doodlespark journal winners announced

    

Thank you to everyone who left a comment and weighed in on their favorite Dooldespark Journal covers. Float and Grow won the day with Cultivate coming in a close third. Float is my absolute favorite, so it was delightful to see you feel the same way ! More of you preferred lined pages, but as I am a die-hard unlined fan, we are going to print some of both – look for them in our online shop by the end of October, just in time for the holidays !

The trusty electronic genie over at Random.org selected the following 2 comments as the lucky winners of our giveaway -

Daisy Janie + Janine - Congratulations, ladies ! 

Please send me your mailing addresses via email to elissa ( at ) welcometoloop.com and begin singing Mr. Postman in a couple of weeks … : )

We are also printing 4 Loop Journals with a new pattern I can’t wait to share with you !

VOTE and WIN your favorite journal styles !

 

We are so excited to announce production of new Loop and Doodlespark Journals ! We are about ready to go to press and are having a hard time deciding which styles to print … WE NEED YOUR HELP !

Leave a comment below with your TOP TWO STYLES and whether you prefer them LINED OR UNLINED and we’ll pick a random winner to receive a pair once they’re printed ! Tell your friends !

[ Journals will be 5” x 7” with 40 pages - Polling closes on Saturday at 12:00pm EST ]

Amy’s Drawers

As many of you know, we recently moved home and office to a new neighborhood; Loop officially has its own room and feels Quite Grown Up …

I recently received an online order from a girl named Amy who, low and behold, lives on my new street ! I had to take a double take; someone who lives just blocks away found loop quite by accident on the World Wide Web, I discovered.  We arranged to meet at the local coffee shop, me with baby in Bjorn and roll of paper in hand and Amy with a smile, a friend and a story of how she intended to use the paper to refinish a set of Ikea drawers.  Check out her process and finished product here on Flickr.  I love it, Amy;  it was so nice to meet you … !

Today We Escape

 

 

I awoke with poems in my head, spiraling around like pea shoots. A song on the radio made me pine for country roads, barefoot summers and stillness.

Being a mom is a most curious thing. So close to childhood and yet so far from it yourself.

Tumbled through the web while my baby was sleeping and found these prints. I love the polaroid colors and imagery pulled from my child-of-the-late-seventies consciousness. I’m about to purchase one or two for The Boy’s room.

Check out the artist, Nazario Graziano, and the publication for which these illustrations were created – “ The New Twenties: A scintillating survey of the work of today’s 20-somethings, who were all brought up in the technological boom years of the late 20th Century – and whose concepts of self-promotion and networking are radically different from those of their predecessors. “ – here, at Society6.

say hello to Cloud

One of the most delightful and unexpected pleasures of running my own business is that Loop products, as they journey from Philadelphia across the country, across the oceans, and across the blogosphere, tend to attract like-minded eyes. I love receiving emails from artists, architects, graphic designers + students who find Loop somewhere in the world and love it enough take the time to tell me so … More than anything else, this sort of personal connection that Loop forges fills me to the brim and makes me smile for days on end. As most creative people will admit, one thing is making something that you yourself enjoy, but for it to resonate with others is a joy unlike any other.

And so, I’d like to introduce you to one such connection I recently made by way of a most wonderful email from Miss Claudia Forsbrey, a recent fine arts grad in the UK. One glance at her flickr page and I was taken by her playful style. I love how she mixes photos with line art, blurring the 2D and the 3D, fashion and doodling.

Interested in eco designers, art + jewelry, with a mind towards retail + travel, Claudia wanted to know how I started Loop. I invite you to get to know Claudia and her work by visiting her blogs here and here as well as her flickr page. She is currently working on a collaborative booklet with Lazy Gramophone where different artists from the group provide images upon which writers will base short stories. 

I am excited to announce that Claudia – or better known as Cloud by her friends and loved ones – will be a guest blogger here at Loop starting next week ! Come visit Cloud every other Monday for interviews and features on artists whose work addresses print and pattern, eco designers of gift and homewares + dispatches from her many travels …. I have to say that I am thrilled to have Cloud on the blog.  My life has been absolutely rearranged with the birth of my son [ a post on the little man will be coming soon ]. I am really looking forward to Cloud’s perspective sprinkled into the stream of Loop news and inspiration. I hope you’ll enjoy her posts as well !

loop in the blogosphere

 

I had to share this lovely little blog with you, as it’s author wrote me the kindest note to announce she’d featured Loop in a post about notebooks. Hop over to e-sidora and see what the Croatian designer, Isidora Vujosevic, is into -

Anuncie primero!

Before I jump straight into my first blog, I should be polite and introduce myself,

so here here I am!

My name is Claud Forsbrey, but you can call me Cloud, hi! I currently reside in bright grey ole' England. I am an avid doodler, jewellery dabbler, novice baker and aspiring adventurer. I will be contributing to Loop's lovely blog, with bits of creative bobs and nibbles of everything in between.

Alas! It is blog time, I will start with a big chunk of inspiration to me - LeJu Jewellery.

LeJu is fast becoming a leader in ethical and sustainable jewellery, the designer Lenny Trines, is a Dutch born London based jeweller, who absorbs inspiration from natural elements, and whilst travelling through South America discovered a unique natural sustainable material from the depths of the Amazonian Rain Forest better known as Vegetable Ivory - What is Veg Ivory you say?

Well, Veg Ivory comes from a palm tree, and is in the form of a seed, similar to the shape of conkers, but with the durability, hardness and look of Elephant ivory.

Thus, Veg Ivory is the 100% sustainable equivalent to Elephant Ivory - It is that amazing!

Et Voila!

Above, 'Avatar' Necklace by LeJu

Lenny has the ability to understand colour and play with other materials to give her designs another lease of life. She experiments and pushes her creative design boundaries which keeps LeJu flowing fresh with ideas. I love her designs, colour and passion for sustainable design, and I hope you will enjoy her amazing designs just as much as me.

If you like what you see, be sure to have a good gander at their whole range on the below link :)

http://www.lejudesigns.com

The Sketchbook Project

I simply cannot wait to sign up - but what topic to choose ?!

Earth Day GIVEAWAY

Celebrate Earth Day with Loop’s organic fabric !

In honor of this symbolic day, Loop is delighted to participate in a group giveaway ! We’re partnering with talented textile designers to spread the word about how important organic textiles are to our planet.

Here’s the deal : blog hop your way from post to post, learn a little about each designer and their work, and get inspired by their patterns, colors and possibilities. simply leave a comment at each site to be entered in each giveaway for a total of 12 chances to win !

Loop thinks Earth Day is all about choice – We see it as a day to remind ourselves that it’s the sum of the choices we make in our daily lives that adds up to real change and reveals our commitment to sustainability. All of the businesses taking part in this giveaway have made the choice to stand for organic textiles, tackling the challenges of sourcing, production, pricing + merchandising in creative ways because we all believe that sustainable textile production is a necessity for this planet and its people.

So, for our portion of the Earth Day Giveaway, Loop will be giving away 1/2 yard of the fabric of your choice … ! Choose any pattern from our debut Tela Collection [ honey, prehistory, stroll, inari, shown left to right below ] on either the hemp / organic cotton canvas or the yet-to-be released organic cotton sateen; click each style name for more details. Simply describe the ideal project you’d use Loop fabrics for in your comment below and you’re entered to win.

And the winner is ...

KIA

"Ideally I would use the fabric to make a quilted print kimono jacket for a toddler."

To all of the lovely commenters who took part in the Giveaway, thank you for bringing such great energy to Earth Day and for your thoughtful ideas about our fabrics.

In appreciation of your interest, we'd like to offer you an additional 10% off the launch sale price on all our fabrics for orders placed tomorrow, Friday the 30th. Instead of using the shopping cart online, please email me at elissa ( at ) welcometoloop ( dot ) com indicating your order for the hemp / cotton canvas or the sateen and I'll process your order by sending you a custom 'pay now' button for secure checkout through paypal.

Hooray for the spirit of Earth Day everyday !

Betz White
Birch Fabrics
Cloud9 Fabrics
Cottage Industrialist
Daisy Janie
Harmony Art
Homesweet
ink & spindle
Monaluna
Swanky Swell
Umbrella Prints

little shoes to fill

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Friends + fans, I have the happiest news to share with you ! As I write this, I am less than 24 hours away from being a mom … ! I am overflowing with so much joy that I have been wearing out the poor exclamation point on my keyboard … !!! 

How can I possibly put into words the last 39 weeks of pregnancy wonder? I decided to keep this huge news private until the last moment, largely because I’ve never been sure how much I wanted to reveal how blended my personal and professional lives are. In reality, I am Loop and Loop is me in so many ways that to even consider a distinction is silly.

Being pregnant has been such an overwhelming act of creation that it has made me quite distracted these past few months ! I’ve tried to make more time to be in the studio drawing, and I have some exciting patterns in the works… My mom is beside herself in anticipation of her first grandchild, and with an increased number of visits, we’ve had more time to doodle together in person over tea. With some incredible new clients –  Paperchase UK, Whole Foods + Art Mart, Buro Vis a Vis in the Netherlands, and LACMA – I’ve had my business hands full as well.

Entering into this next phase of my life is full of so many unknowns, but there are a few things I know for sure.  The next month will find me truly in the moment, studying our new baby’s face, massaging fingers and toes, getting to know sounds and movements and newborn ways…. * sigh *. I’ll also be listening to my own body with heightened senses and greeting my extraordinary husband as a Father … In a month or so when I’m feeling a bit more recovered, I’ll be announcing a baby blog devoted to my adventures in New Baby Land.  A warm thank you in advance to all of Loop’s fans for your patience as I take a little longer to release new paper goods this year - but do stay tuned for updates on the great Newness nonetheless !

Getting back in the Loop

Oh, my ! How Time has played tricks on me … How can it be that my last blog post was [ gulp ! ] in late December ?  Well, hello 2010, and hello to those who happen upon these little musings and eye candies.  SO much has happened here at Loop and in my personal life that I hardly know where to begin.  I think a bit of a round-up is in order, so let’s imagine we each have a cup of something tasty [ a decaf Americano, extra cream for me, please ] and some time to sit and chat.  Here are some of the highlights from the last few months …

Whole-y Cow, Loop’s at Whole Foods !

  princeton store display

Hold onto your hats for some amazing news -  Loop has been approved as a vendor for Whole Foods Market !  I am SO sorry it took me so long to share this ...  It wasn’t for lack of excitement, I assure you … Being approved as a vendor in the Mid-Atlantic region means Loop can sell to the 3 dozen or so stores in the territory from Pennsylvania down to Kentucky – a huge potential market for us and one that really resonates with Loop’s core values. So much more than a grocery store, I love how Whole Foods works for and within the community to spread health and happiness.  We are honored to have our line currently in the Princeton NJ, Plymouth Meeting PA, and Annapolis MD stores.

Part of being an approved vendor means that Loop has to sell to each store individually. I know, right?  I thought such a large company would buy more centrally and then distribute to the various stores, but in fact, each location has its own Whole Body team that selects products based on its needs, store layout, demographics, etc. [ This allows Whole Foods to really support local vendors – in fact, Loop was encouraged to add stickers to each of its products sharing the fact we’re Made In Philly. ] I decided to send little welcome packages to each store in the Mid-Atlantic region, replete with a hand-written note and a small boxes of chocolate.  I contacted local goodness creator, Liz from Betty’s Tasty Buttons, and she made up special little boxes of fudge for us to include with our Hello. I had so much fun wrapping 3 dozen  4” square boxes with our Loop Wrap, finishing them off with one of Betty’s vintage buttons.

So next time you’re buying some John Masters shampoo, a Burt’s Bees lotion, or a yummy Siggi’s Icelandic skyr yogurt, pick up your favorite Loop or Doodlespark note card !

enveloops

Dovetailing with its popular Felt & Wire blog, Mohawk paper has a wonderfully curated new Felt & Wire shop.  Featuring work from a wide range of graphic designers, letterpress printers + other indie paper businesses [ I’ll have to do a whole separate post to show off their work ! ], Loop is honored to be part of this design-focused online boutique. 

I met Felt & Wire’s editor, Alyson Kuhn, at the National Stationery Show a couple of years ago and when she contacted me about doing a feature on our wrapping paper this past winter, I was thrilled.  When I saw what she created with Loop’s eco-luxe wrap, I was speechless ….. enveloops !  Alyson has the most nimble faculty with language, she melts and re-pours syllables to create words according to her purposes and they’re always delightfully pertinent; her emails are entertaining, informative, and nearly poetry in and of themselves.  [ read the copy on her homepage and see what I mean … ] Alyson used our wrap to form unique envelopes, perfect for gift certificates, special love letters, or hand-made cards … and we were thrilled by her suggestion that one re-use the wrap from a present received to make enveloops to gift again.  Thanks, Alyson !

500 possibilities

 

You may remember my post about the 500 Pencil Program from Fellissimo’s Social Designer site. Every month has found the postman bringing me a new tray of delicious colors to work with. It feels a bit like what I imagine the era of milkmen used to be; the doorbell rings and fresh, wholesome goodness is there waiting for you … The latest palettes have been tender greens and yellows, fire-struck reds, sensual purples, and watery blues. I invited my mom – my Doodlespark partner and a true color lover – to create a new drawing for each color palette I receive. Now, as I send Doodlespark drawings to her, I also send a set or two from the 500 Pencil series, carefully marking the color palette on the back of each drawing, along with our customary notes what we’re thinking + feeling about a given drawing.  Above are some drawings in progress …

the house in seasons

 

 

 

 

 

 

At the end August, we moved home and office to a new building south of Center City Philadelphia.  The new Old Brownstone is a great corner building, and Loop has it’s own room on the first floor that feels dangerously like a professional office [ it used to be a doctor’s waiting + examination room, we think ] … I finally have a desk AND a drawing table separately … [ oh, did you hear that deep sigh ! ] This may not sound like much, but it means everything to a creative business owner.  In running Loop, I often feel the strong pull of two very opposing forces – as an artist, I have a strong need to forget about the clock, but as a business owner and Wearer of Many Hats, I have to be on top of deadlines, schedules + goals. So this room helps foster both, all with a cozy chair in the corner and cardboard boxes for my cat, Max, to nest in. 

[ That’s Max in the hallway, above, with his trusty sidekick, Spidey.  Every morning, a howling begins upstairs as Max carries Spidey in his mouth down to my office, plops him down to show me what a good boy he is, and then he trots off to sleep.  And every night, as we’re relaxing in the living room, the up the stairs swaggers Max, happy to return Spidey to us and receive extra pets in payment. ]

Also above : The foyer light just inside the front door casts the most celestial light, as do the star lanterns my husband put up for our first house party. The back garden held all 70” of snow Philadelphia received this winter, and as it melted, the birds moved back in.