Monthly Archives: December 2011

our holiday card

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I’m terrible about sending cards. You’d think since I have this little greeting card business, I should be great about sending something for every birthday, every holiday, every occasion. But the truth is, I hate sending cards- since I never seem to have any in stock, I actually have to make the card, before I can send it. And I can’t really send other people’s cards- how weird would it be for me to send a Hallmark card? And then it’s a matter of trying to remember which card I sent the year before- did I send the pink birthday cake, or the chocolate one? The giraffe, or the lion? Usually, the best bet has been to send whatever card is new, that way I know that I couldn’t possibly have sent it the year before! The exception are Christmas cards- I actually want to send those, but by the time I’m done with holiday orders, I can’t seem to manage to send them. This year, I’ve actually managed to send a few, although at this point, starting with the ones I send tomorrow, it will no longer be Christmas cards, they’ll be “Happy New Years” cards! Anyway, here’s a couple of photos below.

 

santa (process)

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Thought I’d write a little bit about my process today. When I’m developing a new design I usually go through a bunch of trial and error sketches out of wire. Some are right on the first try, and some take years- I’ll try it out, and then I’ll put it away, and just think about it for a while… The process doesn’t really end there though. Since I make each card by hand, I end up making the same object over and over again, so its a natural conclusion that changes will happen along the way. This year the Santa card has been really popular, and as a result, I’ve been thinking about some changes to it. I thought about streamlining the design some- I’m always trying to subtract bits and pieces, to keep the linework clean and minimal- only what you need to suggest the image. I started feeling like there were too many appendages- arms and legs, hands, a beard, a mustache, a hat…  So here’s my attempt at streamlining good old Saint Nick:

Not sure that this works either though, or that’s its better. At this point, I’ll probably just put it aside, think about it over the year, and next year, pull it out again, and see which version I prefer…The other way I’ll figure it out is through “natural selection” – I’ll offer both versions and see which ones people buy, or that retailers choose to purchase for their stores. It’s a constant back and forth…