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Sometimes even a so-called adult gets an undeniable impulse to buy an embarrassing amount of miniature Disney stationery.

Maybe it was because I needed a pick-me-up after I tried and failed to get a seat at the stationery café near Harajuku. I’ve been dying to check out the café, and to my disappointment, it was incredibly crowded (see image on the left). Clearly I wasn’t the only person who wanted to spend a gray afternoon perusing letter sets, notebooks and writing goods from around the world while enjoying a sandwich and coffee. Or maybe it was simply because I can't resist uniquely shaped greeting cards, especially when they are teeny tiny with vintage Disney designs.

The point is that when I got home, I looked over my Disney purchases and seriously wondered how I could possibly use these itty bitty cards. The Alice in Wonderland (shown with my pen to give you a sense of what I mean by mini) and Mickey Mouse book cards would make great gift tags on a present for a bibliophile who loves animation. The ‘Mini Mini’ book cards and Seven Dwarves ‘hug cards’ are so ridiculously small, they serve no discernible purpose besides being really cute. I’ll probably end up using them like confetti in a letter to my Disney-enthusiast best friend.

I see these little cards in almost every stationery store I come across in Tokyo and I’ve come to the conclusion that if you like Disney and things that are adorably small, Tokyo will not disappoint you. So come visit!

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Margaret moved up from intern to printer in a snap after nailing every project we could possibly throw at her. An indispensable member of our team, Margaret is also an extraordinary artist, concentrating on abstract and detailed imagery. You can check out her work online or if you’re in Boston, her prints are currently on exhibit at Aviary (thru June) and Vee Vee (thru July). We asked Margaret if she could tell us more about her creative process and artwork.

Do you have a favorite piece of work or project of yours?
I'm excited about my drawing series called "These Decisions Can Wait" (image above is #3 in the series). I started working on it a couple of years ago when I was spinning my wheels and placing too much emphasis on the intellectual concept of my work. I decided to do an exercise where I'd just mindlessly draw lines to get something on paper. It was meant to be a casual, pressure-free exercise but it ended up having a strong significance for me as an expression of physicality. This was when I started working with abstract imagery and I've felt liberated working this way since.

Your drawings demonstrate a proclivity for detail. Where do you think this comes from? Do you try to sketch these out in some way or just dive in?
I'm drawn to tediously repetitive processes. The big picture overwhelms me but a methodical process where small elements make up the whole feels natural. It's always interesting to take a step back after having worked for a while and see what qualities have emerged from the drawing without having noticed because I've just been drawing lines with tunnel vision. Sometimes I make a rough sketch if I want a drawing to contain a specific shape but for the most part they're pretty organic and spontaneous in nature.

(image: Margaret & Zoárd at their exhibit opening; Paramecium Forever Figure from the series "I'm Not Here" by Margaret Chiarelli)

Tell us a little bit about your current exhibit with Zoárd Wells Tyeklár.
Zoárd is a friend of mine and another printmaker. The idea of planning a show together has been on our minds for a while and we were excited when an opening came up at Aviary. As part of the show, I debuted a new letterpress print series called "I'm Not Here." I'd been working in black and white for a while and thought it would be interesting to break away from this. Rather than using color I wanted to rely on the impression that letterpress leaves in the paper to create forms. I had an idea of only seeing the forms up close and the prints just looking like blank paper from a distance. They end up having this quality that wavers between quiet peacefulness and eeriness.

What are five items you cannot live without?
1) Motivational work ethic post-its by my desk! (e.g., "More doing, less thinking")
2) A fluffy sock I've cut fingers holes into and use as a glove to decrease friction when I draw long lines
3) My glasses! I'd go cross-eyed without them
4) Not an item, per se, but I could not live without Artist and Craftsman in Central Square. It's my go to for every art supply need
5) My assistant (cat) Foot Foot who tries to sleep on the paper while I'm drawing

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In celebration of our dads, I went around and asked everyone to share a lasting piece of wisdom his or her dad has taught them. It goes without saying that we wouldn’t be anywhere without their love and guidance. Happy Father's Day!

DEB. (1st row, 2nd image) As the cliché goes, “money doesn’t grow on trees.” Hearing that always made me visualize a tree in the back yard blooming with dollar bills. Like most of us, I grew up hearing that phrase from my dad and while I probably didn’t realize it at the time, it certainly made its way into my psyche. I learned to value hard work in myself and in others and appreciate all my parents did to give me and my siblings a pretty darned good life. After all, they couldn’t just go out back and pluck those bills off the trees.

KATE. (1st row, 3rd image) Over the years, my father has taught me the importance of family. And by family, I don't just mean blood relatives but also those great friends who we love and cherish like blood relatives. The people in our lives and the relationships we have with them are a foundation for a happy life. I have no doubt that in my almost 40 years, he is spot on.

MARGARET. (2nd row, 1st image) I can't really think of advice my dad has given me. But I do value his sense of humor and love of absurdity which I think I picked up a little bit of. Once when I was 6 years old he came home in a brand new shirt he had bought to throw me and my sister off and insisted he was our long lost uncle Robert. His ruse thankfully lasted only about a half hour, the most confusing half hour of our childhood.

CLAYTON. (2nd row, 2nd image) My dad is the type of guy who will say, "That's your dog ... I want nothing to do with it." But then you catch him lovingly petting that dog's forehead on the side of the couch. He’s never really been the best at teaching me things like how to tie a tie but he has given me three pieces of advice over the years that help me out on a daily basis. They're pretty simple in phrasing but challenging to live by: 1) you're always sorry after the fact (in other words, think before you do something stupid); 2) just do your best; 3) believe in yourself. These pieces of advice are simple, but they mean a lot coming from him.

EMILY. (2nd row, 3rd image) I think my most remembered advice from my dad is, "if you're going to do something, do it right."

SARAH. (3rd row, 1st image) Without fail, my Dad knows how to make me laugh. Whether we're discussing the latest soccer game (Go Germany!) or current events, no matter if I am upset or frustrated, Dad's witty sense of humor always cracks me up and keeps me smiling.

SABRINA. (3rd row, 2nd image) Heart to hearts with my dad weren’t a big thing growing up. But he stands firmly by certain values that I fortunately inherited from him: 1) laziness gets you nowhere; when you decide to do something, put in 110% (whether it's school, work or your golf game); 2) don’t waste because see Deb's dad's adage above (I still feel guilty if I leave food on my plate or accidentally leave the lights on when I'm out); and 3) tiger balm will fix anything (okay, truth be told, I'm not sold on this one).

RHEANA. (3rd row, 3rd image) My dad owned a few small businesses throughout the years and watching him as a business owner taught me to roll the dice and take a shot in something you believe. He always said you have to work hard and make sacrifices if you want or need something. Nothing in life will be handed to you; you need to work for it. Plus if you work for it you will appreciate it more. Most memorably he taught me how to change a tire before I could drive my first car out of the driveway. He didn't want me to ever break my curfew "because of a flat tire." He was always thinking about the future and what to do to make life easier in the long run even if it means that it's harder at that moment. And that is a lesson that serves me well every day.

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If you’re nuts for pretty coffee table books, then we’ve got a new one to add to your collection! Kseniya Thomas and Jessica White, the original ladies behind the Ladies of Letterpress, have published a beautiful compilation of print work among their members. And Smudge Ink is lucky to be among its pages! I finally had a moment to flip through the book with a cup of coffee the other day. (Thanks to my husband and Kate's dad who both saw it at a book store and promptly bought us copies because it’s not every day you see your name in print. And plus, they are our personal PR assistants).

I really enjoyed seeing the range of styles and designs and learning about the other 80+ artists and studios who also contributed. One of the great features of the book is that each featured printer has its own perforated page that it can be torn out and used as a poster for framing and hanging. This book truly celebrates the supportive and enthusiastic community of women printers to which we are proud to belong.  

(image: Look, Heidi, Handsome, and Cookie's names are in print!)

(image: our featured greeting cards and custom projects)

(images left to right: wonderful work from printshops, Letterpers, The Permanent Collection, and Constellation & Co. that caught my eye)

(image: our signature poppy design ready to be turned into wall art)

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I’d say most of us at the studio have a strong case of wanderlust. Near or far, we love to visit places. And when travel is a distant memory of life before toddlers then we like to live vicariously through others. You can’t expect to go away somewhere and not have to give us a full report upon your return. We decided to take this a step further and create a card (that's it in the image above!) that would roam with us wherever we traveled or go visit our friends around the world. First stop is to New York City for the Stationery Show! After spending eight hours in the Javits Center, we wanted to get as far away from there as possible. Here's where we went ...

KATE. Every morning, I spent the seven o'clock hour running from Fort Greene through Dumbo and into Brooklyn Bridge Park. The view of lower Manhattan across the East River is breathtaking, and I love taking in all the gorgeous plantings, meandering paths, and incredible sculptures within the park. This year, I got to enjoy a series of installations by Danish artist Jeppe Hein titled Please Touch the Art. As you can guess, the exhibit is meant to be interactive, with jets of water shooting up from the ground, a maze of mirrors, and sculptural benches. It never ceases to amaze me how much NYC has to offer even when you’re just out getting your daily dose of fresh air. 

DEB. It’s rare these days for me to catch a show when I’m in NYC. If I come for the trade show, I am usually too exhausted. When I am visiting with my husband and girls, I don’t have my act together in time to find tickets for a family-friendly matinee. This trip was different: Darren Criss had taken over the lead in Hedwig and the Angry Inch. Full disclosure, I’m a 41-year-old Glee fan (Darren played Blaine Anderson). While I already knew the story of Hedwig, it was my celebrity crush that sealed the deal. So I went on my own (when is the last time I had an entire night all to myself?!) and it did not disappoint. The story is heart-wrenching and tragic and hilarious but OH MY—the energy and raw talent it takes to perform the lead in that show is mind-blowing. Bravo, Darren Criss. A rainy NYC evening very well spent, indeed.

SABRINA. My friends Betty and Spiro invited me to join them for some shuffleboard in Brooklyn, and out of sheer curiosity I couldn’t pass it up. The Royal Palms Shuffleboard Club is a fairly recent addition to the once-gritty-and-grimy Gowanus neighborhood. As soon as you stepped inside of what used to be a Coca Cola bottling plant, you felt like you were taken back to a scene from the Love Boat complete with Bingo night and flamingo wallpaper but with hipsters in place of retirees. We played on one of its 10 sunken courts while sipping on tropical cocktails, and I have to admit it was a blast.

CLAYTON. A small world run-in with old classmates led to an impromptu gathering Tuesday evening in the Lower East Side. The place? The Late Late. The people? Laura “Lemon” Howell and Madeline Arnold. The why? Just because (also it was Laura's birthday!). I arrived fashionably unfashionably late (subway rookie) to a bar modeled after a 1960's Irish home complete with your grandma's daisy wallpaper. I promptly joined Laura and Madeline in the rousing game of trivia that had already begun. After the game, we chatted with the charming trivia host as he offered his condolences for our attempt at victory. Then came a round of IPAs and a comforting dose of catch-up. If you were wondering what the score was ... ah, alas, it has escaped me.

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