Holly Gardner


Lake House


Spyder!

What we do

We are a maker of fine letterpress stationery. We craft limited edition and simple correspondence cards presented in a splendid hard-sided gift box. And we create custom notecards for personal and business use. We help you write more.

How we began

Hollycake was started in 2005 by Holly Gardner, a Wharton MBA and former management consultant at Bain & Co. in London. For years, Holly collected boxes of sumptuous stationery from around the world and found excuses to write to people so she could share it. When she discovered the age-old process of letterpress, she was confident that even though the process was old-fashioned, the designs didn't have to be. Not finding the simple and elegant sensibility she sought in stationery, Holly began making a few boxes for friends and family (and herself), and this soon became Hollycake. With cupcakes (because they make people happy), three sons and an Australian shepherd for inspiration, Holly helps inspire others to write more.

Our values

For quite a while we only sold to friends and acquaintances, but we now are sharing our genuine products with everyone who has Internet access. You can feel confident doing business with us because we say what we mean and we mean what we say. That's a plain-spoken way of saying we stand behind everything we make.

Who are Hollycake's clients?

Our clients love paper. They recognize and appreciate the difference between run-of-the-mill paper and exquisite paper, which has high-quality fiber (makes it easy to write on), cotton content (makes it feel soft) and sumptuous texture (makes it feel substantial). To cut costs, commercial stationery is often manufactured using thin, coated paper that is flimsy and has a sheen to it. Low-quality paper often has a grey cast to it, as well. We think mass-merchandise notecards have their place in life (great for kids to practice their note-writing skills), but they're no substitute for the experience one gets from real stationery.

About our prices

At Hollycake, we work hard to make substantial stationery at a reasonable price, because it shouldn't cost a fortune to write to a friend.

The environment

As a small company, we have low overhead, and therefore, avoid many of the environment-hurting actions that large companies seem to find themselves taking these days. We minimize waste in the production process because our printing is done on hand-operated presses. We design, store and process our concepts digitally, eliminating paper records. We reuse packaging and shipping materials (so don't feel insulted if your shipment arrives in a re-used box). Most of our envelopes are of recycled paper content. Some of our papers are tree-free. We turn off our lights at night and put our computers to sleep when we're not using them. We use our bikes instead of our car when we can. We buy locally grown organic food. We recycle everything we can. Okay, that's probably more than you want to know.

Our sensibility

We share with our clients an appreciation of authentic products crafted by hand. The letterpress process is as old as the printed word and, as with all processes developed before the digital age, relies on the skill and effort of an experienced artisan who knows his or her trade and is willing to devote more time to his or her work than a financial planner would advise. In other words, artisans do not pursue their craft for the money.

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When people first began writing letters, it was the only substitute for an in-person meeting that ensured one's message was delivered accurately. The writer's skill determined if the message was conveyed clearly and ambiguity was used to forestall any changes in situation that might occur during the lengthy delivery process.

In the 21st century, we have many ways to communicate instantaneously such that it requires skill to determine what method suits the situation best. E-mail, texting, and cell phone calls...social media, twitter and video conference calls. One could be "in communication" every moment of the day.

At Hollycake we don't presume to advocate a return to snail mail — some Victorian sense of nostalgia for a lost age--No. What we advocate is that one choose the method of communication to best convey the message at hand in light of who's listening and who's talking. And while many say that the handwritten letter or the printed invitation is outdated, we argue that until humans lose the sense of touch (or the U.S. Postal Service drives itself into the ground), tangible messages imprinted on paper will remain a vital tool in communicating messages that are important and personal and where it's important to convey that the sender is engaged in the interaction. An envelope in the mailbox says, "I cared enough to make an effort."

E-mail invitations and announcements are too easily deleted without being read. Or worse yet, get trapped in spastic spam filters that don't know what's important. Sure e-mail invitations are cheap and easy, but, well, everyone knows that. Your best friend is not going to feel loved quite as much with a voicemail thank you for that cashmere sweater as with a handwritten note that arrives on the stack of mail like the cherry on a sundae. And because almost no one does it anymore, using a handwritten note to attract the attention of a business client or potential employer makes sure you stand out in the crowd.

For many people, handwriting a note has been overlooked because of the many obstacles put in their way. Some stationery makers send the message that nice stationery should cost an arm and a leg. Stationery shops often convey a subtle message that writing notes is girly—not a masculine or professional undertaking. And many of the note cards one comes across these days are fussy, frilly, and to us, confusing. We ask ourselves, what kind of subliminal message we would be conveying if we send out a card with garlands of winding flower vines and arabesques of swirls? When we have the occasion for a handwritten note, we want our message to stand out, not be lost in the process.

As we have become reliant on the keyboard for creating words, many of us have lost the ease with which we used to write by hand. Many of us have become embarrassed by our handwriting, and don't have on hand a pen with which it is comfortable to write.

Our goal at Hollycake is to make it easy for you to write more. How do we do that?

  • Our designs are simple, so your message is the star. The majority of our designs are suitable for a thank you, a note of sympathy, or a business communiqué, meaning you can keep a box on hand and use it for all sorts of occasions.
  • Most of our note cards are flat - also called correspondence cards which facilitate a simple message. Many are a small size so you don't have to write an epistle or display lines and lines of your handwriting.
  • Our paper is thick so you get the full advantage of the tactile messages exquisite paper can transmit: "This is important; pay attention!" and "This is meaningful; read me."
  • We use letterpress which pushes the design into the thick paper, making a deep, embossed indentation that you can see and feel and which divulges to the reader that what they're holding is authentic: "This is real" You can feel it.
  • We use heavy v-flap envelopes, typically in a rich color, so your letter stands out in the mailbox among the bills in white #10 envelopes and shiny advertising postcards.
  • We bring you smooth-writing pens that are both cost-effective and easy to write with.

While we could wax poetic about the myriad of pleasures one derives from discovering a personal letter in one's mailbox, and about the stages of discovery as one retrieves the letter, glances at the return address, slits (or rips) open the envelope, slides out the paper and sets one's eyes on the writer's handwriting...well, we'll settle for letting you try that yourself!

We love to talk

Want to talk to us? We'd love to talk to you. Just give us a jingle, or send us an e-mail, or comment on our blog.