Card Designer Highlight is a sequence of impartial makers whose greeting playing cards could be discovered at Paper Supply shops. Meet and be impressed by a brand new designer each month on our weblog!

Jim and Jen are the sibling duo of Yeppie Paper who took an entrepreneurial leap into the world of greeting playing cards. Taking the phrase ‘Yeppie’ from its South Korean heritage, the model means ‘candy paper’, which pairs completely with its enjoyable card collections.

How did you begin your card making profession?

In 2013, I just lately give up my inside design job and needed to do one thing inventive the place I might apply my love of portray and drawing. All the time a fan of stationery and paper merchandise, I rapidly realized that greeting playing cards could be the right technique to share my drawings on a product that folks can really use. I mentioned the concept with my oldest brother Jim and, to my shock and delight, I discovered that he was taken with being a accomplice. We launched Yeppie Paper collectively in 2014 as we first tried to navigate the world of greeting playing cards and small enterprise possession with a wholesome dose of fearless optimism and onerous work.

The place do you draw inspiration from? Meals? Popular culture? Timeless Motifs? Jokes?

I’m impressed by many issues. As a lifelong animal lover, I really like portraying animals in our merchandise doing issues that come naturally to them however that folks can relate to. For instance, a hamster stuffing its cheeks with a birthday cake, or a pair of beavers constructing a dam, like newlyweds beginning a brand new life collectively. My kids and their altering pursuits additionally encourage me. Because of them, I made playing cards with unicorns, rainbows, caterpillars, butterflies, planets, leopards and cheetahs. I am additionally impressed by my family and friends as a result of they’ve good style – haha ​​- and I attempt to create playing cards which might be enjoyable in a classy manner.

How is your day as a card maker?

No two days are the identical – apart from my morning espresso! My brother and I haven’t got any official staff, which implies we each put on ALL the hats whereas working our enterprise. He handles the stock, packaging and success facet of products, in addition to gross sales consultant relations and bookkeeping. This offers me house to develop new merchandise (we launch three new releases a yr that add about 40-60 new designs in whole), preserve and replace our product lists on our web sites, and handle ongoing advertising and outreach efforts. My to-do listing modifications based on the time of yr.

I’m presently in a deep “manufacturing mode” which means I paint day by day and work on Photoshop and Illustrator. I click on on podcasts (normally true crime) and take heed to music whereas I work. Within the afternoon I change gears and choose up my children from college and ask them 1,000,000 questions on how their day was going. We’ve got dinner collectively, progressively preparing for bedtime, and after they’re asleep, my husband and I’ll calm down on the sofa and ideally watch a present collectively.

What’s your most popular atmosphere?

All of our merchandise start with a hand-painted illustration. I take advantage of gouache on paper. Gouache is an opaque watercolor with a powerful pigment and is nice for layering and positive particulars. I additionally use ink pens to handwrite most of the texts on our playing cards and stickers.

What does your inventive course of appear like?

I’ve a big sketchbook the place I make lists of concepts for brand new playing cards and stickers. Every new model contains seasonal holidays, in addition to varied “on a regular basis” classes (birthdays, congratulations, thanks, sympathy, and so forth.), relying on the time of yr. I sketch out a few of the concepts I wish to develop additional and from there I fine-tune the drawings and paint. I scan the ultimate drawing into my pc and do some cleansing and shade correction in Photoshop, then full the design in Illustrator and have it prepared for print. At varied factors alongside the way in which, I understand that I must get out of my very own head, so I am going to present my brother what I am engaged on to get his suggestions. He’s a extremely inventive and clever individual with nice concepts and he usually helps me out after I’m caught.

What are you most happy with as a creator and card designer?

My brother and I had zero work expertise earlier than beginning our firm and with sheer willpower we have been in a position to work issues out. The truth that greater than 500 shops in Turkey and overseas have adopted Yeppie Paper nonetheless amazes me. Usually occasions, sitting in my residence studio doing one thing that I am undecided folks will love can really feel fairly lonely. However for nearly a decade, clients and retailer house owners have constantly ordered merchandise from us, and I am so grateful for the chance to share my artwork with them.

We’re additionally proud to have donated 100% of the proceeds from our Shock Packages and Abortion Rights stickers since 2020 to causes that matter to us, akin to Direct Aid, Everytown for Gun Security and The Nationwide Community of Abortion Funds. . This yr, we’re donating to Our Home Grief Assist Middle, a Los Angeles-based nonprofit that gives bereavement assist to adults, teenagers and youngsters.

Any enjoyable information? Fascinating hobbies aside from card design?

A enjoyable reality about Yeppie Paper is that we actually are a household enterprise! Our households moved from the Bay Space to Los Angeles to be nearer to us after they retired. They pack 1000’s of our playing cards from the consolation of their houses, and we’d be drowning with out their assist. Jim and I dwell simply minutes away from one another, and his transformed storage doubles as our warehouse and success centre. We’ve got a brother named Bobby who lives in Orange County together with his spouse and youngsters… and because the third (silent) honorary accomplice of Yeppie Paper, he is all the time one of many first folks to “like” our social media posts!

On weekends, my husband and I like to discover completely different elements of Los Angeles and Southern California with our youngsters, akin to scenic walks, native seashores and parks. We’ve got a 13 yr previous canine named Royce (I prefer to confer with him as my first little one) who joins us in our little adventures.

Discover Yeppie Paper’s Hedgehog Balloons Birthday Card, Creating Your New Life Wedding ceremony Card and Ring of Fireplace Incentive Card at your native retailer or on-line at papersource.com. Observe for extra inspiration and behind-the-scenes motion yeppiepaperjen Open SPINDLE.

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