In case you didn’t know, Valentine’s Day is right around the corner, and children everywhere will be exchanging sweet little cards. My little lady is one of those kids, and if you know me at all, you know that I couldn’t very well let her hand out some ugly store bought cards. SO, I came up with a sweet little design that incorporates her favorite candy: Smarties.
Aren’t they cute? Because I love you, I made a free printable file so you can make these sweet little Smarties Love Bug Valentines with your little one. They’re super simple to make, and your child will have fun handing them out in class.
All you’ll need is some bright white card stock, a paper cutter (or scissors), a pen, and some pretty washi tape. Let your kiddo fill in their name after you get them all cut out, and use the washi tape to secure the Smarties to the Valentines. Simple as can be!
Happy card-making! If you download the Valentines and enjoy them, please leave a comment to let me know. Thanks!
Until next time, grace and peace.
THE SMALL PRINT: You may not accept credit for the design of this card or sell it to anyone. Senojal Designs retains the copyright. If you wish to share the digital file with others, please direct them to this post. Do not e-mail the file all over the world. Please don’t link directly to the download file. Click to download your Free Printable Smarties Love Bug Valentines!
If you’ve stopped by Senojal Designs lately, you may (or may not have) noticed that the etsy shop has been closed for quite some time. Due to major overwhelmation with writing projects and life in general, I shut it down shortly after Thanksgiving, and I haven’t looked back.
It was a tough decision for me to make, but as much as I enjoy designing and creating beautiful stationery, it doesn’t fulfill me in the same way that writing does.
So I’ve taken a breather.
That’s not to say that the shop will remain closed forever. In fact, I’m planning to reopen the shop in the next few weeks, after I get the last of my current writing assignments turned in. But I don’t intend to let the business of running my own stationery shop consume me the way it has in the past.
I will always have an affinity for amazing paper, but I don’t see myself running the shop 20 years down the road. At least, I hope I’m not. It’s a hobby that I enjoy, but it likely won’t be my profession forever.
So. All of that to say, I still enjoy designing, but there’s simply not as much room for it in my life as there used to be. Because of that, I plan to devote more time to designing for minted challenges (did I mention that three of my designs have been selected to sell on the site?) and less time to manufacturing stationery. Sometimes you just have to take a step back. So that’s what I’m doing.
Until next time, grace and peace.
It’s been about a year and a half since I launched my stationery design business, and much has changed since those early days. I’d like to think that I’ve refined my design sensibility just a touch, and while my old logo was fun and cute, it didn’t really convey the aesthetic that I aim for these days.
I’m running low on business cards, and as the time to order more drew near, I just couldn’t bring myself to do the same old thing again. I stayed up entirely too late the other night morning working on a new design. Rebranding was in order.
Ready to see the new look?
I’m really pleased with the way it turned out. It’s a little preppy and a lot more refined than the old look, but it also maintains a bit of whimsy. While I was in the redesigning mood, I also made some subtle changes to the look of snippets. The longer I looked at the blog, the more it felt too busy, so I cleaned it up a bit as well.
Snippets used to look like this:
Now it looks like this:
Subtle, I know, but little changes make a big difference. What do you think about the changes to my brand and blog? Talk to me and let me know what you think!
Until next time, grace and peace.
I know that it seems as if all of my posts lately revolve around Minted, but that’s because it’s been a very busy month in the Minted world. Voting on the Chronicle Books challenge closed yesterday, and today, voting opened on the Sending Good Cheer Holiday Challenge. Designers submitted over 2,000 entries to the challenge, and the quality of design is simply overwhelming. Because of the staggering number of entries, the Minted staff made a first cut, narrowing the field of designs to 700. Of the eight designs I submitted, two were selected to move on to the voting round.
I’ve already shared both of these designs with you, but I wanted to relink you to them so that you may rate them if you have a free moment. Here they are:
M is for Married
I’m totally in love with diagonal stripes right now. They’re a bit preppy and vintage-y, and I love the subtle character they add to this “M is for Married” Christmas card that doubles as a wedding announcement.
Twice the Meaning
I’m also totally in love with banners, as evidenced by the recent redesign of snippets. They’re perfect to highlight important details in a design, including a brand new baby’s name, as on this “Twice the Meaning” Christmas card that doubles as a birth announcement.
It’s ironic that the two designs selected were the two I submitted first. Although I’m sad that the rest of my designs got cut, I’m glad that at least a couple made it to the voting round, which will be open for the next five days. If you have some free time, please rate my designs by clicking on the images above, then spend a few minutes rating some of the other designs you see. You’ll be blown away by the talent of my fellow designers.
Thanks for your support!
Until next time, grace and peace.
personal stationery – Posie Pop
In case you haven’t noticed, I love Minted, especially the company’s commitment to independent designers like myself. If you like paper even a little bit, you’ll love Minted too. The quality of design and beautiful product simply can’t be beat.
All of that said, I participate in the Minted challenges because it sharpens my design skills. The competition is incredibly fierce, and though I have yet to even come close to winning, my scores have improved with each challenge. I’m hoping that this one will be no different.
Minted has partnered with Chronicle Books to develop an exclusive line of stationery that will be sold around the world. Chronicle will select four winning designs to include in their collection, and the Minted community will select designs to be sold as personalized stationery. Prizes range from $1,000 to $100, plus a commission on all sales. It’s an amazing opportunity, and some really great designs have been submitted.
Chronicle Books supplied a color scheme {which explains why all the designers used the same colors}, and asked designers to develop ‘over the top pretty’ designs for the competition. I submitted four designs for this challenge {including the “Posie Pop” card at the top of this post}.
personal stationery – Fan Whimsy
This “Fan Whimsy” design was inspired by hand-folded paper fans. I’ve seen these all over the blogosphere lately, and I’m smitten with the quirky personality they can add to an event. Love.
personal stationery – Funky Floral
I love the elements in the “Posie Pop” design above so much that I developed an entire pattern with them. This “Funky Floral” design is cheery and bright, and it’s not your grandmother’s floral. Thank goodness.
personal stationery – Blooming
And finally, “Blooming” is a more refined take on the same flower. I love the simplicity of this design. It’s reminiscent of old school tole painting and reminds me of my mom.
Voting is currently open for the Chronicle Books Challenge. If you have a few spare minutes, click on each design above to rate it. But don’t stop with me – rate some of the other designs as well. There are some really fabulous entries. But don’t take my word for it, go see for yourself.
Until next time, grace and peace.
