Monograms

Monograms. What are they? Wiki says, "A monogram is a motif made by overlapping or combining two or more letters or other graphemes to form one symbol." You find them embroidered on luggage and bags, or maybe on a piece of personal stationary.

I've carved some monograms for a few custom orders, and like them so much I have decided to offer them as a regular custom item in my Etsy shop. I love the way that some simple letters can create the perfect logo. The sky is the limit of course, with so many fonts out there, and so many different ways to organize the letters together.

There is some monogram etiquette also. In the three initial monogram above, the middle letter is actually the first initial of the last name, or surname. The first letter then becomes the initial of the first name, and the last letter in the trio is the middle name. That is convention for an individual, but a married couple might combine there names, and keep the middle (largest) letter as the last name, but use their first initials for the flanking letters in the logo.

Whether you use one, two, or three letters, a monogram is a great way to mark a letter, envelope, or card as something that came from YOU! I can't wait to carve more of these little treasures.

The Holiday Rush

On December 5th I participated in a Vendor Fair at Wilson Commons at the University of Rochester. This was my first real show as a vendor of Jackbear Stamps. I really had a great time, and did well. I sold a few stamps I had made from the table, but more importantly, I made a lot of custom sales for Christmas that I am now working on. It was great to meet face to face with people and talk about the work I do. I worked on a UR themed bookplate all day and managed to finish by the end of the day. I got enough custom orders that I took my custom orders sign down in fear I would take on more than I could handle. But the carving is progressing nicely, many are already done, and many are in progress. I should be able to get them all done on time for the Holidays. It was a great experience I hope to repeat in the future! Thanks to anyone who stopped by!

Exposure

So, I don't think I will be at this site for long, but this week, I'm the featured artist at Cafe Handmade. This it out!

I am also selling stamps at my first show this Friday, December 5th at the University of Rochester Vendor Fair. I'm working hard growing my inventory, so I hope it pays off. Wish me luck!

There Be Treasure!

Yaaargh! So ye be lookin' fer me treasure ye be? Well ye be needin' a map. A treasure map!

I love maps. I love looking at them, exploring with them, I even like folding them! So when the Mad Scientists of Etsy selected Cartography to the be challenge theme for November, I was excited. I decided to create a hand carved rubber stamp set that would allow a young (or old) pirate to make his/her own treasure map.

Treasure Island and Lord of the Rings are two of my favorite books. Probably because they both have maps. I guess I'm a visual person. So the idea of carving nine rubber stamps that would make up key parts of the map sounded educational and fun. I used to teach an orienteering course to kids, and part of the lesson was learning the different parts of the map: title, key/legend, scale, compass rose, etc. So I knew I had to have those. Then I decided to add some good pirate map symbols, like a rock, palm tree, waves, a dash for making a trail, and of course, an "X Mark the Spot."

So, if you be wantin' to make yer own treasure map, check out this stamp kit at my Etsy store.

Little Brown Packages

One of the things I pride myself on is using padded mailers that are made from recycled materials. I also take delight in decorating each one with my "Jackbear" stamps, which are bear tracks. I package each stamp I sell carefully in a small ziplock bag, with a business card stapled to the top. I also include an index card with the stamp's image on one side, and a personal note to the buyer on the other side.

I have not been including invoices because I believe if my buyers on Etsy need a hard copy, they can print that off of the Etsy site. I don't want to waste another piece of paper if the person doesn't need it. This fits with my efforts to reduce the amount of waste in the mailing process. I hope that my buyers understand and appreciate these efforts, as we all try to do our part.