wedding invitations

Diamonds & Lace Wedding Collection Debuts!

complete wedding collection available
wedding+invitations+cards diamonds and lace blue cream silver

One of the most delightful parts of my job is looking at weddings – lots, and lots of weddings!   I study color, design,and especially the “feel” of where the style is going.  One of the fun directions is towards elegance with a touch of bling.

Shown are Just a Few of the Colors Available

This new “Diamonds & Lace” Collection is available in a wide range of color selections, including Black & White, pinks, purples, and several colorways of blues.  Blue is the big color story looking ahead to 2012.  Everything from a rich navy to soft baby blues and especially mixed together in unexpected ways.

There is also an option to custom color the front and reverse in two different colors – simply email me and I’ll walk you through the process.  Is your wedding hot pink & black – blue & green – golden yellow & grey?  We can do it for you!

All invitations can also be customized for any other occasion such as Quinceanera, Sweet 16, Graduation, Anniversary parties or any occasion you require.

 

Audrey Jeanne's Expressions Framed Prints

To Build a Lasting Love – Framed Print

For those looking for our Framed Print Line, “Audrey Jeanne’s Expressions,” we have discontinued our website and are basically only doing matted prints from this point onward.  We have had a very difficult time securing frames since our custom framer left the business.

I am beginning to develop the best selling items at my Zazzle store in other formats, including our best selling “To Build a Lasting Love” in a new 12″ x 36″ poster.  Zazzle also offers a reasonable framing service.

Perfect for a Wedding or Anniversary gift, it is set up to be personalized with the names and wedding date of the couple.  Virtually any color background can be created.  If there is a color you would like, just email me.

The options that Zazzle allows me to include are things we have wanted to do for years.  You can create a wedding print with the couple’s wedding or engagement photo included along with the custom personalization.

The printing on these is fabulous.  The print stock is thick and has a soft matte glow to it.  Photographs reproduce perfectly.

Another fun item is my wedding sign posters.  A beautiful way to dress up your wedding decor and direct your guests to your various venues at your wedding.  Directional signs, reception, dancing, guest book and hand calligraphy font illustrations, customizable with your last names in any colormuch more will be available.  I can custom create signs to match your wedding for an additional design fee, or design them to match any of my wedding invitation designs for no additional charge.

If you’re looking for something really unique and beautiful in wedding invitations and can’t find it… send me a note with your ideas and I will be glad to see if I have any art that could work for you.  I am not always able to do custom design work due to my design load with licensing, but if I have time I enjoy the challenge!

 

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Daily Life with Audrey Jeanne

The Fun is in Repurposing!

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When designing my studio, I could have simply purchased all new items, but instead found great joy in re-purposing and doing a complete redesign using things that I have already enjoyed for years.  For me, designing a work space is first about efficient function and then all about what makes me feel good.  I spend long hours working in my art studio.  To make that time a delight rather than a drudge, I love to be surrounded by things that inspire me, by some of my favorite items I’ve created in the past and by colors that will cheer me up on a grey day.

My inspiration for this color palette came from a beautiful, one yard piece of chintz that is a raw silk look.  I bought it 5 or 6 years ago as a remnant just because… I tucked it away and found it when we were preparing to move.  Unfortunately, I was unable to find any more of the fabric, so I used it as a spring board for the over all design by making three pillows for the daybed/guest bed that is in my room.  Like many of you, I love the put together over a long period of time look of mix and match almost “mismatch” elegance.  It’s hard work getting to that, LOL!  Matchy-matchy is so much easier, but much less fun.

I’m looking for a great source to buy antique glass door knobs or door pulls if you know of one.   I want to replace the pegs on a small wall shelf I have with the door knobs for character and bling.  My curtain rod has a set of beautiful crystal finials, and I would like to find some crystal bling odds n ends to make tacks for my fabric covered memo board on the closet door.  Ideas anyone?

I found the beautifully simple quilt set at overstock.com.  (SEE IT HERE) It’s all cotton and linen and has a lovely scalloped edge on both the shams and the edge of the quilt.  It’s washable (which is great since my all black cat, Shadow, loves to sneak in and nap on it!)  I’ve been puzzling out what I should use for the dust ruffle for the bed and realized just yesterday that our previous home’s living room drapes were perfect to reuse for this purpose.  I’ll be breaking out my sewing machine soon to transform them into their new function.

I’ve had white counter tops for the past 20+ years – what was I thinking?!!!  Every one has gotten stained with paint and though it started out lovely, became dingy and worn (and not in a lovely cottage way).  My sweet husband suggested a granite look formica for this purpose.  It’s already spotted and if it gets scratched, chunked or otherwise stained it just blends right in.  We have 3 short 1 foot wide bookcases that we found in the barn of a previous home and have housed my magazines in every studio since, they’re being reused and mismatched with a white kitchen cabinet.  I’ll tie it all together with fabric under the counter curtains in an old-world european style.   Here’s the curtains I bought to use for fabric and the valance (SEE IT HERE)  The fabric is a wonderful aged butter yellow that leans almost to tan.

Thanks for peeking in.  Hopefully I’ll be able to show you soon how it all goes together.  I’m just going to have to paint some new art to go with the new room… hmmm… perhaps my new peony photos might come into play on that?!

Daily Life, Daily Life with Audrey Jeanne, Faith & Inspiration

Catching Up!

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I thought I would share a little since it’s been so ridiculously long since I posted here.  I do have a good excuse – we have moved!  I thought I would also share bits and pieces of my new studio as it’s coming together.  I always enjoy seeing where my artist friends work and thought you might enjoy a sneak peek as well.  My color palette in the studio is a little retro.  The wall color is from Martha Stewart’s paints “Smokey Aqua” it’s an aqua that pushes almost to the green.  It’s sunny and bright and goes really well with my totally fun red glitter vinyl 50’s stool we got from Target about 10 years ago.   I have a mix of some great chintz fabrics, the window chintz is butter yellow with tan, pink, burgundy and a touch of red.  I’ll show more of that later when we get the tools out of the way so I can do the important stuff – ie DECORATE!

As we are nearing the end of our family’s move I realize, I hate moving, but am loving it now that we’re almost done.  We moved half an hour closer to town though still very much in the country.  We have another fabulous (though different) view, are near friends and church and enjoy an almost non-stop summer breeze.  There are still boxes in the corners of several rooms, but almost everything now has a place and I’m actually starting to REMEMBER where that place is, LOL!

My sweet husband worked until 1 o’clock this morning getting my art studio nearer to completion.  He has created a corner work space repurposing items that have been in almost every art studio I’ve used for the past 30 years and yet he’s making them new and wonderful.  You would have loved watching him carefully “distressing” my newly painted but repurposed shelves.  He’s mister anal-retentive and he actually very carefully “randomly” distressed them while I just grab a piece of sand paper and go at it.  It made us laugh so much looking at how different we are from each other and yet how well we work together.  I have a couple of in process pictures today and I’ll post things as they get set up and finished.  Any suggestions you might have are greatly welcomed!

It’s been fun rethinking how I do my work and getting a chance to reorganize my work areas.  I’ve thrown and thrown and thrown away some more.  I’ve donated things I realize I’ll never use (like my wooden mannequins for drawing) since I just don’t paint people!

My computer/office work area is public as part of the great central area of the house.  No chance to hide my mess any more so I’ve actually been doing better at keeping it organized.  Wonder how long that will last, LOL!?

I’ve discovered new ways to organize that are working really well with my own natural bent.  Costco has great plastic “shoe box’ sized stacking boxes that are 100% transparent so you can see what’s in them.  I was able to condense all of my crafting supplies into a single shelf in my studio closet and will only need to bring out the box when I’m working on a project.  Soooo easy!  I was amazed at just how much fits into one of those boxes and how sturdy they are when stacked.  Living in the country, lids are VERY necessary as dust is everywhere at all times.  My tools got dirty and dusty in the open drawer system I had before.

The view out my window goes all the way to the high sierra, snow-capped peaks which you can’t see here.  I have a beautiful pastoral view close in and my beloved mountains as well.  The flowers in the window are my window boxes that line the front of the house and patio.  I loved where we were before and I love where I am now.  I am learning with the Apostle Paul -to be content in any state that I find myself.

All of this brings me to today’s devotional thought – sometimes God wants to move us whether we like it or not!  Being comfortable isn’t very high on His list of priorities for us.  In fact, in my experience He’s pretty happy when I’m UNCOMFORTABLE enough to let Him change what He needs to in my heart.  Has that been your experience as well?

I’ve also learned that “Father truly always does know best!”  His plans for me are always for my good and he imagines so much more for me than I would have ever thought for myself.  I’m learning every day to trust him more and to delight more in His surprises.  One of my favorite things about our new location is that I get drop-in guests now.  We were soooooo far up in the mountains that nobody came by unless they had really good reason or time to waste, LOL!  Now friends pop in on a whim and we love it.

Ps 40:3-5
3 He has given me a new song to sing,
a hymn of praise to our God.
Many will see what he has done and be astounded.
They will put their trust in the LORD.

4 Oh, the joys of those who trust the LORD,
who have no confidence in the proud,
or in those who worship idols.
5 O LORD my God, you have done many miracles for us.
Your plans for us are too numerous to list.
If I tried to recite all your wonderful deeds,
I would never come to the end of them.
NLT

 

Crafting, Faith & Inspiration, Freebies, New Releases

Celebrate Spring! FREE Easter Gift Tags

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Vintage tulip, elegant design FREE for your own personal use!

Some of us have heard rumors that it’s Spring, others are deeply enjoying the warmth of the sun and the most welcomed harbinger of spring – Tulips and other bulbs.  To celebrate spring I’ve created a FREE tag set that you can pick up on my Facebook page

You can also click on the picture to go to my Facebook page, you’ll go to a “Welcome” page first, where you’ll have an opportunity to sign up for my newsletter that I’ll be producing soon on a somewhat monthly basis 🙂  You’ll also have a chance to “like” my page which will give you access to special coupon codes listed on a separate page under “For Fans Only”

FREE Shaped Gift Tags for Easter or other uses!

There are several digital clip art kits available in this design in my Etsy store.  The complete art kit runs $7.95 and has 27 pieces in the kit. 3, 12″ square papers, 2, shaped tags, 14 art pieces, 1 word art, 2 intricate borders, 4 frames and 1 card front. Created from vintage botanical illustrations and highly designed, layered and textured, then mixed with original watercolor art by Audrey Jeanne.

Vintage Red and Yellow tulips, swirls and butterflies

You can click on the picture to go to the kit at Etsy or use this link: ANTIQUE TULIPS ART KIT There will be several more kits coming over the next few weeks, including jewelry making collages, compact mirrors, coasters and more.

Beautiful for card making, scrapbooking and other craft uses

After having a foot of snow two weeks ago we finally had a marvelous weekend – just in time for the outdoor wedding of a very special young couple that are dear friends from our church.  It was a magnificent day for them and we were so excited to be a part of their lives and to be a part of helping them as a married couple in the years ahead.  Congratulations Andrew and Monica!

“This is the day the Lord has made, I will rejoice and be glad in it!”  One of my favorite verses and one I try to meditate on frequently – whether the day is beautiful like today, or stormy, it’s a day that God has given me to rejoice and delight in.  When I greet the storms with rejoicing in the Lord they pass more easily and disturb me less.  When I greet the beautiful days with gratitude in my heart they are all the more enhanced!  Everything goes better in my life when I rejoice in my Lord!  Have a great Spring day.

Products Available, wedding invitations

A Vintage Peacock Favor Gift Tag Freebie!

Vintage Peacock Wedding Favor Gift Tags, Free download

Just for fun today, I created this Vintage Peacock punchable gift tag.  He’s a free download.  All you have to do to claim him is go to my facebook page: http://www.facebook.com/audrey.jeannes.expressions (or click on the image and it will take you there).  You may have to scroll through posts to find him or you can go to my albums and look for “Freebie” as the title.

Inexpensive yet Elegant Table Card Numbers, any Color Background

While you’re there would you please consider “liking” my page?  We’re working toward reaching 500 “likes” and then there will be a link to a $4.95 digital clip art Easter kit for FREE!  If you have a friend that would enjoy the freebie too, would you consider letting them know about it for me as well.  It’s all about connecting!

Elegant "Vintage Peacock" Save the Dates available at Zazzle

To use these as Favor tags for a wedding reception or bridal shower, you can either hand write on them after printing, or typeset your names on them before printing.  This requires some graphic program or Microsoft Word knowledge.  Make sure you use as heavy a card stock as your printer can manage, it makes a difference in the finished product.  To create the tags, simply either cut them out on a paper trimmer, or use a square or round punch.  I left lots of background to give you more options.   Punch a hole in the top and use a lovely ribbon to affix them to your favors and you have a beautifully elegant touch for your wedding reception tables, bridal shower decor or other party event.

Antique Vintage Peacock Wedding Invitation, Monogrammed Custom Color

There are invitations, RSVPs and other stationery goods in a wide variety of background colors, that have been designed to match this collection.  I’ve linked just a couple here in this post, but you can find a wide selection of peacock designs – from vintage to contemporary and in many different colorways in my store.

New Releases

Social Marketing 101 – Getting Past the Fear

BRAND NEW DIGITAL CLIP ART KIT $4.95 AT ETSY.  Just click on the picture to go to the store.  There are more sizes and shapes in this collection.

A CONTEST EVERYONE CAN WIN:  I want to build my Facebook page up from 204 likes to 500 as my first goal.  Will you help me do it?  If you do, you can win the kit I’m showing in this post.  The minute we reach that goal I will post a link to the kit on my page as a thank you to everyone that helped as well as to be enjoyed by everyone who joined!  So if you have friends that enjoy digital art, please invite them so I can give away at least 500 kits!

Social Marketing 101 – Getting Past the Fear

I took a great class yesterday from Constant Contact (the people I’ve been paying to host my 5,000+ name mailing list for 3 months, but have never sent out an email to yet!!!)  Am I lame or what?!  I’m not sure what the hold up has been, but I’m determined to get past it.   My darling friend, Karla Dornacher has even agreed to hold my hand through the process so I’m going to take the plunge… very soon…

The conference was actually 2 classes, Social Marketing was the morning topic and Email Marketing the second.  Does the word “marketing” scare you?  It isn’t my favorite word either, but I realized that if you take the word “marketing” out – it’s really about connecting, I hate to “market” but I LOVE to connect.  What’s not to love about connecting with people who share your likes and passions.  Connecting with people that enjoy what you do and vice-versa.  When I started to think of it in those terms it immediately became much less scary to me.

After listening to Kelly Flint – Constant Contact’s LA Regional Development Director give the presentation, I did a lot of thinking about what I have and haven’t done in the past.  She is delightfully hilarious by the way, if you get a chance to go to any seminar she’s teaching do it.  You can find her Facebook page by clicking on her name, it’s a live link.  Kelly is a wealth of ideas and information and I’ll share bits and pieces of her tips via my twitter feed in the next few weeks.  If you haven’t connected with me there it’s TWITTER @audreyjeanne.

Kelly shared a lot of real life stories.  While listening to them, it dawned on me, I don’t believe I have ever told anyone that reads my blog that I HAVE a Facebook Page, much less invited you to come visit.  I did say I’m at the 101 course level.  You can find it here: facebook.com/audrey.jeannes.expressions

I enjoy Facebook because it’s so interactive – much more so than a blog.  I would love to dialog with you.  I would LOVE to hear about your passions.  What arts and crafts are you into?  What do you want to learn more about?  What are you making and selling or just making to give away?

Do you have friends that love to create with digital art?  Are they professional crafters that love to find new things to make, new art that they can use for selling at craft shows?  Do you have friends that scour the net for the next hot craft and would love to share what they find?  I’d love for you to invite them to come connect with us.  I’d love to see what people are doing in their creative spaces and try to encourage you to bring more creativity and beauty into your life.  AND I’d love to have you come and post those kinds of things on my Facebook page so we can all go check them out.

Now, if I can figure out how to post a “find me on facebook and twitter button”, I’m in business…  Oh Cheryl, are you out there?!  (she’s my favorite geek helper!)

Baby Products, Products Available, wedding invitations

Home From the CHA Show & Very Inspired!

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NOTE:  JUST CLICK ON ANY IMAGE TO GO TO SEE IT LARGER IN MY ZAZZLE STORE.

CHA, the Craft & Hobby Association Show was held in Los Angeles this year at the end of January.  It is always one of my favorite shows to attend.  It is filled with such incredible creativiy – both in the art being used to create the craft, scrapbooking and other kits that are offered and in the creativity of the designers who are creating projects from that artwork.

Designers use existing products to create new and fun crafts with.  Their interpretation of the artwork is incredibly fun and diverse.  There were “make and takes” every where you turned.  Displays of projects and extravagant backdrops or centerpieces such as paper dressed mannequins were all around.  Unfortunately my camera malfunctioned and I don’t have my pictures to share with you.  I will ask my daughter if I can take a peek at her pictures and see if I can add later.

I didn’t get to do as much wandering around as I usually do.  My time was mostly filled with meetings – some of which were very productive meetings (so I’m not whining, LOL!)  The other place the bulk of my time was spent was getting to spend time with some very special artist friends – you know who you are!  My artist friends inspire me so much.  I love seeing what they’re doing, discussing the industry and our goals going forward.  I’m friends with some VERY motivating people!

If you’re snowed in, how about beating the boredom by crafting something with all of those supplies you have stashed away?  How about pulling out your scrapbook papers and creating 5 or 5 greeting cards to have ready to use when the need arises?  I love to make a mess just once and end up with lots of goodies to use later throughout the year.  Try making some matching gift tags to add to your birthday or Christmas gifts during the next year.  It’s a wonderful way to pass a cold and miserable day with the warm sense of joy creating brings.

Kids driving you nuts?  Bring out your craft goodies and set them to work creating.  You might be amazed how much they enjoy the time and remember it fondly decades later (as I do my Mom’s rainy day projects!)

I thought I would also share some of my newest invitations in my two Zazzle stores.  If you know a young bride that is getting married this year, or a new mother welcoming a baby, I would love if you would pass my website along to her!

New Releases, Products Available

To Warm Your Heart New, Coastal Beachy Collections

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A New Year means time for new art!  I’ve been working hard on some new coastal, beach style artwork and just finished this collection enough to have it designed into 3 complete wedding ensembles.  If you’re daring, they mix and match beautifully!

I have a Great White Egret, a Sea Horse and a Green Sea Turtle (by the way, did you know they aren’t green?!)  If you’re looking for destination wedding invitations, I can add the island or other name of your wedding location in the elegant calligraphy that is featured.

These are classic, elegant and yet very trend forward.  I hope you’ll enjoy taking a peek!

This collection also has several wedding or anniversary prints that are suitable for framing.  Shown here with the Green Sea Turtle design, this one is available in all three motifs.  Perfect for an upcoming wedding gift, for your own home or for a special anniversary.

If you’re a coastal person and have suggestions for other art I could add to this collection, please comment on this post I would LOVE to hear from you!

Just click on any picture and it will take you to that item in my Zazzle store.  From there, if you would like to see more options of items available, just look above the image and you’ll see a file tree that looks like: AudreyJeanne > Everything Wedding! > Beach – Coastal – Ocean > Sea Horse.  The last name listed is the specific collection and the ones prior to it are the various section in the store.  You can also copy the title of any item in the search function and it will show you all of the items available in that collection design.

Faith & Inspiration

Does the Season Find you Weary and Heavy Laden?

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In thinking over this past year, I have found that it has exhausted me in many ways.  A mixture of amazingly good and very challenging issues made for a very busy and tiring year.  A lot of what we experienced were even wonderful blessings – but they still can tire a person out.  Some of the events of our year were frustrating, painful or seemingly without a positive conclusion.  Some were things we hoped we would never face, such as dealing with a debilitating injury to my husband’s back that has kept him out of work for eighteen months.  Some of the most exhausting things we experienced this year were just the plain, old boring day-to-day affairs of life!  In other words, we experienced pretty much the same year that you probably did!

Do you ever get tired of doing the right thing when it doesn’t seem to make a difference?  Do you get tired of being consistent in doing what is right no matter how those around you respond?  Do you work at being diligent and yet still feel like the pile of undone tasks only grows? Life can feel more toil than joy sometimes – and that affects the joy we’re capable of feeling during the holidays.

Finding myself in this place, the Lord spoke a scripture reference directly to my heart this week.  I had  no idea what it was going to be, but when I turned to it, I found a wonderful heart-lifting scripture.   It so beautifully addresses this issue I thought I would share it with you.

“Ecclesiastes 3:9-14

What does the worker gain from his toil?  I have seen the burden God has laid on men.  He has made everything beautiful in its time.  He has also set eternity in the hearts of men; yet they cannot fathom what God has done from beginning to end.  I know that there is nothing better for men than to be happy and do good while they live.  That everyone may eat and drink, and find satisfaction in all his toil – this is the gift of God.  I know that everything God does will endure forever; nothing can be added to it and nothing taken from it.  God does it so that men will revere Him.”

If life is feeling a little more like a toil than a joy, remember that if you ask Him, God is working through your toil to accomplish His purposes whether you see it or not. Your exhaustion and experience of “toil” might be at a job, career or ministry.  Your toil might be in relationships – both family and friends.  Your toil might be in a difficult marriage.  Perhaps your toil is financial stress or health issues.  Just know that every bit of it can be made beautiful through his loving touch.  Have you asked Him to make these things into things of beauty?  Have you asked Him to take them and work His purposes through them so that they will become eternal blessings that will last forever?

Everything God does through you will last forever.  Everything God does in you will be made beautiful in His time.  If you are waiting to see results from a lifetime of praying, loving, sharing, being diligent at your career or being a good wife and mother and are feeling a little blue about the visible results…  Remember this verse!  It is God that does the work.  We can’t add to it or take away from it.  We merely need to be faithful to what we know is right, do the good that we are capable of doing, ask Him to work through us and leave the results in His hands.

PRAYER:  Lord, I’m feeling pretty harried and exhausted at this moment with all of the preparations for Christmas, family, and friends.  I’m finding the joy of the season is a little be lost in all the toil of the season.  Help me to find your joy in the midst of the work.

In the year ahead, help me to find joy in the work you’ve given me to do.  You made man for work, and that work is to bring joy to his/her soul.  Help me to find joy in the tasks that are mine to do.  Refresh my strength.  Refresh my vision and my hope.  Give me energy for the tasks at hand and more.  Renew the joy of my salvation and my life!  AMEN

Baby Products, New Product Previews

Custom iPad & iPhone Cases for Young Mothers

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Are you looking for a fun gift for a young mom, whether for Christmas, a birthday or for Mother’s Day next year?  These Speck iPad and iPhone cases are AMAZING quality and can be customized with her children’s names.  For that matter, if you have a grandmother hip enough to have an iPad or iPhone, she could have one too!

The text is very easily customized so if you are interested in the design but wish it to say something else – no problem!  There are so many different iPhone and iPad designs to choose from.  If you’re looking for a product to protect your device and do it beautifully in a way that declares who you are and what your style is, these products at Zazzle are for you.  Simply click on either image and it will take you to them in the Zazzle store, then if there are other items you would like to check out use the navigation bar at the top of the page.

Audrey Jeanne's Expressions Framed Prints, Baby Products

New Personalized Baby Name Wall Art Decor, Ready for Framing

“Precious Little One” is a design with an adorable sleeping little lamb cuddled up with the man in the moon amongst a sky of stars.  The new baby’s name, birthdate, weight, length, and time of birth are included.  These designs have been on the drafting board for about a year and I managed to finish them today.  What I love about these is that you can personalize them really easily and the gift will ship to you within 24 hours most of the time, if you order the print through Zazzle!  Simply click on the image and it will take you to more information.  All you need to know is the new baby’s vitals and you’re ready to order a keepsake gift that can be treasured for a lifetime.

Available in 4 different colors for boys and 4 different colors for girls, these are prints that are suitable for framing.  To create them, we cut a double bevel cut matte, scanned it in and layered it over the image, so the print is ready to frame as is.  OR you can buy an 11″ x 14″ frame with a matte in it and place the print behind the pre-cut matte – a very cost-effective way to frame things as both Costco and WalMart have some really great frames at great prices.  OR you can take the print to your local Michael’s Frame Shop or local Framer and have it framed to suit your decor.

If you would like to order these the old fashioned way, from our company directly.  Personalized, framed, double matted costs $49.95.  Print only, personalized is $24.95 through Zazzle.  We do still manufacture them with frames and mattes directly from our company , you can simply email steveataje (at sign) earthlink (dot) net and customer service will take care of it.

Audrey Jeanne's Expressions Framed Prints, Daily Life with Audrey Jeanne, wedding invitations

Coming Soon, First Release Today

NEW!  Personalized art prints suitable for framing.  Available for wedding or anniversary gifts.  Personalize with your names and dates.  Sizes available both 11″ square (fits nicely on a 12″ scrap book paper in a 12″ scrapbook) and 12″ square (fits stock frames designed for scrapbook pages).

I began my business many years ago as a calligrapher.  At the time I didn’t know how to paint or draw.  In designing calligraphy pieces for people I discovered that I needed to find ways to add color and interest to them and thus began my journey into the world of art.

For many years we had a framed print line that we sold at craft fairs all throughout the state of California.  Our favorite being the Harvest Festivals.  Not a fall passes by that we don’t reminisce fondly about those days (amazing how memories of the pain and exhaustion passes after time, LOL!)

We also wholesaled our product to about 4,000 stores during the 90’s and up until 2006.  At that time it simply became too much to manage with the growth of my licensing business and the time commitments that were involved.  We have continued to sell to individuals over the years and have made dear, dear friends with many of our repeat customers – you know who you are 🙂

With my venturing into Zazzle this past year and especially with my growing wedding invitation business, it’s been much on my heart to bring back the calligraphy line but in a new way, with new art for a new generation.  Today is the very first piece that I am releasing.  These are being sold as prints that can be framed or displayed in a scrapbook.  You can order them and take them to your local Michael’s or frame shop.  They can be framed without mats or matted and framed as suits your decor.

Look for many more in the days and months to come.  What I love about this option is that I can do 30 or more versions of 1st Corinthians 13 and not have to have a catalog that shows them all!  The next designs to come will be my best sellers “Lord, Help me to Build a Healthy Child” and “To Build a Lasting Love.”

Also shown in this post are the Wedding Invitations that match.  This collection is called “Trellis Rose Vintage” and has a wide range of wedding related products created to match.  Perfect for spring and summer weddings, the collection will be fully finished by the New Year.  Click on any picture to go to that item in the store.

New Product Previews, Products Available

IPod and IPad Cases with Fun Art!

Would you like to customize your IPad or IPhone case and show your personality?  Would you like to buy a special gift for a very special person this Christmas?  These cases are so fun I wish they had them for my Droid phone and it makes me want to buy an IPad, LOL!

Zazzle is currently running specials every day before Christmas.  If you click on any of these designs they will take you to the products and to my Zazzle store where you will be informed of the most current special.  There are some INCREDIBLE deals there right now!

Crafting, wedding invitations

A Plethora of Peacocks!

I LOVE, LOVE, LOVE peacocks!  When I was a little girl we went to the San Diego Zoo several times a year.  Anyone who’s ever been there has been regally greeted by the resident show offs that hang around the entrance.  I could have watched them for hours if my mother would have let me.

Peacocks are showing a resurgence in art and especially for weddings.  I have happily gone along with this trend and have some new things to show today.  A new line of wedding invitations at Zazzle.  And new craft oriented designs for sale at my Etsy store.

I am still in the process of adding designs in both stores.  The wedding ensemble will have cupcake wrapers and toppers, table seating charts, table numbers, escort cards, wedding menus & programs and much more.

The Etsy kits will include both square and round designs in 3″, 2.5″, 2.25″, 2″, 1.5″, 1″ and 7.8″ sizes as well as ATC cards, shaped tags and more.

If you’re looking to add some elegance to your Thanksgiving or Christmas table, try this quick idea:  Use peacock feathers, a custom name on a circle design like these collages and a beautiful wired ribbon – cut the feathers to about 5-6″, tie them on to your napkins, tuck them inside the ribbon and place across your table setting.  Easy Peasy Elegance!!!!

Wedding Invitations | Stationery