Lyrics on a Canvas

I found this idea on a blog by Ellie Snow. She took the famous print "Homage to Music" by Matthew Heller (below the print is show in Molly Sim's apartment in InStyle Magazine), and made it her own. Her idea was to use lyrics to one of her and her husband's favorite songs and put it on a canvas in the same sort of style. Above is her result.



I took this idea and made my own version. My husband and I's song "The Luckiest", was a meaningful part of our wedding, and I thought it would be a great "first Christmas together" present for him. We don't have anything above our bed right now, so it was a win-win. Here is what I came up with.


After showing this to one of my friends, she thought it would be a great piece of artwork for a baby's room. Let us know if you need help with the file, Emery can set up the artwork and you can order the canvas.

We have had a couple of entries to the holiday tag contest, keep the entries coming, you have until Jan. 1st and then we will be picking a winner!

Studio and Holiday Glitz

Emily Butterworth Studio: I wanted to give a quick summary of what my studio is for those who might not know. I'm a graphic designer by day, and want to start doing more freelance work than I already do. My website, www.emilybutterworthstudio.com, is a way to visually show everyone my designs and also give Emery a little boost with a preview of the some of the items we have done so far.

I love doing invites and announcements. Ask me for quotes... its more economical than you think! I just love doing it and hope to incorporate it into Emery someday. The rest of the site is my graphic design work. I'm hoping to attract small unique businesses that might need postcards, letterhead, or logos, etc.

Ok, enough selling of myself. New Years Necklaces: I found these necklaces on an etsy site by BejewelledBespoke. I personally am a black dress only kind of girl so having a necklace like this for a holiday party or New Years would definitely make anyone stand out. I am currently making a bag with these T-shirt rosettes so maybe I'll have to try out the necklace look. If you want these for yourself, click here for the etsy site.

Emery Holiday Contest

We are going to do something fun and make YOU be creative this week! I saw this photo of placecards and loved them. I also loved how simple they were. So then I was thinking...those could be a lot of things. Placecards for a holiday dinner, wedding or shower...punch a hole in one side and those could be gift tags...lots of possibilities. We want to see what you come up with, so here is a printable pdf of some holiday designs (or anytime designs really). Print them out on cardstock or funky paper, and then email us a pic of what you did. We'll pick a winner by Jan. 1st and post the winning photo AND that person will receive an exclusive Emery product for being so creative. Have fun!

All Things Baby

My husband and I are expecting our first baby in May. So I'm pretty much into all things baby right now and I've got Aunt Emily brainstorming ideas too. It's hard to find the perfect products for the visions you have for your nursery. So then you just start thinking, 'We'll I'll just make something!' As we've mentioned before, Emery is developing its own line of products for babies called Cuddle. Lots of handmade items that will create the dream nursery you have in your head. And if you don't have an idea in your head, Emery will make you one :)

The first product we've explored for Cuddle is onesies. Mainly because they are so tiny and cute right?! We're coming up with different designs all the time with the main goal of being trendy and unique. We have a few photos (as promised) from the photo shoot we did a few months ago in Des Moines. The first one is a sample of some of Emery's first onesies. Each one is hand-painted and one-of-a-kind. These are going to make great gifts for baby showers!

The girls at the photo shoot were very excited about the onsies and suggested....well demanded...toddler shirts and expanding the designs to all sizes. I think someone even wanted one for their cat. Cute? Or just creepy? So there will definitely be more to come with this line!

The next picture is of some blankets we made using the same design from some of the onesies. One side is a t-shirt jersey material and the other is a minky fleece. The designs were hand-painted. Super soft and cuddly blankets-these have already been requested by more then just babies. My husband would like a jumbo one for himself so we'll see.

Emery is still working on more products for babies including burp clothes, cloth diapers, and fabric toys. We also want to expand on decorative items for nurseries such as wall canvases. Another fun idea Emily found recently was these decorative drawer fronts with knobs by Morgane Rouault on designspongeonline.com.

If you're interested in tackling this one yourself there is instructions at: http://www.designspongeonline.com/2009/07/diy-project-morganes-drawer-hangers.html. We think this has a lot of potential for a very cute addition to a baby or kid's room.

No Coast Craft-o-Rama

This Saturday, Emery went to No Coast Craft O Rama in midtown Minneapolis. We found some press online and thought we should check it out and see if we should apply to be a vendor in 2010. It turned out to be very worthwhile...we got lots of ideas, inspiration, and got to see a mob scene of people buying handmade which is always a good thing. The Midtown Global Market is an internationally-themed public market featuring fresh and prepared foods, restaurants, and a selection of arts and crafts from around the world. We thought this made a great venue for the booths and vendors, just made it a fun artsy atmosphere. Christopher Straub from this season of Project Runway was there and had a booth. Of course we got our picture with him! Big fans of the show. He was very pocket size in person..so I'm guessing Carol Hannah is VERY tiny. Here is one of his handbags he had for sale.



Overall there were a ton of great vendors so you check out the list here. But our favorites were Natalie and Friends, Fig and Ginger, Papered Together and Jenna Lou Designs. Pictured above is a wristlet from Jenna Lou and a necklace from Fig and Ginger. Emery is going to apply next year, we'll keep you posted and hopefully you all can come visit us!