Today we’d like to introduce you to Holly Goodman.

Hi Holly, so excited to have you with us today. What can you tell us about your story?
I started Sablewood Paper Company in 2015 in my little Florida hometown, right after leaving my graphic design studio job. My parents and I co-owned a paint and sip studio and during classes, I would sit behind the bar and practice calligraphy. I filled notebook after notebook with hundreds of versions of the same letter, all to perfect my skill.

After my husband and I got married, he landed a job 3,000 miles away in Seattle, Washington. I stayed behind in Florida to grow my business, and got my first invitation client, then my second…and found I really loved invitation design. Once I made the move to Washington, it became my goal to make it my full-time gig. Within a year, I had achieved that goal and had won my first Best Invitation Designer award from Washington Wedding Day magazine! I’ve been awarded the honor several times since then, most recently this summer when I won Best Invitation Designer in all of Washington state.

Over the years, I’ve refined my style. My passion lies in making each of my designs unique to the couple and their interests, because I’ve learned that the more the design reflects the couple, the better the final product is. In 2024, Sablewood will expand into the semi-custom world with a line of our favorite designs available with a faster turnaround time, as well as wedding artwork available for licensing.

I’m sure it wasn’t obstacle-free, but would you say the journey has been fairly smooth so far?
It’s actually been relatively smooth sailing! Thanks to growing up as the child of two entrepreneurs, I knew going into this that there would be periods of highs and lows.

It was most rough around years 3 and 4, when I was trying to transition my business from part-time to full-time. This was a completely new experience for me and very unnerving, because I needed to find enough work to keep both myself and the business stable. What I remember most from those days were the very, very long hours and late nights. I had no boundaries yet because I thought I needed to say yes to every opportunity that came my way.

It was a big moment when I realized that my business was growing steadily and didn’t need to be forced into success, just gently guided.

Thanks – so what else should our readers know about your work and what you’re currently focused on?
My main focus is creating ultra-unique, custom wedding invitations for client who want a personal touch to their stationery. Most of my couples come to me because they love how much personality each of my invitation suites has. You can look at any invitation of mine and feel like you know the couple getting married – just through their invitation!

The biggest differentiator between myself and others is my how I’ve applied my knowledge base and skill set to my design services. All of my clients receive full, white glove service from start to finish; it’s important to me that my clients not have to touch anything except the final product. I want them to feel completely comfortable and excited to hand this task off to me, knowing that what I create for them will wow both the couple and their guests.

Any big plans?
Tough question! I’m always looking to the near and far out future, which feels like such a change from the early days of Sablewood when I was most concerned with what tomorrow might bring.

These days, my most aspirational goal is to expand my offerings to include a semi-custom line of some of my favorite pre-made designs, so my clients who have a smaller budget or shorter lead time are able to work with me. I’m hoping this will do double-duty and allow me to travel more with my husband and be able to work from anywhere in the world.

Contact Info:

• Website: sablewoodpaper.com
• Instagram: instagram.com/sablewoodpaperco
• Facebook: facebook.com/sablewoodpaperco
• Other: etsy.com/shop/sablewoodpaperco