Holiday Season is upon us!

I honestly think time has sped up. I am still floundering back in September somewhere. Even the days feel short now and the months whiz by. I am so happy I didn't procrastinate this year and our tree and decorations went up on the day after Thanksgiving. That is a record for us! Each year for the past 8 years or so we've been piece-mealing it together so that we finally have all decorations and such complete about the day before Christmas. So this year, I made a huge effort to make sure we got it done. Even my shopping is done! Not wrapped yet but done!

I play Christmas carols every minute of every day until Christmas because it still feels like Christmas in July for me here in Florida.

I am starting to work on the teachers' gifts (we have 9 teachers because the kids go to a charter school and work in groups with several different teachers each). It's hard to find something nice to make or buy for teachers. But I'm working on something! Last year I did personalized stationery for each one - calligraphed and gocco printed. So this year I'll have to come up with something different. Maybe a Zenspirations monogram?

I just completed my 2nd American Greetings design yesterday. Ugh! It was like pulling teeth. It was a combination of monoline and slight thick and thins. Since I am not polished at brush lettering, I tried it with several different tools. But patience and perseverence paid off as I finally was able to do something which they liked. I used a straight fountain pen. It was frustrating at times but I loved the process and I am learning sooo much with every design.

I suppose it looks kind of stark without the design but thought I'd post anyway just to help your curiousity. :-)

Thanks for visiting!

Erica

My first American Greetings job

I just completed my first gig for American Greetings. I am thrilled to be doing freelance for one of the top greeting card companies in the world! It was a great learning experience and just this one job has improved my "contemporary" lettering already.

It's slightly embarrassing to admit my first attempts were less than stellar. But the senior lettering designer was so patient and extremely helpful. His direction was excellent and I was able to accomplish what he was looking for. PHEW!

This is straight lettering - no illustration or card design - so it is done in black and white. Hard to imagine these two lines took me well over a 40 hour work week, 6 nibs, a full jar of McCaffery's, and two reams of paper! But the practice will certainly help in getting my style up to speed.

So here it is ... look for it in a major retailer near you next Father's Day!