Stationery & calligraphy · Charleston, SC
Every invitation, card, journal and envelope at The Papery starts the same way: your name, written by hand, on paper you can feel the weight of. Tell us the occasion and we will take it from there.
What we make
Six things leave this shop written by hand, from a single set of invitations to a whole wedding in paper. Come in, or write to us, and we will start with yours.
Drawn for the occasion and set with the names where they belong — engraved, letterpressed or lettered by hand, on cotton paper with weight to it.
A whole celebration in paper: save-the-dates, invitations, programs, place cards and thank-you notes that hold together as one set, from the first envelope to the last.
Chosen by hand in the shop and kept in the drawer for the occasions that deserve a card rather than a message — a birth, a house, a loss, a long-overdue hello.
Cloth-bound books, lined or blank, made for daily use and long keeping.
Nibs, holders, converters and bottles — the small decisions that make handwriting worth keeping. We will set a pen up for your hand at the counter.
Addressing, naming and finishing by hand: the envelopes that carry the invitation, the place cards on the table, and the pieces that simply need a hand rather than a printer.
Calligraphy classes
Calligraphy classes are held at the shop, with pen, ink and paper already laid out. Come as a beginner and leave with an alphabet you can repeat.
Ask about classes
Holding the pen, loading the nib, and the pressure that gives a stroke its thick and thin.
The small letters first — an alphabet you can form, at a pace you can hold.
Where the page gets its ceremony: tall capitals, joined words and a flourish that ends the line.
Laying out a name and an address so the envelope is worth opening before the letter is.
Classes are held at the shop — write to us and we will send the next dates.
Consultations
A consultation at The Papery is a conversation at the worktable: paper in hand, nib in ink, and your occasion on the page in front of us.
Leave your name, your email, and anything you already know you want.
Tell us what suits you and we will set a consultation at the shop in Charleston.
Invitations, envelopes, place cards and programs, drawn from the way your name falls on the page.
Visit the shop
Book a stationery consultation, ask about a calligraphy class, or come in and see the paper for yourself. The first line is always yours — we will help you write the rest.