be thankful for this day \\ free 8 x 10 printable

I am thankful.  I truly love my life and am thankful EVERY day for all of my blessings.

I am  thankful for this (and every) day!

free 8 x 10  here \\  download, print, frame & enjoy

so......what's new?

what's new on my end? a few things actually! The last few months I've had a flurry of new designs launch. I am very proud that elm & gray officially has designs on the ENTIRE family of shutterfly sites...tiny prints, wedding paper divas, treat and now shutterfly!


NEW PRODUCTS (SEE PICTURES BELOW)
 holiday card collection \\ photo save the dates \\ modern gray 12 x 12 wall calendar

never stop learning

I believe that continuing education is important in every profession.  Although I am excited about the continued success of my little business....I felt that something was "missing". I needed a little "refresher course", if you will - something to get my creative juices flowing in the right direction! I stumbled across Lilla Rogers Studio years ago. She is extremely well known in the licensing industry as she represents some amazing artists - some of my favs being Lisa Congdon and Suzy Ultman.

I decided to invest in myself and my talent and sign up for Lila's e-course "make art that sells". Even though I do make art that is currently selling....I want to expand my horizons a bit. The course starts on Monday! I am super excited, focused and determined to get as much out of this course as I can. I will keep you updated with any exciting new work or revelations that may come about as I am expecting great things from myself!

I am already feeling inspired by the possibilities of this course. We, as artists, should "never stop learning". Don't you agree? Here is a link to download this free 8 x 10 print.

brand new designs for Land of Nod!

I'm so excited  to share these designs. Not only do I enjoy how they turned out....but I LOVE LAND OF NOD! (I put that in all caps because I really wanted you to get the point). I'm thrilled to have my designs showcased on their site,  along side the work of so many other talented designers. It really is an honor that they have chosen to sell my designs.....and....well, I'm just a little proud of myself today!.....honestly, sometimes I still have to pinch myself that I get to do this everyday! yes!

Anyway, here are my four exclusive personalized ornament designs for them, as well as a new growth chart that we collaborated on! yay!

new invitation suite for wpd | penned promises

My penned promises invitation suite recently went live on wedding paper divas. I love how it's bold, yet simple and modern. This design is available exclusively through our retail partner.

shop this design here

The creative ladies at WPD also created an inspiration board featuring my blush pink & gold version.

modern square business cards | custom work

I will be going on a quick trip to NYC in a couple of weeks for Surtex and the NSS. Although I've exhibited at the Stationery Show in the past, my main focus for going this year is to get reacquainted with Surtex and decide whether or not I want to invest in exhibiting. It's also a great time for me  to meet up with several of my partners and colleagues!

While prepping for my trip, I realized that my business cards were a little whack and didn't portray the look and feel of my brand.

I wanted something clean and fresh that would stand out in a crowd (pile of business cards) AND give people a quick glimpse at my aesthetic without having to "look me up" in order to do so. After a few revisions, this is what I ended up with.

I'm happy with the result and will be equally as proud to hand these out. Mission accomplished.

custom wedding invitation set | ritika + tony

I just finished working on a fun invitation suite for a client/good friend. She gave me a lot of creative license when working on this.....but provided a good framework with her  color preferences and making the design culturally significant. She is Indian and her fiance is African American and Korean. (Can you imagine how beautiful their babies are going to be?)

I gave the set a  Moroccan/Indian theme and included symbols of love from both cultures. The invitation suite was printed on 110 lb white felt card stock and the envelopes are metallic....a perfect combination of colors and textures.

I absolutely love how these turned out. I'm so excited for her and her hubby to be and can't wait for the big day!