Ink Obsession Designs

New Rock & Roll and Sweet Birthday Invites!

2012-01-23T12:27:00.000-06:00

Hi guys! I hope everyone had a great weekend! :) With the weather in Chicago being a little blah this weekend I was able to finish up on several new birthday party designs:

I have some already listed in my etsy shop and the rest are on the website. I hope you love them and that you are all having a great day! :)

Retirement Sale on Select Designs!

2012-01-06T09:31:00.000-06:00

Happy Friday, everybody! I'm retiring a few of my etsy shop sets, logos & DIY web/blog packages. They will be on sale starting now through next Friday, 1/13/12 and then they will be removed from the website. If you are in need of something new, you can find the designs at the following link: Retirement Sale

I hope everybody has a great weekend...TGIF! :)

NEW! Hot Pink & Black Damask Graphics

2011-12-30T12:32:00.001-06:00

Happy (almost!) New Year everybody!

Before 2011 officially comes to an end I just wanted to post a few new graphics that made their way to the website this week...

Fuchsia Pink & Black Damask and Polka Dots Etsy Shop Sets

matching DIY social media set:

and last but not least a matching logo/watermark for protecting all your photos!

and don't forget, the 25% off $25 or more sale ends on Sunday, January 1, 2012. If you have your eye on something definitely head over to the website this weekend! :)

Happy New Year!

End of the Year SALE! Take 25% off!

2011-12-19T09:32:00.000-06:00

Starting now through the rest of the year take 25% off all orders or $25 or more, using the discount code of EOY25. Only valid at www.inkobsessiondesigns.com.

Happy holidays!! :)

NEW! Redesigned Baby Shower Invites

2011-12-09T08:56:00.000-06:00

Hi there! I hope everyone has been having a great week!

Periodically I review my designs and make changes and tweaks as necessary. I've been in the "reviewing" mode lately and have started updating my baby shower invites. Below are several of the redesigned invitations:

Next up will be bridal shower invites. Or maybe birthday party invites. We'll see. :)

For now you can find the new shower invitations at the link below:

Ink Obsession Designs Baby Shower Invitations

TGIF and have a great weekend!! :)

NEW! Penguin Holiday Party Invitations

2011-11-21T09:13:00.000-06:00

Happy Monday! :)

To start off the holidays this week I thought I would post two new holiday party invites, featuring cute little penguins!

You can find these as well as the rest of the holiday party invites at the link below:

Ink Obsession Designs Holiday Party Invites

Have a great Monday! :)

Weekend Sale! Take 25% off Everything! :)

2011-11-11T09:44:00.000-06:00

Have a great weekend, everybody! :)

NEW! Logos, Web Graphics & Etsy Shop Sets!

2011-11-08T12:28:00.000-06:00

Just added to the website today, new designs! :)

You can find them in the following sections:

Have a great Tuesday! :)

NEW! Baby Shower Invites, Onesies & Bees!

2011-11-03T14:41:00.001-05:00

Okay, these aren't exactly new, but they are recent. That counts, right? :) I probably added them to the website last month(ish). I have some new chevron designs coming up soon too!

They can be found at the following link:
Ink Obsession Designs Baby Shower Invitations

Have a happy Thursday! :)

NEW! DIY Web Graphics Sets & a Sale!

2011-10-28T08:59:00.000-05:00

Happy friday, everybody! :)

I just added new DIY web graphics sets (and matching etsy sets & logos) to the website. These new designs as well as all the other current DIY sets are on sale for 35% off, through the end of today. You can view the new designs below:

You can view all the designs at the link below:

Ink Obsession Designs DIY Web Graphics

No coupon code is needed to take advantage of the sale! Have a great weekend! :)

FREEBIE! Halloween Invite & Treat Tag

2011-10-14T08:49:00.001-05:00

Happy Friday! How about a little freebie today? :)

I created a little Halloween invite and matching favor/treat tag PDF. The invite is sized at 5" x 7" and is fill in style and the treat tags are 2".

You can download them on the Ink Obsession freebie page, found here:
Ink Obsession Designs Freebies

As always please feel free to share the link, but please don't claim these designs as your own.

Have a great weekend! :)

NEW! Premade Etsy Shop Set, Logo & More

2011-10-06T12:02:00.000-05:00

Recently added to the website, a new premade etsy shop set design, logo, & DIY set featuring colorful pinwheels. I have to admit, I am loving this fun and whimsical little design! :)

Want it for yourself or have your eye on anything else? Starting now through Sunday, 10/9, you can take 10% off using the discount code of OCTOBER10.

And you can view these new designs at the links below:

Happy Thursday! :)

New Birthday Party Invitations - Owls & More!

2011-09-29T13:07:00.000-05:00

New birthday party invitations are now available! :)

You can view them all at the following link:
Ink Obsession Designs Birthday Party Invitations

Have a happy Thursday!

New Premade Graphic Design Sets!

2011-09-27T12:39:00.000-05:00

I've been super busy with updating the website lately. I retired a lot of designs (although a few are still in my etsy shops until they sell or expire) and I've been furiously trying to add new designs.

In the last few days I added these two sets...

Pink Party Confetti & Bunting Etsy shop set, DIY graphics set & logo:

and also Blue Baby Onesies Etsy shop set, DIY web graphics & logo

And today only take 25% off of orders of $15 or more using the discount code INKOBSESSED25 ... good only at www.inkobsessiondesigns.com.

Have a happy Tuesday! :)

New Premade Logo Designs!

2011-09-20T10:59:00.000-05:00

I'm still in the process up updating the website and I'm trying to work on all the graphic design services first. Up next are several new premade logo/watermark designs:

I did retire many of the logos from the website, although some are still available in my Etsy shop until they sell or expire.

You can view all the new designs here: Ink Obsession Designs Logos & Watermarks

Clipart & Digital Paper Sale This Weekend!

2011-09-16T09:22:00.001-05:00

Hello there! It has been forever since I posted on this blog. I haven't meant to be away for so long, I've just been busy designing & working on orders (and feeling stunned that it is already September!). I've still been posting on my Erin Bradley Designs blog, but not as much over there either.

I also have neglected to add new items to the website so I am trying to get back up to speed. I just updated the clipart & digital paper sections and am having a sale on those this weekend for 25% off. Updating logos, etsy shop sets, DIY web graphics, invitations & announcements are up next!

Have a great weekend everybody! :)

New Premade Logo Designs!

2011-08-24T11:40:00.000-05:00

Here are some new logo designs that were added to the website this week:

These are also on sale for 25% off at the following link through Friday:

Ink Obsession Designs Premade Business Logos

Happy Wednesday! :)

Graphic Design Sale! 25% off Select Services!

2011-08-22T06:53:00.001-05:00

Happy Monday, everybody! I'll be retiring the majority of my etsy shop sets, DIY web graphics sets and logos in the very near future to make room for my new designs (which I am slowly but surely adding to the website). What does this mean for you? Well a sale of course! :)

ALL of the etsy shop sets, logos & DIY graphics on my website (www.inkobsessiondesigns.com) will be on sale through Friday, August 26th. Even the brand new designs that I have just added as well as some new designs that I hope to add in the next couple of days.

After that I'll be retiring many of the older designs from the website and then either letting them sell & not renew, or expire on etsy. If there is anything you've had your eye on, definitely take a look! :)

Ink Obsession Designs Sale

Have a great Monday!

Obsessed with Cherries! And Discounts!

2011-08-15T11:45:00.003-05:00

Over the weekend I had a chance to work on some new designs, and they were all cherry/retro inspired. Like these bridal shower invites...

and this new etsy & artfire shop set:

a logo/watermark:

and last but not least, a DIY web graphics set:

See anything you like? Take 15% off these new designs through Friday, 8/19 with the discount code Iheartcherries!

Happy Monday! :)

New DIY Web Graphics Sets

2011-08-08T10:12:00.000-05:00

Happy Monday! :)

I mentioned last week that I have a bunch of new designs, but it is taking me a little longer to get everything added to the website than I expected. I was able to get these new DIY web graphics sets listed this morning, however.

As always, the sets come with oversized avatars for using on a multitude of sites (i.e. facebook, blogger, twitter, etc.), a tiled background, 125x125 web ad, header and color codes.

I also will have matching etsy sets for these on the website shortly. :)

You can view the DIY sets at the links below:

Have a great day! :)

New Logo & Watermark Designs Available!

2011-08-01T08:03:00.000-05:00

Happy Monday!

I have a bunch of new goodies that I am adding to the website. Up first are some new logo designs:

The logos aren't just good for photographers and businesses but also for . . . bloggers! You can use the watermark that is included with the design to protect all of your photos and images. :)

You can view the new logos at the following link:
Ink Obsession Designs Premade Logo Designs

I hope everyone is having a great start to the week!

New Bridal & Baby Shower Invitations!

2011-07-28T16:21:00.002-05:00

I just finished up on a few new bridal & baby shower invites (and birthday party versions will be forthcoming soon...). First up, little birds in cherry blossom branches, in blue, preppy pink and green and purple.

Also my newest obsession . . . bunting! In a few color schemes of course. :)

You can find them at the links below:

TGI(almost!)F!

New and Improved!

2011-07-20T11:26:00.000-05:00

Have you seen the new Ink Obsession Designs? It got a little makeover to match my other website, Erin Bradley Designs. I am super excited about the new look, although I still have a little bit of work to do on it. What do you think? :)

Happy Wednesday!

New Bunting Etsy, Artfire & Web Graphics

2011-07-07T11:48:00.000-05:00

Happy almost Friday! :)

I just added a few new designs to the website . . .

New etsy/artfire shop sets and a DIY web graphics set. This design actually started out as an invite (currently available on etsy & coming to the website soon) and I liked so much that I had to adapt it into a shop set and other graphics.

You can find more info below:

Have a great day!

New Owl Birth Announcement Designs

2011-07-06T09:22:00.000-05:00

I have to admit...I am almost a little embarrassed about this blog post. I started this design several months ago, listed the blue version of it on etsy, and then forgot to finish up the other color schemes and post them to my website. Yikes! Oh well, better late than never, right?

You can view all the new owl designs here:
Ink Obsession Designs Photo Birth Announcements

I hope everybody had a great 4th of July weekend!:)

New! Made-to-Match Craft Shower Banners

2011-06-30T13:52:00.000-05:00

Ask and you shall receive! :) After receiving a rather large amount of requests for made-to-match craft shower banners, these are now available at the link below:

Made to Match Craft Shower Banners

I hope everyone is having a great day!

NEW! Pink Cupcake Web & Etsy Shop Sets!

2011-06-22T13:16:00.000-05:00

A new cupcake DIY web graphics set (featuring preppy pink, green, brown polka dots and stripes!) was just added to the website. :)

I also added a matching etsy shop set:

I have to admit, I think they are pretty "sweet"! Okay, I know that was cheesy, but still...

Have a happy day! :)

NEW! DIY Web Graphics Sets

2011-06-16T09:24:00.000-05:00

New to the shop, DIY web graphics sets matching the new etsy shop sets I debuted last month...

You can view them all at the links below:

Happy Thursday! :)

Made-to-Match Shop Set Designs Available!

2011-06-14T09:39:00.001-05:00

I have finally added M2M Etsy & Artfire shop set designs to the website.

These are the same designs that are available in my Etsy shop, but they will be on sale on the Ink Obsession website ONLY through Friday, June 17th. No coupon code needed!

Happy Tuesday! :)

To the Moon Spaceship Birthday Invitations

2011-06-07T11:01:00.000-05:00

New to the website...rocket ship birthday party invitations for boys and girls. The blue/teal graphics are from my "To the Moon" clip art collections. I'm thinking I may have to make another set in the pink, just because I think those came out kind of fun. :)

You can view the new designs here:

1.) To the Moon Blue Rocketship Birthday Party Invitation
2.) To the Moon Pink Rocketship Birthday Party Invitation
3.) To the Moon Teal Rocketship Birthday Party Invitation

Colorful Cloud Baby and Bridal Shower Invites

2011-06-01T10:58:00.000-05:00

Hi everbody!

I just added a few new baby & bridal shower invites to the website featuring clouds and colorful raindrops. The designs are great for gender neutral & couples showers.

You can view the baby shower invites here:
Ink Obsession Designs Baby Shower Invitations

and the bridal shower invites here:
Ink Obsession Designs Bridal Shower Invitations

Happy Wednesday! :)

New Photo Birth Announcement Designs

2011-05-26T14:41:00.001-05:00

Just added to the website today. Hearts and flowers in pink, blue, purple and lime green sitting atop a kraft colored background. You can view them in their full glory here: Ink Obsession Designs Birth Announcements

TGI (almost!) F!

Freebie! Teacher Appreciation Card

2011-05-20T09:07:00.000-05:00

It's that time of year again where the school year is just coming to a close and summer is right around the corner (yay!). For all of the mommies out there with school aged children, I thought it may be fun to have your child give his or her favorite teacher a little note alongside their gift, letting the teacher know just how much they loved their class this year and why.

This downloadable design is available on my website and the card size is 3.5" x 5" (it takes an A1 envelope in case should you want to include one). The cards are saved two to the page on a regular 8.5" x 11" PDF.

You can find the download here: Ink Obsession Designs Freebies and please feel free to share the link should you feel so inclined! For personal use only, please!

I hope everyone has a happy Friday! I myself will be stuck working on a minor remodeling update to our bathroom. Wish me luck! :)

Featured :: Lil' Lollipop Parties

2011-05-18T12:13:00.001-05:00

As you all know, I LOVE seeing what you've created with any of the graphics sets you've purchased from me. One thing I love in particular are website designs. I think part of this is because I can fully admit I am good with graphics but not so good with coding, so I love to see what you guys have put together.

One customer that did not disappoint was Lil' Lollipop Parties. When I saw their website I just KNEW I had to write up a little about them . . . as they do theme parties!

They offer three different packages, that include a consultation, full event planning, custom invitations & thank you cards, party set up & take down, a lollipop tree, a dessert buffet, beverages, custom table covers & centerpieces, party hats & goody bags and a ton more. They even have extras like a photo booth and snacks for adults. Seriously does it get any better than that? If you get a chance, you can see the design & visit their website in action here.

I've also had a few people ask if I could create "I've been featured" buttons that they can post on their blog & website and I am more than happy to oblige! If you've been featured and feel inclined to share, you can grab a button on my right side bar or just copy & paste the following html code on to your blog/website:

I'll create a button for Erin Bradley Designs too for those of you that have been featured over there.

Happy Wednesday!

New Etsy Shop Sets!

2011-05-11T12:14:00.000-05:00

I am finally adding Etsy (and Artfire!) shop sets to the website. I've been meaning to do this for months now but it has just been one of those things that was a little too far down the list, so the project got pushed back a few times.

I thought it may be fun to start off the collection with a few new designs which you can view below. A cream, red and brown poppy flower design, colorful (with polka dots!) banner flags and a black & pink chevron set.

One thing that I am going to do differently from my etsy shop is to offer two packages per design. The first package will just be a basic set which includes 3 banners and 3 avatars (main, sale & away), a reserved listing placeholder and a custom order or feedback appreciation placeholder. Those sets will be $15. The second option will also include the business card and square logo designs for $25. I know not everyone needs everything, so I thought this would be a nice solution.

Another new option will be you can also order an artfire set (for basic or pro accounts) OR you can order both an etsy AND artfire set together. This is really only needed for Artfire Pro accounts, as the basic account uses the same size banner that etsy does.

I'll also be adding my made-to-match options on my website, hopefully in the next couple of days (or maybe week or so). I'll let you guys know when that is active.

Oh and let's see...what else? Oh yes. These new designs are ON SALE starting this very minute and good through Friday. 20% off!

If you are interested in a little shop makeover you can view them here: Etsy & Artfire Shop Sets

Annddd...speaking of shop sets, I recently worked with Second Blessings Children's Consignment Shop on a new design. They just started up a facebook page so if you have a chance, go check it out! Second Blessings Facebook

I hope everyone is having a great day!

Freebie! Web, Blog & Desktop Backgrounds

2011-05-05T07:33:00.000-05:00

Happy Cinco de Mayo! I thought it may be fun to start the day off with a little freebie - website & blog backgrounds!

The set comes with 5 polka dotted backgrounds in green, blue, pink, lavender and yellow. You can use them on your blog or website like the example below:

or even as desktop paper on your Mac or PC (which is how I'm using mine right now!)

To download, you can go to the freebie page on my website: Polka Dotted Website Backgrounds and then enjoy!

These are for PERSONAL use only, meaning you can't sell them or use them in products for sale, but if you want to use them for your business blog, website, twitter page, tumblr, etc. that is totally fine. :)

And if you want to spread the word, that is OK too! Please feel free to share the link.

Happy Cinco de Mayo!

Etsy :: To renew or not to renew

2011-05-03T17:08:00.000-05:00

One of the questions I am asked about on a fairly regular basis is how to stay visible on etsy. I always answer that it is simple! Renew a lot. Now I know this is a super controversial topic in Etsyland. There are sellers like me that swear by renewing and there are others that swear it is a total waste of money. In the past I've tried advertising and the results were always less than desirable - lots of views, not many new sales - but renewing like crazy always made me visible and kept my sales steady.

Or so I thought.

About ten days or so ago I was so swamped that I decided NOT to renew. For a minute I even thought about putting my shops in vacation mode until I caught up but I didn't really like that idea too much. In the end I decided to just stop renewing (except on my clip art & paper packs) because then I wouldn't be so visible, but if someone had their eye on something for a while they could still purchase it from my shop.

But then a funny thing happened. My sales didn't slow down at all.

So it made me think. Maybe I've been wrong all this time. Maybe renewing really isn't the answer and now I'm torn between going back to my old habits or saving my pennies and putting that money towards other advertising methods like giveaways and freebies.

For those of you who are on etsy, what do you do? What works best for you? Right now I am going to keep on renewing my clip art, photoshop templates & digital paper packs in my EBD shop but I am not sure about everything else. I'd love to hear your thoughts!

New! Forest Critter Logo Designs

2011-04-28T06:37:00.000-05:00

It's been a while since I've had any new logo designs & photography watermarks come out, so last week I started working on a few new ones featuring a caterpillar, butterfly and turtle in shades of teal blue, brown, apple green & red.

As of right now (and this may change of course) I don't plan on putting the designs on etsy, so you can view them and get more details here: Premade Photography & Small Business Logos

Happy Thursday!

On Sale :: Select Birthday Party Invites

2011-04-20T13:18:00.000-05:00

I'm going to try (key word here is try) to keep a sale section on the website. Up first are a few printable birthday party invitations, with cupcakes, preppy polka dotted poppies, and even a couple of little alligators. You can view all the designs and the new sale section here: Ink Obsession Designs Sale Items

All of the sale items are available for $10 this week. If you have a birthday party to plan, definitely take a look! :)

New Releases :: Photo Birth Announcements

2011-04-14T09:37:00.000-05:00

I have to admit...I've been majorly slacking with getting new products added to the website. I had a good rhythm going for a while, but once I decided to launch the Erin Bradley Designs website (and if you don't follow me on twitter or facebook you can read more about that here) everything else fell to the wayside.

But I do have a bunch of new stuff that I'll be trying to add on in a reasonable amount of time. Starting with these birth announcements (available in a few different color schemes of course):

As always you can view all the new items here: Photo Birth Announcements

I'll also be adding the rest of the items from my EBD etsy shop to the website. I've been meaning to do that for a while, but just haven't gotten around to it yet, so that will probably be coming up somewhat soon.

Happy Thursday!

Downloadable Easter Printable - Freebie!

2011-04-04T12:39:00.001-05:00

Happy Monday, everybody!

I have a little Easter treat for you - downloadable chickadees & flowers. You can use these for cupcake toppers, tags, stickers or however else you may fancy. Each design is approximately 2" with a bleed on all sides.

You can download them here:
Hoppy Easter 2011

Please feel free to share the design on your blog/facebook page, etc. but just make sure you link back to me (i.e. don't post the direct download link).

For personal use only, please! :)

P.S. I'm going to have some other Easter freebies on my Erin Bradley Designs blog sometime this week or next (hopefully!) so make sure you follow along there too!

Chevron, Poppies, Birdies - Oh My!

2011-03-31T11:10:00.000-05:00

Happy almost Friday everybody!

I just wanted to pop in to drop off a few new bridal shower invitations (these will also be available for baby shower & birthday invites).

I have to admit...the next two aren't exactly new. The colorful birdies I added to Etsy a few weeks ago (but just added to the website yesterday) and the purple sparrow birds are just one of three new color schemes available for this particular design. The new colors are by popular request! :)

You can view all the new color schemes & designs - there are 15 total - right here: Bridal Shower Invitations.

Have a great day!

Chevron Striped Photoshop Templates

2011-03-29T13:32:00.000-05:00

It's no secret that once I find a design element that I like that I use it over and over and over.

And over some more.

My latest obsession? Chevron stripes. I've had a lot requests for new photoshop birth announcement templates, so I am trying to create more of those.

What design elements are you obsessed with right now?

I Heart Buttons by Robin

2011-03-24T12:41:00.000-05:00

There is nothing I love more than when someone emails or convos me to show what they've made with their EBD clipart or digital paper.

Last week I heard from Buttons by Robin. When I saw what she made I had to ask if I could share it on the blog. Seriously, how FANTASTIC are these buttons? I absolutely LOVE them!

And then I dug a little deeper in her shop and saw all kinds of other cute designs. You know I am a stickler for animals so these of course caught my eye:

And I'm thinking I need these Little Red Writing Hood buttons...just because! :)

If you are on the hunt for something fun, definitely take a look at her shop here: Buttons by Robin.

And if you've made something using any of my designs and want to show it off send it my way. I love to see what you've created!

All photos courtesy of Buttons by Robin

Digital Paper Pack Sale...Extended!

2011-03-21T09:28:00.001-05:00

If you are one of my "likers" on facebook then you know from time to time I will post random sales for a day or evening. On Saturday I added a bunch of new digital paper packs to my website and in my excitement had a sale for the rest of the evening for 50% off.

The sale actually did better than I anticipated, but on Sunday a few people contacted me to say they missed it and asked if I would be doing it again any time soon.

And I'm happy to say yes. :)

So for today and tomorrow the digital papers will be on sale again, but this time for 35% off. If you are on the hunt for something you can go shopping here: Digital Paper Packs

Happy Monday! :)

New Birthday Invitation Photoshop Templates - Frog Princesses!

2011-03-17T07:07:00.000-05:00

Happy St. Patrick's Day everybody!

I added a few frog princess photoshop templates to the website. These are shown as birthday party invitations but of course the wording could be changed to work for birth announcements or any other events.

These are available for personal OR commercial use and you can view them at the following links: blue invite, lilac invite, pink invite.

Have a great St. Patrick's day!

Easter Photo Card Templates

2011-03-10T08:49:00.000-06:00

As promised in my last post, here are the Easter photo cards I designed for this year. I have to say, I am really loving the little chicks in their cracked eggs!

As with all of my photoshop templates, these are good for personal and commercial use and you can view them here: photoshop templates

I was thinking about doing a giveaway for these items, but I ended up designing a few extra things that didn't make it to the website yet. I'm thinking that instead of doing a giveaway maybe I'll just have some freebies, that way everybody is a winner. But we'll see...if there is enough interest maybe I will do both!

Easter Goodies and a Sale!

2011-03-04T08:37:00.001-06:00

For the last several weeks I've been working on personal & commercial use Easter goodies for the shop. I don't have a ton of stuff available, but I have enough to split it up between two posts so I'll show off the clip art & paper packs today and the photo cards in my next post. :)

You can view all these designs in their full glory at this link: clip art and paper packs and while you are visiting, take advantage of the 35% off sale I am having in this category. The sale will be good through Monday and no discount code is needed.

Have a great weekend!

Backyard Fun & Whale of a Time Clip Art

2011-02-25T10:58:00.000-06:00

As promised, I added a few more clip art collections to the website this week -

Backyard fun (which will eventually be available in additional color schemes)

and some boyish (and girlish) whales.

On a kind of related note, I'm thinking about doing a giveaway for Easter related personal & commercial use photoshop templates or clip art. Would there be enough interest for something like that? If so please let me know! :)

Have a great weekend!

One Princess & One Pea Boutique

2011-02-23T08:23:00.000-06:00

Last week I had the pleasure of working with One Princess & One Pea Boutique on a new etsy shop set. And I have a feeling I will be returning the favor and shopping with them soon.

You see, I am always on the hunt for baby shower gifts. In my family it always seems as though one cousin of mine or another is having a baby. As most of you know I love (and prefer!) all things handmade so I always try to find something on Etsy before looking anywhere else. I'm excited to have a new favorite place to shop!

Here are a few of the items I have my eye on . . .

This last one, the sandwich bag, would be for me. :)

What do you guys think? Are these not the most adorable items you've seen? What are your favorite etsy shops right now?

New Designs!

2011-02-21T12:39:00.000-06:00

Happy Monday! I thought I would start the week off with a few new items.

Such as...new photoshop templates (also available as printable invites)

New clip art graphics (more of these are coming...hopefully this week!)

And last but not least, new premade logo designs

As you can see, I was really into the frogs after I finished designing them (thus the new premade froggy logos).

Have a great day!

Cutting the Fat

2011-02-17T07:09:00.000-06:00

Over the years (and in a few short months I will officially be starting my 5th year of business) I've learned that if I don't completely love one of my designs I can't keep it around. Even though I do like having a large selection of items I would much rather have quality designs that are most reflective of my style over a huge collection of items I love and ones that I think are just so-so.

One of the things I've been trying to do with my Ink Obsession & Erin Bradley Designs shops is cut the fat. I'm gettting rid of the designs I no longer love or at least revising them so they could be lovable (to me) once again.

Take this design for example. I created it as an etsy shop set originally and the colors & fonts really worked well together. When I adapted it into a birth announcement I still loved the colors and fonts, but something wasn't translating right.

It was the fonts.

While I really did like them (and actually still love the "Welcome Baby" text in this style) the rest just was not working. The design is so bright and cheery and the font needed to be reflective of that. So I reworked it and came up with this.

I feel the second one fits the design much better and is much more appropriate for announcing something as wonderful as a new birth.

As I have a bunch of new designs in the works I've been trying to dedicate a little time this week to reworking designs that just need a little something different and retiring the ones that aren't just making the cut any more.

Does anybody else do this? What do you do to keep things fresh in your own shop?

My New Stripe Obsession

2011-02-14T07:57:00.000-06:00

I mentioned on Facebook last week that I have a new obsession with stripes. I noticed it when I was working on these baby shower designs.

I've also found I have a new obsession with all things nautical. The nautical theme is going to come up again in the near future with a few premade business designs.

On an unrelated note, does anyone have any fun Valentines Day plans? I have to admit - we aren't doing much tonight. We'll probably just cook dinner together and then R E L A X. We've both been working crazy hours so I am looking forward to a night of basically not doing much of anything. :)

Happy Valentines Day!

New Clip Art & Digital Paper Packs

2011-02-10T13:57:00.000-06:00

Two new personal and commercial use clip art & digital paper packs were added to the website today. New baby shower invites are coming up next! I posted a sneak peek of those my facebook page a little earlier this morning.

How to use web fonts on your blog

2011-02-08T13:20:00.001-06:00

Have you wanted to customize the font on your blog but haven't wanted to go through the hassle of coding your template?

Me neither. I've always been secretly envious of everyone that has a cool font on their blog. I know enough html to get me through, but the truth is I'm not a web designer and my skills only go so far in that area. Thankfully blogger changed things up a couple of weeks ago and added a TON of new web fonts to their collection.

So for an easier way of customizing the fonts on your blog go into your design page and click on your template designer link.

I am fairly sure you need to be using one of the newer blog templates to do this (for example I use the Simple template myself) so if you are still on Minima or another older template or have a custom design this may not work for you (and don't switch templates without backing up first...once you do that basically everything but your widgets disappear and trust me...the fonts are fun, but not worth a blog redesign!).

If you are using a new template (from probably May/June '10 or later) you should be good to go and head down to the Advanced tab.

From there go through your various subtabs and whenever you see a font option scroll down a little until you get to the "web fonts". That's where the font fun begins.

Some of my new favorites are:

Cherry Cream Soda
Coming Soon
Covered by Your Grace
Crushed
Homemade Apple
Kranky
Merriweather
Rock Salt
Syncopate
Unkempt

Have fun!

New Colorful Circles DIY Web Graphics Set!

2011-02-07T07:17:00.000-06:00

This is a new design that I am super excited about. Like all my DIY web designs I email the finished files to you so you can upload them to all your favorite social media sites & website (if you have one). I know a lot of people like to use these designs on blogger but aren't sure if the design is right or not for them. I have a few (brief) instructions on my website for those who want to see what it is all about before buying:

Ink Obsession Designs DIY Blogger Graphic Instructions

And if you like this design you can see it in all its glory here:
Colorful Circles DIY Web Graphics Set

I have a few more DIY designs that will be making their debut shortly! Happy Monday!

Snowpocalypse

2011-02-02T07:28:00.000-06:00

We are definitely in the midst of the blizzard right now and the snow isn't suppose to end until about 3pm this afternoon. It is craziness out there! I think we've received between 17-20 inches so far and may get another 3-5 before it is all over. We are basically stranded today and aren't suppose to be on the roads (at least in my town) at all this morning.

I'm just so thankful that we still have electricity and heat right now. My internet is moving at a snail's pace, but so far so good.

For everyone else that is in the midst of the snowstorm I hope you are staying warm and safe!

Bridal shower invites are back (and on SALE!)

2011-02-01T10:59:00.000-06:00

Printable bridal shower invites are finally back up on my website. To celebrate they will be 20% off until next Friday, February 11th. No coupon code needed!

Valentines Day Goodies

2011-01-26T11:48:00.001-06:00

New Valentines Day photoshop templates and digital paper packs for personal & commercial use. Okay, so I'm stretching a little with the Valentines Day theme on the last two, but they have hearts on them so that kind of counts, right? :)

$20 Gift Certificate Giveaway!

2011-01-24T09:58:00.003-06:00

I'm doing a giveaway at Flip Flops and Pearls in honor of Daphne's birthday bash! Click here for a chance to win a $20 gift certificate to my website and be sure to check out all of the other goodies Daphne is giving away (I can guarantee they will all be preppy and super fun!).

Good luck and happy winning! :)

New Goodies

2011-01-19T12:03:00.000-06:00

Here are a few new goodies that were designed over the weekend. You can click on the photos for more info. I've come to the realization that I am the most creative starting Friday night through Sunday night. I think because I am more relaxed in general over the weekend (and really, who isn't)? Seriously, there is nothing better to me than kicking back with my laptop, coffee, yoga pants and just drawing away.

Thankfully the weekend is almost here again. :)

I realize I am probably the last to know . . .

2011-01-17T13:28:00.004-06:00

. . . but I thought I would pass this info on any way.

Have you claimed your facebook user name yet? I'm like a facebook major fail, but I'm trying to get better. One of my friends recently told me to claim my page so my customers & friends can get to me in an easier way. So I did this and now the Ink Obsession facebook page is at:

www.facebook.com/inkobsesiondesigns

instead of the not so attractive and extremly UN-user friendly

http://www.facebook.com/pages/Ink-Obsession-Designs/290760545159

If you haven't already done this and if you have a business (and I think this works for personal accounts too but don't quote me on it) go HERE and claim your user name. Easy peasy. It took me just a minute or two to do.

One thing to note, however, is I do I think you have to have a certain amount of friends/fans to do this. If anyone knows the exact number please leave a comment and let me know!

Happy Monday!

Lions, Flowers, Monsters Oh My!

2011-01-12T16:19:00.000-06:00

This past week has = craziness. But the good kind of crazy that I wouldn't have any other way of course.

I still found a little time to sneak in a few new birthday party designs, however.

You can view all the new designs in their glory here.

I'm working on new printable Valentines Day cards next. Those should (hopefully!) be ready in the next week or two.

Happy Wednesday!

Rawrrrrr...New Clip Art Packs!

2011-01-04T07:34:00.001-06:00

I just added a bunch of new commercial & personal use clip art packages to the website including scary monsters, girly princesses, snails & owls and even a few strollers and baby rattles.

You can view them all here.

And I've been meaning to add, if you've already purchased a set and made something send me a link or photo of the design. I'd absolutely LOVE to see it!

Happy (almost!) New Year!

2010-12-31T08:33:00.000-06:00

Happy New Year friends!

I don't know about you guys, but I am so looking forward to 2011. For the first time (in a really, really, REALLY long time) I feel like I've finally found a way to balance work & life. With that comes such a clearer focus of my expectations for myself and my business(es). So much of 2010 was still, even after three years of being in business, about trying to find out what I wanted to do & where I want to go. 2011 is for implementing everything I've learned along the way. I am just so excited for this new year & new decade to begin.

So what about you blog friends? Are you excited for the new year to begin or are you sad to see 2010 end? Do you have any plans to ring in the new year? I'm planning on a low key evening with my hubby with lots of good, yummy food and maybe a movie or two. Yes, I know, it doesn't sound super exciting, but I couldn't imagine a more perfect evening. :)

Until next year!

photo credit

New Bridal Shower Invites

2010-12-30T09:27:00.000-06:00

I'm still working on the bridal shower section on the website, so these are only available on etsy right now. You can view them here.

Happy (almost!) New Year! :)

New Logos & Watermarks

2010-12-27T15:31:00.000-06:00

New logo designs/photography watermarks that made it to the website today. I have some new graphics packages to add too. :)

Happy Monday!

Digital Clip Art & Paper Packs

2010-12-20T11:00:00.000-06:00

As (most) of you know, Ink Obsession is undergoing a bit of a transformation. I use to sell graphic design services from my Erin Bradley Designs etsy shop on there and then stopped. I was moving along full speed ahead with a new website for EBD, but since I already knew I was going to change Ink Obsession, it just made more sense to put everything back together. That way my customers had one place to go for all things graphic design related. So that is where I am at now.

One of the brand new items that has made its way to Ink Obsession are my personal & commercial use clip art & digital paper packs. They made their debut on the website a couple of weeks ago and are quickly becoming more popular than I anticipated.

Initially I priced them for commercial use, but wanted to offer lower pricing for those who just wanted them for personal use. With that in mind, the prices have been lowered to $5 per set for personal & commercial use. With the $5 commercial license you just need to credit the artwork back to Erin Bradley BUT if you don't want to credit it back that is OK too. For an extra $15 you can purchase the "Commercial Use - no credit required" license.

You can view the graphics that are currently available here. I hope to add at least a new set (or two) each week.

Printable Holiday Tags

2010-12-13T12:40:00.000-06:00

I've been a busy little bee adding new items to the website, including these fun little holiday tags.

They are being sold in a printable PDF file, with 9 tags per page (as seen below but without the watermark of course). Each tag is approximately 2.5" x 3.5".

I'm really excited about them because this is something I've been wanting to add for a while, but just never got around to doing. I'll be working on Valentines Day designs next! :)

You can view them all here: Printable Holiday Gift Tags

Happy Monday!

And Even More Designs...

2010-12-08T13:23:00.000-06:00

The last roundup of photo holiday cards for this year.

These aren't the only designs this year, just the newest. I didn't think I would have them done in time, but I did manage to get the holiday section on the website (hooray!). You can view them all here.

AND I just managed to get photo birth announcements on the website today. To celebrate, birth announcements are 20% off until Friday.

Impatient Me

2010-12-06T18:07:00.000-06:00

I am pretty sure I promised more holiday photo cards in my next blog post, but I'm totally breaking that promise.

I finally just finished up on the (majority) of the design for the new Ink Obsession website. Because I have no patience at all I had to post about it right away. Of course. :)

I still have a ton of work left to do. I have to update all the links and add the printable items AND graphic design services on (which was a total last minute change!) but the basic design is up. This is what I've been working on for the past two weeks and I'm still shooting for an early '11 grand RE-opening.

So even though it isn't totally perfect yet, if you get a chance pop on over and check it out and let me know what you think!

As for me, I think it's time to make dinner and retire to the couch for Monday night football. It's been a loooong day of fighting with html and I am ready to relax. :)

Holiday Designs Part Three

2010-12-01T17:45:00.001-06:00

Woah. I so meant to start posting photo holiday cards a while ago. I actually was able to create more designs that I anticipated this year (you know, between taking care of regular orders and updating the website and all) but I have to admit...I didn't do quite as many as I had in mind. I still have a bunch to add to etsy though and just a few more colorways to do before I totally call it quits this year.

So without further adieu, here are some of the new designs from the 2010 holiday collection.

As you can see I was feeling rather pink & red when I first started designing this year... :)

And I'll probably post a few more later this week, hopefully once I get them all ON the website (which I wasn't even going to do this year...I guess I am getting somewhere!).

For now you can purchase these in my etsy shop.

Have a great night everybody!

Black Friday & Cyber Monday Holiday Sale!

2010-11-24T08:13:00.000-06:00

Dear Etsy, Thank you for finally giving us coupon codes to pass along to our customers. And just in time for the holidays. You rock. Love, Erin

To all my Ink Obsession friends, let's give this coupon code a whirl and see how well it works. Save 25% on everything through Monday with the coupon code: GIVETHANKS

Available only in my Etsy Shop.

Happy Thanksgiving!

Holiday Designs Part Deux

2010-11-17T08:49:00.001-06:00

I've been slacking on posting the new holiday designs. Holiday orders have already been coming in steadily, so that has been keeping me a wee bit busy. On a totally unrelated side note, you'll notice that fat little owl is showing up everywhere these days. I think I have a serious crush on him.

All are available as printable files in my Etsy shop. More photo cards coming next. Happy Wednesday!

Holiday Freebie for Etsy Sellers

2010-11-12T08:58:00.000-06:00

This is a cross post from my personal blog, but I wanted to post it here too for my fellow etsy seller friends...

Holiday banner & avatar freebie: Download it here

Personalize it and then upload it to your shop, or just upload it as is.

Enjoy and have a great weekend!

Website Redesign Officially Underway!

2010-11-09T10:14:00.000-06:00

As of this morning I officially started loading my new printable products & changing out the old graphics on the website. All the changes are inactive (so you can't see them yet) and will probably remain that way until I have everything done, but can I just say I am so excited about the new look? Of course you can still order as per usual right now, but I wanted to let everybody know the redesign is underway, just incase you hop onto the website and something looks a little funny. And for those who asked, right now the grand re-opening is slated for early '11 but this is totally tentative. I have a very long way to go, but can't wait for the end result! :)

Happy Tuesday!

Holiday Photo Cards - Part One

2010-11-03T07:20:00.000-05:00

The next several blog posts are probably going to focus on new designs. I have a ton of new stuff (holiday & non holiday) to add to my etsy shop and I'm slowly but surely getting there. Up first are the first of the photo holiday cards. I hope to add more in the next week or so.

I'm thinking of using the first design for us this year, but I'm not sure how much my hubby will like sending out a pink and brown card. I'll probably get the side eye, but that's OK. :)

Holiday Savings

2010-10-28T07:39:00.000-05:00

I can't believe it is that time of year again! Get your holiday orders in now and save 10% on all orders of $25 or more with the discount code of HOLIDAY10. Good through November 30th. Only available at www.inkobsessiondesigns.com

As far as photo holiday cards go, I'll only be adding them to my Etsy shop this year. Since Ink Obsession will be going through a major transformation I don't anticipate I'll be adding any new designs to the website until it is ready for its grand re-opening. BIG changes coming up ahead and more on the holiday cards soon... :)

Happy Thursday!

New Printables

2010-10-22T14:25:00.000-05:00

New in the Etsy shop this week . . .

Happy Friday!

New Blog Design!

2010-10-15T09:27:00.001-05:00

It's here! It's here! The new blog has officially been launched, although I will probably be making some adjustments here and there for a little while. I admit, I'm a wee bit sad to give up the old look, but am super excited about this new design, as the direction of Ink Obsession is changing a little bit and I have been itching for something more vibrant to reflect what the NEW Ink Obsession is going to be about.

The website, unfortunately, is going to have to stay as is for at least a little bit longer. I ran into a couple of snags with that and for the first time in my life I am going to practice patience before jumping in head first. I think I am going to hold off on making any changes there until after the new year, but who knows. Everything is always subject to change. :) In the meantime I'm going to be focusing a little bit more on my Etsy shop, my new printables line and building the new Erin Bradley Designs website, so I'm sure I'll still find a way to stay busy.

Happy a happy Friday!

Some Exciting News & Updates . . .

2010-09-27T10:57:00.001-05:00

I know it has been quiet on the Ink Obsession front lately and that is because . . .

it's getting a MASSIVE makeover!

I am SO excited. While I love the pink and brown, I've been itching for some time to update the look and my product lines. I feel like I try to incorporate a lot of bright colors in my designs and I want Ink Obsession to reflect that.

The changes are already underway. There is a LOT to do (including COMPLETELY rebuilding my website which I'm not looking forward to) and I'm trying to set a realistic goal of having a grand re-opening at the end of this year/beginning of next year. I'm hoping that gives me enough time to complete everything, but we'll see.

I'm also in the process of retiring a lot of designs (which I usually do every few months any way) and while I'm sad to see some go, I've got even better ones up my sleeve. :)

AND I'll be introducing a new printables line (which I already have some designs listed on Etsy, more info on that to come) which I think I may be the most excited about. Well that's not true. I'm super excited about everything and can't wait to see it all come together.

So please pardon the dust for a bit. I'm hoping to redo my twitter page & blog soon and then the website will be last because that will be the biggest task of all. So if things look funny for the next couple of months, that's why.

Oh, and did I mention I'm trying to simultaneously build a website for Erin Bradley Designs at the same time? Yeah, what can I say? I like taking multi-tasking to the next level (and beyond). :)

Have a great day!

Call for Suggestions!

2010-09-10T15:10:00.000-05:00

Happy Friday! I can't believe the weekend is here again. :)

There are lots of changes coming up for Ink Obsession (which I hope to touch on a little next week) but in the meantime I am in major design mode. Even though I don't do custom designs, I am taking any and all suggestions for a new invite/announcement line I am working on. So if there is something you would like to see that I don't currently have please let me know!

Have a great weekend!

Photo credit

Orders & Shipping over Labor Day Weekend

2010-09-02T10:55:00.000-05:00

Hello everybody!

Just a quick note regarding orders and Labor Day. Orders that are approved today and tomorrow will ship on Tuesday, and any orders approved between Saturday and Monday will ship no later than next Thursday. If you have any questions just let me know!

Happy (almost) Labor Day weekend!

photo credit

Summer Sale Ends Today!

2010-08-31T11:17:00.000-05:00

Just a little reminder . . . the 10% off summer sale ends at midnight tonight. Use the discount code of SUMMERSALE at the checkout on all orders of $50 or more. Also, depending on the quantity purchased, this discount can be combined with the regular quantity break discounts for a grand total of up to 20% off.

Happy shopping!

Oops I did it again . . .

2010-08-28T17:26:00.000-05:00

As crazy as this may seem, I started a new blog. I know, I know. Seems like I have a hard enough time keeping up with this blog and the ebeepaperie blog but let me explain...

For a while I've felt a little scattered/overwhelmed with social media. My days have been spent designing, printing, proofing and shipping and I haven't had much time for much else. I love blogging but with both my blogs really being business blogs I sometimes feel like maybe I need to keep them more businesslike. So with that in mind I knew it was time to do something new. I needed to start a blog that was just for me and about me. A blog about the day in the life of a designer where I could write whatever I wanted. So that is what I've done.

This new blog is going to be a little more me, a little more about Erin Bradley Designs, and filled with lots of tips of what has helped me run three successful handmade businesses over the last few years. I'm still going to keep this blog and the ebeepaperie blog going but they are going to be more business oriented, focusing on designs, sales, and all kinds of other little goodies.

I hope you'll follow me over at the new blog too. I'm really excited for this new adventure and for you to learn a little bit more about me!

New blog: erinbradleydesigns.blogspot.com

New twitter: twitter.com/ebradleydesigns

It certainly isn't 100% completed yet, but as most of you know, I am impatient and can't wait for anything so I had to share right away.

I hope everyone is having a great weekend and I can't wait to see you on the new blog!

Don't Drink and Design

2010-08-24T07:28:00.000-05:00

Yesterday my poor, sweet imac suffered a terrible fate.

I spilled on it.

I destroyed the keyboard.

And I made my entire work space sticky.

I also almost managed to fry out two external hard drives because I was so busy wiping coffee from my keyboard that I didn't even notice it had spread to the back of my desk, where all the important stuff is kept.

Now that could have been a total and complete disaster.

At first I thought about drying out the keyboard because I hear they are pretty resilient, but then I got the bright idea of popping the keys off to clean underneath them (thanks mac forums!!) and now the keyboard is just an unusable hot mess. I think I need to remember that I am not good at all DIY projects.

So a new keyboard is on its way and my trusty MacBook is going to have to pick up the slack for the rest of the week.

Let this be a lesson my friends. Do not drink and design, write, type, work, or do anything else next to your computer, keyboard or any other important electronics unless you want to replace them.

And for those of you who know me in real life I know you are shaking your heads and laughing. Yep. This is classic Erin and I never seem to learn my lesson, do I? Ugh. Maybe this time it will stick.

Happy Tuesday!

Photo credit

Dear USPS

2010-08-05T07:43:00.000-05:00

Dear USPS,

I'd love to know why the package I mailed on Monday to the next town over, which may be all of seven minutes away, still has not arrived. Why did you hold onto it for a day (which I'm guessing by looking at the delivery confirmation info), then send it up north, only to send it south, and maybe, just maybe ::fingers crossed:: it will arrive today.

If I had any idea it was going to take so long (and if I didn't think it would freak out my customer) I would have just driven over to her house and hand delivered it.

What baffles me even more is the fact that we have a BIG post office in town, where, from what I understand, a lot of mail is sorted and sent on its merry way to all the neighboring towns. This is a major fail in my book. I have to admit, USPS, I'm kind of annoyed on this one. Am I going to have to break up with you and switch to FedEx?

Let's just try to work on our transit times, Ok?

Thanks ever so much,

Photo credit

Rain, Rain Don't Go Away?

2010-08-03T06:22:00.000-05:00

It looks like we are in for a super rainy day. It's been storming pretty heavily all night and I see severe thunderstorms are on the forecast in Chicagoland today.

Sometimes I secretly like the gloomy weather. The chaos and anger of the rain almost seems serene to me and there is nothing I love more than sitting on my front porch with my laptop and coffee during a really good storm, designing up a storm myself. It's just one of those things that inspires creativity in me. I know. I'm totally weird, right?

Happy rainy (or not so rainy) day!

It's Hot so Let's Celebrate with a Sale!

2010-07-31T17:17:00.000-05:00

I can't believe August is almost here! I knew I wanted to run a sale at some point this summer and I think that time is now! I was originally going to call this the "End of Summer Sale" but that sounded too depressing. Now it is just titled "Summer Sale."

From now until the end of August take 10% off all orders of $50 or more with the discount code of SUMMERSALE. Offer is only valid on the Ink Obsession Designs website.

And on a somewhat related side note, all rehearsal dinner invitations are currently on sale (and yes, you can apply the 10% off to those as well!).

Enjoy the rest of the weekend and happy shopping!

Abandoning Ship

2010-07-23T11:15:00.000-05:00

Well not really, but it feels like I've abandoned my blog. Actually these last few weeks Erin + Social Media has = MAJOR FAIL in every way.

Things have been incredibly busy, so I've just been nestled away inside my little studio designing, printing and answering emails. Which of course I love. I've had a lot going on behind the scenes too (as I am sure you can imagine!).

Some out of town friends were suppose to stay with us this weekend but it turns out they can't make and will have to come next weekend instead. I think I am going to devote my weekend to putting some final touches on a few new things so I can roll them out soon and get a little bit back to normal.

I hope everyone has a nice, fun & cool weekend!

Photo credit

New Freebie Available!

2010-07-15T19:57:00.001-05:00

Here is this month's free photoshop template. I hope you like it! This was one of my favorite announcements to design back in the day (probably due to all the pink and brown!).

Don't forget . . . just a few changes to the text will make this a great design for photo save the dates, birthday party invites, anniversary invitations or whatever else you can think of.

I hope you have as much fun with it as much as I did!

Ink Obsession Designs Freebie #2

Have a great weekend!

New(ish) Designs

2010-07-09T08:11:00.000-05:00

Happy Friday! This week has flown by and I can't believe the weekend is here again.

I just realized I have some new(ish) designs that I haven't posted yet. They are actually a little over a month old, but that still counts as new, right? As usual this is just a little sampler. The rest of the collection can be found at Ink Obsession.

Have a great weekend!

Fresh Laundry

2010-07-06T07:01:00.000-05:00

One of my favorite things to do in spring/summer (and a little bit into fall) is line dry my clothes outside. It's not something I ever thought I would do, but a few years ago I noticed it was something all my neighbors did and I was a wee bit intrigued. Although I can normally be found doing the opposite of what everyone else does, I was loving the smell of the fresh laundry coming from their yards. We actually have two vintage clothesline poles from the 1920's in our backyard but until then I just kept them around because they were antiques . . . who knew they were going to end up being useful! So I bought some line and then was hooked. My clothes always dry perfectly (never any wrinkles which means no ironing - score!) and they smell delicious. When I bring them inside they actually make the whole house smell good too.

My only problem is clothespins. I normally don't use clothespins and just fold the clothes over the line, but yesterday it was so windy so I had to tack them down, which left little stretched clothespin marks on everything. Not cool. So my question is, if you line dry your clothes too, what do you use clothespin wise and how can I avoid these little marks in the future? I'm going to keep folding the clothes over in the meantime, but I know on the next windy day I'm going to be in trouble!

Photo credit

Fourth of July Homework

2010-07-02T07:42:00.002-05:00

I don't know about you guys, but I am so ready for the holiday weekend! I foresee lots of BBQ'ing, yard work, and fun in my future. It looks like it is going to be hot (and not rainy!) which sounds like perfect fourth weather to me.

I do have one pressing issue though. Envelopes. Please don't roll you eyes! :)

I tweeted and put a message on Facebook about this a few weeks ago but don't think I ever posted my latest conundrum to the blog. So I thought I'd leave you all with a little 4th of July homework.

I'm thinking of switching my kraft envelopes. Right now they are super smooth and more tan in color. The envelopes I'm using for ebeepaperie are a little rougher and definitely have a more organic look to them. I absolutely love the ebeepaperie envelopes. Ever since they arrived I've been drooling over them (but not on them, don't worry!). I also love the current envelopes I'm using for Ink Obsession but I sometimes worry that they look a little more like a regular tan envelope instead of a kraft envelope because they are so smooth. Here is a (sad!) little side-by-side photo I took for comparisons sake.

Here is where the tough part comes in. I've been asking everybody (well everyone I know in the Chicago area that is!) which one they like better and it is a hands down unanimous vote of the ebeepaperie envelopes. They all say definitely switch. When I asked online everyone seems to recommend staying with the current Ink Obsession envelopes. I have to order new envelopes on Tuesday so I have to make a final decision ASAP. So if you haven't already thrown your vote in (and thank you to those that have!) please do! I have to say I am definitely leaning towards switching, just because the people who have seen the two next to each other in person all agree to make the switch. I'm still just not totally sure though. Decisions, decisions.

Have a happy and safe fourth of July!

Photo Credit

Reprioritizing Time

2010-06-30T06:50:00.000-05:00

Sorry for the lack of blog posts, tweets & comments from me this week. The last 10 days or so have been a little hectic, which is just the way I like it! Now that the Erin Bradley Designs etsy shop has reopened I've been trying to dedicate a chunk of time to that each day (and just as an FYI, right now I am still just focusing on the premade sets and made-to-match designs - no custom illustrations or graphics for the time being).

I've also been reading Creature Comforts Guide to Better Blogging and let's just say, woah. I've really been a bad blogger! Now that I have two blogs to work on I'm going to try and figure out some type of regular posting schedule instead of randomly posting here and there. It will just be a way to keep things better organized. I want to keep this blog a little more personal (and about Ink Obsession of course) and I think the ebeepaperie blog will focus more on more business types of subjects: designing, running an etsy shop, promoting, featuring other etsy shops, etc.

In any event, hopefully some good, regular content will be coming to you very soon.

Thanks for sticking with me and have a happy Wednesday!

Photo credit here

Gift Registries?

2010-06-25T10:45:00.002-05:00

I'm running behind (again) on a gift for this weekend and I was looking through the bride's registries last night, trying to figure out what I was going to buy. I realized a lot of the time I don't even go off registries, because I like to buy handmade gifts. In this case I ran out of time, so registry it is!

I started to wonder though, am I alone in deviating from the registry now and then or do other people do this too? And then I started to worry if I'm totally being rude by NOT going off the registry. I love handmade gifts for several reasons:

1.) The quality is insane, a lot of work goes into those puppies.
2.) I think they are more meaningful, I look for things that will tell a story, things that will be cherished for a lifetime.
3.) Because I am part of the handmade movement, I love to support others who are out there, doing this too.

For what it is worth, if I don't know the person really well (or am late again like I am now!) I go for the registry, but if it is someone I am close to I go with handmade.

So tell me, should I keep on, keeping on? Or should I stick to what brides/grooms/moms/dads want from Target?

Photo credit

Package Envy

2010-06-22T22:17:00.002-05:00

I stumbled upon Packagery today while I was on Craft Cult. Oh my. I think I may have a new crush.

Unfortunately I don't really have a need for any of their adorable items (and trust me...you don't know how I so wish I did!) but they do have a great assortment of all the things I love. Kraft stickers, twine, library cards and all kinds of other goodies. I could ramble on and on, but I'll spare you. :)

And seriously, how cute are the dollies? I am loving the kraft/glassine bag/dollie combo. I am trying to think of what I can make, just so I have an excuse to use the cute packaging.

Also, just in case you don't follow me on Twitter, I reopened my Erin Bradley Designs etsy shop. To make a long story short, I've had so many graphic design requests lately and especially in this last week and I thought now would be a good time to reopen. I'm thinking about changing the shop a little or just having it open seasonally, but I'm not sure yet. For now it is back in business as a graphic design shop and will at least remain that way for a little while.

Dear Blogger :: Are we on a break?

2010-06-21T07:02:00.000-05:00

Ugh.

This is how I've felt about my blog the last few days . . .

For some reason blogger decided it no longer was feeling the Ink Obsession love. It wasn't letting me follow, manage, unfollow or comment on any blogs. I kept getting this crazy "busy" message which basically went into a "your out of luck" message and then a "sorry! can't do anything to help you!" message. I am embarrassed to admit I probably spent no less than 8 hours on this little issue this weekend. Pathetic, I know.

I think the problem is that I'm following too many blogs (probably around 500 or so). In all seriousness, one of the error messages I was getting was an "over the blog limit" code. There are a ton of blogs I was following when I first started blogging almost two years ago that are no longer active. I was going to go through those and unfollow them, but I literally was stuck and couldn't do anything. Then I clicked on some setting and couldn't even comment anymore. I thought I was going to have to stick a fork in my eye. I was so frustrated!

I sort of figured out away around this and instead of signing in through Google or Blogger I'm signing in through an Open ID. Apparently that seems to work.

Has anyone else had any Friend Connect issues? The problem started when I was logged into my ebeepaperie blog and then wanted to switch to this blog. ebeepaperie still works great so my problem is definitely isolated to Ink Obsession. I heard this is a known issue that blogger is working on and I also heard this is a known issue that blogger is not working on. Which is it blogger?

Oh, and here's the other thing . . . if you notice I am suddenly following your blog again or you see me in your followers list twice it isn't because I am some massive stalker. It's just because I want to add you back to my reading list and had to do so under the Open ID login.

Photo Credit

Heat Wave

2010-06-18T08:34:00.001-05:00

It's hot. Like really, really hot. At 8:30 in the morning. Even though we have a jam packed weekend, I am so wishing there was a little extra time so we could take a quick trip to North Avenue Beach.

Unfortunately I don't think that is going to happen. Oh how I sometimes miss those super lazy days of summer, where I didn't have anything to worry about and went to the beach every.single.day. Not that I would trade my life for anything in the world. I guess I just wish I had appreciated those times a little bit more, since they passed so quickly.

We do have a little man made beach in town, so I'm going to see if that is open. I imagine it has to be by now. So maybe we'll take a little dip there. We'll have to play it by ear since there is so much going on this weekend (parties & BBQ's galore!).

I hope everyone has a great weekend & stays cool. And Happy Father's Day to your dads & hubbies!

Photo credit

Ink Obsession Designs Freebie!

2010-06-16T08:26:00.001-05:00

Last week on Facebook I asked if anyone would be interested in freebie Photoshop templates. I have a bunch (65+) that I have officially retired and don't plan on using any more. I'd hate to see them go to waste though. A few of you responded and said yes, you'd like this, so without further adieu here is the first template available for download:

Now of course there is fine print, but it is pretty simple. This file is available for personal use only. That means you cannot sell it or use it commercially in any way, shape or form. Please feel free to post the link where ever you would like and share it with your blog/facebook/twitter friends, but you can't download the file itself and then GIVE it to them. There are a couple of other things to note too, like about fonts, so before you get started you can read the full freebie license agreement here.

Also, you HAVE to have a working knowledge of Photoshop or Photoshop Elements to use these. I included a mini tutorial with the file, but will be unable to answer any specific questions on how to use the files.

One last thing to note . . . the templates are all saved as 5" x 7" birth announcements, but with a slight change of the text you could turn them into anything, save the dates, birthday party invites, rehearsal dinner invites, shower invites, you get the picture!

Ready to download the first freebie? Perfect! Just click on the link below:

Ink Obsession Designs Freebie #1

Have a good day!