Grad Motivation

Ah, grad season is upon us. Soon the studious will be fresh from school and will spend their days ‘recovering’ from their ordeal. We’ve got a few great designs that are perfect little motivation reminders. If you’ve ever felt you might as well be talking to the wall, then let those walls do the nagging for a while. Don’t see any that work, then we’ve got designers at the ready to help you create a custom design that will be absolutely perfect—just think of the possibilities!

Designers, Bloggers, and Room to Breathe

Debbie Travis, one of my favorite designers and television personalities recently reached out to us for some information and photos for an upcoming newspaper column. We’re tickled pink (or rather tickled carnation, bubble gum, or…). We can’t wait to see what Debbie says—especially since her forte is paint, plaster, and the covering of bland walls.

Debbie is not the only one talking about us, we’ve been on a whirlwind with bloggers recently, getting together give aways, sending out samples, and generally getting to know some of the social media press circuit. I definitely missed the social marketing chapter in my moldy oldy Marketing 301 class in college, but I’m learning as I go.

Our big news (at least to us) is that we moved our production facility this week and are really enjoying the elbow room. The blank walls are both refreshing and intimidating—the old space we put up any random thing that we had lying around. In this space I want it a little more thought out. For now it’s a little minimalist until I get a spark of creativity and a few minutes with my favorite cutting machines.

Photo Contest Grand Prize Winner

We just wrapped up a photo contest, and we were thrilled at the response and the great photos. Our grand prize winner is Elaine S. who used the birch trees and bird cages to make a great headboard design for her bed. The chocolate color coordinates with her bedding, and the yellow bird is the perfect accent. We hope Elaine enjoys the $50 gift certificate and comes up with something just as fun and creative for the next contest.

Visit us on Facebook for even more fun customer photos such as the one below. And get those photos ready for the next contest. We had a blast!

Photo Contest Runner Up

Jennifer J. took the $25 gift certificate where she used a custom monogram centered over her daughter’s crib. We think that the effect is absolutely adorable and we’re sure that it’s getting plenty of oohs and ahas from everyone that sees it in person. We just want to know how she managed to talk her hubby into the pink and green walls.

Visit us on Facebook for even more fun customer photos and get those photos ready for the next contest. And visit us often for the newest designs–we have over 1600 designs and more are added every day.

Photo Contest Honorable Mention

We had to create an honorable mention category for Cathy R. who tugged our heartstrings. The design was presented to her friend who is battling cancer, and the message is just too perfect not to include in our list of favorites. She says “This isn’t in someone house, it’s in someone’s heart…” She too gets a $25 gift certificate for sharing the photo and story. We love the gift aspect of the designs, which is what the ‘Trading’ in Trading Phrases is all about.

Visit us on Facebook for even more fun customer photos (the canoe with the names of the rivers it has been on is really fun), and get those photos ready for the next contest.

Spring - Make it Bloom Where You Want it

If you’re like us, spring cannot come fast enough. We are out of the snow, but still are looking at some gray days with the rain and the plants that are just beginning to shake their long slumber. We’ve got a great idea to help spring color along—add a few vibrant designs to your walls. Bring the blooms indoors, and add a colorful branch to your wall, or add some vibrant birds to make you smile.

The Vintage Frog blog recently featured a chalkboard heart design. We love her idea of using it to keep score during game night. We’ve also had people use them to ‘decorate’ old furniture to give it new life. Vinyl chalkboard is great for dresser fronts, for table tops, or anywhere that a little temporary creativity can be added in unexpected places.

Love is in the Air, and Maybe on the Wall

February harkens thoughts of romance, roses, and chocolate. The romance should last throughout the year, but the roses and chocolate are short lived (unless you count those calories, and then it may be more permanent). For years we’ve done the Valentine’s dinner at a nice restaurant, but this year the sentiment is to cut back a bit. It can be fun to prepare a favorite meal at home together—especially if it’s a recipe that you’ve never tried before. If cooking is not your thing, then get a nice takeout meal break out the china—go for the candlelight and some soft music and you’ll have a dinner to remember. To make that dinner even more special, dress up your dining room wall with a few romantic words or a great quote. You may want to save the wildly romantic phrases for the bedroom, however.

Valentine wall quotes and phrases are creative and unexpected, are personal and classy, and are a great way to get your message across. Our favorite idea is to ‘write’ out a marriage proposal, but the possibilities are endless. Designs range from subtle to strong, from simple to sophisticated. Whatever design you choose, it will last longer than those roses and the box of chocolate—especially if it is good chocolate!