Thank you Tina, from Swiss Miss for featuring us in your blog.

To see the full post, please see
http://www.swiss-miss.com/2009/03/notebook.html

DIY: Neat Tarp Tote and Give Away

We made these cute tarp bags to give away at one of our trade shows last year. Giving bags away, whether they be paper or fabric are common place these days. We put our brainstorming cells together to create a cute bag that once was done in it's life of holding catalogues and business cards at a trade show to be able to be used for something else. I wanted the bag to be big enough for most hand outs at the show but small enough so it's not overwhelming. Nothing is more annoying (to me anyway) than 500 people holding a ginormous unsightly bag.

So, we came up with this little tote made out of tarp, yes the same stuff people use to cover their roofs in a pinch when it's leaking or cover the back of their pickup trucks when it's raining. I initially thought there was only that electric blue (not so nice) or black (nice but wanted something that popped and get noticed at the show). We couldn't believe the amount of colours tarp came in, so we picked our signature colour - orange.

The tote dimensions are 12 by 14 inches, have grosgrain ribbon for handles, and we letterpressed the label on chipboard and sewed everything together.

We got some really great responses from buyers who got the bags and realized the bag can be reused as
- lunch bag
- school bag (for pre school kids)
- dance bag (ballet slippers)
- hand bag
- and in a pinch can be used as a rain hat

Let's do a give away....

Share your ideas, what would you use the tote for? Best idea emailed to us by Tuesday, April 7th will receive a free tote. Email answers to hello at 9spotmonk dot com

Good luck!

April Letterpress Give Away

Cat and Friends kids folded thank you notes are one of my favorite cards. We'll give away one set, total of 6 cards with matching envelopes to 9 lucky winners who can answer the questions below (all answers can be found on our site 9spotmonk.com

1. Name the two brands of presses we have in the studio
2. How many styles of bookplates are on the site?
3. How many butterflies are on the Kaesaria thank you card?

Send your responses to hello@9spotmonk.com by Friday, April 3rd, 2009. First 9 people who answer correctly will win.

Good luck!

UPDATE:
Thanks to everyone who submitted! Below are the list of winners who gave the correct answers...

1. Name the two brands of presses we have in the studio
Answer: Heidelberg Windmill and Vandercook, we have two of each in the studio

2. How many styles of bookplates are on the site?
Answer: There are four styles of bookplates.

3. How many butterflies are on the Kaesaria thank you card?
Answer: one.

WINNERS:
1. Wendy R.
2. Jonas P.
3. Cristina D.
4. David C.
5. Penelope M.
6. Reece R.
7. Victoria D.
8. Deanna M.
9. Charlie A.

Thanks for being a good sport and playing. Enjoy your cards!

Recycled things we love

This is one of the coolest recycled bird houses I've ever seen. Found it on Etsy, it's by Old Crow Farm. We have tons of birds in the spring in the garden. This would be perfect. See it here on Etsy.



Found this great way to recycle wooden boxes on one of our favorite blogs Apartment Therapy. A great way to use found objects. See the full story here.

Oh just stop it...

So you're talking to your brother on the phone and you're trying to convince him that taking a pay cut right now IS a good idea... at least he still has a job. He should have become a pharmacist but he opted to become a big time financials guy on Wall Street instead. Don't fight about it on the phone, just send him a card... he'll get the picture.

Besides, at $3.00 a card, could be the best little piece of encouragement you can buy for your little brother.

Who needs a $3 recycled letterpress notebook? You do.

HOT HOT HOT Mini Recycled Notebooks

Hot out of the print shop, splurge on a little luxury with these 100% recycled mini notebooks. Letterpress printed in gold ink these notebooks are sure to be great for everyday use. Get 1, heck, they're $3.00 each, get the entire set.

Available titles -
- Cash Log: for keeping the Lincoln's AND the Benjamins accounted for in this nasty economic season

- Gift Log: wouldn't be right if you gave your bff the same gift again, so write it down!

- Gossip: need we say more?

- Grocery: makin' a list before you hit the supermarket

- Inspire: jot down all those doodles and notes, who knows, there could be a million dollar painting in the works there

- Meet: Okay, so you have an iPhone to write all the appointments in, but you know as well as I, writing it down with on paper is faster than punching the letters in...

- Must Do: for all the things you MUST DO

- Research: For your thesis, for your new pair of shoes, for your bf's surprise birthday venue...

- Shower: Baby shower, bridal shower, jot it down, make sure you got everything. Also makes a great notebook to write down who gave what so you can remember when it's thank you card writing time.

- Stuff: for stuff

- Wedding: Sure, a $50 leather bound notebook is nice for keeping tearsheets and notes for the upcoming event, but in these times, save the $47 for the shoes. After all, after the wedding, this notebook will be in some box somewhere but the shoes - everyone will still be talking about those shoes...


These notebooks and other neat letterpress goods can be found on our site at 9spotmonk.com

New product sneak peak

Thanks to all who visited us at the New York International Gift Fair last week. The response to our new products were just amazing in the tough economic climate we're living in right now.

To the 75 new stores across the country, welcome to 9SpotMonk!

Here's a sneak peak of some of the great letterpress products that will be available online and hit stores February 15, 2009...

From our 9SpotMonk Kids' "Colour It and Send Greeting Cards"














From our 9SpotMonk Kids' Recycled colour in placemats








From our "A Word About..." Recession line, letterpress printed on 100% recycled paper