inklings at the emmys! (part 1)

Last Monday was just another Monday morning until I received an e-mail from Val Wilson, Producer of the official Emmy Awards Gift Bags. It seems that their researchers suggested Inklings as one of the 30 brands featured in the bags (seriously!?) at the upcoming 33rd Annual News & Documentary Emmy Awards in NYC... in one week. The task before us? Create 800 packages of products to ship to NYC in just THREE DAYS!

After deciding that we would participate, I got to work designing a custom package with a special insert especially for Emmy nominees and their guests! I took inventory of how much product we had in stock (2,401 Vintags for wine, to be exact... that gave us enough for three tags per pack, with just one to spare), and was so relieved and extremely grateful when some very dear friends offered to come over and throw down to get the packages assembled (thank-you Ami, Gretchen, Cheri, Jami, and Laurie!).

It's been a whirlwind week that's left us a little exhausted, but excited all the same about what this could mean for Inklings. My heart has been so encouraged by all of the support that my friends and family offered (including those who encouraged me to go for it when I was on the fence). One message from a close high-school friend made me smile:

"I know you've made your decision, but I just had a conversation with the 15-yr-old Lindsay who used to make hilarious fake business cards with me during French class, and when I told her that more than 15 years in the future she'd have this opportunity, she said it would be a dream come true. And it is. You were destined for this stuff! Go get 'em. Your 15-year-old self thanks you."

Please enjoy this sneak peek (below) at what all Emmy nominees and their guests will be receiving from Inklings! Each pack includes a different assortment of three Vintags from our collection of over 24 gift cards for wine! The insert reads, "At the Emmys, you don't want to be just another face in the crowd. (Your wine feels the same way)"

We hadn't yet made our Vintags available on our Etsy store, as we were waiting for the right time to launch them. I guess this is such a time! I'm pleased to say that on October 2nd, we will officially make Vintags available in our shop... just in time for all of you early shoppers to snag some great stocking stuffers and party gifts for the holidays! Slip a Vintag over the neck of a wine bottle and write your personal message on the back to transform any bottle of wine into a chic, personalized party gift that won't get lost in the shuffle! 

How great would it be to find a set of these in your stocking this Christmas? What about using them as party favors that guests will actually use? To sweeten the deal, we've designed a set of six Limited Edition Vintags for the upcoming 2012 Holiday Season... scroll to the very bottom for a preview of what's to come!

So now it's your turn to give us the scoop... what's YOUR favorite Vintag phrase?

 


P.S. Don't miss the "work in progress" shots of our fabulous crew of friends and family who threw down in the final hour to make the impossible possible! 

wine and design lovers, unite!

I'm pleased to share a sneak peek at some designs I'll be introducing for the first time this coming Thursday. Vintags® bottle hangers slip over the neck of a wine bottle to add style and personality to your gift and keep it from getting lost in the crowd! They're a fun alternative to wine bags, and will most likely come sweetly packaged in sets of six.

I love paper, and I love wine. A bottle of wine is the perfect last-minute gift that I've found myself grabbing on my way out the door to a special event (for which I'm inevitably 15 minutes late). The problem was that a wine bottle by itself seemed impersonal, and usually got lost in the shuffle when I arrived. Wine bags are a nice option, but I never have them on hand and they usually get tossed aside when you get to the party. That's when I started designing little cheeky gift cards to hang around the necks of wine bottles. Pretty soon, they became talking points at the party, and added personality to my otherwise last-minute gift. They're easy to keep on hand, and are made of premium matte-coated paper for durability.

Enjoy!

joy to the world (2011 christmas cards)

Can you hear that? It's yours truly heaving a big old sigh of relief.

The gifts have been bought, our six night stretch of social events is behind us, we've finally made peace with the fact that amidst our kitchen reno there will be no Christmas tree (but there IS a nativity set, which is way more important), and most importantly the cards have gone out.

Ah yes, the Christmas cards. All 125 cards for my design business clients and vendors, 75 photo cards for family and close friends, and of course the inevitable 100 cards that my in-laws ask me to do for them. And then there's the batch that were not yet addressed which my husband thoughtfully mailed for me. The first day that they started coming back to me, my little heart skipped a beat when I thought that someone else also thought to send out teal envelopes at Christmas. Not so. And so began another afternoon of card assembling.

Last year's cards were all about rich materials and metallics. This year, I wanted to make them a little more fun and light-hearted. Attached to the cards are some gift tags which you can slip over the neck of a bottle (or hang on a gift). But the real gift is a donation I make on my clients' behalf to a worthy cause. Because seriously who needs another canister of mixed nuts?
 

I look forward to designing these cards all year. In fact, I just may have plans for next year's cards already. And secret decoder glasses *may* be part of the package. But truth be told, I want my dining room table back. It's been covered with paper goods, cutting tools, envelopes, ball-chains, and drywall dust (thanks to a well-timed kitchen reno) for the past month.

So in celebration of having the cards in the mail (and hopefully in many of your mailboxes by now), I write this post.

What about you? If you could have a hanging wine card say anything you wanted, what would it say? Come on... dish! The top submissions will be created and sent to those who submitted them in a care package by yours truly. Once I've recovered from Christmas, that is.

Cheers!

wish you were here

Hi guys!

I'm excited to share a design that I recently submitted for the AIGA Detroit "Wish You Were Here" postcard competition. I'm not usually one to enter contests, but I liked how the goal of this one was to bring some positive publicity to an area that typically gets a lot of bad media coverage. The top 25 postcards will be printed and used to promote the state of Michigan! :)

I just learned my card design is one of the finalists! Please take a moment and vote here. You don't need to sign up for anything, or give away your firstborn child. Unlike other contests, which require you to sell your soul (or even worse, access to your Facebook account), voting here takes a matter of seconds... just go to the link and click "VOTE." You can vote once daily for the next seven days if you REALLY want to represent. ((grin))

In a nutshell, participants were invited to design a card that promotes Michigan and is based on the theme "Wish You Were Here."

One of my favorite places to visit in Michigan is Traverse Bay. If you've never been, add that to your bucket list. I based my postcard design on this area, which is located on the 45th parallel, offering the perfect climate for lush cherries and grapes that yield some of the world's best wines. Top that off with some stunning 360-degree views when driving up Old Mission Peninsula, and you'd agree that it's truly beautiful.

I've shared some of my other favorite cards as well, including the work of some of my über-talented colleagues! See their names and links to vote below each of their cards as well... because it's all about sharing the love!

Do check out all of the card entries if you have a moment... it's cool to see how the same creative call to action can yield so many different ideas!



Wish you were here,

Below are some of my favorite cards. (Click here to view all 48 finalists)
 

Above by Lauren French.

Above by Lisa Wallace.

Above by Christine Jones.

Above by Danny Jacobs.

Above by Meg Walsh. 

Above by Fred Restum.

Above by Kyle Lawson.

Above by Nicky Intalan.

Above by Craig Steen.

Above by Kelly MacArthur.

Above by Alex Jacque.