Ensembles are a combination of different styles of stationery or party accessories that share a common design or theme. American Stationery offers several different ensembles including raised print, embossed print or digital flat print. The following will discuss a few of the different ensembles offered by American Stationery. Flirty Polka Dot Ensemble – This ensemble is a fashionable wardrobe for all your personal correspondence. This ensemble features everything you will need to round out a stationery wardrobe. The ensemble features letter sheets, correspondence cards, fold notes and labels. To top off your ensemble each envelope is lined with a polka dot design. This trendy polka dot design is perfect for fashion forward young women. Elegant Embossed Monogram Ensemble – This ensemble has been a staple in the American Stationery collection for years and it is for good reason! If you prefer elegance this is the ensemble for you. The set features your monogram beautifully embossed on the sheets, notes and gift enclosures. This stationery will impress everyone who receives it. Chevalier Memo Ensemble – Ensembles are not limited to just beautiful notes and correspondence cards. American Stationery designers have incorporated their beautiful designs into memo ensembles as well. This set reflects their creativity in the 4 different sized sold in...Read More
When choosing your personal stationery there are a multitude of choices. Consider what purpose the stationery will serve. Are you using it for thank you notes to friends and family, is it for business letters, or is it for both? Be sure to consider the many occasions for which you’ll be using the stationery. Once you’ve decided this then you can select a stationery set to meet your needs or start building a stationery collection. Here are some solutions for your stationery needs. Be ready to send any message in style by stocking up on trendy, distinctive stationery pieces. These stationery sets are a must have if you’re interested in original, artistic, happy, high quality stationery. Looking for stationery with a flourish of color? Then look no further than our Peacock Quill Notes. This fun stationery set comes with matching striped envelope lining. The Flirty Pink Polka Dot Stationery manages to be both trendy and ageless at the same time. Complete with sheets, cards, notes and labels, it is everything you need in one fabulous stationery set. Having trouble picking just one color? There’s no need to struggle with the decision. Take a look at our collection of colorful stationery. This...Read More
What your Business Stationery should include One of the best ways to ensure that your business image is consistent across your entire suite of office and business stationery is to order it all from the same source. When you source all of your custom business stationery from one supplier, you can be certain of the quality and the consistency of your design across the full spectrum. When you are choosing a source for your business stationery, be certain that they can supply all of the pieces that you will need to put your business’ best face forward. A full suite of business stationery includes: Business cards Letterheads (including departmental letterheads) Envelopes in various sizes Invoices, receipts, purchase orders, shipping labels Internal-use forms (inventory, billing orders, supply request) Creating an image with your Business Stationery What impression do you want to convey about your brand? Here are some specific suggestions for paper and color choices that you might make for your company. Youthful, Creative and Hip — Choose bright, clear colors and rounded typefaces, smooth surfaced papers and glossy finishes Green and environmentally conscious — Keep it simple. Use unbleached and un-dyed paper with a rough, matte surface. Executive, Traditional and Formal...Read More
What you want your Business Stationery to say Of course, the message you want to send will vary depending on your company, but there are some constants that you want to convey. No matter what your business is, you want your business stationery to deliver the message that "we have really got it together and can get the job done." Coordinated business stationery delivers that message unequivocally. When everything from your business cards to your letter stationery to your invoices includes the same design elements, you subtly establish your company as truly professional. Branding is more than a logo There is more to a coordinated appearance than just putting your logo on everything. Every design element of every piece of stationery should coordinate to present a polished image that is unmistakably your own. Every time a customer or contact sees a piece of paper from your office, they should immediately recognize that it came from your office. That is what branding is all about — creating an impression and then making certain that every time your company is seen, it fits that image. That means that all of your stationery, from business cards to invoices to executive correspondence cards carries...Read More
When you are doing business, image is a vital part of your success. Whether you are a small, home-based business with just yourself as an employee or a huge multi-national company with thousands of workers, your business image is a key part of your ability to connect with clients and associates. These days, the popular term for it is ‘branding’. In the old days, business consultants called it what it is — building an image. Any business consultant will tell you that one of the vitally important tools in branding is your business stationery. Business stationery is more than just your letterhead, though your company’s official letterhead stationery is certainly important. The term stationery encompasses every bit of paper that your company uses in communicating with its customers and associates. That means letterhead, envelopes, invoices, shipping labels, calling cards, calendars and presentation folders — to name just a few. In order to make the best impression on prospective customers and business contacts, you need to first define your brand — and then make sure that every single piece of communication that leaves your office carries through on the theme. Coordinated office stationery and business stationery make it easy to keep...Read More
The Wow Factor Once they touch your letter, you have just increased the likelihood that your target is going to read your letter. Now how it looks on the inside, the design, color, etc. all come into play. You have their attention. Increase your chances of getting your letter past a “gatekeeper” by adding a little wow to your message. And wow does not have to be ground-breaking. Wow can be as simple as honing a meaningful message that is short, to the point and relevant to your audience — with no grammar and spelling mistakes. When you send a physical letter, the receiver knows that somebody had to spend money to buy the paper, create the piece, mail it, etc. Remember the saying about getting what you pay for? Free equals not much value, which is the value many people ascribe to electronic mail. Paper mail has trustworthiness because it costs money to create it. It almost always is identified with a physical return address, in the least, a postmark with the city of origin. There is an inherent lack of trust of email because its point of origin cannot be verified. Email can be sent in an instant...Read More
You have to agree . . . a thank you means so-o-o-o much!   Today there are many ways to thank someone for a gift, dinner, party & so on.  You can say thanks . . .    – in person    -on the phone    -via email    -by writing a noteI don’t care how old you are, it is always fun to open your mail box and see a note (not a bill or junk mail) addressed to you.  I call it a smile in the mail box.  Writing a personal note lets the recipient know how much you appreciate their act of kindness.  When someone takes the time – not to mention the $$$ – to pick out a gift, prepare a meal, entertain you, etc., a personally written note is the most proper method of saying thank you.  It exemplifies my RST theory (respect, sincerity & thoughtfulness).   Writing a brief but thoughtful thank you note can be quite easy.  I prefer using my personalized folded notes or correspondence cards.  The American Stationery Company has a fabulous selection of such stationery ranging from very traditional to fun and whimsical.  There is no need to look any further when it comes to...Read More
Perhaps you are applying for a new job, or thanking a long-time associate for a recent business lunch. Which delivery method will help you stand out more: paper or electronic? Recent data indicates that, across all media, Americans are exposed to some 3,000 messages per day, or more than 1 million per year. Probably the actual number is now far higher than that. No email can duplicate the impact that a well-written letter or personalized stationery can generate in someone’s mailbox. There are three factors that make your handwritten card or letter stand out above electronic mail: (see Wed. for the third factor) The Spam Factor Can you really rely on the internet for guaranteed communications that will be read? There are several reasons that your email may not be seen, or seen but not read. The first reason is it may get caught in the wide net of junk filters. Some companies block emails from unknown domains altogether. Many legitimate emails disappear this way. But even if your email does arrive at its correct destination (which we know, most of them do), your recipient may not take the time to really read it. Overfull in-boxes plague most of today’s computer users....Read More
Making Amends / Asking Forgiveness Writing can be a critical step in an individual’s recovery from physical illness, mental trauma or substance abuse. The first aspect of therapeutic writing is having the individual identify and articulate their own feelings: fear, anger, disappointment, anxiety, despair, confusion, and frustration are all common and valid feelings a person experiences. Writing about all these feelings can assist someone in healing and committing to the necessary treatment plan or steps on the road to recovery. The second aspect of therapeutic writing is related to conflict resolution and strengthening past, current and future relationships. A commonly used technique in recovery from alcohol or substance abuse is to have the individual ask forgiveness or make amends for wrongs they have done in the past. Writing is a useful vehicle in tackling this challenge. Sometimes a person has been shut out because they have hurt someone badly. They may be able to communicate via a letter, or in some cases, the receiver does not accept the letter, but the individual has at least gone through the process of taking responsibility for their actions and asking for forgiveness on paper. The psychological benefits build from there as the person...Read More
Exercise your mind as you would exercise your body. The act of writing is to your brain like walking on the treadmill is to your body. The more regularly you do it, the more benefits you receive. Schedule time for exercise every day, or every other day as time allows and your body will begin to work better, feel better, and look better. The same is true for scheduled writing time. Done regularly, writing produces multiple psychological benefits such as improved decision making, strengthened relationships, and reduced stress in your daily life. Decision Making (pros and cons) One of the first benefits to putting your thoughts on paper is discovering clarity. Seeing the words in writing makes them real and solvable. This technique is particularly useful when it comes to making a tough decision. How many times have you heard the advice to fold a piece of paper in half vertically and write all the pros of the decision on one side and all the cons on the other? We know this advice but rarely do people follow it. The act of writing helps you to weigh risks and benefits of decisions, and hopefully leads to making better ones. Even if...Read More