 Special to the Town Crier Birch’s distinctive showroom in downtown Los Altos displays a complete selection of stationery products. |
Birch, the premier paper boutique in the Bay Area, now offers the most complete wedding invitation collections in the country. They include designs by Soolip, A Day in May, Twig & Fig, Unique Artistry, Peculiar Pair Press, Fete, Real Card Studio and Birch’s own Signature Collection.
Most stationers carry the more traditional or commonly found wedding invitations; the collections offered at Birch are unique, distinctive works of art.
From the decadent letterpress designs by Soolip to the hand-stitched modern collection by Unique Artistry, every item is the latest in wedding paper couture. Many of these designs have been featured in Martha Stewart Weddings, Bride’s and The Knot.
The invitations are printed on the finest papers, often detailed with embellishments, fabrics, custom illustrations and one-of-a-kind color palettes.
Birch offers the complete paper trousseau, from save-the-date cards to invitations and reply cards, ceremony programs, favor cards, wedding party gift ideas, shower invitations and thank-you notes appropriate for each celebration.
Personalized attention is given to each bride and groom, and collections are shown by appointment only. Each appointment runs about an hour in length and is held in the lofty design studio behind the store.
Birch has designed its own Signature Collection of wedding invitations that will make its national debut in May at the National Stationery Show in New York City. This collection is currently available at Birch.
Birch celebrated its first anniversary Dec. 20. Although the boutique is comparatively new, its selection and depth of merchandise are extensive. Birch carries the GFDG Studio collection, complemented by other high-design letterpress, engraved, handmade and embellished cards from other award-winning designers. It features exquisite gifts, including photo albums, journals, organizers and pens. Birch imports designer wares from Italy, France, England, Canada and Egypt.
In addition to the in-store offerings, Birch is known for custom design services: personalized stationery, party invitations, moving announcements, logo and Web site design.
Co-owners Gwen Francis and Kendra Gjerseth met in early 2001 when Francis hired Gjerseth to manage operations for her graphic design agency, Gwen Francis Design Group. In the fall of that year, they started designing greeting cards as a client appreciation gift. These personal greeting cards led to a separate corporation, GFDG Studio, now co-owned by Francis and Gjerseth.
GFDG Studio is a wholesale greeting card manufacturer with a product line of more than 150 designer greeting cards. The collection is sold nationwide and throughout Canada in more than 500 retail outlets. Papyrus, Kate’s Paperie, Flax, Whole Foods and Pier 1 Imports are some of the top retailers that carry the line. Locally, the line can be found at University Arts, SFMOMA, Books Inc., Union Street Paperie, Letter Perfect and, of course, Birch.
Francis and Gjerseth have attended the National Stationery Show in New York City since 2002, and they have received two LOUIE awards, the top award available in the greeting card industry, for their designs.
After attending the annual show and polling other designers, the partners found that no one knew of a store that offered all the top stationery products. So they decided to create that very store - Birch.
Birch is located at 357 Main St., Los Altos. Store hours are 10 am. to 6 p.m., Mondays through Saturdays.
For more information, call 948-5800, fax 948-5802 or logon to www.birchfinepaper.com.
