Before paper invitations became the norm, hosts invited guests to parties via town crier or a slap to the face with a confetti-packed glove. Avoid colorful clobbering with today's Groupon: for $15, you get $30 worth of customized stationery and gifts at Paper Planet.

Mailed announcements take on an air of artistry at Paper Planet, an all-purpose paper outlet whose designers craft handmade stationery sets, elegant invitations, and monogrammed mailing supplies. Textured bouquets of paper and ribbon bloom in a variety of colors and original designs, ensuring that every invitation, program, napkin, and custom greeting card arrives emblazoned with a personal touch. Stationery sets ($18.50) come in over 60 bold color schemes, such as a tart cherry tone that complements lipstick-stained seals and a pink azalea and poppy theme that soothes the sting of breakup notices. A personalized monogramming service embellishes stationery with calligraphic initials as customers explore the shop’s collection of gel pens, and printed ribbons. Paper Planet’s designers can assist in efforts to create the perfect invitation, and artists hand-forge any letter of the alphabet in aluminum ($18.75+), creating personalized gifts or props for space-age adaptations of The Scarlet Letter.