purchase any of the jewellery pieces shown today please visit the We Dream In Colour website.

Sneak Peek: New Wedding Collections from Dauphine Press ...

For today's post we have a special sneak peek at four new wedding stationery collections from Dauphine Press. Currently exhibiting at the National Stationery Show in New York, the new designs will officially be released this August. Each of the ranges has everything you could want for a wedding party; invitations, save the date cards and RSVP cards to name just a few. The four collections are Stinson, Calistoga, Fairfield and Hamilton. The quality letterpress texture and traditional typefaces deliver vintage glamour to the designs; while the fresh ink colours and metallic foil highlights add touches of modern elegance ...

For those of you lucky enough to be in New York this week The National Stationery Show runs from the 20th -23rd May, and you can catch Dauphine Press at booth no. 2458. For everyone like me, who won't be able to attend, you can find out more about Dauphine Press and the new stationery collections at their website.

Great British Gift Ideas Inspired by the Union Jack ...

We're inching closer to the Great British Summer, so to celebrate, here are some gifts with a distinctly British flavour inspired by the iconic Union Jack ...

Here in the UK we love a tea party and this terribly British cupcake kit has everything you need to create a truly patriotic display. A great gift idea for any party host or domestic goddess, the 'It's Terribly British Cupcake Kit' is available from the Borrowed Blue Boutique where it retails at £9.95. Click here to go straight to their website.

These 'Truly Great' cake tins from Emma Bridgewater decorated with big, bright flags make a dazzling display. The set of three matching tins (95mm, 122mm and 146mm diameters) give you plenty of room for a heap of cupcakes, and even a Victoria sponge or two. Available to purchase from premier party suppliers, Party Ark, the trio of cake tins retails at £29.99. Click here to visit the Party Ark website.   

Based in Devon, Berserks Glassworks design and handcraft the finest fused glass giftware. Measuring 10cm x 10cm their range of Union Jack decorated 'Q' Clocks are handmade from a single piece of fused glass. As well as the traditional red, white and blue, the clocks are also available in five alternative colour ways to suit any style or taste. Retailing at £35.00, you can find out more about the clocks are available direct from the Berserks Glassworks website. 

Jan Constantine has used the Union Jack to great effect with a collection of fabulous modern stationery products that combine the iconic graphic with stitched heart designs. The collection has pieces for all budgets, with prices ranging from £6 to £20. My favourite gifts are the Union Jack Heart Notebook, £8, and the Union Jack Writing Set, £15. To see the whole collection please visit the Jan Constantine website.

Also designed by Jan Constantine, exclusively for The Letteroom are these gorgeous 'Union Jack HRH Hearts'. Tactile designs made from a super soft felt, and stitched with an applique letter. A gift idea to treasure, the hearts are 18cm x 18cm, and retail at £24.95 from The Letteroom website.

If you have greeting cards and gifts that you would like to see featured on Card & Gift Blog get in touch!

Fab Greeting Cards for Father's Day ...

No matter how much I prepare for the big greeting card and gift occasions (Valentine's, Mother's Day, Christmas etc) they always seem to arrive faster than I expect. Yesterday I realised (yet again) that another event was sneaking up on me; it is officially less than a month until Father's Day here in the UK. Well, with this in mind it's about time I started to throw a few Dad-related features your way - first up is a few lovely greeting cards from some familiar greeting card faces ...

I love this Rachel Ellen greeting card for super cool Dads; bright colours, funky text and skateboarding dogs ... what more could you want?

Stable Cottage Design is using classic red, white and blue; combined with punchy graphics, and modern text to create straightforward greetings for straightforward dads.

The signature Alice Palace style has been used to great effect on a sweet collection of Father's Day cards that celebrate dads with cool illustrations and a modern collage-style.

Last but not least are a few designs from the lovely Liz and Pip; character and theme cards that incorporate bright colours and bold graphics to create a playful, contemporary collection.

Today's featured greeting cards retail between £2.25 and £3.50. To find out more or purchase a card for your Dad please visit the publishers' websites ...

Rachel Ellen Designs

Stable Cottage Design

Alice Palace

Liz and Pip

Come back soon for more Father's Day inspiration!

New Designer! Nature-Inspired Greeting Cards by Busy Blackbird ...

From her home in South Cumbria, Designer Sue Mason launched Busy Blackbird; an online shop that unites Sue's own collection of cards and gifts with sought after ranges by other independent artists. For her first appearance on Card & Gift Blog, today's post is a closer look at a few of the Busy Blackbird greeting cards. Designs are inspired by the natural world, incorporating scenes of the local estuary landscape, Sue's garden, and animals including: blackbirds, hens, rabbits, and dogs. Each design is painted with watercolours before being professionally printed onto a matt board, and mounted as individual greeting cards; giving each image a 3D feel that pops out from the card. The handmade process allows Sue to create individual designs in limited runs, giving you a mini work of art each time.

Featured greeting cards are £2.50 each. To purchase any of the designs or see more from the collection please visit the Busy Blackbird website.

Super Cute! New Greeting Cards & Stationery from Buttongirl Designs ...

It's been a hectic year for Buttongirl Designs, Founder Trudy has been working her socks off as a freelance children's wear designer for high street favourite Mothercare UK; as well as creating surface pattern designs for Two's Company and International Greetings. Alongside these major undertakings Trudy has also found time to add lots of new products to the Buttongirl Designs collection. It was way, way, back in 2010 when Buttongirl Designs last featured on the blog so I'm delighted to be able to give you a bumper-sized, long-overdue update on the latest greeting cards and social stationery. Today's post is a few of my favourite  designs from the collection. Each super cute card and invitation shows-off Trudy's unique signature style; characters and scenes are drawn with stitches and applique before being embellished with pom poms, sequins, ribbons, bows, and of course buttons! Take a look ...

Retail prices for Buttongirl Designs greeting cards and stationery start from £3.00, and invitations shown on today's post will be available in packs of eight. To find out more or purchase any of these products please visit the Buttongirl Designs website.

If you're in the Card & Gift trade you can catch Buttongirl Designs at the Progressive Greetings Live exhibition in London, 29th - 30th May, stand 830.

New Designer! Contemporary Greeting Cards from Megan Claire ...

Based in rural, Leicestershire (my home county) Megan Claire is a contemporary greeting card publisher creating bright, stylish designs. I met founder Megan a few months ago at a local creative / business event, and after a lot of dawdling (on my part) I'm happy to be finally sharing a selection of the greeting card collection here on the blog. An experienced Graphic Designer, Megan has recently gone full-time into the world of greeting cards, and is preparing for Megan Claire's first outing at the Progressive Greetings Live trade show. Today's post is a mix of my favourite designs from four of Megan's existing ranges. I love the bright colours and bold prints, combined with sleek graphics, and smart, humorous phrases that have a distinctly British feel.

Printed on heavyweight, 50% recycled board, measuring 140mm square; the featured greeting cards are £2.95 each. To see the full collection please visit the Megan Claire website.You can also personalise a number of the designs with prices starting from £5.95. Click here to take a shortcut straight to the website.