Ceramic Bird Bowl

Artist Elizabeth Prince has a lovely way with pottery. This is my particular favorite. It features the blue that I tend to use in my stationery. I love the simple rounded shape of the bird too. Please visit Ms. Prince's ETSY shop Prince Design UK. It's full of wonderful ceramic pieces! If you'd like to know more about the artist, please visit her blog: Gone to Pot.

Image owned by Prince Design UK

Winter color palette

I love these light pastel colors. They feel frosty, and snowy or as if they have sugar crystals all over them. Enjoy!

Holiday Decorations

I love decorating for the holidays. It's a great excuse to break out the glitter. I have a feeling I'll be unknowingly wearing glitter for the next few months! This is a shot of the tree in my "blue" room, it's definitely a blue Christmas.

New Typface

Aeronaut is a new neogothic typface designed by Georg Herold-Wildfellner. This face would be fun for a holiday card. I love the fact that you can do two-color combinations with the glyphs. You can read more about it here.

Architectural Salvage

If you're ever looking for creative inspiration, I recommend strolling through your local architectural salvage store. Recently my husband and I made a trip to the White river Architectural Salvage and Antiques store. This store is amazing. They have everything from a Jackson Five Christmas Album to a church confessional booth. You can visit their site here.

I love the architectural elements found outside the building. You just never know when you might need a bust of James Whitcomb.


I personally don't do animal heads, but the rhino just caught my eye as something unusual and the story that might go with it. Makes you wonder, what the interior of the house looked like that had this thing hanging on it's wall?!


They had amazing amounts of fixtures, from sinks, tubs, windows to doors. I loved looking at all the door knobs what an amazing display.


Here are a few more interesting items, bingo balls and a Jackson Five Christmas album.

My favorite thing of all was this clarinet. It was beautiful. My sister and I both played the clarinet in jr. high school, so it's a sentimental favorite too.

Happy Thanksgiving!

Just wanted to say how thankful I am for wonderful friends and family. I hope everyone has an enjoyable day with their loved ones.

Parents Magazine

Jilly Jack Designs is so excited to have been included in the Parents Magazine December 2009 issue's Gift Guide. Our Mod Series set in billboard wrap appears with other eco-chic products in their "tree hugger" solutions for gift giving. Be sure to visit Parents Magazine's goodyblog.com starting on December 1, 2009 to enter to win all the gifts from their guide.

Cordial Bloom

I just found this fantastic floral font, Cordial Bloom from Umbrella Type, on Veer. You have to go check it out. It's so fun and the colors they've put together in this sample are wonderful. There is a downloadable pdf specimen book with full instructions on how to use the font. I have a feeling I'll see this pop up on a ton of cards this year.

Fall Landscape

Nature is my ultimate inspiration. These shots were taken on a recent trip to the Brown County Indiana State Park. Indiana is pretty flat except for this area of the state. It's known for it's wonderful hiking paths and fall foliage. The colors are spectacular. The house we rented was on the side of a steep hill, we had to put the van in low gear and gun it to make it up. We all agreed this would not be fun in the winter. It was wonderful to be out in nature, the fresh air, color and wildlife from howling coyotes, cool green frogs to wild turkeys. Who knows, these things may show up in some cards some day.

Inspired by Sweets

Often people ask me how I come up with the ideas for my cards. And actually my artwork comes from everyday things. I like to depict them in bright, fun, simple designs. My work is very straight forward and to the point. Which is very much like my personality. Friendly, approachable and uncomplicated. When I brainstorm, I like to think about things either current or in the past that were enjoyable and that everyone can relate to. This is where the Sweet series of cards came from. They are the sweets that we loved as children, cupcakes, cake, ice cream cones, popsicles and lollipops created with simple shapes and bright colors with fun sayings from the past.

All images ©Jilly Jack Designs

New favorite Online Store

I found this awesome online store and couldn't wait to share it. Three Potato Four is wonderful for the collector in all of us. Especially those of us who are too busy to find these treasures ourselves. I absolutely adore the typewriters and the giant sign letters. This husband and wife team have a great eye for detail, which is no surprise since they both have a background in graphic design. Their is a wide range of products both old and new to please the collector in all of us.

Visit their shop here.

All images are owned by Three Potato Four.

Charlie Harper

Charley Harper (August 4, 1922-June 10, 2007) was a Cincinnati-based American Modernist artist. He was best known for his highly stylized wildlife prints, posters and book illustrations.

In a style he called “minimal realism”, Charley Harper captures the essence of his subjects with the fewest possible visual elements. See more of his artwork here.



Designer Todd Oldham produced a book of Charlie Harper's illustrations call Illustrated Life. This book is on my list of must haves, see it here.

All images copyright 2009 Estate of Charley Harper

Cap'n my Cap'n

Jonathan Adler's Utopia Cap'n & Stewardess Vases are charming and feel like the 70's to me. I love the captain especially, because I'm married to one. Although I notice the captain has an anchor on his hat, which may make him more suitable for navigating water than flying the friendly skys. Find them here.

Featured Artist

Dolan Geima is a wonderful mixed media artist. Depictions of rural America, country music and birds are reoccurring themes in his work. I enjoy the texture and deep colors that Geima achieves. My favorite are his construction pieces, especially this guitar. Stop by his website and check out this amazing artist.

All images are owned by Doman Geima, Inc.

Etsy Find

I found this wonderful handmade jewelry at Huismus's Shop on Etsy. I don't know which I prefer more, the jewelry or the photography. The photos are amazing and make we want to buy everything in this shop. Check it out here.

Featured Font

An oldie, but a goodie, Century Schoolbook is one of my favorite serif fonts. Sorry, but I'm a bit of a graphic design and typography geek. I love the uppercase and lowercase Qs. You don't get to use them very much. This font has the perfect balance of thick and thin and hard and soft contrast. It's a great all around, easy-to-read font. Read more about the font here.

Let the Wild Rumpus Begin!

Mark your calendars! The movie version of Where the Wild Things Are comes out October 16th. This was my favorite book growing up. I fell in love with Maurice Sendak's illustrations and then writing of children's books. My first taste was through the Little Bear books and then on to my favorite Where the Wild Things Are. These books inspired me to become an artist. My son now loves them as I did.

My only hope is that the movie lives up to my imagination of what the land of the wild things is really like. It looks promising. See the a trailer here.

Natascha S. Rosenberg

I love illustrator Natascha S. Rosenberg's light-hearted and whimsical style. She has fun with color and shape that is truly magical. Natascha is a freelance artist working on projects such as children's fiction and educational books. She was born in Munich and raised in Spain. She graduated from the University of Madrid with a degree in Law, then turned her aspirations towards drawing. Please visit her web site, shop and blog to find out more about this wonderful artist.

Please not all art and images are copyrighted by Natascha S. Rosenberg.

Fall Palette

Last night my son was asking me what my favorite color was. He thought it was funny that I couldn't pick just one. I explained that as an artist, I love all colors. They bring out feelings or a mood, add contrast to one another, etc. I thought it would be fun to create and share a fall color palette. Go to the site, colour lovers to see more color combinations or share your own.

Not your mother's wallpaper

Well, okay maybe it is. Drawflowers' Etsy shop consists of delightful and unexpected objects made with vintage vinyl wallpaper circa 1970. Check the shop out here.

All images owned by Drawflowers

Powerful Typography

I saw the Girl Effect video on Facebook and had to share it. Not only is this a wonderful cause, it's a wonderful use of type in a video. It's a great example of "less is more" and was created by Wieden+Kennedy.

Watch the video by going to this link. It makes me thankful to live in a country where I have rights to do as I choose.

I love getting color forecasting. This is Pantone's fashion color forecast for 2010. It's always interesting to see what fashion designers will pick as the new spring palette. Not to mention their lovely sketches. Check it out here and let me know if you agree with their choices.

Image and logos are all owned by Pantone.

Typographic History

I'm putting this book on my list of must haves. If you love typography, you'll want it as well. Nineteenth-Century American Designers and Engravers of Type. by William E. Loy (edited by Alastair M. Johnston and Stephen O. Saxe) is now available for purchase at Oak Knoll Press. The book not only looks at American typefaces during the nineteenth century, but profiles the designers behind them.

Paper Love

DALI DORÉ by Gruppo Cordenons is a felt-marked text and cover with an infused gold shimmer. The shimmer is achieved by millions of natural, tiny mica crystals in the coating. This sheet is acid-free and archival in quality. It has a thin, lined texture that runs parallel with the grain. It comes in 4 colors: Blumarino (dark blue), Rosso (red), Candiddo (cream), and Nero (black). The sparkle is amazing and even more dramatic on the darker colors. Love it and looking for an excuse to use it.

Feeling Sunny

It's a gloomy day here and I thought we might all benefit from some cheery yellow items.

1. Yellow leather notebook from Hermes. I love the vibrant intensity of the yellow and the texture is amazing.

2. Trollsta sideboard from Ikea. The juxtaposition of the clean lines and the ornate details around the bottom are what make this sideboard great. Not to mention the great Ikea price as well.

3. Bumble Bee Enamel Flower Ring - Black and Yellow from SpiderellaStudio's shop is fun and harkens back to the costume jewelry I used to play with in my mother and grandmother's jewelry boxes.

4. Pod no.2 10x8 print from the polaroidsandpinhole's etsy shop. It amazes me what artists can do with simple materials we often take advantage of or think are passé.

5. Whorled Trapunto Rug from Anthropologie. The rug has great organic yet graphic style and features pimpernel, mallow and anemone blooms.

All images are owned by their respective companies.

Stunning Sunset

I was looking through our photos from our 2007 holiday trip to Hawaii and came across this sunset picture. It seemed fitting for a late Friday night post. This image brought back a lot of great memories and the smell of the ocean and the feel of the warm breeze. It was a magical evening and a spectacular sunset as the sailboat drifted by.

Have a great holiday weekend everyone.

City Museum

If you love found art and your kids love to climb and do hands on activities, look no further. My family discovered the City Museum in St. Louis a couple of years ago. I was so enthralled by all the details of the building and structure. I've never seen anything like it. You have got to see it to believe it. And if you go wear long pants and tennis shoes. There is a lot of crawling and climbing to do. The photo montage shows just the tip of the iceberg.

Here is info from their website.

Housed in the 600,000 square-foot former International Shoe Company, the museum is an eclectic mixture of children's playground, funhouse, surrealistic pavilion, and architectural marvel made out of unique, found objects. The brainchild of internationally acclaimed artist Bob Cassilly, a classically trained sculptor and serial entrepreneur, the museum opened for visitors in 1997 to the riotous approval of young and old alike.

Cassilly and his longtime crew of 20 artisans have constructed the museum from the very stuff of the city; and, as a result, it has urban roots deeper than any other institutions'. Reaching no farther than municipal borders for its reclaimed building materials, CITY MUSEUM boasts features such as old chimneys, salvaged bridges, construction cranes, miles of tile, and even two abandoned planes!

"CITY MUSEUM makes you want to know," says Cassilly. "The point is not to learn every fact, but to say, 'Wow, that's wonderful.' And if it's wonderful, it's worth preserving."

Images: City Museum

Passion for paper

While exhibiting at the National Stationery Show last year, I picked up some amazing swatch books from GMUND. My particular favorite is Savanna, a collection of paper inspired by Africa. It comes in eight shades, four with wood embossing and the rest are either a matt or structured surface. All are beautiful, however, my pick is Bubinga. I love the dark rich brown and the texture of the wood is fantastic.

Fun font of the day

This font is one that I discovered about 6 months ago. It is fun and friendly, which is pretty much my design aesthetic. Of course you should use it sparingly, it's not the easiest read and you'll have to kern the you-know-what out of it. But it's fun and light-hearted. Find it here.

Etsy Find

As if I need another reason to want an iPhone. I just found these great leather iPhone cases. Find them here, along with other great leather goods.

I think the images speak for themselves. Angela Adams is a master at color and pattern, something for me to aspire to as a stationery designer. And yes she does paper as well. She inspires me creatively to push for brighter, cleaner colors and bold dramatic patterns that are also warm and dramatic. She's a true design powerhouse. See more from her web site.

Logo and images are all owned by Angela Adams

Ceramic Artist

I just discovered this amazing London artist. I adore here whimsical view of things and wonderful use of color. See other works by Julia Bailey here.

The Color Purple

Here is an inspiration board of all things purple. I'm not suggesting anyone wear all these items at once! It's just a collection of finds from the internet that I find lovely.

1. The purple leather cuff can be found on squidoo.com

2, 3, 4. The fabulously flirty dress, necklace and pillow may all be found at Anthropologie

5. I found the Sasha bobby pins very charming found at Etsy store NinjaBowTique

6. These shoes are simply fabulous and eco-friendly to boot. I own a similar pair. They are made of natural silk with certified organic cotton laces and souls made from recycled car tires. I love mine. Simple Shoes.

7. I fell in love with this rings simplicity and deep color. You can find it in Etsy at UntamedStone's shop.

All images are property of their respective companies.

Wired

I found this fabulous lamp while browsing through the Anthropologie site today.  It is the most delicate and whimsical lamp I have ever seen. See the Chateau Lamp at http://www.anthropologie.com

Tree Graffiti

Graffiti
Originally uploaded by Jilly Jack Designs

Can you call this typography? I think you can. I shot this while on a hike with the family last year. It has my initials in it, so that's why I took the shot. They were high up in the tree, so they must be about pretty old. It's fun to think about the people who made the marks and if whomever hearted Sean still does. I did feel sorry for the tree, but it seemed to be healthy despite all the scarring.

Dahlia

This was taken in my back yard. I love the vibrant fuschia color against the blurred bright green background. It makes me happy!
Dahlia
Originally uploaded by Jilly Jack Designs

Rug or art? I say both!

Is there nothing she can't do. Eva Zeisel is now creating flooring. Her art translates so wonderfully into any medium. These wonderful rugs are entirely handmade from the wool of Tibetan sheep. Available at The Rug Company. 

Eye Candy

Gum drops anyone? I love these gum drop pillows from Amy Butler. I admire her amazing sense of color and pattern. Sewing patterns are available at http://tinyurl.com/dkh7cd 

Summer Inspiration

Watermelon means summer to me. I have fallen in love with this particular watermelon. Its name is PureHeart and you can see why, the lovely little heart shaped surprise when you cut into it.