Mary Richmond Design

Mother's Day Cards listed on Etsy

Here are some of my cards made up for Mother's Day!

Today is the 7 year anniversary of losing my own mom so it was fun to do this while thinking of her. She was always my biggest fan, even when she was suggesting how something could be done differently or better. She always thought I could do anything. Moms are good like that.

Anyway, hop on over to my Etsy Shop if you would like to order some cards. There are still some prints to benefit breast cancer research left, too.

There are messages inside each card...

In the Studio with Valentines and Sculptures

These are the first stages of the little portrait heads I've been working on. I am not thrilled with them and as I looked at them today I realized they should be more fun, simpler, gentler. I thought back to the conversation I had with the dad who commissioned them and he just wanted fun little pieces for his wife, not serious sculptures. Here I've been working hard at likenesses and am not satisfied with the results. Each has a resemblance, however, and tomorrow I think I will relax and just play with that and see what happens. These have to be ready for Wednesday so tomorrow is the last day I'll have to work on them. I feel confident that I'll be able to do what I want and need to do with them in that amount of time. I definitely did not charge this guy enough, by the way....I basically charged him for an hour's studio time on each and have already spent about triple that. Oh well, learning curves for me seem to be long and winding with many blind and slippery spots.

Tonight I put together little packages that I will give out to the merchants and office staff here at Mashpee Commons for Valentine's Day. I didn't do holiday gifts this year so am handing these out instead. Each little package has a postcard, a Valentine card and envelope and some little candies. The card on the outside says it's a gift from Mary Richmond Design.

First, I did some with these little bunnies....the inside says "Some bunny loves you....Happy Valentine's Day. Ok, a little corny, but hey, isn't that what Valentine's Day is supposed to be about?

And there are these little buddies, too. Inside these cards say "Friends like you are among life's greatest gifts....Happy Valentine's Day"

I'm hoping it makes a nice little gift and that it has a light but effective touch of marketing, too. Most of all I hope they make the recipients smile. Everything in the news is so heavy these days that I figure everyone can use a little smile, even if it's only for a moment.

If nothing else, it makes me feel very festive and ready for Valentine's Day myself with all this card making, candy sorting and gift wrapping! What are you doing?

Valentines, Roots & Shoots and More

Last night our Roots & Shoots group met to make Valentines to take to the nursing home the girls have "adopted". Each month they go and visit with the residents there, bringing snacks, singing songs with them, telling stories, bringing cards or little gifts.

Each Roots & Shoots group is different. Our group is all girls, which in itself is different and they have taken on several long term projects. The Jane Goodall Institute, which is the mother organization for all Roots & Shoots groups worldwide asks that each group work on a humanitarian project, an animal project and a community ecological project. Many groups work with international goals in mind. Our group seems to choose smaller, homier projects that have a direct impact within our own community.

These are some of the cards the girls completed last night. They also planned their little program of songs and committed to a program to help reduce the use of paper and plastic bags in their own homes and in their extended families and school classrooms. These are small things, perhaps, but if all children and their families committed to such small things on a regular basis, perhaps large changes would occur....

Paintings and Valentines

A morning spent with students, drawing and painting flowers....I really like drawing flowers but I'm not a big fan of painting them. I don't know why that is. I love painting gardens, so go figure....

These are some little designs I'm working on for Valentine's Day. I always send lots of cards for Valentine's Day and like to have some for sale in the shop, too.

I played with my colored pencils this afternoon, always a fun way to spend some time.

Here's a close up of two little buddies....

In Lieu of Christmas Cards....

This year is the first year I didn't get my Christmas cards out on time....so this year will be the first year I'll be sending New Year's cards. If you know me you know this is somewhat traumatic for me but I'll just have to get over it, huh? Too, too busy....and I've painted lots of little pet ornaments so it's really ok. The woman from the MSPCA comes to pick up the $1000 I've raised so far tomorrow morning!

Updating My Etsy Shop

I have finally updated my Etsy Shop. If you haven't visited Etsy yet, it's a great place to do some holiday shopping. Lots of artists, designers and craftspeople use this site to sell their unique, hand-made work and you can find anything and everything from baby bibs to earrings to full size abstract paintings to beautiful knitted sweaters to hand-made dolls.

I have added my holiday ornaments and cards to the shop. The cards I'm showing here are now available on Etsy or at my shop in Mashpee Commons.

All cards are 4 1/4 x 5 1/2" and come boxed in sets of 6 with matching envelopes for $12. Quantity discounts are available and more designs are available in my shop.

Irisz Christmas Cards

Check out these cute little cards by Hungarian artist Irisz Agocs. She is an illustrator and artist and has a line of whimsical Christmas cards going on sale online later this week.

New Items for Sale at my Etsy Shop!

Only 24 more days til Halloween!! And I just posted 10 one of a kind cards on my Etsy Shop site. Some are arty, some are silly and some are just cute....they're in my shop in Mashpee, too, along with others so let me know if you want one. They sell for $3 each.

If you haven't found Etsy yet, it's a fun place, so check it out.

I also just posted 2 of the necklaces Anne Parshall and I made. I make the pendants and she puts together the rest of the necklace. I think she does a great job. You should see the one of a kind pieces she makes and sells at area shops and shows. Maybe someday she'll have a website (hint, hint....)

One of a Kind Cards

Every now and then I become obsessed with card making. I print, I collage, I cut and paste stuff, I stamp....it's way too much fun and then I have all these cards to send to friends, give away, sell, whatever. Just think, it's almost leaf printing time, an activity I never outgrew.

There are about a dozen of these butterfly cards, all different, now for sale at my shop and on my Etsy Shop for $3 each.

They are collaged with beautiful rice papers, plant papers and other nice papers, stamped with butterfly designs of different kinds and lettered with fun and inspirational messages. Yes, I got corny in my old age.

The bottom two cards are early Halloween designs that I started fooling around with last night. They've been collaged and stickers happened. I did both adult versions and kid versions....thinking of my little grandson, Evan and what he would like

These designs and more will also be available at my shop and online at my Etsy Shop.