Please take everything I say here with a grain of salt, as I know how subjective judging invitation…read moredesign is. As a disclaimer, I looked for unique, bespoke invitations for months for my wedding and nothing really piqued my interest until I saw a design that Lesley and Eve had created for another client. When I inquired about using the same design, I was told that the particular design I wanted was created for a client that did not want their invitations copied. I respected that but asked for something similar. After discussing what our likes and dislikes were over the phone with Lesley, we decided to go with a bespoke, rather than an a la carte design. What this means is that we wanted a design unique to us rather than something we chose out of A Day in May's existing arsenal. We worked for a little over a month on our design. For some reason, I really felt that Lesley and Eve weren't fully invested in our design. Perhaps it's because we asked for something a lot like what another client had already produced and stymied their creativity or perhaps it's because I got my heart set on an invitation suite that they didn't feel that they could reproduce. Whatever the reason, neither I nor my now-husband were impressed with either the proofs that they sent us or, frankly, the final product. I think that what we were most disappointed by was that it seemed that for many of the ideas and design aesthetics, my husband or I had to come up with the ideas and edits instead of Lesley and Eve coming up with them. Now, as I said before, I know that design is very subjective and that we, as the clients, have to give the designers plenty of inspiration and guidance to work with, but I felt that Lesley and Eve would make our requested changes and then...nothing else. No added creative elements or other design whammies that we were hoping that they would deliver. Instead, it felt like we got the bare minimum in effort and enthusiasm. Of all the facets of my wedding planning (and believe me I know I can be a handful), I ultimately was let down the most by my invitations. I paid over $2500 for 75 invitations with reply cards--nothing else. For that price, I really expected more from these ladies and was crestfallen with the experience and the work product. I really want to say wonderful things about all my wedding vendors, but the honest truth was that A Day in May was a "miss" for us. Based on the two other glowing reviews that are on Yelp, maybe I am the outlier, but I would not recommend them. There is a lot of talent out there in the letterpress industry and I wish that I had picked someone who was less established and therefore, more enthusiastic about my wedding invitations.

Eve has now done the wedding invitations for myself, my brother, and my sister. She is super…read morepatient and kinda which was important to us as we didn't know a lot going into the process. She worked with us on all our request and even once her part was over she helped share details with the individual printing the envelopes and doing the name cards (her referral). I couldn't recommend anyone better!

I met Olive & Page proprietor Molly Cooper at the CCAC Holiday Art Fair and immediately fell in…read morelove with her card designs. I'm a big fan of letterpress and an even bigger fan of independent artists. If you love handmade cards, you will LOVE Olive & Page! Molly makes an assortment of cards for each special person and special holiday in your life - she has notecards, birthday cards, holiday greetings, and even gift tags. Her vintage style is elegant and modern at the same time ... bringing an old printing process to life! Her new line of Valentine's Day cards are gorgeous, with vibrant swirls of color and beautiful imagery. My favorite is the "Heart on a String" card ... you've got to pick that one up for your sweetie for sure. And though you may think the prices are kind of steep, think about two things: 1) How long it takes to make a single one of these cards 2) How cool local artists are! Then sit back and wait for your cards to come in the mail ...

Four of my friends and I had a fun and enjoyable experience during our scent blending session!…read more We did this activity as part of my pre-bridal celebration, and we all had a great time checking out their wide selection of scents and blending our own individual custom scents. The staff was helpful and gave clear instructions. I made a reed diffuser, which has been working great for the past month! I combined 4 scents for my custom blend: bonsai, elderflower, sandalwood, and awapuhi. Note that if you make a candle, you have to come back to pick it up after 2 hours or on another day. This is a great group or date activity. It was easy to book a session on their website. Highly recommend it!

My friends took me here as a birthday activity and overall, we really enjoyed it…read more We did a walk in and were greeted by very friendly workers. We were then handed a sheet of paper and were told to choose 7-10 scents off the wall. Once we chose our list, we were seated to smell the bottles together to see how we would like the scents to be mixed. They recommended for us to mix 2-5 scents but we could also mix more if we wanted to. I went with 4 different scents and mixed it to my liking. The candle smells amazing! I don't even need to light it and my whole room smells amazing! Like I read in one of the other reviews, I loved my candle but I feel like the experience could've been more than just picking out scents and mixing it.

As an adult who can only repair duvet and shirt buttons strongly but not elegantly, Connie really…read morehelped by letting me sit into and open session with my project. I was offered usage of the materials, drafting table, and her wealth of knowledge to help me learn the skills I wanted to learn (which is finite at this time). Connie and I had a conversation about what I wanted to accomplish and she offered me advice and guidance on the best way to go about it. Within an hour, I feel confident that I can make my desired repairs and build upon that knowledge. Connie let me know that should I wish to join a class or expand my skills, that was possible. The studio is small but very well lit (I accentuate that for the visual aspect to sewing). Folks sit close to each other, but it feels communal and pleasant.

Awesome little sewing studio in West Portal taught by crafty San Francisco designer Connie…read moreWalkershaw, whose two other retail shops around the city have always been a good source of quirky, simple menswear and women's wear. Many classes here at the sewing studio are geared towards kids (seven and up) who are able to complete 5-6 projects in a week. This is extremely ambitious for a beginning sewing class that lasts a few hours a session. My student says the class is fun and she felt well supported by the instructor and her assistant. Projects do get completed alongside good supervision and instruction. The studio is unmarked beyond a simple black awning that reads aptly, "Sew."

Love Mel! She's so good to us so welcoming, especially for me being a first timer. I can't wait to…read morecome back and get into the practice

Video of Mel, the owner and teacher for some classes. She is very patient and helpful. We were able…read moreto make 2-4 pieces each class.

Copy circle is a great find! Not only do they do print work for our church, but owner Raymond is…read moresuper helpful. Very efficient, professional and easy to work with. Our 54 page commemorative book project was not easy - printed in both Chinese and English. With multi color photos Raymond met the deadline and even made special effort to correct our errors in Chinese His price is reasonable and quality is beyond what we expected. Overall Excellent work!

I don't own a printer at home so I come here to print my resume and cover letter…read more Raymond is the man. Always gets the job done at a very reasonable price. Rent is expensive for the business so please support your local printing services. He even gave me a free envelope to carry my fresh printed resume and cover letter! Highly recommend with my utmost respectful regards.

I visited their studio during the open studio sale. It's in a warehouse area of Oakland, a…read moresomewhat scary part of town. Inside the studio is brimming with elegant stationery, repeated patterns in one color on thick ecru paper. During the open studio sales, items are 50% off. Folded note cards come in different patterns: stripes, polka dots, fruit (e.g., apples, cherries), hearts, bows, animals, flowers, and some seasonal motifs (candy canes, snowflakes, reindeer, gingerbread men). The overall look reminds me of wallpaper (in a good way). I bought the skull & cross bones note cards ($16 for 8 or 50% off at the studio sale). The paper is fairly heavy and smooth to the touch. The images are raised slightly. Each item is hand-printed on antique letterpresses. Envelopes are unadorned. The same designs also appear on place cards, gift enclosures, notebooks, and placemats. My favorite designs are the skull & crossbones, Versailles, and the bows. They could use some more playful designs. Daggers? Cupcakes? Bowls of ramen? They also offer custom work (hand-drawn maps, announcements, invitations) and the examples look stunning: http://www.carrotandstickpress.com/portfolio.htm

Gorgeous cards. Great quality. Designs range from classic to quirky. I am addicted. I just…read moreordered a ton for my holiday cards. The trees on the station wagon roof, candy canes, snow flakes . . . LOVE them! I also love the taxi cab ones.

Amazing, eclectic selection, fantastic service. Great place to hang out. They have a beautiful…read morebackyard where you can host parties. Love this shop.

Royal Bee is a super cute little shop with yarn, things you would need to knit or crochet, and even…read moresome embroidery items. I even discovered some notions that were new to me! You'll find unique items if you're searching for a little gift for your favorite knitter or crocheter. They don't sell knitting patterns, but you can easily find these online. They have some knitted sample pieces for inspiration and examples of what a yarn would look like knitted up. The lady at the shop is so warm, friendly and helpful. The store even has a small seating area, for knitting get togethers, and also a patio in the back. It's a relaxing area to knit on a nice day. I've never had any difficulty finding parking in the area.