The Nutcracker Holiday Stationery Collection

I am thrilled to present my first holiday collection! Can you believe it? After all these years, and all the collections I've created, a holiday collection was never among them? Christmas is such a special time for me, and I was so intimidated to get it right. Especially with a theme so dear to me, The Nutcracker symbolizes a big part of my childhood and what makes Christmastime so magical.

I created this collection as a reminder of home and traditions, which I think we are all craving right now. This year, I was inspired to create cards for those uniquely 2020 situations we find ourselves in. However I look forward to updating the text to suit a more normal holiday season in the future!

The Nutcracker was a big part of my life, from performing in the local dance studio's production, to watching a family member perform in the Pacific Northwest Ballet's production numerous times. The story captures my childhood wonder in a nutshell (pun intended) and I love discovering how different authors and ballet companies interpret the original E.T.A. Hoffman story. My favorite interpretation is by Maurice Sendak, the illustrator for Where the Wild Things Are, created for the Pacific Northwest Ballet. I picked up a copy of the picture book with all of Sendak's artwork created for the ballet company plus additional illustrations to accompany the text translated by Ralph Manheim. Seeing the story through a new lense with more subtext was truly fascinated to me. I wish I had time to illustrate all the ideas that came to mind from reading this book!

My favorite part of the Pacific Northwest Ballet's production was the growing tree created by Boeing. It was truly spectacular! I tried to capture the detail of the tree in my Christmas Tree greeting card. What's your favorite little detail?

I was excited to add a holiday notepad to the mix because there's always endless list-making this time of year. The message "Get Crackin'" is a subtle reminder to get that holiday shopping done before the last minute!

New to my shop this year are stickers! I've been wanted to break out my Silhouette machine to create my own stickers for years (but motherhood had other ideas). I'm thrilled to finally be bringing you gift tag labels, perfect for sticking on holiday gifts that will be shipped through the mail. I look forward to create more sticker designs in the future!

Do you have a holiday tradition of seeing the Nutcracker? I certainly can't wait to get back to the theater someday soon.

Reflecting on a Decade

I wasn’t going to do a Decade in Review, or even a Year in Review. I couldn’t place in my mind what had happened at the beginning of 2010. Then I started to make a list:

• Moved 8 times

• Lived in 3 states

• Traveled to 5 countries

• 5 jobs before starting my own business

• 2 new dogs

• 1 baby

The more I thought back, the more I realized how much I had accomplished. It’s helpful to reflect on the past. Not to dwell or regret, but to realize all the obstacles you’ve overcome, goals you’ve accomplished, dreams you have pursued. In my mind I remembered a lot of sadness and frustration, but in reality I have achieved so many of my dreams.

• Graduated from college

• Got married to my best friend

• Worked in my “dream” career of advertising, and realized it wasn’t my dream anymore

• Started my own business to inspire other people to dream

• Became a Disneyland Annual Passholder

• Lived in a new state

• Traveled to new countries

• Vended at local craft shows

• Became a mother and shared the magic of Disney with her

Dreams are a fickle thing. You think you know what you want, then the universe throws a tidal wave at you that realigns those dreams. Motherhood, and learning how to advocate for my daughter and dog’s health, have become priorities that I didn’t know would ever exist. Going forward I realize that advocating for my own health needs to be a priority in order to achieve the other dreams I have.

If 2010 was the decade of Change, then I hope 2020 is the decade of Roots and Growth. I certainly don’t want to move anytime soon, and I’m craving growth in my business and family. Both of those things require a strong foundation that I hope we will find in Washington. With occasional trips back to the Happiest Place on Earth of course.

So what does that mean for Enchanted Type?

As much as I want to commit to solid goals for my business right now, I know the last time we tried to grow our family I hit a major mental block. This time I’m giving myself more space to adapt as I see fit for myself and my family. That being said, I’m looking forward to introducing new products, better utilizing sites like RedBubble, and growing as an artist.

I’m so thankful to those of you who have been a part of this journey here with me. I’m looking for ways to better keep it touch with all of you and give you the magic mail you’re looking for. More to come soon on that!

I hope you can take a moment to reflect on the goals you’ve reached in the past decade, no matter how big or small. They are significant for you, and something to be proud of. I would love to hear your favorite thing from your life in the 2010’s, please share in the comments below!

The Enchanted Type Story: 2016 Highlights

And so 2016 comes to a close, and we welcome a fresh and shiny New Year. One of my favorite parts of the New Year is taking a moment to reflect on the previous year's accomplishments (here are my highlights from 2015). I find it so helpful when planning my next steps forward. So without further ado, here are the highlights of 2016 for Enchanted Type!

450 customers in 9 countries

Launched first physical products

• Greeting cards

• Art prints

• Notepads

• Postcards (at craft shows, look for these to launch online in 2017)

Sold at my first craft show

Total of 12 craft shows this year

Community Growth

• Attended my first business conference

• Connected with some amazing small business owners at local craft shows

• Grew community on Instagram through giveaways and promotions with other Disney-inspired makers

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I am truly so excited for what the future holds for Enchanted Type in 2017, and a big part of that is because of all the amazing people I met or that supported me this year. Thank you to each and every one of you for an incredible 2016!

Halloween cards for all your ghoulish friends

The Fall & Halloween Collection is now available on Etsy! Find a not-so-scary card to send to your favorite mortal friend this fall.

Introducing three new Halloween cards:

Greetings Foolish Mortal

This card is inspired by Disney's Haunted Mansion, featuring a stately mansion on the outside that is hiding your favorite ghost host inside. Say Happy Halloween or just hello with this modern greeting card, perfect for your "living" friends.

Boo to you

This not-so-scary greeting card features a crystal ball with all your favorite Halloween sights, including a pirate skull, sorcerer's hat, poisoned apple, a bow-tie bat and much more. The artwork and lettering are both hand-drawn by me, digitized for crisp & clean printing.

Tricks for Treats

Some of you may remember this card from previous years, but Chloe (my pug) just had to come back to see if she could get some more treats. And yes, that is actually my pug begging for treats on the card! This is the only card with an inside greeting, "Happy Halloween!"

Exciting Shop Updates

All cards & art prints are now printed in house by me! I invested in a professional-quality printer and archival paper to give you the same high-quality products that you can expect from Enchanted Type. This will allow for quicker turn-around times on custom sizes or colors, and allow me to personally produce each product with love and care for you.

I have also started to replace the use of fonts with my own hand lettering to give each design a personalized, handmade touch. I hope to always create unique, original items that you won't find anywhere else, and this is one more way I can make that happen.

I hope you're as excited about the new developments for Enchanted Type as me! Stay tuned for the introduction of the Fall/Thanksgiving Collection. Right now, head over to Etsy to shop the entire Halloween collection!

Party Kits Retiring, New Cards on the Horizon

Whew it's been a busy first craft show season! I'm finally taking a breather the month of August to prepare for the holiday season. There's lots of happy haunts and jingle bells ringing around here right now.

In the next few weeks I will be debuting my first fall collection of cards, with inspiration from the Disney Parks, your favorite fall-themed movies and beyond. Be on the lookout for sneak peeks on my Instagram account.

In the meantime, I have an important announcement to make with regards to future Enchanted Type collections. It is with much thought and deliberation that I have decided to retire all party kit collections.

A year ago I introduced my first party kit, with plans of creating more collections in the future. In the meantime, my heart has fallen for designing greeting cards and interacting with all you lovely people at local craft shows.

Saying goodbye to the kits will make way for new seasonal items and allow me to make even more magical cards. The kits are still available for now, but will be glowing away in the next month.

I can't wait to share all the cozy, fall goodness I've been scaring up the last few weeks. Until then!

TTFN,
Elaina