Buyers: Here’s just some of the great companies exhibiting at the Stationery Show this year. The Show begins on Sunday, May 19th at 9:00 am in New York City at the Javits Center.
If you click on the logos below, you will be taken to the interviews we conducted with said greeting card/stationery company.
We have interviewed many greeting card companies managed by partners. Today’s treat is Plane Paper, the baby of two talented artists, Virginia Dreisbach and Mishayla Schmidt. Their cut-out work is gorgeous. Read up and be inspired.
Can you tell us more about how you create your cards? How does a team of two artists come together to create beautiful stationery?
We met in architecture school where we had experience working together in class and on competitions. We knew we shared a similar aesthetic long before the start of Plane Paper, but it was our devotion to design that pushed us to make our pastime a business. We love brainstorming over a glass of wine or a Dark & Stormy! Our best work is often a collaboration, starting in one person’s head and completed with the other’s hand.
What is your workplace like?
We tease that we are in a long distance relationship, each working from home offices in different cities. As such, we rely on G-chat, Dropbox, and video conferences to share ideas and collaborate on files. You might say much of our workplace is in the cloud…
Mishayla: I am currently working at the dining room table. I am a very messy worker: the table is covered with at least four sketchbooks, thousands of scraps of trace paper with scribbles on them, and lots of pens and markers! And, of course, my laptop.
Virginia: I like to work between the computer and my sketchbook. Because laser-cutting is such a finite medium I love balancing this with hand drawn lettering or illustrations, to later be input into AutoCAD. I also love to collect tons and tons of inspirational images from all areas of design- interiors, web-design, magazines, photographs, and more.
What is your least favorite thing about running a stationery business?
We are both designers by nature, so the creative side comes more naturally. It is the business side of day-to-day operations that are less enjoyable. But, when you are a small company just starting out, you have many hats to wear, so we try our best to embrace all aspects of owning our own company and continually push Plane Paper to grow.
What do you love most about it?
We love that our ideas create a tangible product. Stationery is meaningful to give and receive and it’s amazing that our creations can reach so many people. Opening a box of freshly-cut cards is very rewarding after the many hours spent sketching and designing.
Your cut-out products are divine! Where did you find inspiration for the collection?
Having utilized laser-cutting technology throughout our time in architecture, we wanted to introduce something new and unique to the stationery industry. We find inspiration in everything from textile patterns to vintage botanicals and posters to typography and favorite expressions. We also like to play with three-dimensionality and layers – a nod to our roots in design. This can often spark ideas such as our pop-out salutations or tri-fold cards that begin to tell a story.
We love your laser cut Christmas ornaments? Any plans on producing other decor for the home?
Yes! We are focusing on our paper products now and will be introducing some new products at the National Stationery Show, including new tri-fold pop-outs and 2014 calendars. We definitely have future plans for home goods, so make sure to keep an eye out.
What is the most memorable custom wedding invitation that you’ve ever made?
Mishayla: One of my favorite custom pieces we have done was our NYC save-the-date card. The couple was a lot of fun: they knew exactly what they wanted, but gave us lots of creative freedom. It is a navy blue tri-fold card with the NYC skyline cut out along the top and white screen printed text along the bottom. We did custom purple envelope liners with white splatter paint to mimic a starry sky so that when you open the envelope the laser-cut skyline sits against the sky.
Virginia: Working on a custom-suite for one of my closest friends was very rewarding and fun! Inspired by the Gulf Coast of Florida, we incorporated letterpress, the highlight: a blind-pressed sand dollar; a laser-cut coral belly band; and a vintage inspired, watercolored map. The combination was unique and very tactile while also whimsical.
If you could design wedding invitations for a celebrity couple, who would you pick?
We would love to do a renewing of vows for Judd Apatow & Leslie Man, hands-down. The concept of doing vow renewals would push us to do something out-of-the-box, and of course, they would be fun and hilarious collaborators. Or Ellen and Portia de Rossi. Because they are awesome.
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Thank you, Virginia and Mishayla! Again, your products are divine.
Jacqueline Schmidt, owner of Screech Owl Design, is a celebrated artist. She has collaborated with many companies but focuses on paper goods for Screech Owl Design. Read up about her process, inspiration, and take a peek at some of her delightful cards below:
Why Screech Owl? Can you tell us more about the name of your company?
For years, there were a family of screech owls that lived behind my cottage in Michigan. I witnessed their lives and behaviors for years and grew very fond of them. I was devastated one summer when a pigeon hawk came to town and cleared them out. Thankfully, by the end of the season, they returned. The following year they grew their family to a total of 5 screech owls.
What made you decide to establish a stationery business?
I have always loved paper goods and sending hand-written notes. Being an illustrator, I thought I could offer a range of cards that a customer like myself was seeking and play a small role in the act of giving thanks.
Where do you make your wonderful illustrations? Do you have a studio?
I do have a studio and rarely spend time there now that I have a 9-month old. I draw and paint with my son Finn nearby. He is my greatest inspiration and my best assistant in that he reminds me to put work down and play!
Where do you find inspiration for your work?
I derive inspiration from all things natural. I have the greatest admiration for animals! Currently I have a partnership with Panthera and give proceeds of products to their organization in an effort to protect the future of Big Cats. I couldn’t imagine my son living in a world where there are no wild tigers or lions.
Do you experience “artist’s block” How do you deal with it?
The way I get through blocks is generally to stick with things. I tend to think that when I am blocked that I am actually really close to something. If I persist, I almost always get to the other side.
Your illustrations read like storybooks. Any plans on publishing a compilation of your beautiful work?
So glad you asked! My first children’s is actually available now for pre-sales on Amazon. I created a book called Patchwork Helps a Friend and it is a part of a series of books that is published by PowerHouse Arena and distributed by Random House. You can see the book HERE.
We love your lifestyle merchandise. What other new items will you be releasing under this category?
Thank you. For right now, we are expanding our line of posters which have been well-received and which I really enjoy making. As far as a larger expansion, I basically license designs for products for other companies as my main trade which include products like textiles, furniture, toys, household objects, etc., so I probably won’t be adding to much to this category for Screech Owl specifically. I try to keep Screech Owl Design as mostly a paper-goods products company and create all other work under my name. I have so many ideas and tend to reserve them for the companies I partner with.
Any advice for painters or illustrators who wish to enter the print goods industry?
I would offer to do what you love and stick with it for a while. I am a believer that if you stay focused and concentrate on something long enough or see what needs to be adjusted over time that you will see that “thing” take on a life of its own. It’s a practice and over time, one can get really good at something.
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Thanks, Jacqueline! Best of luck with the book!
More often than not, independent greeting card companies are established by families. Sycamore Street Press is one example. Theirs is a story of creativity and inspiration. Read up on our interview with Eva of Sycamore Street Press below:
Three common traits of the Sycamore Street Press team:
A love of color, a strong work ethic, and we all live in the mountains of Utah.
What’s the atmosphere like at Sycamore Street Press HQ? Can you tell us more about your studio?
For the moment, our printshop is attached to our home, so it’s very intimate and personal. We all work in one big room, although between the presses, inventory, desks, etc… it’s becoming quite tight quarters! One of these days, we’ll move into a bigger space, but for now with a toddler, and a baby due any day, it’s so nice to be able to just walk through the doorway and be home.
Tell us about your letterpress. Where and how did you find it?
We have two letterpresses. The first, a Vandercook no. 3, we found through Don Black right after I finished up my MFA in printmaking. The second, a Heidleberg Windmill, we found through the letterpress community here in Utah. A hundred year old family printshop was sadly going out of business. They were happy to find a good home for their press, though.
Aside from the letterpress machine, what other items used in the production process make you smile?
We love our 1940′s manual guillotine Challenge cutter. Other than getting the blade sharpened every month or two, it calls for hardly any upkeep and will probably outlive all of us.
Is there a part of the production process that you do not like?
Hmmm… There isn’t a specific process that we don’t like… it’s more the kinds of days where everything seems to be going wrong. But it all works out in the end.
We love your blog, especially the fashion posts. Tell us, what’s the best outfit for working on the letterpress?
Thank you! Kirk is our main pressman, and he prefers the Carharttwork shirts and overalls that he gets at the local hardware store.
How does your team wind down after a long and hard day printing beautiful designs?
Kirk and I love to spend time together as a family, cooking, eating dinner, reading bedtime stories, and then winding down with a good TV show once our daughter is in bed.
Who is your most memorable client to date?
That’s so hard to say! We’ve loved working with everyone from Amelia in Oxford, MS to Greenwich Letterpress in New York to West Elm, to all the individual people who have purchased our goods since the beginning. Each and every client has helped Sycamore Street Press become what it is today.
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Thank you, Eva! Congrats on the new addition to the family!
Today, we talk to the lovely Kseniya Thomas, one of the creative forces behind Ladies of Letterpress, a wonderful online community of artists, printers, greeting card and art print designers, and creative entrepreneurs. Interested in taking up letterpress? Read up on our interview with Kseniya and learn more about this business and their wonderful community.
Please tell us the history of Ladies of Letterpress.
Noting a need for a community for new letterpress printers starting up every year, we founded Ladies of Letterpress in 2008. We created a website, ladiesofletterpress.com, and let it grow organically, primarily through word-of-mouth. The need for this community quickly became apparent as membership grew exponentially, especially among young women just starting out and learning about printing and the printing business. The majority of our more than 1700 members are in the United States, but we also have members from Europe and Australia, and even such far-flung places as the British Virgin Islands and Kuwait.
What’s the best thing about being a “lady of letterpress?”
The community of printers! and seeing that community come together for the past two conferences in Asheville was one of the highlights of my career so far. I think most of us had never been able to talk shop with so many other printers in one place before, and the energy and enthusiasm was great.
Where is the Ladies of Letterpress HQ? Tell us about the place.
LoLP is technically based online, but we divide ground operations between my shop in Pennsylvania and Jessica’s in Asheville.
What’s the most amazing thing that has happened to Ladies of Letterpress ever since its inception?
The conferences, hands down! All it took was a million spreadsheets, the help of all our great sponsors, the generosity of our speakers, and the enthusiasm of all the attendees (plus great weather and food!), and both years in Asheville became really educational, memorable, super events. We’re looking forward to this year’s hands-on conference in Mt Pleasant Iowa just as much.
What’s your favorite part about organizing conferences for Ladies of Letterpress?
I love devising the discussion panels and guests we’d like to invite; we really try to make the linups as interesting and diverse as possible.
Least favorite?
There’s always the concern that something unforeseen will go wrong—but as this has never happened I should probably just relax a little.
What can a participant hope to take away from attending Type on the Cob?
He or she can look forward to a weekend’s worth of workshops that will hold as much info and skill-sharing as it possibly can. They’ll be able to experience bookbinding, typecasting, printing press maintenance, commercial printing, handpress printing, and so much more. Plus Fritz from NA Graphics will be there talking about the History of Vandercooks!
What’s the most memorable thing that a participant has ever said about a Ladies of Letterpress conference?
For me, both conferences have pretty much been a happy blur. Everyone is so nice and so in to it that the letterpress love is pretty palpable. I can’t wait to do it again.
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Thank you, Kseniya! This was wonderful.
The sentence that greets you when you visit Man vs. George’s Etsy shop is “We make modern greeting cards with a flip-side surprise!” Ryan and Tilney should probably add that they make beautiful, funny, creative, and utterly delightful greeting cards (and art prints!).
Why Man vs. George? What’s the story behind the name?
When brainstorming business names, we wanted to come up with something that was relatively short and easy to spell, but also had a certain playful je ne sais quois. Something other than “Ryan Fitzpatrick Graphic Design”… We toyed around with a few names that reflected a kind of dynamism or conflict, and eventually landed on MAN (representing the Everyman) vs. GEORGE (our lady cat, who is a formidable opponent in most contests of strength and skill). Fun fact: The MAN profile in our logo is Ryan, and the GEORGE profile is none other than George the lady cat, although we had to slim her down a bit in the illustration.
Did you always want to design greeting cards aside from providing graphic design services?
The greeting cards were a happy by-product of Ryan’s other graphic design work. We had a greeting card emergency one night…our niece’s birthday party was the next morning in Chicago, and we had forgotten to pick up a card (and didn’t particularly want to run to the drug store at midnight to buy one). So Ryan fired up his laptop and designed this spider monkey birthday card for her. He continued the design on to the back of the card, giving a close-up of one of the monkeys holding a sign that read “wowie zowie!”, which was our niece’s favorite expression at the time. Thus began our signature design element: Greeting cards with a flip-side surprise — every design wraps around from the front to the back of the card! Sure, it uses more printer ink, but we figure somebody has to keep HP in business…
What do you love about managing Man vs. George?
We love knowing that our cards have been part of celebrations all over the world. We’ve shipped orders all across the US, Canada, and Europe…to Australia, Brazil, China…even Cambodia, just this week! Some day we would love to visit every country where we have shipped cards. Hell, we’d love to visit all of our retailers in person (we’ve got about 60 across the US, in Canada, and a couple overseas — it would be one epic road trip)!
What’s your least favorite thing about being part of the stationery industry?
OMG…the paper cuts….THE PAPERCUTS! (Ha…I kid! This is Tilney here, typing from the reclining splendor of my lounge chair while Ryan toils away across the room, scoring and cutting hundreds of cards. I want to assure you, gentle reader, that no humans — or cats — were ever injured during the creation, production, or packaging of MAN vs. GEORGE greeting cards.)
Tell us about your design process. How are Man vs. George cards and prints created?
Each design starts with a dream…
Ha, kidding again! In the early days, the trigger event for the creation of a new greeting card was usually an upcoming party for a family member or friend. My family is huge, so there was a string of birthdays over the course of a few months, and then throw in friends’ baby showers, graduations, and so forth, and suddenly we had a respectable start on a greeting card collection.
Four years later, we have over 300 designs across all categories, so now our process typically starts with an analysis of our existing collection to identify where we need to add new designs. For instance, we may look at our Get Well category and note that we haven’t added anything new in 6 months. Or we might look at the customer requests that we jot down at shows and come to the conclusion that the people really want a robot birthday card. Other times, Ryan will design a card for me for my birthday or Valentine’s Day, and I’ll be so psyched to share it with the world that I will demand he commercialize it immediately. (I try to wait at least 24 hours before making my demands, but sometimes I can’t help myself!)
Ryan usually starts with a hand-drawn sketch, or he’ll photograph a scale model and then draw from the photo. He then renders the image in Adobe Illustrator. Once the core image is drawn, we will talk about the concept for the card — the occasion, the message, the color palette, fonts, and so on. We tend to go minimalist for the messages — we like to make our cards multi-purpose that way. For instance, our “i heart mom” cards can be used for Mother’s Day, new baby congratulations, or even mom’s birthday.
For prints, Ryan usually works solo on those. Many of his more adult-oriented prints began life as gig posters for Milwaukee area jazz musicians.
What can a potential client expect from working with you on a custom design?
We love doing custom design work! We are just wrapping up a wedding invitation suite for the sister of a bride whose invitations we created last year. We love the particular design challenges that each custom project brings — say, invitations for a fall wedding that invoke the season, but do not make people think of dead leaves. Talking to our clients to get a sense of their style, their likes and dislikes, is always so much fun. We feel a great sense of responsibility when we take on a custom project…whether it is for invitations, a logo, or a gig poster…to really capture the client’s point of view and reflect it back out to the world in a way that will really resonate with them.. At the same time, we bring to bear our artistic skills and design expertise on every project, so each design reflects our aesthetic as well.
If you could design wedding invitations for a couple (dead, alive, fictitious, or real), who would the clients be and what would the invites look like?
Andy Warhol and Allen Ginsberg. The invitations would be super colorful, and the text would read like a great Beat poem.
Any advice for artists who want to do what you do?
Take risks and be persistent — make sure your own point of view is present in all of your work. Also, be organized. (Marrying a project manager can help with that!)
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Thank you, Ryan and Tilney (and George)! We hope that you do end up taking that fun road trip.
The creative genius behind Orange Twist is artist Claire Jauregui. Her work is characterized by bold and mesmerizing colors. Her Orange Twist cards are just as gorgeous, too. Get to know Claire below:
Why orange twist? Do you happen to be a fan of using orange twists in your cocktails?
Orange has positive associations for me– it’s a delicious citrus fruit that grew in my backyard when I was little and it’s strong, energetic, and playful color. The ‘Twist’ begins to suggest that there’s something different about the line and those differences are in its design sense, eco-friendly focus, and printing method. I am totally a fan of orange twists used in cocktails–especially Negronis!
Tell us about the place where you create Orange Twist cards? How did you find your studio?
Orange Twist is based out of our Seattle home. I’ve used the master bedroom as a studio since my long-time boyfriend and I bought the house in 2009. I knew I wanted to create at home and a studio space was essential to whatever house we purchased. We looked at over 40 houses and put in offers on two other houses before we found our space. I love having a dedicated studio, the north-east light it receives, and the convenience of walking to the post office and office supply store.
Favorite tunes to play in your studio:
I like listening to Spotifybecause I can listen to favorites like Van Morrison and Bob Dylan but also hear artists new to me. Currently I’m on a The Lumineers and Florence and the Machine kick.
Colors that you cannot get enough of:
Orange of course! But also Egyptian blue.
What are your favorite fonts to use when designing cards?
I tend to gravitate toward strong, sans serif fonts, but like contrasting them with jaunty script.
Do you have designs that never made it past the drawing board? How do you decide what designs make it all the way to actual production?
I absolutely have designs that have never made it into production– notebooks full. Mostly that has to do with time and what kinds of designs are needed, but it also has to do with ideas that haven’t been fully fleshed out or need a bit more inspiration before they end up in production.
Designs that end up in production are ones where the timing and designs are right and ready. This means sometimes the designs are ones I’ve been pondering and tinkering with for a while or sometimes are designs that come to me in a burst of inspiration and come fast and furious into being.
What do you love about running Orange Twist?
I love making designs become an actual object whether its a card, print, or baby romper. For me it’s really special to make tangible objects. I love setting my own hours and that I get to interact with people who then connect with others by writing on our cards. That is amazing.
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Thank you, Claire! You’re an inspiration.
If your mom has everything (thank goodness, right?), what do you get her for Mother’s Day? Flowers is always a good idea. Of course, a sweet and funny Mother’s Day greeting card is also essential.
For your shopping pleasure, consider these:
Today’s card company highlight is Fugu Fugu Press, home of delightful and adorable letterpress cards. Featuring illustrations that will make you smile, Fugu Fugu Press is sure to “blow up” your love for wonderful stationery.
What do you love about running a letterpress stationery business?
Shino: I love the sense of community among the small stationery companies, and especially the letterpress folks. We share lots of information and ideas, and don’t hesitate to help each other out. It’s a good group of people.
Ken: I love all of it. We’ve found that it’s nice to be your own boss, and be able to chart your own course. And that we’re able to sell what we make.
When people ask you what you do, what do you say?
‘We own a letterpress greeting card business’. Then either a blank stare comes back, or an excited response.
Tell us about your studio. How did you find it? What do you love about the place?
It’s our garage at the moment, so it was easy to find. We love that the commute is so short, and the rent is reasonable. We used to have a printshop/retail location before, and really loved it. Some day, when the time is right, we would like to find another spot and build up a shop.
What’s your favorite holiday to design cards for? Why?
Shino: Valentine’s. I like hearts.
What’s the best thing that a customer has said about your cards?
Once at a craft fair, a young mom came to us with the ‘Love You bird‘ card she just purchased from us, asking if she could exchange it, because she and her husband were shopping separately and they ended up buying the exact same card for each other! We loved that.
If you could send a card to somebody famous, which card would you choose and who would the recipient be?
Shino: I don’t know. But someone told us once that she sent the ‘Birthday Tiger‘ card to David Byrne. I thought that was pretty cool.
Ken: I sent Dr. Dre a ‘Holiday Dachshund’ card this year.
If you weren’t running Fugu Fugu Press, what do you think would your jobs be right now?
Shino: Probably continuing with my freelance illustration.
Ken: The same thing I already do – teaching and playing music.
What’s next for Fugu Fugu Press? Any new products to unveil?
We have lots of new designs to show at the upcoming National Stationery Show in May. We are ramping up the production towards it right now.
It’s always a crazy time of the year, but we love printing the new card designs. We spend so much time looking at them on the computer screen, editing and changing things. When they finally get printed, they always look so much better than we thought they’d look!
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This was loads of fun, Ken and Shino. Thank you!
Generally, a gift and bouquet combo comes in this form: the gift wrapped in a box or a paper bag and a separate bouquet of flowers wrapped in plastic or paper. No matter the occasion, this “presentation” works. But what if you’re tight of budget or your recipient is the treehugger type? What if you’re in the mood to be creative?
This fresh flower gift tag idea from Studio DIY has got you covered:
Isn’t it gorgeous? Not only does it have undeniable visual appeal, this gift tag is also quite easy on the pockets. You simply pick up a few fresh blooms from your garden, tie them together into a mini bouquet, and attach to a cardboard gift tag. You can also choose to glue the mini bouquet directly to the wrapped gift.
Kelly has more detailed instructions on her blog, so head on over. And while you’re there, you might want to check out her many fabulous party DIYs. Her blog is one of my favorites.
Photo & DIY Source: Studio DIY
