Last weekend we kicked off the holiday season with a 2-day holiday shopping event complete with crafting and calligraphy workshops at our studio here in Syracuse, New York. In-house designer Jessica Downs (creative lead for our sister company Bella Figura) hand lettered a huge chalkboard sign complete with Bayberry inspired greenery to welcome shoppers to the event.

We had so much fun hosting NYC-based calligrapher Virginia Lucas Hart, who taught an intro to modern calligraphy course on each day of the event. Each guest received a personalized calligraphy starter kit during the course, which included two hours of instruction. We loved seeing how many people were inspired to learn this beautiful art form! 

During the event, shoppers stopped in to stock up on holiday cards, gift wrap, gift boxes and more – and many took home limited-edition calendars! The calendars feature Virginia Hart’s hand calligraphy, and pair letterpress printing with digital printing in the loveliest shades of blue. If you missed out on the event but want to snag a calendar, be sure to follow us on Instagram – we’ve got a few left, and we’ll be  hosting a giveaway soon! 

Our in-house crafting expert Jennifer DeRoberts taught wreath-making workshops throughout the weekend as well, showing attendees how to craft festive paper wreaths with upcycled, die-cut leaves made from our gift wrap and excess envelope liners from custom orders (we loved seeing foil liners sprinkled in throughout the wreath designs!).

Join us for our 2nd Annual Holiday Sip & Shop! The event will take place on Wednesday, December 4th and Thursday, December 5th from 3-7pm in the Delavan Center Art Gallery. We’ll have holiday shopping and crafting stations, hot drinks and sweet treats from Recess Coffee and The Sweet Praxis, and a fun holiday photobooth from Amelia Beamish Photography. Plus, if you bring a donation (funds or non-perishable food items) for Food Bank of Central New York, we’ll give you 15% off your entire Smock purchase! If you had fun at our Sidewalk Sale, you won’t want to miss this event. Be sure to RSVP to our Facebook event to receive updates and news as the event gets closer. We hope to see you there! 

With the holiday season quickly approaching, we’re excited to be planning some holiday shopping events! Come see us to stock up on your favorite Smock goods for the holidays:

• The Delavan Center Open Studio + Holiday Sale: Friday, November 8 from 5-8pm and Saturday, November 9 from 10am-4pm. Come take a tour, see presses in action and stock up on your favorite letterpress goods in our Delavan Center Studio! Over 40 other artists and businesses in the building will also be open for the event, so be sure to stop by and see in us in Studio 135. The event is free and open to the public! RSVP on Facebook to receive updates on the event. 

• Buy Local Bash: Monday, November 25  from 6 – 9:30pm. Visit us at The Most for the 4th annual Buy Local Bash! This event is sponsored by Syracuse First and will feature live music, local artists, indie retailers, and lots of local food and beverages. We’ll have some of our Syracuse First coasters available for sale (100% of the profits benefit Syracuse First) along with holiday cards and gifts. Be sure to visit Syracuse First for more information on the event and to purchase your tickets today. RSVP on Facebook to receive updates. 
• Smock Sip & Shop: Wednesday, December 4  and Thursday, December 5 from 3-7pm. Join us in the Delavan Center Art Gallery at 501 West Fayette Street for two evenings of holiday fun! We’ll have tons of holiday products available — gift wrap, keepsake gift boxes, letterpress holiday cards, and exclusive, limited-time holiday garland — and you can save 15% if you bring in a canned food item for donation! We’ll have  DIY holiday crafting projects along with sips & sweets from some of our favorite local vendors. Don’t miss out! If you had fun at our Sidewalk Sale, you’ll love this event! 

We’ll be sure to update this page with more information as it becomes available! 

With the holidays swiftly approaching, we were recently contacted by two of our fabulous Smock retailers about contributing some Smock goodies for holiday events being hosted at their stores. Naturally, we couldn’t resist getting in on the holiday action. At Smock, we believe in giving back at the holidays and throughout the year so we were excited for the opportunity to help our stores out this holiday season.

We sent these little bundles, featuring a few of our letterpress holiday cards and letterpress gift tags, to our friends at Salutations in North Carolina where they were hosting a holiday open house at each of their stores in Charlotte and Chapel Hill. Guests to the event had to bring non-perishable food items to donate to the local food pantry in order to gain admittance to the event. We’re delighted to have been a part of such a fabulous event!

We also happily sent some of our double-sided 100% post consumer recycled gift wrap and letterpress gift tags to Broadway Paper in Milwaukee, Wisconsin. Broadway Paper’s holiday open house is being held this Saturday, November 14th – you can visit their website and the Broadway Paper blog for more details if you’re in Wisconsin and would like to attend.

What are you doing to get in the holiday spirit? We’d love to hear about the fabulous events you’re hosting or attending this holiday season!