Let me be clear, I’m a huge fan of Kelly Wearstler (you can see her site here) so I was very happy to see that our designs had the same influence.  I love the confluence of interior design and fashion design into my work so this is very exciting for me. Here’s Kelly’s design that stopped my tracks.

Quartz by Kelly Wearstler for SFERRA {image courtesy of Sferra}

And here is the newest addition to the Bella Collection, Carole.

Carole from the Write Robinson Bella Collection

Kelly’s pillow is soft gold metallic swirled on linen fabric. My cards feature paper with gold metallic hand swirled on cream 100% daphne paper.

Each envelope is unique.

I’m so happy with the way these envelopes came out. Also, they’re paired with simple deckle-edged Italian cotton cards for a simple, rustic, elegant look just like Kelly’s pillow. Because in the design world, sometimes great minds do, in fact, think alike.

As of today, you can now get them in COLOR! The Tweet Me Later cards are now available in Blue, Grey, Pink and the original soft white. As always, they come in sets of ten.   Pick up a set and when you do, tweet me later @writerobinson.

Clockwise: Blue, Grey, and Pink.

For that, I thank you. I thank everyone who took the time to enter and to everyone who tweeted about Brandon’s work. You will never know how giddy your kindness made us.

Now, on to the good part, the winner of this fantastic print by Brandon Smith is……

Light at the End of the Tunnel {image courtesy of D.Coop}

APRIL ELIZABETH!!!! Also known as @alovelydesigner on twitter!

Congratulations!!! Please send your mailing address to info@writerobinson.com to claim your prize.

Upcycled Wallpaper Stationery

Of course, if any of my other interior design friends have extra wallpaper remnants, I’ll gladly take it off your hands!

Brandon is an avid traveler and his camera is never far from his side. Did I mention he shoots in actual film? Oh I didn’t? He shoots in FILM. Bona fide, no lie, for real for real, actual black and white film! In this day when everything is disposable and digital, I admire him for keeping authentic. Did I mention he’s good? Yeah, he’s good. Really good. And I say that as person who loves art, not as a person whose friend likes to take pictures.

Here’s one of my favorite images taken during a trip to Central Park in New York City.

Light at the End of the Tunnel {image courtesy of D.Coop}

I love this piece. On a spiritual level, it symbolizes hope to me. If you’re willing to keep walking, there will be light at the end of the tunnel. There will be a beautiful dawn after the darkest of nights if you just hold on for a few more hours. On an artistic level, I love how his eye captures and pay homage to the architectural elements of the design. I love how every time I look at this piece I want to move in closer to really see each detail of the archway and wall carvings. In a nutshell, it makes me happy because it does what I expect of my art, to move my soul and my mind.

Now on to the good for you part. Due to the generosity of Brandon and to celebrate the launch of his blog, one lucky commenter of this blog will receive a matted, framed, and SIGNED print of my favorite image!

You know you want this! {image courtesy of D.Coop}

Entry instructions:

Leave a comment on this post.  For a bonus entry, follow both @writerobinson and @dcoopsd on twitter and send the following tweet, “I entered to win a @dcoopsd original from @writerobinson (with a link to this post).”  Entries accepted until February 3rd.

To see more of Brandon’s wonderful photography, please take a moment to visit his newly launched blog, A Boy and His Camera, and leave him a comment to celebrate!

So for being so kind and generous, I indeed have the best clients in the entire world.

Tweet Me Later as styled by client @FashionOffice

Olioboard is an online service which allows users to create 2D and 3D moodboards. It has many fans in the interior design community as it can used to great effect to showcase several design options to clients.

User created olioboard (Taun11) on the Olioboard.com site

For me, I see it as a way to collect my own thoughts when working on future collections and I see it as a way to provide an instant visual to my clients as we move through the design process. On a lark, I decided to create my first board this morning. I’m in the process of creating a new collection based on my love of patterns. I constantly seek inspiration from my friends in interior design so it was awesome to see all the images that were readily available to me. So, minutes after joining the site, I created this.

Damask Print Inspiration board created with Olioboard

It’s not quite the prettiest I could have done, but I just wanted to get familiar with all the bells and whistles of the board creation process. It’s so easy which is why I KNOW this will not be my last board!

Even though it has been widely adopted by the interior design community, it is equally as effective for me as a stationery designer. Olioboard has become the newest tool at my disposal to aid in my work and to help me communicate with clients clearly and efficiently. For that, I give it an A+!

Note: This is NOT a sponsored post. It is my own unsolicited opinion.

My company began by mailing 62 thank you notes. I saved every card sent to me by my friends and benevolent strangers after Hurricane Katrina. When I was ready to launch, there was no Facebook or Twitter. All I had to promote my company was an address book and a book of stamps. I sent everyone on the list a thank you note for supporting me when my world fell apart and told them that by their support, they enabled me to have the courage to pursue my dream. Included with each note, I sent cards for them to pass on thank you notes to three people of their choice. Those 62 thank you notes were the only marketing I did for my business in the first two years of its existence because the recipients of those cards and some of the people to whom they passed them along have become the most vocal supporters of Write Robinson ordering repeatedly.

And you know what? After each order, I send them another thank you note. Some may call this a marketing strategy and some may consider even using that term makes the practice disingenious.  Technically yes, it is a strategy, but it has been the blueprint and cornerstone of my success. I am truly thankful for every single person who takes time out of their day to go to my site, read this blog, and spend their hard-earned money on my work. Their choice to do that helps me to live my dream of being a stationer. I neither take that fact lightly or for granted.

So my fellow business owners, take the time out to make a list of the clients, customers, and vendors who voraciously support you and your work and thank them. On paper. Sit down, pull out a pen, write them a note, and mail it. You will be surprised at how quickly the pie grows when you are truly grateful for your one slice.

And rest assured, if you choose Write Robinson, you will receive a thank you note. From me. On paper. In the mail.

{image courtesy of FFFFound}

They’re over. They’re finally over. The holidays that is. Although the holidays is that one time of year that the aroma of pot roast meanders through my house, when my social calendar looks like an abstract art piece of parties and engagements, when bags of goodies appear in every corner of the house waiting for the d.coop touch of paper and ribbon and ornaments; this is the is the time of year that I enjoy the most. I know that most people send out Christmas and Thanksgiving cards but this is the time of year that I sit down to pen notes of best wishes and thanks to my family, my best friends, and those people who’ve really touched my life positively in some way.

There was once a time when I’d do the store bought thing; trying to make a “One size fits all” holiday card work for my notes of good riddance. I learned a long time ago that as nice as it is to receive a Christmas card with “Happy holidays” scribbled out in an Edwardian font, there is nothing more warmly received then a handwritten note of thanks, of greetings, of warm wishes. Be it on wonderfully handmade stationery like that of Write Robinson, a postcard from the random city that you might be living, or just a plain white piece of typing paper. Friends and Family love a hand written note.

{image courtesy of downandoutchic.blogspot}

For me, I have saved most of the notes that I’ve received. I’m no hoarder mind you, just in my mind, I believe that someone took time out of their busy day to put down especially for you a little piece of them. As funny as it might seem, I actually have framed, on my desk, the card that came with the first Valentine’s Day flowers I received from my Other Half. Sure it was computer printed and a little crumpled but for me, it meant everything. You know how the experts tell you to have a five- and ten- minute list in the case of a fire? That very card would be in both of those lists.

Anyway, I’m a busy guy. Between my work as an interior designer, my social media habits, and several other up and coming endeavors, it isn’t easy to sit down and put my thoughts on paper. Often times my notes consist of a loving Tweet, a Facebook post, a text message, or even just a quick phone call. Every day it becomes increasingly more difficult. Sometimes the hardest part isn’t even carving out the time. Many times taking the time to actually write is the easier of the tasks. In reality I believe the hardest part is in creating the right environment.

{image courtesy NY Times}

Let me tell you about my own desk. It is a big white farmhouse table with two computers, three printers, a library’s worth of books, and multiple lacquer trays filled with client requests, samples and other odds and ends. If you know me, you know I’m easily distracted. I don’t mean “oh hi there, now let me get back to work”. I mean one Google search and I’ve wasted three hours and can’t remember where I put my shoes. So for me, having the right environment in which to write is key.

{image courtesy Traditional Home}

I’m tempted to have a separate desk just for my stationery. A secretaire perhaps. A tall French spectacle with a welcoming presence. A myriad of little drawers and pigeonholes calling me closer, begging me to sit down at it’s drop front and pen a few notes of gratitude.

A simple ladies writing table maybe. Just a clean surface with sinuous legs and a stretcher to rest my feet. Pure simplicity. No extraneous storage or nooks and crannies to hide bills and other distractions. I could imagine getting wrapped up in the calming environment she provides and doing nothing more than exploring a few thoughts on paper.

{image courtesy House Beautiful}

Either way, it should be somewhere that the task of writing a note is not so much a task. Not a distraction. But a pleasure. A moment in one’s day that fulfils something deeper than just a check mark on an imaginary to-do list. For now I continue to take that moment at my cluttered desk but one day, I’ll have my special corner.

Brandon Smith is principal of the San Diego based spatial design company D.Coop. Focusing on sustainable, workable and budget friendly design, he provides In The Box solutions to Out of the Box questions. You can follow him on Twitter @dcoopsd or on his wildy popular blog A D.Coop Bloggie.

I know you will love this calendar as much as I do. Send me your address and it will be on it’s way!