Boo whoo? Don't cry! It's just free Halloween Owl printables!

When I moved to suburbia, it was a matter of weeks before I was first introduced to the concept of boo-ing. If I wasn't ok with moving OTP (outside the perimeter--or in Atlanta speak, the boonies), mysterious free candy showing up on my doorstep really, really helped. Really.

Since I am very pro free candy, I thought my first free printable should celebrate the awesomeness of the BOO-ing tradition. This free printable pdf has a boo sign, poem and instructions, and as an added bonus, punchable favor tags. Enjoy! DOWNLOAD PDF

P.S. If you love these little owls, check out the owl personalized stationery at my etsy shop, both  note cards and birthday cards / gift tags.

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Quilt Trip

 

I've recently listed personalized stationery with this nifty pattern. I've been seeing it all over for about 3 years now and it definitely has the classic but modern feel I try to imbue into all my stationery.

You may have seen it, too, but what you might not know is that it--like almost all my pattern inspiration--has a long, rich history in art. In particular, this pattern has been used in quilts for... well, ever. In quilting, it's called the interlocking wedding ring pattern, or double wedding ring pattern, and has traditionally been used for, you guessed it: a wedding gift!

Am I the only one who loves the nifty origins of these traditional patterns? I can't be!

Turning Japanese, I think I'm turning Japanese, I really think so

Lately, I've been obsessing over vintage Japanese paper patterns like the one at left. Gorgeous, no? Deceptively simple seeming, it's actually quite complex and not merely a repeated pattern. As I've studied it, I realized each sunburst is unique, even each 'grain' is distinct! Gah!

(I think my recent obsession with Japanese patterns come from playing with a bunch of Washi tape my daughter ordered. It seems like the latest and greatest (and it IS great) but Washi is simply the Japanese word for the traditional papers made from the long inner fibers of three plants, 'wa' meaning Japanese and 'shi' meaning paper. Washi tape is based on those traditional patterns.If you want to learn more about Washi, check out this amazing Japanese Paper Shop that carries the most gorgeous selection of Washi papers.)


If I were making personalized stationery for myself, I think I'd base it on this pattern. I have started creating a pattern inspired by it, but it's taking for-ev-er! The detail! The perfection! So, I'll never be a Washi paper designer. Oh well. There is still hope I might one day be a ninja. One day....

Below are a few of my favorite vintage Washi patterns. The three below happen to come from old kimono patterns from the mid 20th century. The first two are most definitely my style. The last I have my eye on for the inspiration for some personalized stationery I've been meaning to make for my 95 year-old Mom-Mom, but that's a story for another post.

It's Great to be a Florida Gator

My favorite way to design personalized stationery, is to be designing for a specific person. That's why I love custom orders so much!

But my favorite, favorite way to design is for someone I love. These note cards were originall y designed for my brand new, sweet as a button niece Parker. Her parents (my sister and her husband) are huge Gator fans, so I couldn't think of anything more perfect than this baby gator stationery. This is also one of my first 100% original illustrations--since I'm still somewhat new at vector art (the high quality image files I use in my designs), I often take pieces of other vectors I've purchased and modify them to my needs.

Almost everyone who has purchased this listing is also a Gator fan,which is pretty darned cool. As we say in my house, It's GREAT to be a Florida Gator!

My Etsy Shop

Here is my shop via Etsy Mini. May I Propose you click a link?

Rugs, not drugs

Here you will find the rug that started it all. It's the Casablanca Dhurrie Rug in Indigo from Z Gallerie. I love this rug. Well, not as a rug, per se, but as a pattern? Yes, please.

So I set out to recreate this pattern. It eventually turned into the Trellis Pattern stationery that, to this day, is one of my favorite stationery sets in my shop. Unlike my more recent designs, it's remarkably similar to the inspiration source.I guess you have to start somewhere!

Trellis Pattern Stationery

Pinspired!

I guess it all started with Pinterest!

Like... well, just about everyone... I'm addicted to Pinterest. And the whole pinning experience had a funny effect on me. As I marinated in chicken mushroom soup crockpot recipes and got all tied up in DIY bow-making tutorials, I became entranced by the beauty of the whole site. It really is a gorgeous site. And it inspired me to start creating. Again.

I've always been a crafty girl, but my real passion is for graphic design. I was a high school publications teacher for a decade and a huge part of that was teaching graphic design. Let's just say, I knew my way around Adobe Creative Suite and a printing press. But this was the first time I started creating--just pure "what do I want to make today?" joy--with no end result in mind. And what I ended up with was patterns. Of all shapes, colors and inspirations. And just like when I first started studying typography (and if you've ever truly studied fonts--type, classification, stroke widths, x-height, ascenders, descenders, I could go on--you'll know exactly what I'm talking about) it was like I was seeing things for the first time.

Pattern was everywhere. How had I never noticed, truly noticed, it before? Sure, I'd picked out a dress in Banana Republic because I liked the pattern or noticed the lining of a particular purse was a neat fabric, but this awareness was sharp, explicit and all-encompassing. Let's just say walking through Target was an all-out assault on the eyes.

I had to do something with all that gorgeous pattern! It wasn't a beeline, but somehow my trajectory took me to stationery. And I haven't looked back.

Falling in love with pattern has been an intense, heady, steep descent. I hope it's not just a crush.

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