Watercolor Wedding Invitation Suite

Hi lovelies!  It’s been a while since I have posted but believe me when I say I have a good reason.  I just had my second baby!  So, naturally, I’ve been in newborn heaven and took a moment to step back and relax.  Things with me and the family are wonderful but now I feel its time to get back to “normal” and share some goodies with you all.  In the coming weeks I will have lots of new updates and freebies for all of my awesome readers so be sure to check back often.  And if you haven’t already, please subscribe to my blog so you can be notified when new posts are up!

A few weeks ago I worked on this gorgeous wedding invitation suite for a lovely couple from Texas.  This particular set was made for a styled shoot that was photographed by my incredibly talented friend Joyce of Joyce Tong Photography.  She took the most beautiful images of the suite and I just have to share it!  Now, this was my first time incorporating watercolors into a design so naturally I was a little nervous.  However, I was really happy with how it all came out.  I am thinking of adding this style to my Etsy shop in case any other lovely couples out there would like something like this.  Of course, I really love custom work so there’s always room for adding your own flair to it!  Let me know in the comments below if you think I should add this to the shop.  In the meantime, here are the lovely shots to delight your eyes.

Have a great day!

xo

Liz

Floral Envelope Art Tutorial

I absolutely love getting mail!  Not your run of the mill bills, notices, and spam, but actual real cards and letters.  Granted, with email, evites, and ecards the need to send hard mail has really decreased.  However, there is something to be said for sending and receiving something that has been carefully picked and made out to you or whomever you are sending it to.  It’s that human touch, that connection to one another that seems to get lost in the shuffle of daily life and our “digitally connected” worlds.

For those of you that follow me on Instagram, you will know that my sister was recently very ill and in the hospital.  I received countless words of encouragement and prayers for her and clearly it worked because now she is home and (slowly) recovering!  Unfortunately I am a state away from her and while we text, snapchat, FB, facetime, and call on the daily, I wanted to make her something special so she new that she is always on my mind.  With that said, I thought it would be a perfect opportunity to create a tutorial for you all!  This floral envelope art is so stunning and eye catching that it will surely wow anyone that receives it.  I have broken down the steps below so you can replicate this on your own in simple steps.  Take a look and try it out!

Watercolor Thank You Cards

Hi lovelies!  Sorry its been a minute since I’ve posted but things here have been a little hectic.  Anyways, I wanted to quickly show you these beautiful custom watercolor thank you cards that I worked on for a client recently.  I had listed place cards in this style recently on my Etsy shop and this person absolutely loved the design and asked that I make thank you card versions of them.  How could I not!?  Sounded like a great project and I am a huge fan of the Thank You card.  Perhaps its because I’ve gone through many milestone moments in life that usually bring gifts and support.  Marriage, having a baby, son’s 1st birthday… these are all occasions that call for thank you cards.  Lots and lots and lots of thank you cards.  Fortunately for me, I absolutely love to write letters to people and what better way to practice your calligraphy than to hand letter dozens of cards?  I typically buy my cards because I need so many, however now that I’m big in this lettering game I decided that this will now be something that I personalize even further.  I mean who wouldn’t love that?

For this particular set, my client wanted to thank various friends for helping her out with a wedding.  So, each card was hand watercolored and hand calligraphed with each person’s name.  She was including them in a gift so it added that perfect extra personal touch.  I really love how these came out.  They are simple, elegant, and beautiful.  The blue is romantic but not too feminine so it can be used for men or women.  And the font is totally customizable.  We went with a more modern formal style here but I would love to see them in a dramatic flourish or even a playful whimsical style.  Each card was also hand cut and folded by me.  Lots of love and lots of time went into these and I couldn’t be happier with the outcome!  Let me know what you guys think about these?  Listed them on my Etsy shop too 🙂

I love packaging!

Have a great day!

xo

Liz

Dip Pen Calligraphy Worksheets… Yay or Nay?

Hi everyone!  Hope you’re all having a great day.  I just wanted to post a little quickie to get your opinion on something.  This past week my sister was in town and she wanted to get a lesson in calligraphy.  At first we were doing random strokes but we quickly realized that she could learn faster and better by trying out the letters themselves.  So, I decided to make her a worksheet with the lowercase alphabet.  Each letter was written out and then next to it would be the various strokes broken down to show how they all come together to form a letter.  Then I thought to myself… why not make these for other people?  I find them to be super helpful and clear.  So, I’m sure others would feel the same!  I could provide PDF files and list them on my Etsy site (for a small fee) so anyone could learn from the comfort of their own home and print out as many copies as they like.  So what are your thoughts… yay or nay?  Do you think anyone would be interested in something like this?

Thanks for your feedback!  Have an awesome day

xo

Liz

It’s GIVEAWAY Time!

Woo Hoo!  I can’t believe it but I’ve hit a personal milestone on my Instagram account!  300 followers!  Eeek!

Ok ok I know 300 itsn’t earth shattering but when I started this it wasn’t with anything in mind other than to share my love of hand lettering and calligraphy and have a place where I can see my growth and development.  Over time, I have come to realize that there is such an incredible community of artists out there.  A community of supportive, encouraging, and positive people who love to cheer each other on.  I truly appreciate each and every person that follows me and takes time out of their day to like or comment on one of my photos.  It has even lead to a few sales!  Over time, I hope to further develop this community and these friendships.  I also, hope to establish myself as a legitimate calligrapher with a successful business to help support my lovely little family.

However, that is not what today is about.  Today is about free goodies!  I have partnered with two amazing shops to bring you my first ever giveaway!  Paige Tate & Co is known for making the most beautiful adult coloring books you’ll ever see.  They are inspiring, gorgeous, and feature tear out pages so you can display your lovely works of art throughout your home!  They have graciously given me a Premium Edition Beauty in the Bible coloring book to share with one lucky winner.  I have also partnered with the super cute and adorable Hello Awesome shop.  She sells mugs, boards, and artwork with her bright, happy and cheeky sayings lettered on them.  If you haven’t seen her stuff, I highly recommend you hop over now!  Jacy was kind enough to provide three inspiring and beautiful handmade prints.  And lastly, I will be giving away a beautiful floral Thank You card.  Hand lettered calligraphy, illustrated wreath design, and blank inside for your message.  It also comes with a matching envelope!

Head over to my Insta, find the attached photo and enter to win!  Good luck!

xo

Liz

A Little Taste of Watercolor

Lately I have been really enamored with the beautiful watercolor pieces I see online.  The soft hues just call out to me and make my heart sing!  I wanted to try my hand at this but before I spent the cash on a nice set of watercolors, I thought I would break out my Cretacolor Aqua Monolith woodless watercolor pencils and test the waters.  (pun intended 😉 )

Inspiration Roundup

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Hi there!  I just wanted to post a roundup of some of my most inspiring images from the calligraphy and hand lettering corner of the internet world.  I decided that I will be doing this weekly so if you find anything online or have created some of your own work that you want to share please feel free to send it my way!  In my opinion, creatives always need a little boost.  You sometimes hit slumps or roadblocks along the way and seeing new and fresh work really helps to invigorate and ignite the senses.  I’m hoping these strike your fancy as they did me.

Enjoy!

xo

Liz

@jeannettemokosch

@yolidoo

@kategerente

@its_laurenkennedy

@kileyinkentucky

 

Why I Write

I started this blog as a creative outlet for me.  I have always been fascinated by typography, art, doodling, pens, stationary, color, and design.  Even as a little girl, my favorite part about going back to school was shopping for school supplies!  I was that super giddy little girl walking around Target with her mom and a basket full of pencils, erasers, notebooks and caddies.  Fast forward to me now and I still find joy and excitement when it comes to opening that box that just arrived with fresh new brush markers or gel pens.  Discovering a new brand of office supplies to swoon over is a favorite pastime of mine.

Through this obsession of mine and the invention of Instagram and hastags, I have been able to open my eyes to a world of like minded people just as obsessed with hand lettering and drawing.   I have found my people!  They provide inspiration on a daily basis.  Whether I’m hitting a creative roadblock or just need to brighten my mood, I know that after scrolling through my feed I’ll find something that resonates with me.

So I suppose that brings me to the topic of today’s post.  Why do I write?  I write for myself!  I write to inspire.  I write to bring my creativity to the world of like minded creatives.  And that is also why I decided to start this blog.  While my Instagram account is my baby, sometimes you need to show more than just one photo with one caption.  I felt like I needed a place to further delve into the process behind my work and inspiration for it all.  I hope that I can build this blog to be a place for people to come and enjoy, relax, feel inspired and leave happy.

This brings me to my next point:  my goals!  When I sat down and really thought about what goals I have for this blog in the coming year, I really wanted to dig deep and see why it is that I started this and what I hope to gain from it.  Here’s what I have so far.  Granted, this might change over time, but I suppose its best to start somewhere and see where things go from there!

1. To establish a community of people who are engaged and excited about the content I am providing.  To have real relationships (even if they are online) with like minded people and creatives. This involves active dialogue and correspondence.
2. To establish myself as a go-to in calligraphy and hand lettering inspiration.  To be a major resource for those who are just getting started and those who just need a little boost. I want my name to be well known and recognized in this field.
3. To establish a business where I can use my skills for creating personalized works for weddings, parties, homes, and gifts.  I want to grow my Etsy shop and have a true business that I can call my own and sustain my family with.

So that’s where I am right now.  Let me know what you think!  I’d love to hear some feedback on anything… my Instagram, my tutorial, goals, it’s all fair game.

Thanks for stopping by!

xo

Liz