Year in Review

2014 was definitely an insane whirlwind of a year (obviously, due to the lack of posting on here...)

Turning 4, in the 4-1-4

The past 6 months have been a whirlwind of change, stress, and emotion. I finally have some down time to sit back and reflect/recap this crazy year so far. So, I decided to start with sharing some pics from Beckett's 4th birthday party back in May! Back in March...

What we've been up to.

As I write this, I feel like my eyes are actually going googly, because I've been staring at a sea of Journey Journals and intricate custom drawings for what seems like a bajillion days.

Maker Market Milwaukee

Wow, long time no post. Sheesh. Just a quick reminder to all Milwaukee peeps that we will be participating in the "Maker Market" at Alterra in Bay View (Milwaukee) tomorrow, Sunday July 7th from 10Am-4PM. It should be a killer market with lots of local goodies. You can also get your hands on one of our "Bay View" prints or the brand new "East Side" print OR the "Dueling hoods" note card set, which has one Bay View and one East Side note card. Word to that. See you all tomorrow!

Indie Wed MKE

Just wanted to quickly share that the most fabulous wedding show in the world is going TONIGHT at the Harley Davidson Museum in Milwaukee! Indie Wed has moved north and is going to be putting on the first ever Indie Wed Milwaukee! So so excited to be apart of it, I can't stress enough how amazing this show is. If you are getting married and are in the greater Milwaukee area, definitely come and check it out. It's from 4-9 tonight, and you can buy tickets at the door for $15. Look for US there too of course, we'll be right by the door at booth #3! See you there!

Product of Art School

I've been doing Cracked Designs for almost 4 years full time (5 years total), and a lot of times I get caught up in my little world of bacon cutouts and beer bottle drawings, that I forget how this all started: Art School *shudder*

I was recently meeting with a client and she asked me where I went to school, and I kind of paused before I said MIAD & SAIC. I've been out of college for almost 7 years now (which feels surreal), but my time at art school seems like something out of a dream, something that never really happened. So, I dusted off my old portfolios and reminisced, and it got me thinking about my art school days and some new realizations...

I was a fresh faced 18 year old movin' on up to the big city (Chicago) to pursue my dreams of becoming a painter.  Going to art school was my dream come true, all I wanted was to paint and create and express myself through fine art. Ah, my naivety makes me laugh out loud now, to think, I thought I could make a real living off of painting! If only. Well, as you have probably gathered from this blog, and this post in particular, I am quite awkward and never felt as if I really fit in in the whole art school scene. I quickly gathered that I was too normal at SAIC, which much to my surprise was a bad thing. I attended SAIC for two years before transferring to MIAD for my last two years. Now, MIAD was a little more my speed, but alas, I had missed those first 2 crucial years at MIAD where everyone was making friends. Now, here I was, the weird transfer student trying to break in and start all over again. I still shudder thinking about those early days.

( Two photographs which were part of my Senior Thesis at MIAD, "Shedding Some Light" )

My early dreams of going to art school started slowly turning into nightmares, and I would often curse the whole idea of art school and could not wait for it to all be over. I hated being that odd girl out, and constantly trying to connect with someone, anyone! The desire to create that I had once longed for, started turning into work, and I hated being forced into making something spectacular, especially if I was feeling that lack of inspiration.  It wasn't all bad though, I loved painting and photographing and being able to (and being encouraged to) be creative. During my last semester at MIAD, I started to question everything and had that typical senior freak out moment of "Holy crap, what am I going to do now?! Damn you art school, my parents were right!" I suddenly realized that I didn't feel prepared for the real world, and my dreams of a being a starving artist were not satisfying anymore like they once were. My then boyfriend (and now husband) was about to graduate from UW Madison at the same time as me and he had a nice little job all lined up for him. I secretly hated his guts during this time, and envied his together-ness. But, somehow I survived, and worked odd jobs after graduation. Some art related, some not. I wasn't too happy with my situation, and I continued to curse my art school experience. I felt like my time at two expensive art schools were a disaster, and now all I was left with was a giant student loan. Then, all of a sudden one day, I created a silly little card. That card caught on, and well, the rest is Cracked Designs history.

  (Two photographs done during my last semester at MIAD)

Despite my loneliness & confusion during my art school days, I'm no longer bitter about art school, and in fact, I embrace it. Although, I don't have a career in photography (which was my major), I could not be happier with the career I do have, and if it weren't for struggling through art school, I may never have discovered Cracked Designs in myself. Being able to be creative everyday for 4 years at art school prepared me for a lifetime of creativity. I no longer dream about painting ( I sadly haven't picked up a paintbrush in 7 years) and being a starving artist, I have new dreams, dreams about continuing to be a successful business owner, and these dreams are far more exciting to me because I know that they're real. But those early dreams of being an artist make me smile, because in reality all I had ever wanted was to be able to make awesome works of art all day long, and now I realize that I actually do just that. And that my friends, made art school totally worth it.

(The top images are my school U-pass and a photo of me - terrified & young during my first semester at SAIC in Chicago)

Music to my ears

One of my most favorite things in the world (other than designing greeting cards, of course) is going to concerts. I love me some live music something fierce. In the past few years, Milwaukee has been stellar at bringing some great big name and small name bands to the city. And it helps that Milwaukee has some amazing music venues like the big guys: The Pabst/Turner Hall/Riverside & the perfect intimate venue: The Cactus Club. I get really freakishly excited when I experience an extra good live show, and I just happened to see 4 really exceptional ones this past year that I'd like to share...

The Eels @ Turner Hall: I didn't really have much expectation for this show because I don't know much of the Eels music, but got tickets for Adam because he likes them. I always thought the Eels were pretty mellow, but holy frack, they totally rocked the crap out of Turner Hall. It was one of the most entertaining shows I've ever been to.

Sat. Nite Duets & The Fatty Acids @ Cactus Club:  I always love going to a show and discovering a great new band, and the Cactus Club has provided me with this time and time again. This show was super great because I found not one, but two great bands- from Mke too! (On a side note, these 2 are playing together next weekend in Milwaukee!)

Wilco @ Riverside: I've always been a Wilco fan, but the one time I saw them live, about 7 years ago, I was really disappointed. That particular show was kind of boring and felt really stale. Because of that, I've stayed away from seeing them live, despite everyone always saying how good they are live. But when I heard they were coming to Milwaukee again, I wanted to give them another chance, and I'm really happy I did. It was a really beautiful show full of a good variety of their long playlist. It made me remember why I love Wilco so dearly.

White Rabbits @ Cactus Club: Dude, this show was awesome! I first saw the White Rabbits when they were an opening act and fell in love immediately. So I was stoked to hear they were playing at the Cactus Club. They were super energetic and it was perfect seeing them in such a small venue.


What were some good shows you saw this past year? I always love discovering a new great band!

Articles are cool

Hey! Check out CD and other local card designer, Kate Funk in the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel today! Click here to read the story...

Cool Kids

So it is true that I have babies on the brain. And once I saw the coolest kids and infant clothes ever on the Heavy Rotation website, I want a baby even more!

First of all, Heavy Rotation has some of the coolest shirts possibly in the world! And even better..they're from Milwaukee! Holla! Visit their website to buy some of these gems. Their kids and infant clothes are called 'Mini Rotation', how awesome is that!?

Cafe Centraal is rad

So I am totally in love with the new Cafe Centraal in Bayview, here in Milwaukee. They have the most awesome patio ever! Adam and I have been going there quite frequently, to sip on their many tasty brews on the best patio in the world! If you're in Milwaukee, I would recommend checkin' it out.

Sparrow Collective

Local Bayview store, 'Fasten' closed up shop this month, however the fabulous 'Sparrow Collective' took over and is continuing where 'Fasten' left off. I am forever grateful to 'Fasten' because they were the first store to believe in Cracked Designs and to sell our cards. It's because of 'Fasten' that I had the confidence to keep faith in Cracked Designs even after a lot of hard rejections (ah hem, Paper Boat, which is now closing...) So I am excited to keep on selling at the new 'Sparrow Collective'! I'm so happy to see a store like 'Sparrow' keepin' Milwaukee awesome! Sparrow Collective' will continue to sell one-of-a-kind works by local designers as well as bring in new designers from around the country. Check out the nice little article on OnMilwaukee.com here.

It's out!

The April issue of Milwaukee Magazine is out! We are featured in a nice little blurb in the saavy shopping section! HOLLA! Check it out on newsstands now peeps.

Look for us

Some exciting news....we are going to be featured in the April issue of Milwaukee Magazine! We are super excited, so make sure to pick up a copy!

Coolest Co-op in Riverwest!

The Riverwest Co-op in Milwaukee's Riverwest neighborhood is the most recent store to carry Cracked Designs cards. I recently visited them this past weekend (for the first time!) and was really pumped and inspired by their mission and the overall feel of the store. It is quite awesome to see a successful store run on almost all volunteers and a store that gives back so much to the Riverwest and Milwaukee community. Their dedication really shows, and I am so honored to be able to sell our cards here! If you're in the Milwaukee area, you should check them out. They have a vegan/vegetarian friendly cafe and most of their goods, including their food, come from local businesses. So not only will you be supporting this amazing co-op, you'll also be supporting Milwaukee based vendors-like us!

Front Page News.

We were super excited to find us on the front page of the Entertainment section of the Saturday The Milwaukee Journal Sentinel last week! We were featured as the number one thing to check out. Check it out here!

Brewers Mania

It's not everyday that the Milwaukee Brewers go to the playoffs.  So in honor of the Brewers awesome-ness, here are some rad blue and yellow finds.  Go Brewers Go!  

 top left: Blue and Gold Cups from Pony Party.  top right: Property of Totally Rad mini sign from MATTY8080.  middle: Milwaukee Skyline Screenprinted T-Shirts from CarbonCopy.  bottom left: Johnny Five T-Shirt from Slow Shirts.  bottom right:  Brownie Hawkeye Pins from e50e

JuJu

The amazing store in the 3rd ward area of Milwaukee-JuJu, is the newest store to carry Cracked Designs cards. They are by far one of the coolest stores in Milwaukee and carry tons of unique and fun gifts. Visit them regularly if you're in Milwaukee!
http://www.jujugifts.com