Scarlett Greetings

HAPPY FATHERS DAY

2011-06-19T19:14:00.004+01:00

The last few weeks of school are always a crazy time in our house!! This year add to the usual chaos, a business travelling husband, my eldest son's grad, and we leave for a family vacation to England on the last day of school so all my work needs to be finished and suitcases packed by 29 June!

In the madness I left it to the last minute to get a fathers day gift for my husband this year. Thankfully I found a great project by Nichole Heady at Papertrey Ink and was inspired. Since my kids are all involved in different activities I couldn't get them together in one place to photograph as she did forming the letter DAD with their bodies, so I took individual shots instead.

I took photos of them holding up a blank piece of cardstock and then added the text in photoshop plus quote I really love and ... VOILA. Best thing is Adam loved it.

THE ROYAL WEDDING

2011-04-29T15:25:00.006+01:00

Yes, I was one of the millions who woke early and tuned in to watch THE WEDDING. It was 6am here so I watched it in the kitchen while getting my kids ready for school.

Simple - Classic - Elegance.
The Bride was stunning, as all brides should be.
Even with the world watching Wills and Kate still seemed to maintain that small intimate feel

CONGRATULATIONS
to the Happy Couple

Here are a few of our wedding cards to celebrate this special day!

The two cards above are from our Loud & Clear collection. The one on the left is an anniversary card but the colours are very patriotic!

This card from our SATIN collection has a more formal and regal feel to it

This is one of our most popular wedding cards, (from our Bijoux collection) and reminds me of the car the newlyweds took for a quick spin down the Mall. Wills and Kate drove from Buckingham Palace in his Dad's Aston Martin, which had a licence plate "Just Wed" and tin cans attached to the back bumper!

I may be living miles away from home, but I feel happy to be British today.

CARD & STATIONERY SALE

2011-04-29T14:49:00.006+01:00

When

13 and 14 May 2011
Where
Our place - 7 Glen Village Road, Markham, ON

Its that time of year again when I need to clear out some of our older designs and leftover stock and make way for all the new! So if you live close by come along and pick up some bargains.

Plus see our new products, including personalised stationery, wall art and more.

Look forward to meeting you all

Spring, where art thou

2011-03-07T16:46:00.011Z

Spring almost came this weekend, the snow had all but gone, grass was showing - but then we woke up Sunday to another foot of the white stuff !!!

So I raided the craft supplies in my studio and spent the day making paper flowers with my kids. At least we can pretend its Spring even if the weather won't play along with us.

Above are our paper poppies and below the tissue blooms we created.

If you want to spend some fun time with your kids and brighten up your home at the same time this is all you need. Scraps of coloured paper, cupcake cases and pipecleaners, tissue paper.

For the poppies, take a cupcake case. Open it out and fold in half to make a semi-circle and then fold in half again. Draw a petal shape and cut it out.

Open out the cupcake case and make a small hole with the point of a pencil in the centre. Cut out a small circle of coloured paper approximately the size of the base of the cupcake case. Cut a second circle slightly smaller and then snip with a small pair of scissors all around the edge of the circle, about half way into the centre. Make a small hole in the centre of these 2 circles.

To assemble the flowers. Take a pipe cleaner and turn over one end (about 1cm) This will stop the paper petals falling off the end. Thread the small circle on first, pinching the snipped edges with your fingers, so they stand up. Then thread the slightly larger coloured circle and finally the cupcake case. We added a little glue to the back of the second circle so that it stuck to the case.

These are really simple to make and all you need are pipecleaners and tissuepaper.

First cut out 12 circles of tissue. I used a coffee lid and as the tissue is quite thin you can cut through all 12 sheets at once.

Make a small hole in the centre of all the sheets and push the pipecleaner through, bending over one end to secure. Then seperate the top layer and pinch it between your fingers as shown below. Repeat this with each seperate layer.

SHE ART WORKSHOP

2011-02-24T18:32:00.005Z

I've just signed up to take this online workshop by the hugely talented, Christy Tomlinson of Scarlet Lime. I love the images she creates and hopefully it will inspire me to work more on my collages and use other mediums to mix with my papers! At the end of the 3 week e-course we get to work on a self portrait! Stay tuned to see how I get on.

A ROOM WITH A VIEW week 3

2011-02-24T17:24:00.003Z

Its week 3 in my quest to master photoshop, (well week 4 actually but last week was a right off as far as work was concerned with a sick child at home ... one of the many challenges for a working mom!)

My studio is on the fourth floor of our house and it has a small deck which faces south. Its a great suntrap (snow collector right now) and not at all overlooked by the neighbours so I love to sit here and enjoy a few minutes to myself when I can. It seems I am not the only one! This morning I found a raccoon, which the kids have named REBECCA, curled up under the eaves. I managed to snap this photo as she hurried away.

How she made it up to the fourth floor of our house I don't know but she seemed to have little trouble getting down, helped a bit by gravity..

So for today's lesson I've been learning how to select different areas of an image and alter them.

I cropped the original photo above, and removed the cables and added text. Below you can see the results ... Still a long way to go, but its fun.

ROOM WITH A VIEW (week 2)

2011-02-11T00:27:00.009Z

Sorry I missed last week, I was in the UK for the Birmingham Spring Fair, and although I did have access to a computer, photoshop was not installed on it. A small deviation from my New Year resolution but I am now back on track. Well at least I thought I was!

It's -25c here today with the wind chill factor and my window is frozen shut, despite much pushing/pulling/coaxing/begging and yelling it refuses to open. So this week's photo was taken from my front door step.

This week I've learnt some of the basics - how to crop an image, adjust the levels of colour and shadow and highlights. I pumped up the colour of the houses in the background and the black level in the shadows. Below is the original photo

Let's just hope I remember what I've learnt today!

A ROOM WITH A VIEW

2011-01-27T18:29:00.004Z

I love my studio up on the 4th floor overlooking the park, (its the main reason we bought this house) In the warmer months you can hear the sounds of children playing, birds singing and the occasional dog being walked, but it has a magical feel in the winter - clear and crisp with a sprinkling of sparkle (a bit like my cards).

Its a little late to be posting new year resolutions now, but I'm going to do it anyway. 2011 is the year that I master photoshop. I know I said this last January but this year I mean it - REALLY!

To help me keep my promise to myself I am going to take a photo of this view every week and post it here on my blog As the months pass you will hopefully see not only the change of the seasons but an improvement in my photoshop skills

STYLISH STATIONERY

2011-01-17T13:59:00.006Z

A friend of mine asked me to create some stationery sets for her daughters, and I couldn't wait to get started. In our world of texting and emailing it still means more to me to receive a handwritten note and I wanted to be a part of that experience for others.

above is a custom design for a young dancer. As you can see below I really got into this project and couldn't stop. I am thinking of adding stationery sets to my retail line. Let me know if you still enjoy sending handwritten notes and if so what designs would you like to send

GIVING & LIVING - Exeter 16-19 January

2011-01-04T04:31:00.009Z

Happy New Year to all our friends and lets make it a good one!

To kick of 2011, we will be showing our new collections (and some great selling old ones too) at the Giving & Living show in Exeter, UK from 16-19 January 2011. Our agent, Vanessa Brickman will be showing our products on her booth - B420. If you are not able to attend then you can check out our latest designs on our website.

Here is a sneak peek of a few of the newest cards we have added this year. I hope you like what you see.

sc18 - baby boy from the "Sew Chic" range

sc11 - birthday lanterns from the "sew chic" range

ss30 - thanks a latte from "loud & clear" range

ss27 - birthday bouquet from "loud & clear" range

CHRISTMAS CARD PICKS FOR 2010

2010-12-03T17:48:00.006Z

We sent some of our holiday cards off to Kate Harper at her blog the Greeting Card Designer and were selected as one of her top 14 picks for 2010 based on interesting design challenges, emotional response and marketability

This is the card she chose.
C58 from our cotton hand stitched collection.

FASHIONABLE FROMAGE

2010-11-23T20:41:00.007Z

I was recently asked to design a holiday greeting card to represent two different businesses run by two brothers. Marianis Custom Clothiers, a high end menswear store is run by Eddie Mariani and his father Larry. Marianis Market on Main which specialises in fine cheese and deli meats is run by Gerry Mariani and his wife Stefani.

A challenge, how to incorporate mens fashion and cheese on one card! I really enjoyed this project and love the outcome (and luckily the clients did too)

Although it took a long time to add the finishing touch of sparkle to the front of each card. 4 movies worth to be exact. I worked through the night with some of my favourite films for company.

PAPERMARCHE

2010-11-15T15:43:00.007Z

I was running errands in the Yonge/Lawrence area of Toronto last week and made time to stop at one of my customer's stores - PAPERMARCHE located at 3429 Yonge St (tel: 416-487-9538)
They provide invitations, stationery and gifts for all occasions, including a large selection of "made in Canada" items.

The owner, Keran, has a keen eye for quality and style and has selected wonderful products from all over the world to bring that touch of flair and sophistication to your special event. She can help you find or create the perfect invitation.

Papermarche also has a large display of greeting cards including some of ours! I took the shot below of their holiday cards - the front three cards are Scarletts.

So if you are looking for invitations, cards or gifts for those people on your holiday list this store is definately worth a visit.

HOMEMADE IS BEST

2010-11-11T03:17:00.010Z

This book produced for IKEA contains classic swedish baking recipes and stunning innovative photography. Instead of the usual images of staged dishes this book focuses on the ingredients themselves, presenting them as mini works of art. If cooking could look that beautiful in my kitchen I might be more inspired to cook!!

To read more about this project check out the Swedish Advertising Agency Forsman & Bodenfors.

WASHINGTON ROAD TRIP (Part 2)

2010-11-10T02:12:00.015Z

With 4 kids ranging in age from 7 to 13 it was a challenge to accomplish everyone's "must sees" in DC but I think we achieved it. We all had a great time and can't wait to go back and explore the bits we missed!

At the top of everyone's list was the Smithsonian museums which featured in the movie 'Night at the Museum 2'. We got off the metro and headed straight to the visitor centre to work out which of the 18 museums we should tackle! The National Air & Space, Natural History and American History were our choices. So we set off in search of Amelia Earheart...

We didn't get far ...... We found a quiet oasis hidden right beside the Visitor Centre, the Mary Livingston Ripley Garden which was bursting at the seams with flowers, beautiful scents and colour. We were lucky enough to meet Janet Draper the horticulturist who takes care of the garden and she spent over an hour introducing us to the various plants and explaining how each species were pollinated. Our kids sucked in all the information, eagerly asking her question after question. We left with so many ideas for our own garden next summer and several 100 photos!! Thank you very much Janet, you brightened our day :) If you want to see more stunning photography you can join their facebook group.

Below are a few taken by my daughter Holly at this garden and the Botanic Garden at Capitol Hill.

I love the way she shot this cactus, and captured the bee below.

The colour of the passion flower below was stunning. I am going to attempt to grow these next year, although I don't know what they will make of the Toronto weather!

Holly's photos have inspired a whole new range for me. I've always wanted to create a photographic collection ... and her creative images are my starting point .... I'll let you know where it takes me.

Found this sculpture of an oversized stamp set in the gardens of the Hirshhorn Museum (of modern and contemporary art). Couldn't resist taking a picture as my first ever cards were made using stamps.

We finally made it to the Air and Space Museum, but after all the gardening that was all we had time for.

Then it was off on a long walk taking in the washington Monument, war memorials and finally Lincoln's memorial. Despite the number of tourists it was remarkably quiet at each of the memorials. We were all quite moved by the experience and although my knowledge of American history is patchy I came away with a deeper understanding of and closeness to our neighbours.

At the Korean War Veterans Memorial a plaque simply reads

"Freedom is not free"

At the National World War II memorial there were several bas-relief panels showing how the war affected American life. I love this part showing how the US Mail helped the troops morale by delivering cards and letters from sweethearts back home to the front line.

Arlington National Cemetry

Washington DC is a great city for everyone both young and old and we will definately be visiting again soon. I definately have to go back to Kramerbooks & Afterwords, Dupont Circle.

WORDS ARE ALL I HAVE

2010-11-04T03:13:00.003Z

Just got around to reading the October Issue of Progressive Greetings and our best selling APOSTROPHES line received a great mention (page 55)

and our new range LOUD & CLEAR (page 58)

ROAD TRIP TO WASHINGTON DC (part 1)

2010-10-27T13:33:00.009+01:00

Last week we took a trip to Washington DC with the kids to meet with our US distributors and discuss all our new releases for 2011 & I will be posting a few photos of the exciting new designs we have in store for you in the next few weeks.

Thank you to Vanessa, Alan, and John for accommodating all of us, it was great to meet everyone!

We stayed in Alexandria, Virginia on the other side of the Potomac River from DC. Its a beautiful historic port founded in 1749 with grand examples of America's colonial heritage on every corner, and just a short metro ride to the capital. The cobbled streets are filled with colourful restored 18th/19th century homes, churches, restaurants and an abundance of boutiques and antique dealers.

Anyone who knows me will know how much I love the art deco period and I couldn't resist taking a shot of the "Flying Fish" (below left) or the inside of the ice cream store we visited. It was as if we had walked back in time. All the polished chrome and sleek lines - so beautiful!!

I took this photo while waiting for the kids to choose their favourite ice cream flavour! The brightly painted windows and doors really brighten up the street and the mood of passersby

Whilst walking along King Street we discovered Paper Source, a real treat for paper lovers like me. The store was filled with exquisite papers, stationery, cards and calendars and I love their window display ready for Halloween.

We even spotted some of our cards in the store. Check out one of our apostrophe designs in the Sympathy section below. It still gives me a buzz to see my cards out there on the shelves.

PINK OCTOBER

2010-10-15T03:47:00.008+01:00

October is National Breast Cancer Awareness Month. I found these cards at Vale Design's blog which can be downloaded and sent to show your support.

HAPPY THANKSGIVING

2010-10-11T14:27:00.007+01:00

We celebrated thanksgiving yesterday with friends, family and fun. A colourful Autumnal walk followed by too much food & wine and a bowling tournament on the Wii. My team finished in 4th (out of 4). So glad I have today to recover!

If you are celebrating today here are a couple of ideas for your table. The "squash" goose is a great way to present your napkins and the cranberry candles below add colour and fragrance to your table. I found both of these ideas at www.cateringspecialist.com/blog

These turkey tealight holders are so cute and available at www.beau-coup.com

Finally I love these colourful paper pumpkins, from www.talkcraftytome.com. I had a go at making the ones in the top left with my kids and they worked well. If I have the time to source orange chinese lanterns I would like to try those next year. These ideas could easily be adapted for christmas decorations too.

Relax, Enjoy and Give Thanks

xoxo

THE SEVEN PRINCESSES OF KENSINGTON

2010-10-10T14:02:00.022+01:00

McCormick-McAdams/VisitLondonImages.com

Hello Everyone. I've just got back from a trip to London to attend the Henries awards evening. Our Apostrophes range was nominated but sadly we didn't win. We were pipped at the post by The Really Good Card Co. Not too upset as I love their range "The Bright Side" and we had a wonderful time.

The highlight of my trip was the magical Enchanted Palace exhibit at Kensington Palace. Its everything a girl dreams of - princesses, fairytales and fashion all rolled into one!

Our hotel overlooked Hyde Park and Kensington Palace (above) home to many princesses from Queen Victoria to Princess Diana. The weather was too gorgeous to be inside so we strolled around the Park.

Sat a while in the deckchairs that are dotted around the pond and soaked up the Autumn sun, and watched the regal swans bathe.

Kensington Palace is undergoing extensive renovations at the moment and so to hide the building works a magical exhibit combining art, fashion, performance and sound has been set up by Wildworks - a Cornish theatre company - in collaboration with some incredible art and fashion designers. The enchanted palace is a beautiful mysterious place where the visitor is guided through the state rooms searching for the seven princesses who lived, loved and shed tears there - fairy tales don't always end happily ever after!

As you enter the palace this message is written on the wall.

We were given a map and set off to find the clues in each room that would help us discover the identity of the princesses. Victoria and Diana's were my favourite rooms but I won't give away too much more. The exhibits will change slightly, but the enchanted palace will be open until 2012. I am certainly planning to visit again.

Photo by: Richard Lea-Hair/newsteam.co.uk

In the Room of the Dancing Princesses a white lace Bruce Oldfield gown worn by Princess Diana is displayed among a birch tree forest. In another display case is a dress with red shoes representing Princess Margaret. A copy of the tiara she wore at her wedding is suspended above it.

Image credit: Historic Royal Palaces

In the Room of a sleeping princess, William Tempest's flying origami dress is suspended from the ceiling. When you look closely its made up of hundreds of delicate origami birds. It represents Queen Victoria's wedding dress and can be found in her former bedroom which is set up to re-create the day in 1837 when she awoke to learn that she was Queen of England.

Photo: Getty Images

This dress which is inspired by the rebellious Princess Charlotte who fled the palace rather than be forced to marry one she did not love is the creation of Dame Vivienne Westwood. If you get the chance the Enchanted Palace is definately worth a visit.

CANADA WITH A CAPITAL "C"

2010-10-03T11:33:00.010+01:00

Colourful, Creative and Cultural is how I would describe OTTAWA our Nation's capital. I've lived in Canada for 8 years now and only got around to visiting Ottawa this weekend!! Worth the wait though. Old buildings, great architecture, lots of art, markets, and did I say old buildings. Everything I miss from home.

This piece of art was right in our hotel, a mural of grass, real living grass.

Below is a view of parliament hill taken as we made our way across the bridge to Gatineau, QC

The leaves are just beginning to turn.

One of my favourite buildings in the city. I love the colours the grey on the red brick, and the ornate windows.

This is a shot of the ceiling of the Notre Dame Cathedral.

Ottawa's streets are filled with sculptures and these two were my favourite. Above is entitled "JOY" and below is the huge spider we found outside the Art Gallery.

A little imposing at first but friendly when you get to know her.

ITS IN THE MAIL

2010-09-21T18:17:00.006+01:00

While surfing the net this morning (and yes it was work related - kinda) I found these beautiful rugs featuring royal mail stamps from www.stamprugs.com. They were granted an exclusive licence to manufacture these exquisite rugs which can be used as a conventional floor covering or hung on a wall as art.

The colours are gorgeous and I have to have one. Only problem - what colour and which room!!

Back to School

2010-09-07T02:30:00.007+01:00

I love this time of year and it isn't because I get to pack my four children off to school again, well not entirely!! I love shopping for school supplies. Walking through stationery stores, with shelves full of brightly coloured notebooks, file folders and rows of freshly sharpened pencils. Its an excuse really for me to buy a new sketchbook and set of coloured pencils.

So to everyone starting a new school year, have fun learning :)

A new card from our Spring Ocassions collection - SS06 teachers have more class.

Just my Type

2010-09-06T23:19:00.013+01:00

We've just launched a new range called "Just my Type" which includes birthday and other everyday occasions eg; new baby, anniversary, thank you, plus bar/bat mitzvah and a card to support a friend with cancer. Recently someone close to me was diagnosed with cancer and so this has been on my mind lately.

The 2 cards below are both birthday titles. The designs feature colourful text in different fonts and japanese paper diecuts added by hand finish the eye-catching look

The next three designs are also birthday cards

The baby card in lemon + lime makes it perfect for either a girl or boy. We added a graduation card to our everyday range this time as we see a demand for these cards all year round

The just my type 'love' selection includes a happy anniversary card with champagne bottle, engagement, wedding day and shower card for our north american customers.

We also included three 'faith' cards to celebrate bar & bat mitzvah and confirmation.

We welcome your suggestions as to new titles we could include in this range. Please let us know what you think.

summer road trip

2010-09-03T04:23:00.007+01:00

Summer is our busiest time - getting all our Christmas orders out to stores and dreaming up fresh designs for the fall trade shows - so we usually don't get much time to relax and soak up the sun. This year we made time, we took a 2 week trip north to Blue Mountain, Collingwood. On our travels we came across the Eugenia Falls Conservation Area. There's a trail that takes you along the Niagara Escarpment and down to the scenic falls with nice views through the shady cedar trees.

On the road leading to the falls we found the Infinite Gallery, a former general store, which is now home to the exquisite art of Kate Civiero, handblown and fused glass sculptures and functional pieces too such as vases, bowls and jewellry. We bought a set of magnets in vibrant blues and greens.

Other artist's work is also on display - the photographic prints of Urban Pink Photography were my favourite and we bought the three images below. My daughter chose the blossoms for her room because the turquoise matches her wall colour. The other 2 were my picks. Having lived in California for a couple of years I had to have the beach scene.

THE HENRIES 2010

2010-08-05T13:33:00.006+01:00

I love my mornings, the quietness of the house before all the kids wake up, the relative coolness and scents of the morning air ..... and this morning is even better!! I sat down to check my emails with the first cuppa of the day and there it was - a message to tell me Scarlett Greetings is a Henries finalist for the second year running. Whooooooo Hooooooo!!
Its a nailbiting wait until the 7 October when we will find out at the spectacular Henries Ball in London if we've won a prestigious Henries trophy... so fingers crossed for us.

A few examples from our "Apostrophes" range which has been nominated in the Best Words and Sentiments category. Above a25 (Life should be celebrated) and below a16 (Cinderella) and a21 (Babies)

JUST my TYPE

2010-07-14T20:40:00.002+01:00

I always look forward to the new paper samples I receive from the Japanese Paper Place in Toronto and their latest release is stunning. Great patterns and wonderful colour combinations have inspired me to create a new line of greeting cards, featuring these wonderful papers.

Colourful text, different fonts and beautiful Japanese Paper die cuts really make our latest range stand out from the crowd. "JUST my TYPE" will be available this fall, please contact us for more details if you are interested in carrying this line.

CARDS for CANCER

2010-07-14T12:00:00.002+01:00

We recently made a donation of cards, end of lines and overstock, to a small cancer charity in Pembrokeshire that does big work!! Pembrokeshire Cancer Support provides support and information for those who have or have had Cancer, together with their family and friends. We received this lovely message in return.

Dear Karen,

Hello, and Thank You so much !! I do not know what to say apart from
Fantastic ! Amazing ! Brilliant etc etc etc.

We have today, received your donation of wonderful Greetings Cards to help
with our fundraising. You are very kind, and it will make a big difference
to us as we are such a small Charity. I can assure you that your help and
support is very much appreciated by all of us at Pembrokeshire Cancer
Support.

Thanks and Best Wishes,

Lyn (Coordinator, Pembrokeshire Cancer Support)

STYLING 4 SPRING

2010-07-13T20:19:00.005+01:00

I've now finished designing our Spring Occasions collection for 2011 and as promised here are a few images. Above: a couple of examples of our mothers day cards, with the perfect quote for any Grandmother.

Above examples from our Graduation range and below 2 cards to celebrate Fathers Day

Cocoa's award winning code

2010-07-06T05:19:00.006+01:00

Our web designer, Cocoa Media, has received a prestigious 'BT Retail Week Technology Award 2010' for their work with retailer, New Look and their project iLook. These awards recognise the most innovative and passionate technology professionals operating in retail today.
Congratulations Dave and all the Cocoa team, we are glad to be working with the best!

HAPPY CANADA DAY

2010-07-01T16:27:00.007+01:00

Happy Canada Day to everyone. Here are a few photos taken by my fabulous husband that show Canada at its best ... "the true north strong and free"!

A relaxing weekend spent at a friend's cottage in Muskoka.

Where kids can still be kids!

Celebrate this amazing land, we truly are lucky to be living here!

LOVE IS IN THE AIR

2010-07-01T00:15:00.007+01:00

I've been busy this last few weeks working on designs for next year's Valentine collection. Here is a sneak peak of one of them. The heart image is a collage of paper hearts which was inspired by this chalked heart image by
Becca O'Donovan.

I've been playing around with lots of different fonts and japanese papers.
Let me know what you think!

I'm now designing mothers day, fathers day and graduation cards for 2011 release and will post a few images once I have them. Stay tuned!

FOOTBALL FEVER

2010-06-22T02:46:00.005+01:00

With the world cup in full swing and the buzzing of the vuvuzelas stuck in my head, its hard to find the inspiration I need to design our spring collection for 2011. So, if you can't beat them I say join them! I found this great article titled "The evolution of the World Cup Logo from 1930 - 2010", on a blog I subscribe to called CREATIVE NERDS. Take a look and see how the logo has changed through the years.

URUGUAY 1930

This was the first ever world cup won by the hosts Uruguay with a 4-2 win over Argentina.

ENGLAND 1966

My favourite of the world cup logos - I wonder why?

SOUTH AFRICA 2010

The logo for this year's competition

DELICIOUS DELI

2010-06-20T14:35:00.015+01:00

I've just completed a design job for a great new deli which opened in Unionville, Ontario a few weeks ago. Marianis Market on Main is owned by Gerry Mariani and specialises in fine cheeses, fresh breads, meats and antipasta. They asked me to create the invitations for their grand opening on Wednesday June 30th, 6-9pm.

Every surface in our office was covered with invitations waiting for the hand applied glitter to dry - very colourful! Check out the logo design above too

If your in the Unionville area call in at their store at 190 Main Street (tel: 905-474-9240) and sample some of their amazing cheeses, olives or pastries. They open as early as 8am so you can enjoy their freshly baked muffins for breakfast or fresh bread with a selection of meats or cheese for an impromptu picnic at Toogood pond. A perfect summer's day activity.

Gerry Mariani (owner) and his wife Stefani

The finished invitations ready to go out.
If Scarlett Greetings can help you add style to your special occasion or event please contact karen@scarlettgreetings.com

SCARLETT GREETINGS TAKES DESIGN BY STORM

2010-06-20T14:19:00.004+01:00

Please welcome our newest design team member STORM. An 8 week old bundle of grey fluff with a paws on approach!

Here she is meticulously checking that the stitching detail is properly applied to this batch of Bar Mitzvah cards.

Ooh baby baby!!!

2010-05-27T21:21:00.011+01:00

Both of my daughters' teachers are having a baby this summer, so I've been busy making cards for them to send out as a thank you for all those lovely gifts they'll be receiving. I started with baby inspired doodles but it needed something extra - a little Scarlett touch - a stitched washing line, perfect!! Sorry Adam!!

Adam (my husband and business partner) has been trying to keep me away from the sewing machine but I can't help myself. (He says to save me from the backache which hours sitting at the machine cause, but I know its because it disturbs him watching soccer!)

A blue one for Ruby's teacher who is expecting a boy. Holly's teacher wants it to be a surprise so didn't find out the sex of her baby. I made a green version of this design for her. Made up a little girl one too while I was at it.

Here is another card design I created while in baby mode. I like the look of different fonts and colours in the text and I think I'll expand this range into other occasions. I'll post my progress.

Ruby chose this blue laundry line design for her teacher. We used gardening twine to package 12 notecards together and added a blue bib gift tag for Ruby to write her message on.

Holly chose this text design for her teacher.

RED HOT SCARLETT

2010-05-19T20:50:00.006+01:00

Scarlett was featured in this months Progressive Greetings magazine.(pg 121)

One of our wonderful retailers, Jane Eyres, owner of Paper Mosaic in Putney, London named our Apostrophes collection as one of her 'hot' card sellers.

Thank you very much Jane!

SCARLETT's GOT THE KNACK

2010-05-19T20:22:00.007+01:00

Happy Wednesday!

It certainly is here at Scarlett. Our cards were featured by Stephanie on her blog "The knack" Check out the full article . Thank you so much, Stephanie!

"Scarlett Greetings New Handmade Greeting Cards are Perfect for any occasion!

As you know, I send out a lot of cards and letters. But trying to find cards that are really something, that really express you or the person you're sending them to, is difficult. That's why I know I can always turn to Scarlett Greetings."

says Stephanie Dickison on her blog THE KNACK

HOME SWEET 'NEW' HOME

2010-05-17T21:31:00.011+01:00

I'm working on some change of address cards right now for some good friends who have made the move across the pond from London to the States. Judging by the photos of the mansion they sent me, the money they got from their small semi goes a long way in Atlanta!

Here's a look at the designs I've come up with so far. Its still a work in progress and once they decide on their style I'll fill out all the correct details.

Which is your favourite?

Take a closer look and let me know ....

FRAGILE THIS SIDE UP

this one is modelled on the many packing boxes they will be

living in at the moment!

"THE ROAD TO A FRIEND'S HOUSE IS NEVER LONG"

I really like this quote, and a road trip with my 4 kids from Toronto

will certainly test it ...... I think we'll fly!!

GLITZ n GLAMOUR

This simple sophisticated style is so Leah

THE KEY TO YOUR DOOR

Just leave it under the mat and we'll be down to test out the pool!

NEW SOFA

Somewhere to relax and watch the Braves, Hawks, Thrashers and Falcons!

THE WEEKEND TO END WOMEN'S CANCERS

2010-05-11T22:17:00.010+01:00

During one amazing weekend, September 11-12, 2010 thousands will join together to walk 60 kms over two days to raise money to fight all women's cancers. This is an annual event which supports the critical work of the Princess Margaret Hospital in Toronto and their efforts to end breast and gynecologic cancers, diseases that one in seven Canadian women will be diagnosed with in her lifetime. My Mom is a breast cancer survivor and so this event is very close to my heart.

A friend of mine, Marsha Defaye is walking with a group of women called "the Stouffville Sisters" and to help her raise money for her team of walkers I have put together a small assortment of Scarlett cards. The cost is $10.00 for 8 cards. For each pack sold $5.00 will be donated to this wonderful cause.

If you would like to purchase a pack of cards and support the Stouffville Sisters please email me at karen@scarlettgreetings.com

FREE SCARLETT GOODIES!

2010-05-09T20:49:00.002+01:00

I recently added the "followers button" to my blog and as a special thank you to my first scarlettes, I'm sending out a selection of our greeting cards to both of them.

Thank you Leah and Kim

Disco divas

2010-05-05T03:18:00.007+01:00

Mamma Mia is back on stage in Toronto and I took the kids to see it last week. We all had a great time dancing in the aisles. It brought back memories of road trips as a child with my sisters singing along at the top of our voices and slightly out of tune to ABBA.

I created this inspiration board - a mixture of 70s disco and scandinavian patterns. I quite like the combination!

red disco ball ornament; clutch; blue doves;

china cups; red hares; blue/green pattern;

platform shoes; pendant; sparkly top

NEW JEWISH CARDS

2010-04-28T20:35:00.006+01:00

There's a large Jewish community here in Toronto and we often receive requests for Bar and Bat Mitzvah cards.

We listened and added some new designs to both our SATIN and COTTON ranges.

Above are the two new designs added to our Cotton range:

C41 : Bat Mitzvah and C42 : Bar Mitzvah

When Jewish boys reach 13 and girls reach 12 they become responsible for their actions and become a Bar (son) or Bat (daughter) Mitzvah (of the commandments)

These 3 designs are part of our SATIN range

s11 : Mazel Tov on this special day

s14: Bat Mitzvah

S12: Bar Mitzvah

Literally Mazel Tov means "good luck" in the context that you have experienced good luck or good fortune. Mazel Tov is really used in the same way "congratulations" is, so this card would be good for a wedding, graduation or any other celebration.

Happy Birthday Mum

2010-03-30T20:44:00.009+01:00

As I create greeting cards for a living you would expect me to be frequently sending these little pieces of paper art to my family and friends but I have to own up to being very bad at keeping in touch. I blame the mixture of bringing up 4 kids and running my own business but that's a poor excuse, so this year it was one of my new year resolutions to do better.

Its almost April and so far I think I am doing okay (apologies to anyone whose birthday or special anniversary I have missed). My mum's birthday is at the beginning of March and I even managed to get her card to her on time, even though she was avoiding the Hampshire rain and visiting my sister in California. Her gift however was not so punctual, because I couldn't find anything suitable. I live in Canada and she is still back in England so any gifts have to be small enough so I can afford to post them and sturdy enough to survive the journey.

I was out of ideas until I found a postcard yesterday that I'd picked up from a vendor at Covent Garden Market back in October last year.

A company called NAIVE, a mother and daughter team who create functional handmade pieces of textile art. I really liked their jewellery boxes in the shape of ice cream cones and ordered one from their website for my mum. This morning I received a lovely email back from Sue Jennings (one half of the company) letting me know that my "99" was being made especially for me and would be on its way to my Mum later this week. Sorry its late Mum, but I know you are going to love it

For lots of wonderful gift ideas check out their website www.naive.biz

WHAT'S HOT

2010-03-30T19:54:00.007+01:00

Apostrophes collection

a2 - cinderella

I received a call from Gale at Progressive Greetings to tell me that one of our lovely customers, Jane at Paper Mosaic in Putney, had nominated our apostrophes range for the "WHAT'S HOT" guide. I called her to say thank you and she told me that our cards have been selling very well.

So if you are in London this Easter weekend to attend the Putney Music Festival or to watch the famous Oxford and Cambridge Boat Race which starts from Putney Bridge on Saturday or if you simply live in the area then please stop by Jane's store which can be found at 15a The Exchange, Putney High Street, SW15 1TW (telephone: 020 8780 2222) and take a look at all the wonderful things she has to offer.

Scarlett Greetings - Handmade Wonders

2010-02-04T10:43:00.005Z

Charlotte at Card & Gift Blog has written a lovely review on her blog today showcasing some of our new designs. Take a look www.cardandgiftblog.blogspot.com Thank you so much Charlotte!

SPRING FAIR 2010

2010-02-04T10:05:00.004Z

I got up early this morning to begin my final preparations for Spring Fair 2010. Again, I have left too many things to the last minute and am feeling swamped ... next year I will be more organised, promise ( but didn't I say that last year!) I know it will all come together somehow, it always does. If you are planning to attend this year, please stop by and visit us in Hall 3, Booth U46 and see our new collections and judge for yourselves if we got it together in the end

Here are a couple of new cards from our "Cotton" range

A New Look for the New Year

2010-01-05T22:06:00.004Z

Everyone loves our range of quote cards "Apostrophes" so I've given it a design facelift to start the new decade. Our Apostrophes line has been so popular it was hard to create a new look but after what has been 6 months now of drafts and redrafts I am finally happy with the finished designs. I think I like them more than the first edition, they are fresher and more sophisticated.

The 30 cards in this collection include many new quotes but also the best selling sayings from the original line, and will be officially launched at Spring Fair, Birmingham 7-11 February 2009. Stock will however be available by the end of this month.

I spent the day adding the japanese paper quote marks and glitter to all the samples which are being sent out to our distributors and sales agents. PHEW!! I need a cuppa.

Happy New Year from Scarlett Greetings

2010-01-03T15:30:00.002Z

May this year bring you happiness, peace and success.

Thank you to everyone who has bought my cards and supported me through 2009,

without you I would not be able to make a living doing what I love.

Warm wishes, many thanks and big hugs

Karen

Homemade Advent Calendar

2009-12-01T17:22:00.004Z

I love the letterpress designs of lisa at sweetbeets www.sweetbeets.com and subscribe to her blog ModEco kids www.modecokids.com. She recently posted an entry detailing how to make your own advent calendar courtesy of Cici Art Factory and it looked so much more fun that the store bought calendars we see every year, so my daughter Holly and I gave it a try and here is a photo of our creation. As my kids are a little older we made up our own messages to hide inside the envelopes.

A Custom Christmas

2009-11-30T17:15:00.001Z

I've just finished working on a large custom christmas order for a local company. I hand glittered over a thousand cards this weekend. I think they turned out lovely, but take a look for yourself. My fingers need a break today so I'm off to start my Christmas shopping .. wish me luck .. I have a long list of people to buy for and no ideas yet.

Hola Henry

2009-10-10T02:31:00.002+01:00

This year the Henries (Oscars of the greeting card world) were held at the Lancaster Hotel in London and the theme was a "Spanish Fiesta". We bought posh frocks and found these fabulous shoes, so fab we both had to get a pair. Can you guess who's who?

Sadly we didn't win the Henry for our Apostrophes collection - it went to Really Good for the Bright Side range - but we had the best time ever, made some new friends, danced until two, and will try our luck again next year.

The Scarlett women - posh frocks & champagne

LOVELY LONDON TOWN

2009-10-08T02:03:00.001+01:00

Canada is a great place to live but I still get homesick, so it was lovely to spend a couple of days in London while attending my first Henries. I stopped at this place to buy some cookies for my son "Ben" - even managed to save some for him.

This is the view from our room at the Lancaster.

You can just make out the arch of Wembley to the left of the skyline.

From the other side of our room you can see the London Eye.

DIE CUTTING DIVA

2009-09-28T07:55:00.002+01:00

Its Monday morning and we are busy making all the cards to fulfil the orders we took at the show, which means die-cutting all the embellishments to go on our apostrophes range. I think this must be called DIE cutting for a reason as its surely going to kill me! Once I've worked through these orders I really have to find a way to make these cards just as stunning but less labour intensive.

On a happier note Adam spoke to Trudy from Buttongirl (a fellow Spurs

fan who he met at Top Drawer) today, who was busy glittering away. She had an amazing show and its not hard to see why when you take a look at her designs. Here are a few of my favourites, but check out her website to see her full collection - www.buttongirl.co.uk.

062bg - with sympathy flowers

I love this colour combination

C003bg - Robin

This is my favourite Christmas card

081bg - ties

What a bright cheery card. Usually cards for men

have such boring colours.

BRILLIANT BLUE JAYS

2009-09-27T07:49:00.001+01:00

Adam took Ruby & Jack to the last home game of the season. Its was a tense game with the Jays coming from behind to win 5-4 but Ruby couldn't have cared less. For her, the best part was meeting ACE.

LOST CAT

2009-09-25T07:33:00.001+01:00

Our cat, KITKAT, is officially lost. She often disappears for a day or two but its been 3 days now and no sign of her. She was delivered to us just a few months old in a Keith Alexander beer box and has always loved boxes. In the office she would squeeze into the boxes we pack our cards into, tip over our tea mugs to lap up the cold tea, more than once ruining a project I was working on, but we still loved her.

This is my youngest daughter RUBY with her beloved Kitkat.

Today the kids and I made LOST CAT posters and put them up around the neighbourhood. Hopefully we'll find her its not quite the same without her.

TOP DRAWER AUTUMN

2009-09-19T07:25:00.003+01:00

Wow, what a great show! A huge thank you to all of our wonderful customers.

My husband Adam and his sister Lesley manned (or to be politically correct should I say personed) our booth this year. They met some great people in particular fellow exhibitors Alice Palace, Liz & Pip and Buttongirl. Thanks to all of you for keeping them going, standing around for 3 days can be very tiring

Demand was so overwhelming we are still catching up so I apologise to all who ordered but you should have your cards by mid October.

Beautiful Boutik

2009-09-14T09:34:00.002+01:00

This new range of greeting cards is created from my original collages which are then reprinted as cards and embellished with glitter. The text is then added by hand, so we will be able to offer this collection to our french speaking customers soon. We are launching this new product at Top Drawer this week, so fingers crossed you love it as much as we do.

Super Soccer Sunday

2009-09-13T09:05:00.001+01:00

Hello to all you soccer mums and dads out there!

This week has been a week full of football for me. First watching the world cup qualifiers on TV and thankfully England are now safely through - Croatia couldn't stop us this time - And, today I spent my time driving between 4 soccer pitches to proudly support my 2 eldest kids teams. They both got through to the finals which were decided on penalty shoot outs. Holly's team won and she scored one of the penalties so emotions were running high. We all rushed to catch the end of Jack's game just to see them lose on penalties so spirits were low, but not for long as they both had their league winners medals to collect, as did their Dad as team coach!!

I now have 3 weeks off until indoor soccer season begins!

RF34 from our 4fellas range

HOORAY for HENRY

2009-08-09T04:37:00.002+01:00

I can't stop smiling ... we found out this week that our range of quotations cards - APOSTROPHES - has been nominated as a finalist in the "Best Words and Sentiments" category in this year's Henries (the Oscars of the UK greeting card industry). We now have to wait until the 8th October when the winners will be announced at the Henries awards evening held in the glorious Royal Lancaster Hotel, London. Wish us luck!

NEW CARD RELEASE!

2009-08-09T04:02:00.002+01:00

Our new collection "SATIN" is finally here! I first designed this range back in April but it took a few drafts to get it absolutely right, and it was worth the wait. The 15 cards in this collection combine colourful pattern and text with a touch of sparkle. Satin ribbons and pearlised envelopes complete the elegant look. We will be launching this product at Top Drawer Autumn, Earls Court, London and at the September shows our international distributors attend.

JUNE's BEST

2009-07-16T12:25:00.000+01:00

A little later than planned but here they are ... the top selling designs for June ... From the Apostrophes range E942 is up there again and is still a contender for July! RF16 and RF19 are new to the Bijoux line up so its great to see that they are doing so well so soon. Will try to post July's results a little quicker

Save our retailers - The 3/50 Project

2009-07-14T12:47:00.001+01:00

A few months ago I came across the 3/50 project, a great buy local concept created in March by Cinda Baxter a retail consultant from Minneapolis. The idea is simply to shop in three independently owned local businesses and spend a total of $50 a month in those businesses. The impact if the whole community gets behind this project would be huge. Plus if we help local retailers in this way more of that money spent returns to our community in business taxes and employment opportunities.

The independent retailers who stock my products are what keep my business afloat and in turn I want to see them supported so I've always tried to shop on our local main street, but now I'm making an extra effort. These stores sell different and unique products so you can STAND OUT from the crowd and at the same time STAND UP for your local retailers who are fighting through these tough economic times.

Wonderful world of OZ

2009-07-12T03:14:00.000+01:00

We first met David and Sue of Waterlyn Pty Ltd at the Spring Fair in Birmingham earlier this year. What a wonderful couple, impossible not to like and we are very excited that they are going to distribute Scarlett Greetings down under! We had a great response to our cards at the Sydney show a few weeks ago and they will be exhibiting at the Gift & Homewares event in Melbourne from the 1st - 5th August, so fingers crossed we will be a hit there too.

Check our their website www.waterlyn.com.au. Our cards can already be viewed under new products or by clicking on Scarlett Greetings in the greeting card index.

MAY TOP SELLERS

2009-06-14T13:25:00.007+01:00

In these tough economic times I know how important it is to fill your shelves with stock that will sell through quickly. So I thought it would help to go through our sales figures and identify our best selling cards. I've been meaning to do this for a while now, (sorry for the delay) but now I'm on it I plan to post the top selling designs each month. I'd love to hear from any of our retailers out there with you're favourites too!

From our sparkly Bijoux range - RF942 - wedding car

Graphic 4Fellas range - RF39 - Guitar

Handmade Apostrophes range - E942 - You'll always be my friend you know too much & E866A - I'm not overweight I am chocolate enriched!

MORE BIJOUX!

2009-05-31T19:55:00.005+01:00

For the stylish & sophisticated girl in all of us, we've added to our greeting card collection, BiJOUX. These 8 new designs are printed on our quality FSC accredited board with glitter and diamantes adding that extra sparkle. The new card images, include yoga, champagne, cupcakes, dresses, a vespa and even a campervan in honour of my friends' van which is kitted out in Cath Kidston chic - as yet I'm still waiting to be invited out for a picnic in her!! I'll be posting the new cards on our website soon, but for now to check out the Bijoux collection go to our website www.scarlettgreetings.com or click on the title of this blog entry.

NEW YORK NEW YORK!

2009-05-23T02:52:00.003+01:00

Unfortunately I missed the Stationery Show this year, so was not able to meet with all of the wonderful retailers (both old and new) who stock our cards in the US. My mother usually makes the trip from England to Canada to take care of her grandchildren but couldn't make it and with 4 of the little darlings no one else was offering to step in!!

Not to worry, we were represented very well by our US Distributor, Notes and Queries, and the feedback is that the show was a success. Our lines were a big hit, the most popular being our Apostrophes, Japonica and Bijoux collections.

A huge thank you to all who visited their booth and a special thanks to Alan, Vanessa and the Notes and Queries team for representing us so well at the show.

If you are a retailer in the US and would like to stock our card line please take a look at Notes & Queries website: www.nandq.com

BONJOUR SCARLETT!!

2009-04-14T13:03:00.002+01:00

Our relationship with our French distributor, Patchwork-cartes, may be a new one (we only signed with them in Jan 09) but already its proving to be an amazingly successful one. We initially translated 16 cards from our Apostrophes and Japonica ranges into French, (with their help as I'm ashamed to say the little French I learnt in school has long been forgotten) and are now adding an extra seven. Thank you Veronique and Caroline and to all the team at Patchwork for all your support and ideas. If you are a retailer in France please check out their website www.patchwork-cartes.fr. I'll be adding the complete French collection to our website soon but for now here's a sneak peak!

GREETING CARD DISPLAYS FOR GIFT SHOPS

2009-03-31T04:48:00.003+01:00

Greeting cards are considered by many to be recession-proof and including them in your store is a great way to maximize your profits as they take up little space for a relatively small financial outlay. Boost your card sales by displaying them in different ways - here are a few ideas:-

1. Customers often pick up a card while waiting to pay, so include a small display by the cash register - even consider showcasing a "Card of the Month" on the counter.

2. Group cards by colour to create an eye-catching display to entice customers in through your door.

3. Instead of using the traditional wire spinners find more unique pieces to display cards on, for example inside a vintage suitcase, or wooden crate. Use a wire and clip umbrella stand normally used for displaying photos (see images posted here, available from Umbra).

4. Make use of unused wall space by adding shallow shelves, or display the cards on a magnet board or on a makeshift laundry line with pegs.

5. Group a few greeting cards with your gifts to promote sales.

MADE IN BRITAIN!

2009-03-11T03:58:00.001Z

Even though I love living in Canada, with its breathtaking landscapes and eclectic mix of people, I am still British at heart and very proud to be so. With so many more greeting card publishers in Britain compared to Canada, the choice and quality of suppliers is beyond compare, and so we have moved the production of our printed ranges across the atlantic. Our first cards to roll of the press in Nottingham are the Bijoux range, and we can't wait to get our hands on them next week!

CHRISTMAS CHEER!

2009-02-26T04:17:00.000Z

I certainly let out one big cheer this morning when we finished sending out our Christmas 2009 samples to agents and distributors around the globe . We are in the middle of another snowstorm here in Toronto so its looks a lot like christmas outside the office and will do for at least another month, but inside, we can start on some fresh, new designs.

If you would like to receive a copy of our Christmas card brochure please contact adam@scarlettgreetings.com

CARD COLLECTION 2009

2009-02-20T09:13:00.004Z

Our new 2009 brochure is now available, featuring all of our current greeting card collections.
If you would like to receive a copy please call on 0845 8800678
or email adam@scarlettgreetings.com and we will pop one in the post.

NORFOLK HOSPITALITY

2009-02-10T08:52:00.003Z

Holkham Hall, Norfolk
This elizabethan manor is home to the Earl of Leicester, and looks like it came
right out of the pages of a Jane Austen novel.

Colourful beach huts line the shore at Wells-Next-the-Sea, Norfolk. Great inspiration!!

After the show I visited friends in Norfolk. Jill and her husband Gary run an elegant georgian B&B called The Normans in Wells-Next-the-Sea. Check out the website www.thenormansatwells.co.uk. Its a wonderful place to spend a weekend, great walks, a stunning beach and welcoming pubs!! What more could you ask for to wind down after a very busy week at Spring Fair.

SPRING FAIR?

2009-02-07T07:45:00.003Z

Two of our greeting cards were made up as table covers in the Greetings Cafe, Hall 3
What an interesting idea and maybe one we can use for our booth next year!
(Although they did get our details wrong on one of the tables, but no one is perfect!)

Here is a photo of our booth ... small but perfectly formed!

Wow what a week!! I've just got back from the Spring Fair in Birmingham, although Winter would have been a better adjective to use!! The snow didn't stop us though, just slowed us down a bit. We had a great show, met lots of new customers and existing ones who were very complimentary about our cards. Thank you for coming to see us and it was lovely to meet you all.
Our handmade range of uplifting and funny quotes was very popular. We added 16 new designs to this greeting card range which kept people laughing as they walked around our booth.

WE'VE GOT THE KNACK!

2009-01-22T05:14:00.003Z

WE'VE GOT THE KNACK!

Stephanie Dickinson is a talented toronto journalist who contributes to many publications, both locally and internationally. She blogged about our cards today at http://gottheknack.blogspot.com. Thank you Stephanie!

You can check out her blog to find out what's new or what's hot and anything else that excites the senses!

"APOSTROPHES" EXPAND

2009-01-15T20:10:00.007Z

"APOSTROPHES" EXPAND

We've added to our extremely popular line of quotes with 16 new designs, featuring as before
stitched accents and colourful die cuts.

The whole range will be unveiled at Spring Fair 2009 but here are a few images.

LADIES WHO LAUNCH

2009-01-09T16:21:00.007Z

LADIES WHO LAUNCH

A huge Thank You to Greetings Today for publishing an amazing article about
us in their January 2009 issue.

If you have a copy of the magazine its on page 38, please take a look...

CATITUDES Tm

2009-01-05T15:26:00.006Z

CATITUDES Tm

We are very excited to be launching a new greetings card line from Marilyn Robertson Publishing at Spring Fair 2009 (Hall 3, Stand S32).

This range of 12, features the funky and characterful "cats with attitude" from the best selling trademarked CATITUDES collection by artist Marilyn Robertson. Her felines already appear on many other products including a ceramic mug & coaster boxed set from Pimpernel who can be found at the Spring Fair too. (Hall 2, Stand B29/C30). We look forward to introducing these fantastic felines to you at Birmingham.

TORQUAY GIFT FAIR

2008-12-16T03:00:00.001Z

TORQUAY GIFT FAIR

With the New Year fast approaching (where did 2008 go?) you will want to find fresh products for your loyal customers and entice those new ones in! The Torquay Gift Fair is the first major gift event of the year held 11-14 January at Riviera Centre, Torquay. Our wonderful South West Agent, Vanessa Brickman will be showcasing our latest fabulous designs and if you are attending please visit her at Booth F100 and be the first in the queue for our new products.
www.torquayfair.co.uk

I'M DREAMING OF A GREEN CHRISTMAS

2008-12-12T11:35:00.002Z

I'M DREAMING OF A GREEN CHRISTMAS

I was asked recently by S.O.S Together Inc (a Company founded in Canada to help inspire people to improve the effects of their footprint on the livelihood of our enviroment) to submit an article for their Winter
newsletter. Check out the link here.

www.sostogether.com

WE'RE TURNING JAPANESE!!

2008-12-10T03:04:00.005Z

WE'RE TURNING JAPANESE!!

I love the colour and patterns of japanese chiyogami papers and use them quite a bit in my designs. JAPONICA is an everyday collection of handmade cards featuring die-cuts of this beautiful paper. We are very lucky to have The Japanese Paper Place just around the corner which carries an extensive collection of Washi papers and supplies us with constant inspiration, www.japanesepaperplace.com. Come and visit us at the Spring Fair, NEC Birmingham to see the complete line. Hall 3, Stand S32

LOU LOU loves us!

2008-12-05T03:10:00.009Z

LOU LOU loves us!

One of our suppliers called this morning to let us know we'd been featured in the Toronto based fashion mag LOU LOU's holiday shopping guide in their 'celebrate hot right now' pages. What a great start to the weekend. I was so excited to see it, I rushed out and bought a copy! Thank you LOU LOU.

BLOOM'N GORGEOUS

2008-12-02T02:36:00.007Z

BLOOM'N GORGEOUS

Our new card line BLOOMS arrived from the printers yesterday and the colours are wonderful, striking actually! They will definitely create an eye-catching display in any store.

We are busy attaching the ribbon greetings and they will be available to ship out soon. The 8 everyday cards are individually cello-wrapped with an ivory pearlised envelope in compostible bags.