"Curiosity about life in all of its aspects, I think, is still the secret of great creative people." - Leo Burnett
How wonderful it is in life to meet and discover curious and simultaneously creative individuals who offer artistic expressions as their hobbies and work collide in a unified collaboration.
South of MaDi introduces the international company, To & From With Love, LLC; specializing in custom letterpress, stationary and paper goods design. We had the pleasure to meet co-founder, Lizzie Britton, at a coastal Maine wedding in Boothbay Harbor last August. Lizzie's cousin was the bride and she was the creator of the bride and groom's nautical-themed save-the-date and ceremony invitations.
Britton's endearment for all aspects of artistic arrangements, including our shared love for interior design, as well as her broad knowledge of graphic design triggered many conversations on how we were inspired to start our own businesses and continue creative endeavors in our work.
The company name, To & From With Love, whose motto is Global Design Close To Home, derived from they way that the business operates, with the back and forth creative ideas between to co-founding team of Sally (Indonesia), Julia (Germany), Grazina (New York City) and Lizzie who is based in Asheville, NC. Lizzie informs us that, "It also refers to the personal relationships we develop with our clients. We are there to make an event as easy as possible for helping bring creative ideas to life, and to make sure the client is getting a unique and custom invitation."
Britton has always been a huge fan of paper, printing and design ever since she was a young girl. She remembers spending afternoons with her mother at her graphic design business. But it wasn't until she interned and freelanced for Joy Cho at Oh Joy! Studio in NYC that she realized how much she loved the greeting card world. "My experiences with Oh Joy!, combined with the planning of my own wedding, sealed the deal," adds Britton. Individuals such as Caeciya "Sally" Sari were willing to take the leap with Britton to help build up To & From with Love from scratch and encourage her to get out there and pursue letterpress.
South of MaDi wanted to know what inspires To & From with Love to bring creativity to the business and its clientele? "So much of my creativity comes from the client, whether it is a bride, a business owner, or someone just looking for something fun and unique," responds Britton. Like most good designers, the inspiration comes from the client's ideas and what their needs are for the project, and bring those ideas to life.
Moving forward, where can we see To & From with Love's development in the future? The company hopes to be more accessible in greeting cards in 2013. Innovative ideas will spur from the company exploring gold foil stamping and linoleum block printing as well. Britton will be participating in a workshop in the North Carolina mountains on calligraphy and experimenting in the handwritten type. Also on the radar is the company blog which will feature weekly posts like "Type Tuesdays" and "Wrap of the Month" along with future design projects.
In a world that is now so concentrated on digital and mobile communication, one may wonder how To & From with Love feels about being in the stationary business in this modern day in age? Britton turns to Guardian writer, Jonathan Jones, for the conflicting interchange. Jones writes, "Words printed on paper give our written language the vision of colour, tone, size, shape, form and weight. Print is the singing voice of the written word. The voice invites us to engage our senses in the act of reading and looking." Britton believes that print will always have its place and is a vital artifact to capture the spirit of the times.
Britton has chosen the Southern mountainous city of Asheville, North Carolina to grow her side of the letterpress business. South of MaDi wondered why Asheville over high-profile cities such as NYC or LA? "There are so many fabulous places all around the world, and part of my business is to promote and explore all design, whether it's in California, New York, Indonesia, England, Germany or India. But there is no place like the South," acknowledges Britton. She has lived in many different places over the years, but has always been completely hypnotized by the beauty and mystery that exists only down South. Britton continues, "I am constantly influenced by the magical nature of the region; whether it is the grand Appalachian Mountains, the misty St. Johns River or the ancient oaks in New Orleans. For me, it's just where I want to be. I am hooked!"
And we are hooked on To & From with Love! South of MaDi celebrates those who are curious to explore outside of the box and to push the envelope, so to speak, in this fast-paced digital exchange of communication. We can still experience the tangible elements of creative design in the simplistic form of paper.
Please visit and share To & From with Love's website, blog and Etsy site at www.toandfromwithlove.com for exciting new projects and inspirations!
