Comfort & Joy

(Photo courtesy of K. Young Photography)

I hope this post finds you snuggled up and enjoying time with family and friends on this chilly evening. We've spent the weekend helping those last minute shoppers and generally reveling in the cheerful spirit of this incredible community in which we live and work. People often ask us if we're ready for the busyness of the holidays to be over and, truthfully, it's quite the opposite for us. We love seeing familiar faces bopping around town, helping people find the perfect gift and spreading joy in any way we can. More importantly, though, we love this time of year because it is a time for us to pause and take a moment to reflect on how fortunate we are to have you - our friends, families, and customers.

Your support, guidance, humor and creativity is truly astounding. Thank you for sharing your lives, important celebrations and incredible talent with us. And, thank you for supporting our small business. We are humbled and amazed every day at your generosity of time and spirit.

We hope you all have a most joyous remainder of the holiday season full of good food, laughter and peace. We are particularly aware of just how precious life is and our hearts are with those people who are grieving, rather than celebrating this year. Wishing comfort & joy to you and yours this season and always.

With love,
Samantha, Whitney and the Gus & Ruby Letterpress team



PS - We'll be here tomorrow, Christmas Eve, from 9am-4pm and then will be closed on Christmas Day.

2012 Gift Guide: For Him

For our final Gift Guide of 2012, we're talking about goodies for the manly, marvelous men in your life. From the mixologist to the academic to the Mo-Vember fan, we've got the gifting covered for your pops, your bro and your best bud!

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1. We Can Move Mountains screen-printed limited edition print ($58)
2. Stainless "Measures for the Bar"cocktail shaker  (variety of styles, $36.80)
3. Graphic: Inside the Sketchbooks of the World's Great Graphic Designers book ($60)
4. Areaware Wooden Alarm Dock for the iPhone ($42)
5. Sea Bag (reclaimed sail cloth) & Woolrich Wool iPad case (variety of styles, $69)
6. Penguin Classics - collector edition classic books (variety of titles, $16.99-$22)
7. Hand-printed organic canvas pillows (variety of styles, $68-$136)
8. 2013 Letterpress-printed Mustache Desk Calendar ($30)

2012 Gift Guide: For Her

Well, ladies and gentlemen, we're now in our final full week before Christmas. There is snow on the ground here in Portsmouth and shoppers are in the holiday swing of things.

And, knowing that some of you may still be knee-deep in shopping (or haven't started **talking to lots of you men out there cough, cough**), we thought we'd put together a little gift guide for all the fabulous women in your life.

Trust us, guys and gals, these prezzies will put a BIG smile on her face. Whether you're shopping for your leading lady, your sister, mother, niece, bestie or whatever - you'll find something thoughtful and beautiful at the shop for her this year. 

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1. Gorgeous cloisonne and 22 karat gold pendants (variety of styles, $45)
2. Calligraphy starter kit ($38)
3. Pattern fabric dopp kits (variety of styles, $51)
4. Tartine: Box set of cookbooks from the famed bakery  ($75)
5. Art prints framed in reclaimed wood by artist Rebecca Puig of Sugarboo Designs (variety of designs/sizes, $72-$280)
6. Rifle Paper Botanical Desk Calendar ($48.50)
7. Rustic barkboard chalkboard ($66)
8. The ever-popular Sea Bag (variety of styles/sizes, $26-$195)
9. Heirloom reclaimed wood recipe box & recipe cards (variety of styles, $135)

And, ladies, don't forget that we have Wish Lists for you! So, feel free to pop in, fill one out and then we'll let your gifting friends and family know that you have a few things here that you'd like to find under the tree. It's win-win, really!

Pattern Passion

Hello friends; happy Thursday! I hope you are all having a fabulous week. And, I hope you've had some time to attend some holiday soirees, sip hot cocoa, get out and about and do some shopping for your lovies, or watch National Lampoon's Christmas Vacation on repeat. Can you believe it's December 13th already? A little nutty to me!

I've been slowly putting together little bundles of goodies for all the people on my list, and I will tell you, I've been having a hard time staying away from these pattern-driven beauties by two of our newest designers: Hammocks & High Tea and Leah Duncan. The bold, inspiring patterns and colors just cheer me right up and make for perfect gifts for so many people.

These dopp kits from Hammocks & High Tea are just incredible.  What a perfect gift for a travel-bug or college student, right?

And these Leah Duncan tea towels looks so lovely in just about every kitchen. Or, another fab idea, hang them up for sweet, graphic wall art! I love having fabric on my walls - adds such a gorgeous and unexpected texture!

Not the tea towel type? These gorgeous silk chiffon scarves add insta-chic-factor to just about any outfit.

But truly, it's these pillows by Leah Duncan that have really stolen my heart this season. I'm just head-over-heels for these beauties. They are just so. darn. lovely. The patterns are all screen printed on 100% natural linen and the pillows are totally soft and squishable. A stunning throw pillow can really pull a room together mighty quickly and is such an easy way to infuse some artistic POV into your living space.

Fellas, trust me when I say that your gal will be totally smitten with these (and you!) and that you'll get major (and I mean, may-jah!!) brownie points for choosing such a rad and unique gift. 

(All photos courtesy of Hammocks & High Tea and Leah Duncan)

2012 Gift Guide: For a Yankee Swap!

I have to say, Yankee Swaps, or grab bags, or whatever-the-heck-you-call-'em-in-your-house!, might be my favorite part of the annual holiday party. I love picking out a sweet (or, more often, hilarious and odd!) little something and then using every one of my gift-wrapping tricks to deck it out. There is a certain pride in having your Yankee Swap contribution chosen first, isn't there?

We've put together a pretty stellar selection of little gifties ($20 and under) here at the shop for each and every gift-swap need. From your buttoned-up office party to your wacky book group, you are sure to find something that everyone will clamor to snag. Promise!

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1. The 7-Year Pen  - which has enough ink to write every day for 7 years!! (variety of styles/colors, $9)
2. Hand-poured soy candle tins (variety of scents, $8-$14)
3. Pocket journals & note pads (variety of styles/sizes, $5-$19)
4. Rob Ryan mug ($14)
5. Task Clips ($12)
6. The Box of General Ignorance ($16.95)
7. Traveling Mouse felted ornament ($13)
8. Washi (Japanese masking) tape (variety of colors/sizes/patterns, $4-$19)

2012 Gift Guide: For a Kiddo!

Shopping for children during the holiday season has got to be one of the most fun things to do ever. The simple anticipation of watching their faces light up when you hand them that perfectly wrapped treasure makes the shopping all the more enjoyable for me.

We've stocked up on all sorts of interesting gifties for the kiddo in your life. Take a peek:

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1. Animal tracks casting kit ($14)
2. Reusable lunch bag (variety of designs/colors, $20)
3. "Q&A a Day for Kids; 3 Years of 365 Questions" book ($16.95)
4. Penguin Classics for Children (variety of titles, $16.99 - $22)
5. Temporary tattoos (variety of designs, $6)
6. Classic ABC stacking blocks - crafted from sustainable Michigan basswood and non-toxic inks ($42)
7. Wooden catapult pencil ($11) 

And, of course, we have even more goodies in-store.  Stop in and stuff that sack for your sweetest little ones!