NEW

I first heard about the Graceful Envelope Contest in December of 2012 and sent off my World of Change envelope the following March. I was startled and pleased to be chosen as one of ten winners from hundreds of entries across the nation and even more surprised to join those ranks a second year in a row with my 2014 entry The Superlative Letter S. In 2015 my There's No Place Like Home entry won "Best in Show." I had to miss the 2016 deadline, but was chosen as one of the winners again in 2017's Pushing the Envelope and 2018's Whatever the Weather. 

This year I was chosen as one of several Honorable Mention entries with my interpretation of 2019's theme: Put Your Stamp on It (above). As always, there was a glitch this year. This time the contest organizers changed the mailing address. I had already lettered the address from previous years and had to figure out a way to remedy the [rather sizable] mistake at the last minute. Thankfully, the paper was of a thickness/quality that I could painstakingly scrape off the incorrect address and--without too much noticeable difference to the paper texture--rewrite the correct address. As a calligrapher, I must say that the old address was more aesthetically pleasing written out.

(watercolor, gouache, pencil, and ink) ................................................................................

Within the last year I finished this long-term piece of calligraphy and illumination featuring the closing verses of Proverbs about the great worth of a virtuous woman. The client for whom I designed the original wanted a stained-glass-like work of art that he would someday present to his future bride. Well, the wedding is in less than two weeks!

Before I handed the work over to him, he allowed me to make prints of the piece, since I already had another interested party. However, there are relatively few printers out there who can even handle scanning something 22"x 30", much less do a quality job printing on fine art paper. In this instance, I was able to find a friendly print shop about 30 minutes from here who could capably scan, print, and trim large format art work; was able to capture both the brilliant and the subtle colors of the original watercolor and gold ink; used archival inks and acid free paper that should last beyond my lifetime; and worked quickly. See print specs or buy on Etsy!

After that good printing experience, I have already taken Cornerstone Graphic Technologies a second piece of calligraphy For His Love Endures Forever (see below) for printing before I reframe and sell it. Grateful to them and to my Knoxville printer Jim Wells for their quality work and quick turnaround!