Roundup of Favorites, 004: I've Been Into Metallics Lately

In April I marveled at the quantities of gold-hued business cards available in the Zazzle marketplace and shared some fun examples in this blog post.

Recently, without really thinking about that long-ago discovery, I've once-again been enjoying the process of working with faux metallic textures. Particularly where little packs of cards are concerned. Turns out I like them rather a lot. Today I thought I'd share some links here to a few of the recent favorite designs I've posted in my Paper Muserie Zazzle store. And the other thing they have in common? They're all printed on little cards typically distributed as business cards but, as we know from when I shared this post, this is fortunately a typical practice but certainly not a rule! Thank goodness. There are enough rules running around keeping people in order, without mandating that Business Cards Must Be For Business! Of course some of these ARE for business. But take a look at how many options are available just in this small selection:

As you see, the "lowly business card" is truly quite versatile! I've created the above with a variety of intentions. Pictured here are actual business cards for traditional use, drink tickets for parties and wedding receptions, and Save the Date card inserts, for folks who prefer a little handout to the larger, more traditional option. You also see wedding website detail card enclosures and little thank you gift tags.

On any given day, one of the metallic treatments I've used above is my favorite. Of course four bases are covered: gold, silver, rose gold and copper. I love combining a smooth faux copper foil effect with black marble as you see in the wedding website on the last row. It's also fun to add a glitter effect, such as you see both in the background of the silver drink ticket on the second row and in text, as I've used in the gold glitter-enhanced one beside it. The Save the Date card on the left of the bottom row has a more textured, traditional gold foil leaf effect and there's plenty of texture in those letters.

I'd be remiss if I didn't mention the rose gold-enhanced faux marbling I added to the texture seen in the background of the third business card on the top row. Marble surfaces are very trendy and I thought it would be fun to see what resulted if I added color like this to one of those marbled textures that looks more liquid than stone. Here's just one of the results. More are in the store and still others are on their way!

Whatever your need, if you're into metallic surfaces and like to have handy little business, enclosure or gift cards to hand out as you go your way, these are definitely worth your consideration. I can't wait to see what comes from my next design sessions when I get to work with metallic surfaces again!

For those who are truly curious, here's a direct link to all the business card-based designs in my Paper Muserie store right now.

Zazzle Design Efforts Have Been in High Gear And I Want to Tell You About Them

So then I took The Whole Summer Off, Plus A Few Other Months For Good Measure. Today I'm resuming where I left off attempting to chronicle some of the journey with you here. I've been known to have some challenges with balance but I'm not going to belabor the point of how I should have been marketing all along, even while creating more designs. Instead, I'll tell you that I've learned so much this year, and am as excited as I ever was to have discovered Print on Demand (POD) as a creative outlet that also offers the potential for generating income. Before I move on, I'll show you some of the products I've designed that people have recently purchased. In no particular order:

I'll share even more at the bottom of the page. Since it's daunting to try and fill you in on All That Happened While I Wasn't Maintaining This Site, why don't I dip my toe back in the blogging waters with a few highlights instead?

  1. I streamlined my efforts and, through mountains of trial-and-error, plus countless hours of research, started learning how to create strategies for what I want to spend my time designing. I'm not locked into the strategies, but they're certainly helping.
  2. My last blog post tells you about one weekend in May when I designed nothing but postage stamps with the word "Love" on them. Somebody bought a bunch of one of those designs just yesterday, in fact! I'm still designing postage. It could be a little outrageous, the disproportionate amount of time I've poured into these designs. For some reason, that product has really captured my attention and I continue to be thrilled that I'm able to design my own postage stamps and also postage for other people's special occasions.
  3. Speaking of US Postage Stamps, this is the single product I've chosen to design that requires approval before the products are visible in my store. Months ago I also designed a few Zippo lighters which required approval as well. But I've since opted not to continue down that road. Postage, though? Oh yes. The ideas seem endless and I have much more to tell you, on that front, in upcoming posts here.
  4. Paper products, in general, have gotten much more of my recent design attention than the gift products I spent the first few months of the year designing. I love that I have the option to do either one, on any given day. This mood-driven creative loves Zazzle.
  5. It's been tricky to sort out my preferences where setting royalties is concerned. I'm feeling much more confident choosing the percentage for various products and these days I find myself going back to adjust royalties on pieces I designed in the first few months. Sometimes I go down; usually I go up.

If things go according to plan, I'll be blogging here even more in the coming days, so I'll wrap this up for now. I look forward to sharing some new designs with you as well as elaborating on some of the lessons I've learned while designing through Zazzle. They seem never to stop coming, and many of them, I suspect, are worth putting out there for interested others to find one day, too. For now, I hope you're enjoying some sort of creative endeavor for yourself!

Cheers!

Melody

That time I spent most of my weekend designing postage stamps with the word "love" on them

When I discovered that you could design your own US postage stamps (see here and here for my own, in two different stores) and people would actually buy them, I was gobsmacked. And that's not even a word I use! But I was... to consider that a self-taught designer could create an image and submit it for approval to someone who has the authority to accept or decline my submission so that, in time, people might use my work on their mailings? Just a very cool thing in my book.

So one day recently, I was deciding which font I wanted to use in a new wedding invitation-themed set I was about to start work on. My eye hit on the simple word "Love" in the string of test words and phrases I'd typed for consideration. I realized that while certain typefaces in the collection might not work all that well for the purpose I'd had in mind, they sure did look nice with the word "love" on them!

When I remembered a recent discovery from one of my Zazzle sales reports, that postage stamps were a proportionally-somewhat-high hitter for me - I opened my first Zazzle store 5 months ago this weekend, and as of this writing, the company has sold 24 sheets of stamps with my designs on them - I started considering the possibilities. Not only could people planning weddings use stamps with the word "love" on them, but other people could too! I mean, not to mention Valentine's Day and other holidays and special events geared toward sharing love, we have our own personal special occasions, too! Sure, you wouldn't want to pay the premium prices charged for custom stamps, for paying your bills. But the price is apparently worth it to a lot of people, for those celebratory times we like to celebrate!

And so I started designing stamps that featured the word "love" and I got a little crazy. Which is to say I could not stop myself. Some of them just had the word. Others of them had a template place holder for a special date, still others had a spot for a bride and groom's names. Some had both. Still others had a gold glitter badge and yet others had a gold glitter (faux, glitter effect - these are all paper, folks,) heart in the middle! But what about white on a solid color? Or on a watercolor wash background that has been so popular for these wedding-themed items from folks who like this particular look?!

You can order stamps from Zazzle in small, medium, and large. They come in vertical or horizontal. And they come in different price points, so you can plan for using them for standard envelopes, or postcards, or even oversized card mailings.

Regardless of the use, the options are ideal, and I went at this project as if it were a serious charge. OHHH the options.

Eventually I had to stop. (For the time being, that is!) I mean... how many typography postage stamps with a single (albeit important) word does one woman need in her collection? Ahem. I have more than 100. All were approved within a few days (this product option is not instant, as most products are in the Zazzle marketplace,) and I continue to be happy I took that time to design these.

Coming up, I'll modify some of the designs you see here for use with some of my newer wedding invitation design suites. Because matching stamps, too, turn out to be quite a biggie. (Example: though they don't say "love", this set has sold 6 times and 3 sheets of these have sold so far.)

There are days on this still-new path that the whole thing grows daunting and my head spins at the numbers of other designers whose work my ideas are up against. I took a peek just now and saw that as of today there are over 700,000 unique postage stamp designs in the Zazzle marketplace. Is it any wonder, then, that it takes so much effort to get some quality traction with a brand new print on demand store?!

And so today I'm celebrating my tenacious personality and my love of fonts. And the way the word "love" looks in just a very few of those fonts. Stay tuned... you never know when I might be ready to give it another go and try my hand at even more of these! Meanwhile if you need some pretty stamps that commemorate a big special date of your own, check out my Love stamps. You'll find quite a few to choose from!

Merchandise Printed with My Art Inspired by the Zentangle® Method of Pattern Drawing

A while back, one of my girlfriends was battling for her life in the hospital when other friends decided to put together a benefit event to raise money to help with her support. While it's nice to be able to make monetary donations, which so many of us did, I also wanted to try something different to show my support. This event was being planned during a phase when I was drawing little Zentangle® tiles nearly every day, and I was happy with the progress I was making in being able to successfully render some of the trickier patterns. I decided I would create a large piece of artwork based on these patterns, frame it, and donate it to the auction. And this is what I did! Boom. It turned out that this was the most complex piece I have ever attempted thus-far, and since it was gone from my sight so quickly, I wanted to have some products printed with the images I shot of it when it was finished. Now that I'm enjoying my print on demand work so much, I decided to create a few items that are printed with these and other "Zentangle® Inspired Art" designs I've created and have them available for others to purchase, too.

I drink out of a mug printed with part of this design almost every day. Last night I ordered a tote bag printed with the patterns, so I can enjoy carrying it this spring. There are also postage stamps and phone cases with this and other doodle art pieces I've created, too, just for fun. This page allows me to share them with you and I also want to make sure anyone reading this who is interested in learning more can access all the information they need to access resources for learning this fun way of drawing. I'll continue to explain more on this front below the images. Before you read on, check them out!

Balancing Originality and The Methodology of Others

It can be tricky to venture forward in a creative direction that blends diverse goals and designs when at least one of them involves a trademarked name. So I will tell you a bit about the artwork style in my banner and the images seen in my product links. If you're intrigued, perhaps you'll check them out and give it a try for yourself!

In spite of having been a lifelong "doodler" who added patterns to shoes and pants and all manner of paper products... for as long as I can remember, my efforts on that front changed considerably when I discovered the Zentangle® Method of Pattern Drawing. In spite of the fact that, when I was excited enough to show others - my family especially - and kept hearing, "You've always done this!" this style of drawing IS different from what I'd ever tried before. It combined my need for spontaneous, creative freedom with a methodology that made the organic flow much more forward-moving. Although I'd been passively aware that it existed for several years, a couple of summers ago I bought a book and started learning what I could from it. Fascinating. These folks, Maria Thomas and Rick Roberts combined her illustrative work with his meditative practices and came up with a structured way to combine pre-designed patterns (called "tangles") into freestyle lines (outlined in pencil and called "strings") to create truly unique works of art. As best I can explain it, they established some structure and form to what creative people have always done, and created something phenomenal out of it. They built the linear process that anyone can learn, they sell products, they even offer annual workshops to train people to become certified instructors. Should someone desire to become certified to teach others. Rick and Maria have anchored so many of the "zen doodle" activities of so many of us into something that has a framework. And for that I am appreciative. Here is Zentangle Dot Com for those of you who are looking. You'll find a lot of beautiful things there.

The hundreds of patterns both they and practitioners of the art form, both certified and not, have developed are incredible and great fun to work with. I go through phases in which I want to "tangle" every day. And at other times, I let those habits slide in lieu of choosing to journal for a half hour in the morning or spend that time on my yoga mat. One day perhaps I'll make time for all three! I know it's very doable. I just haven't carved out a morning routine that incorporates all three.

At any rate, using a trademarked name on Zazzle, who produces the items I'm showing you, is not permitted. "Zendoodle," then, seems to have become the accepted term for use. I also use "ZIA" as well, since it's short for "Zentangle® Inspired Art", which is what this is. Whatever you call it, just writing about this has triggered some huge impulses in me to create even more of this artwork. Maybe that will spur me on to launch this site so I can resume working that practice into my creative rhythms. And in the meantime, perhaps I've encouraged someone else to give Zentangle® a try!

Bonus Links

An Abstract Based on Freehand Black Circles with Purples, Blues and Grays: An Early Wacom Experiment

When I created this design last October, I called it "On Good Authority." Today, I have no idea why I called it that, and I suppose it doesn't matter so much, either. Regardless of what it's called, looking at it still pleases me: I often carry a tote bag printed by Zazzle with the pattern that gives me lots of smiles, and compliments from strangers, too.

Hundreds of circles (I've never counted but it took forever and a day,) were drawn by the stylus on the surface of my Wacom tablet. It had been a brand new gift from my sweetie, and I wanted to do something with it that didn't give me monumental amounts of pressure. Or remind me of the truly mind-boggling drawings other "real artist" can render when they use them. Yes. It's an inner critique that happens off and on, and perhaps it always will be. For whatever reason, that night I was able to let go of the criticisms and really have fun with it. I drew all these circles and then I added color in Photoshop. After that came the textures.

The end result always reminds me a little of what might happen if a starry constellation and a bed of river rocks had a baby. Impossible, but then again, what isn't possible in the world of the creative mind? We just go with it and find joy.

This pattern was placed on more than 75 items available for purchase so far and I suspect I'll create even more, over time. As I get better at figuring out how this print on demand business even works. Nearly 4 months into my Zazzle exploration, I'm still learning new things daily. This creation seems to pop up from time to time when I want to try something new. And? I enjoy the colors and textures so much that for the time being, I've been using it as the banner art in my Printed Muserie Zazzle Store. Huh; apparently I do like it. Perhaps you will, also! Check it out...

Using "Business Card Technology" for RAOK and Other Uplifting Purposes

It occurred to me one day a few years ago that the tiny size of business cards could be really handy for other things. Soon thereafter, I created a truly unique gift for my honey, using the impressive "Printfinity" technology offered by Moo to create a collection of 100 one-of-a-kind cards.

These days I've been creating a slightly different kind of card. Blank-on-the-back business cards through Zazzle. Getting ready to place an order for a pack for myself, it occurred to me that I should write a little something about it here on this site, too.

You can use these notes to write a simple, heartfelt message on the back and:

  • Surprise your honey with a note tucked into his pocket,
  • Tell your kids you love them when they open their lunch box at school,
  • Share a pick-me-up with a co-worker by leaving a note on their desk,
  • Participate in the "ROAK" movement by leaving a card in a public place for a stranger.
  • Write a note as a gift tag then include it with your wrapped or bagged present,

I'd be interested to hear how other people use these cards. Until then, check out my growing collection of wee blank-on-back cards through Zazzle. Some of them are set up so that you can add just your name, using the template settings. Others allow you to change the message entirely. (You CAN change the message of my cards, either way - just click the "Customize" button Zazzle provides in their setup. Sometimes I use their template system just to make it extra easy for you to change the text fields. You decide how DIY-friendly a card's design is for you.)

Roundup of Favorites 003: Really Digging these Products Today - My Designs

In keeping with the growing tradition of showing what I'm in love with on a random day in this blog, I really dig these designs today. Maybe you'll like them too! You can click the images of the photos to be taken to the shop where they're available for purchase. Lower in the page I've written little blurbs about each; you'll find links there too.

A Few Notes About the Merchandise in this Group

  1. This postcard features a digital art design I created on the fly a few nights ago. The worst part is that I made a really novice mistake and wrote over the file with another design. So I don't have the original artwork on my computer. I can design hundreds - maybe thousands - of different products with this design using Zazzle, but right now, not through anyone else. Why does that bother me so much? a) Mild OCD tendencies, b) I really want this design on a kimono wrap from Art of Where. One day I'm sure I'll cave and see what Zazzle can do to help me get my hands on the high resolution version of the art. For now, I'll just buy some postcards like these to keep it fresh in my mind.
  2. A mug with the same artwork as the postcard. I have several of my designs printed on mugs but don't think I won't eventually cave and get this one, too. Because pretty!
  3. Maybe you have some friends turning 50 soon? This coozie is a fun gift or party favor for the Fifty & Fabulous party!
  4. Last year my honey bought me a sweet little Wacom tablet to try out and see what I could do. This postage stamp is printed with the results of one of the earlier things I did with it. All the circles make me happy. I always think what if river rocks and constellations had a baby.
  5. Another of the tiny, square notes I design on business cards, this one says Thank You on the front. It features a rich pink watercolor background with a subtle, organic mandala over it. I wrote more about a set of these over here.
  6. Somehow this specific design of leggings - out of something like 69 pairs in my Zazzle store alone - became one of two that ended up on the right radar. I've sold 3 pairs of this one. In fact it's one of two different pairs that keeps showing up in my list of royalties. Fun and whimsical and simple. Thank you to those buyers!
  7. Another of the friendly cards for leaving notes. This one has a purple and blue abstract watercolor background.
  8. I kept running into merchandise that said "I am silently correcting your grammar" and one day after a friend who is also a client and I had talked and I'd explained something to her having to do with an improved way to word something on her forthcoming blog post, I realized the original phrase really bugged me. I added the thought of morning snark without coffee and came up with this: "I am not silently correcting your grammar. I just need more coffee and then I'll explain how you need to fix it." The phrase and the design printed on this mug, specifically, made me much happier than the original and my clientfriend who happens to have dyslexia agreed with me. The first sentiment isn't at all friendly, but this one works brilliantly! Yay English majors!

Roundup of Favorites 001: A Random Smattering of My Designs that I Love Right Now

One of the ways I've decided to promote my print on demand designs with this new site is to start a thread of posts that features some of my favorite designs. A Roundup of Favorites, if you will. This set features my own designs. Down the line, I suspect other roundups will include designs of others. But I designed these and I'm pulling from a fairly recent set of things that please me. (Nearly everything is my favorite when I push that "publish" button, so this series shouldn't be any trouble to flesh out.)
So. The Favorites, Already?

Here they are. Things I kinda dig today and if I had a need to buy a custom gift for you or someone else just as cool as you are, these are the things I would consider putting on my shopping list! Yay you and that other cool person on my shopping list!

A Bit About the Items in This List

  1. This grungy, messy, abstract artsy luggage tag can be updated with your own name.
  2. This black phone case has 3 circular designs that can be positioned wherever you like, and you can add your name instead of the place holder text.
  3. Quirky black and white leggings.
  4. The pair beside the first ones features the same pattern, with an added bonus. It has a black ombre/gradient image over the top that fades away to reveal the pattern below. You can re-position the overlay to reveal or hide as much as you like.
  5. Also for your workouts, this shirt has a graphic on the front and back that reads "commence with the badassery" which is a phrase that first occurred to me years ago when I was designing a card for a friend about to run the Boston Marathon. Because Boston Marathon: Utter Badassery. But you don't have to run marathons to be worthy of this shirt. (Or all the other styles and colors you could order, printed with this same design.)
  6. I like to surround myself with inspiring, positive messages. I also find that having something to read nearby that reminds me to get up and move around, to drink more water, to pull out my yoga mat - all manner of things - will help me remember to do it! So I designed this mouse pad with the option of adding your own motivating words and phrases. It appears over one of my messy, bold, bright graphic images but you can add your own if you'd like something a bit calmer. :)
  7. This water bottle is printed with a different black and white pattern. This time, just different sizes of black wheels with spokes. Kinda quirky. I do love some black and white patterns. More on that over here.
  8. Similar to the artwork seen on the leggings, and from the same series. These are the cutest tiny little speakers. They're printed front and back with our artwork. For this one, I rotated the design a bit for added visual appeal.