11.26.2014

Yay!

I haven't blogged in forever, so you know what that means…. it's the Holiday Show season.

I tried really hard to be prepared ahead of time, but that just never seems to work out. But as of this minute the Polar Nights Collection is all finished and printed, along with the 2015 calendar. I haven't shared much of them as they were pretty last minute. But if you follow me on Instagram (@thunderpeep) I'll be sure to post photos from the show. And once the show is over all the items will go up on the etsy shop (which is actually closed down for the duration of the show)

See you on the other side!

9.15.2014

All sorts of excitement!

Well, the show season officially kicked off this past weekend. Along with a whole bunch of new product. Whew. It was exhausting getting here, and still so much work to be done between now and the end of the year. But Goonies never say die, right ;)

This past weekend was one of my favourite shows, the Danforth East Arts Fair. As an East Ender myself this show has has special meanings for many reasons. It's right in my neighbourhood. I have made a ton of friends at the show customers and vendors. It was my very first big 2 day outdoor tent show and has always been super successful so I tend to launch a lot of new product here. I guess we kind of share the same quirky sense of humour - and it's a great barometer for what will be popular. We are so much more twisted in the East End of town ;)

There were 2 definite hits this year, not surprisingly both dwell a bit more on that twisted side of the tracks.

Ghost Friends is officially a bestseller after selling out at #Deaf14. Now available in the Etsy shop
I keep getting requests for a new Best Friend card so i was super excited to launch this one. I mean Come On… who doesn't  want to come back and freak out all your frienemies! I love a good Ghost story and this one brought out some really interesting ones from my lovely customers. I wonder if Trolls can be ghosts?

Old Milk is Gross. Your Old Friends are not. Also now available in the Etsy shop
In my circle of friends I'm always the one who will sniff milk (or pretty much anything) to see if it's safe to consume, but do I actually sniff my friends to be sure they are still fresh enough to stay friends with? Well only my close friends will know the answer to that one (and yes someone did actually ask me if I did that over the weekend!!??) But you can let your friends know if they pass the Old Milk test with this awesome new birthday card.

There are even more awesome new products being uploaded to the Etsy shop this week, I'll showcase most of them as we head into the next show, Etsy: Made in Canada on the 27th. I'm pretty excited for this one. Not only because I got to work with my lovely ladies over at The Toronto Etsy Street Team and 416 Hustler Team on organizing the event, but because it's the first EVER nationwide event to help promote the Shop Local movement here in Canada. Etsy is really working hard to make Canadians aware of all the amazing talent here and all the incredible locally made goods so this event will see pop-up markets in 26 cities from coast to coast. If you're in Toronto you can check out our show at the MaRS building (College and University Ave) as well as our sister show over at OCAD. If not check out the MIC homepage to find a show near you (ps --> Vancouverites yours is in Robson Square, AwEsOmE!)


8.23.2014

Let me introduce you...

When I was younger I LOVED chain letters. I was big into penpals and letter writing though so not a huge stretch.

Then when email came along and spam was invented (you know, those friends who would forward Every Single Funny Joke/Photo etc) I absolutely hated it all. I didn't want to be sent anything that would bring on bad luck in 24 hours if I didn't pass it along or whatever crap it was spewing. Thank god those days are long gone. Or at least they can be hidden in your facebook feed ;)

So when my fellow stationery buddy Queenie of Queenie's Cards sent me an email about participating in a blog hop I instantly cringed. But then I read further and realized this was kind of like those recipe chain letters and I kind of loved those. (who else is in on starting this up with me?)

So welcome to my Blog Hop post!

As I mentioned I was tagged to participate by the uber sweet Queenie. We met a while back at a show and slowly had some email chatting before finally sitting down to chats and eats at The Wren (yes I pretty much go there with anyone and everyone!) She designs an great line of cards over at Queenie's Cards right here in Toronto. She did her first Stationery Show last spring and we're super excited to see her make a huge mark on the Stationery scene.

Check out some of my fav cards

seriously… I love to drop an F bomb in real life, but would never mail one. This card is perfect!

I still own and use a calculator. Word. Love it!
So now… on to me. I have to share some tidbits now.

1. What are you writing/working on?
At the moment I'm prepping for show season (show prep is a full time job in itself!) which starts in about 3 weeks {yikes} I'm launching the new line of stationery on the 13/14 of September at the Danforth East Arts Fair and still putting the final pieces on the Holiday line coming later this Fall. In the longer term I'm just starting on the Polar Nights Collection launching this winter (well I guess November isn't quite winter but it'll feel like it) and even more exciting = my first book. It might have Trolls. And some online workshops. And of coarse all the fabric goodness for my collaboration with Quilter Steff over at Pickled Herring Designs. Oh Yeah and OF COARSE planning my big 40th birthday party this November ;) Man, it's no wonder I have no life, when do I have time to sleep!

2. How does your work differ from others in your genre?

I think thunderpeep stands out because it's very much me and my sense of humour/adventure. The weirdest things tend to come out of my mouth, or I latch on to something someone has said to me that I totally take out of context, and most of that ends up on a card. There are some gorgeous illustrated cards out there but I really love to focus more on the typographic styling of my cards, because it really is all about that cheesy line, telling it like it is! And I love typography. 

3. Why do you create?

Oh gosh. I wouldn't know how to not create. It's just a part of me, I don't even think about it. I'm happiest when I'm lost in the world of design.

4.How does your creative process work?

I don't have a specific process, I'm a very digitally oriented so all finished artwork is created in Illustrator. sometimes I doodle out the beginnings of the design and sometimes I just get down and dirty on the computer. I have a big sketchbook that I'm constantly jotting down sayings or little ideas or doodles and when I'm looking for inspiration I just open to a random page. It's all very organic, which I love, but is sometimes a bad thing, trying to get myself to work when I'm just not feeling it is really tough.

Now, let me introduce you to amazing creative spirits that I'm better for knowing.

First up is Ele from Minouette. I first met Ele through the Toronto Etsy Street Team, she's our Captain. A couple of years back I was invited to become a Leader on the team and I've been able to get to know her a bit better working on various team events (including the upcoming Etsy: Made in Canada show - are you coming?) and now I'm honoured to share a bit of her with you. 

Ele combines her artistic side with her scientific side (because she's also a Marine Geophysicis who's lead an incredibly interesting life so far) in creating lino block prints, fabrics and other goodies.


Magic in Antartica

Polar Bears and Aurora Borealis, 2 of my favourite things

combining Art with Scientific Women - Florence Nightingale

My next uber cool and creative friend is Katie from Heart's Haven. I also met Katie through the Toronto Etsy Street Team and we quickly became show buddies! Katie's an East Coaster at heart, with a whimsical spirit, maker of lovely recycled wears, screenprinted beings and loves greyhounds! Plus her Grandma sounds like the second most awesome grandma ever (no one person alive is as cool as mine was) Here are some of the pieces I love from her collection.

Free the Bears! I'm patiently waiting for cool mornings to be able to wear my Bear infinity scarf

Greyhounds and scarf and skin! I'm loving this fuscia

with every broken heart we should become more adventurous - quote from her page not mine!

And to end this gorgeous Blog Hop Post I thought I'd share one last thing that inspires me. Since I'm planning my first vacation in what feels like forever (in celebration of my 40th Birthday) to one of the most magical places on the planet, I thought I'd share one of the insanely creative Lyric videos by my fav of fav bands Of Monsters and Men. If I could live in this video I would!


8.20.2014

We're celebrating a wee bit over here….


My {not so} little Etsy shop is oh so close to a milestone 1000 sale and that means it's time for a little bit of celebrating.

Now, maybe I can't clink shot glasses with you BUT I can offer you something {not really} even better. For the next 24 hours the ENTIRE shop is 50% off - yes even the custom listings - just use the code: 1000AWESOMES at checkout for the deal of a lifetime {seriously I haven't had any shots yet….}

All orders using the code will get some extra love with their order - and if you're lucky #1000, well you'll be getting some serious extra love.

Thanks for hanging out on this journey with me. No matter how far or how close I've had fun with every single order!

7.07.2014

Something free for you!

I've been meaning to do this for awhile now, but you know how it is…. always on the never ending to-do.

But today was different. I was updating the Society 6 shop (go check it out some fun new patterns and designs up and still a few more to come) and one of the pieces for sale are laptop and ipad covers. Basically that's almost the same sizing as my laptop screen so a couple of extra minutes was all it took to make some of the designs into Desktop Wallpapers… For You!

I'm going to make a point of having a couple available each month so you can always have a little piece of thunderpeep fun with you. (hopefully you're not like me lately, with all the crap on my desktop cluttering up over my background image. sigh!) These 2 are from this years Midsummer collection.

Just click on any of the images below and it will pop up in a new window. Right click the image and download it onto your computer, select it as your new wallpaper and voila! you now have a super Fun image on your screen. (please note that these images are for personal use only they are not for resale)





6.09.2014

Midsummer… is coming

It's been a bit of a struggle to get this years collection together, and to be honest it's still a bit of a disaster zone over here, but I can see the light at the end of the fox hole and the new (although maybe a bit small) Midsummer 2014 collection is looking awesome.


And… I'm super excited because this year I actually have an event on the actual first day of summer (that's how us North Americans refer to Midsummer). This year I'll be launching the first bits of the Midsummer collection down at the Leslieville Arts Market. The Leslieville Wanderlust is putting on it's Lemonfest event to welcome in Summer (and to mark the end of street construction the past few weeks) and hopefully drinking loads of lemonade (have I mentioned it's my favourite - although usually with a little something extra added in;)

I'll be posting all sorts of fun sneak peeks over the next 2 weeks so be sure you follow thunderpeep on instagram and twitter!

Any big plans for your Midsummer weekend?

5.19.2014

stepping back to move forward

now that's not as ominous as it sounds.

 Let me explain.

 When I first started thunderpeep, it wasn't as stationery focused as it is today. To be honest I never really thought it was going to be a greeting card company {and to note I still don't think it is} but that's definitely the side that exploded first. And I'm so grateful for that. But my first love was always surface design. Honestly I wanted my shit on EVERYTHING. You've seen enough posts about the amazing Marimekko to know what I'm talking about {side bar love for the Unikko celebrating it's 50th anniversary!)


right. Imagine a bus with Trolls all over it. Goals people. you have to have Goals!

But seriously… this brings me to something I've been working on for awhile now. If you follow me on instagram you've seen some sneak peeks. Or the words Pickled and Herring.

My good friend Quilter Steff and thunderpeep have been working on a pretty fun collaboration for you. We're combining thunderpeep designs with Quilter Steff patterns. WHat? that sounds crazy.

PickledHerring is the name and patterns are our game. Steff is an amazing quilter and sewer and she's taken some of my most popular designs and made them into quilts. And these aren't your Granny's quilts. No way, these are super fun and modern quilts. Well… let me clarify this. They are quilt patterns. YOU have to do the heavy lifting of sewing the dang thing together, following our pretty pretty instructions.

That's not all. All those hillarious cards you love to laugh over. Well you're going to be able to make them into little embroidery pieces for your home. I know some of you like to frame them, but why not get a little crafty with it. If I can learn to embroider… so can you!

We're launching the whole thing on June 7th at the Toronto Etsy Street Teams Spring Market {click here for those deets if you're in the Toronto area come for a visit} and right after the etsy shop so all you out of towners can start crafting and a blog as well, with bonus tips, tricks and downloads {those are all FREE for our devoted followers and of coarse you non-followers!} I'll blog more about it as all the little pieces continue to come together.


For those of you who've been around from the beginning, you'll remember that for the 2012 Midsummer collection I also launched some fabric lines. I've always loved fabric patterns, but as a non-sewer I never really understood it. Well, let me tell you. I've now been educated in all things fabric related and am so ExCiTeD for all the fabric goodness coming your way. Yes, that's right both the Midsummer and Polar Nights collections will have fabric collections this year {and real honest to goodness collections that will knock your sewn panties off!} 

Ok, that last bit got a bit weird. There may have been some Palm Breeze before this post. And I'm excited for all this goodness.

Check back in later this week - plans are coming together for the Midsummer launch later in June. 

#MidsummerIsComing


5.12.2014

Summer Lovin'

This is not a saying that comes easily from me (unless we're singing along to Grease ;)

Since moving back East I've learned to adapt to 4 full season and for the most part am enjoying it (especially the arrival of winter and those first snowfalls!) And being that I love to be outdoors, I have no problems walking and adventuring in crisp cold weather, while the rest of the city is stuck sulking indoors.

Unfortunately, at least where I live, the arrival of sunshine and summer, also means the arrival of brutal humidity - which is where it all falls apart for me. I just want to nap all day, which is a nice though, but when you are trying to get shit done, it gets complicated.

So, yesterday while enjoying the first full day of warm breezes and bright sunshine I thought of all the little things I actually really love about summer and am going to try to hold on to them as long as I can before the heat waves kick in!

What are some of your favourite things about summer?



5.02.2014

May the Force be with Freebies!

I'm a bit fan of the original Star Wars movies - in particular the Ewoks. COME ON they are so cute!

This Sunday being Star Wars day, I found these little downloadable cards and thought I should share them with you too.



Download is available on the Wild Olive blog here

4.22.2014

Everyday should be Earth Day



Everyday should be Earth Day…. wise words from one of Canada's wisest Green Man Alive (that'd be David Suzuki in case you are outside of Canada)

Being that today is Earth Day 2014, I thought I'd share one of Mr. Suzuki's messages from a few years back. There are so many teeny things we can do in our everyday lives to help the planet and preserve this beautiful landscape we call home. What kind of little things do you do to stay green?

Today, for Earth Day, I'm going to walk instead of transit (this is my short window where it's not too cold or too humid to do long walks in the cement city) and then spending the evening on the back deck working on my upcoming book - using very little energy while entertaining myself ;)


4.14.2014

Mothers Day cards

So, what do you think? You have noticed the make-over… right? I finally decided to fold the website and blog into one site, too much trying to maintain them both. And time is something that I seem to have very little of these days. So now, everything you need to know about thunderpeep is all right here. Links to both shops and all the social media outlets I hand out at.

I can't claim all the credit for this great looking page though. I got the template from one of Canada's great bloggers and designers Wonder Forest. Check out her site, the blog is fun to follow and she's got a great shop full of all sorts of blogging tools to make you look oh-so-swank! And her blog is super pretty.

Now on to some thunderpeep news. The new Mothers Day card is up the shop already, but I thought I should give it a bit of promo over here, since it's pretty awesome. I'm not particularly close to my mother, so this particular occasion was never really an easy one for me to design for. But this one was inspired by one of my good friends, who's quite cheeky and her mom has been known to give it back even cheekier. I love their relationship and I knew this particular saying was probably one she's said to her mom at some point - or would say. What's even more awesome is when she visited me at OOAK recently and saw the card she automatically bought one for her mom. She said it was "totally something I would say". Inspiration comes from all the little nooks and crannies of your life.

for the Best Sons and Daughters in the Universe!

Last years design is also still available in the shop!



4.06.2014

New adventures

OOAK Spring 2014: I never got a full finished booth shot (bad me) / The Home print from the calendar was a hit / Ferdinand the Fox and I filled up on yummy lemonade

Yesterday was my first full day of NOTHING. I slept in (waking up at 7 is still sleeping in if you went to bed at 9:30 the night before, right?) lounged and tidied up and napped and lounged and watched crappy movies.

It was really nice. Sometimes you just need nothing days, and I needed that one. So much has been happening lately, and still so much more to come. It can all be overwhelming at times. But so exciting that I can really only mellow for one day then I get itchin' to get back on the wagon and get shit done.

That's where I am today, as I work on the new To Do list, that is much more complex than I anticipated. The Midsummer Collection is starting to take shape and I'm pretty excited about it. It's going to expand into some new (well not so new - more like reborn) pieces, there's a a book all about Trolls, there's a pretty freaking awesome collaboration with my good friend Quilter Steff and I've already got Christmas back on the list. What the….??? Yep, seems June is when all your favourite card selling stores want to take a peep at the Holiday collections.

Crazy. Right?

But I figure that gives me July to kick back and plan my big trip next year. And other BIG adventures. And to figure out how the heck I'm going to fit in a big 40th shindig one week before the Holiday One of a Kind show.

Small Business never stops plotting and creating and planning and conquering. I know this because I'm just finishing up Arlene Dickenson's "All In". Highly recommend it to anyone and everyone on an entrepreneurial path, or even for those who have crazy entrepreneur friends and loved ones.

Don't forget to follow me over on Instagram (thunderpeep) for all the sneak peeks and if you want to share your card giving or card receiving adventures tag your pics with #thunderpeep and I might just share it with all my peeps! I'm all about sharing the love (and non-love ;)

3.25.2014

Hey, where'd you go?



Ok, so the lead up to this One of a Kind Show was probably the most chaotic. Life just hasn't slowed down, and to be honest burnout is starting to set in. It makes me a bit sad that all the things I had planned for the show couldn't get finished. But this is the reality of running a small business solo. Only so many hats I can wear, and the Michelle hat has been neglected a bit lately, so a rest period is long overdue.

But don't be sad. Rest time = super creative time. And all those things that are boiling around in my head will be created and this Midsummer we'll be having one kick ass parté!!! And you know that I'll be sharing the process here on the blog and on Instagram (stop laughing I really will be blogging about the road to this years Midsummer collection)

For now, if you're in the Toronto area come on down to visit me at the One of a Kind show. I'll be hawking my stationery goodness in Booth N06 (this Wednesday to Sunday at the Direct Energy Centre)

3.03.2014

Invitations for all!

There's been a lot of growth over here at peep HQ over the past couple of months, and even more in the works. It's been exhausting, exciting and I won't lie, stressful. When you run your own business you have to keep moving forward and that journey has been rather interesting with thunderpeep. When I look back at the past 3 years I honestly did not expect this to be the path it took. But I'm also a firm believer in everything happening for a reason, people come in and out of your life for a reason and all you can do is enjoy the ride and never EVER let any opportunity pass you by.

 That all being said, one of the big projects I've been working on has finally launched and I can share it with you guys! Back in January I was approached by Etsy Canada about designing some online invitations for a collaboration they were working on with the online invitation site ECHOage.com Now I've been a bit hesitant about online designs and the digital download side of invitations, but this collaboration was the perfect opportunity to take the leap to the *other* side!

 Head on over to ECHOage to check out not only my designs, but those of other Etsy artists!



You will also notice that some digital downloads have started to pop up in the invitation section of my Etsy shop, including the super popular and FUN 40th birthday card design being re-designed into a party invitation (awesome!)



























You can check out the DIY listing here and the custom invitation design here. They're already working their way up to BestSeller status!

Unfortunately though, with all this fun stuff happening, I haven't had the chance to really work on the Midsummer collection is no longer going to be debuting at the Spring One of a Kind Show but back to it's original launch date of June 1st. Don't be sad though, there are some seriously FUN new products that will be new at OOAK and this gives me the time I really need to bring all the awesome I have in the works for the 2014 Midsummer collection.

And stayed tuned for all the other fun things that are in the works!

2.03.2014

Weekends in February ROCK!

This past weekend I was able to get out of the city and spend some super fun time in the snow with one of my favourite buddies Amy. We are very similar yet very different and the friendship works like magic! We both love goofy things, rocking out to music and snowshoeiing.

My all-time favourite winter activity is snowshoeiing. I never really got into the up the hill down the hill or skiing or snowboarding. It was just so boring. Considering how much I love to hike and spend time in the hills snowshoeiing was a natural fit. I can literally just wander for hours in the snowy winterland. Lucky for me Collingwood has had a shit TON of snow and Amy's folks like on a massive chunk of land that is perfect for winter wandering. So we strapped on the shoes and hit the fields.



I haven't seen Amy since I went up for the bomb that was the Elvis festival. Remember that one? No, neither did I. So, what brought me up this time (other than spending time with my buddy and playing in the snow)? Well, as you may have noticed, I'm a HUGE Nirvana fan and local celebrity singer Drew Wright (former Canadian Idol contestant) and his band were doing an MTV Nirvana Unplugged tribute night. Paint me skeptical. I just do not approve of anyone covering Kurt, but it would be fun night out. For sure. It was a fun night out, but I stick by my statement. Please Don't Ever Cover Kurt Cobain. NoBody! Don't get me wrong, Drew has an amazing voice, much better than Cobain, but he just doesn't have the dark tortured awesome to pull off Nirvana. No one can. That's why they are legends. Nuff said.


Lastly, I'd like to leave you with a little giggle this Monday {or whatever day of the week you are reading this} this was the kind of goofy running joke Amy and I had all weekend. We watched Jimmy Fallon's Best of Late Night and it was Freaking Hillarious. It's nice when you find another friend who can find the hilarious in the same things you do.


I Will End You! Love you Will and Jimmy!

How was your weekend?

1.31.2014

a little helping {hair} hand

I have curly hair. Pretty nice curly hair that is fairly low maintenance (you can be jealous, it's ok!) That is until I moved back to Ontario and we had a real winter {because the first 2 really weren't that different than Vancouver winters}

I love wearing toques (that'd be a knitted winter hat for all you non-Canadians) but between the toque, the super dry air and the static my hair is a flat mushy mess.

The lovelies over at Simple Smiles know all about these dramas, being makers of super fine knitted head wears (and other goodies). So they made up a little video tutorial to give us all a couple of sexy options for hair and headwear solutions.

Here's the video, and you can read the full post here


Have a FUN weekend I'm off for some BFF time and to soak away the past few crazy months at the spa. You'll be even more jealous when you see the pics!



1.27.2014

the lost art of handwriting

You remember those books you got in elementary school, the ones with all the lines to help you practice your letters with? I still love those books, and they've become even more useful to me know as I've taken on the task of learning Modern Calligraphy. I found this amazing class through Skillshare (what you DON'T know about Skillshare -> go look now!) I really want to start working more hand lettering into my work so need to up my skills.



January has been a tough month. Still trying to reclaim all the spent energy from the Holiday. It seems that sometimes once you stop and take a moment it can be hard to get back into a groove. At least for me. And so many distractions!

I've got a couple of new collaborations in the works that have helped to get the creative juices flowing. And all this time spent getting the house & studio back in order were accompanied by great tunes. I love just putting random music on and was getting bored of my same old itunes selection, so I headed over to Songza (if you don't know it you must check it out) Being that I love most things Nordic and Scandinavian I decided to search to see if there was anything under either of those categories. Gold Mine! I found this amazing Scandinavian Folk mix. I'm not really a fan of any one specific genre and really the only folk I like is the more modern Of Monsters and Men and Mumford and Sons style. So I was a bit skeptical, but it also listed Bjork on the playlist and I love her quirky tunes.

One thing I do tend to lean towards in my music is dark and moody lyrics. Might surprise some, considering the style of a lot of my work, but there it is. Along those lines I found a couple of great new bands that are great for working to, just getting lost in the words and melodies, so I thought I'd share them.

First up is First Aid Kit, a Swedish girly duo. So pretty and moody and you just kind of want to lay in the grass and stare at the clouds all day music. Did I really just say that???? Listen for yourself




Next up is the adorable Jens Lekman, who is also Swedish but his record label is called "Secretly Canadian" so you have to love it for that even if you don't like his music ;) He's a bit more pop jazz??? Not sure what to call him, but he's cheeky and I like it. He's got a song called "Some Dandruff on Your Shoulder", of course I'm going to like him!

He doesn't seem to have any videos that I can find so this will have to do. Turns out this was actually on the Whip It soundtrack (bonus points for that because that movie was rad - still trying to bring that word back ;) And he may remind you of a certain British singer…. 



It seems with all this Swedish music being thrown into my universe I may have to actually add it to my big 40th birthday trip itinerary. 

Any new tunes you've recently discovered that you want to share?


1.24.2014

hey there!

So much has been happening for usually slow January. You will notice the blog looks a wee bit different today, it's undergoing a bit of a facelift. Not quite fully functioning at the moment, but it'll get there. And we'll all have a fun as we get there :) So first thing, the super sweet Ashley over at chic.toronto did a feature on thunderpeep today and it's fantastic. It's a funny thing, seeing yourself through someone else. But the most exciting part… there's a super fine giveaway happening on the post so GO check it out. You could win!

A couple of super exciting collaborations are in the works, I can't quite tell you about them yet, but hopefully by early February I can spill the beans. It SO hard not to say anything!

The Spring One of a Kind show is coming up really fast… and this marks a bit new step for thunderpeep. A big booth. Like a mini storefront. Scary or exciting or perhaps a bit of both. I'm starting work on the booth now and you know there'll be sneak peaks up on Instagram as it's being constructed. Lucky for me I have an incredibly talented co-worker who is quite versed in carpentry and has offered her assistance. The ideas for all the new designs are slowly being worked on, some of the Midsummer collection will launch at the show with the rest being debuted at Midsummer in June.

For now let's all bundle up and enjoy the winter weather!

1.03.2014

thunderpeep on Sale!

as usually happens in January, it's time to do some house cleaning. Out with the old and in with the new.

In order to make room for new products coming in the next couple of months I'm offering up some fantastic deals on some of the older (but still awesome) products. Card sets, individual cards, gift tags of all sorts, Christmas products and the more individual cards.

Deals from 25% all the way to 50% off (no kidding!!!) can be found in the Sale section of the thunderpeep Etsy shop (click here for all your shopping pleasures)


















There's also a new Lovey card up, well really just a re-design. The rest of the cards will launch next weekend (January 12th) so keep an eye out on Instagram for sneak peaks!

you can buy this lovely for your lovely here!

1.02.2014

2014… this story is just getting started

I always love when you hear comments from actors or musicians who say they used to practice being interviewed when they were kids. I love these stories. The quirky things we do in our private spaces! 

Now, I've got no aspirations to be an actor or musician, but I do have one secret interview skill I have been practicing lately. You know those "Quit Your Day Job" interviews on Etsy? I totally practice what I would say if I were ever chosen, what advice would I give, what have I learned so far in my journey. What funny stories do I have to tell. One problem. I still have my day job. It's about time I stepped it up and made a plan, believed 100% in thunderpeep. Well really I already do this, but there has to be $$$ to back it up. Being able to live and run this little company without a backup paycheck is scary, and honestly not a reality at the present moment. I'm a single lady living in a rather expensive city. I don't live an extravagant lifestyle, that's one thing I have going in my favour, but those are the nuts and bolts. People love to say "there's never a right time, just do it". Those people are always have a significant other at home with a paycheck and just want to live vicariously through you. Do not listen to them. They are the little dark angel sitting on your shoulder, the one who is always coaxing you to do the wrong thing. I require some savings and a strong plan to cover the slow times. That's the reality of it. I'm making this statement of resolution today so that by the end of this year I will be ready for Etsy to come knocking about how I made the transition to sole entrepreneurship. I'm making it to all of you so that at the end of the day I have someone to answer to.

Some other Goals for thunderpeep this year…
1. All of my products are switching over to being silkscreened by the end of the year. That was the original intention when I started designing, but production was a challenge in my wee studio and the limited time I had, what with that Day Job interfering. It's still going to be a tight schedule and a bit more work, but I love it and miss getting dirty with my inks, so it's a sacrifice I'm more than happy to make. And honestly, how awesome are those Trolls going to look silkscreened.
2. Build my blog {pretty sure I say this one every year, but this year I mean it. For reals. Mean it}
3. Do 1 travelling show this year {right now it's tied between Edmonton & Chicago}
4. Notch 5 new wholesale accounts - outside of Ontario {if you have any suggestions of awesome stationery shops where you live let me know, I will reward successful tips with cards ;}
5. Have Fun.
6. Finish and print my Troll Stories books --> this one I'm aiming to launch with the Midsummer collection! So Freaking EXCITED

Some Goals for Michelle this year…
1. Have Fun
2. Don't forget your friends & make some new* ones while you're at it
3. Have Fun
4. Get past the beginner phase in my Learn to Speak Norwegian quest
5. Take more pictures
6. Plan your big adventure in celebration of turning 40!

Now, for that #5 Goal I'm starting a challenge over on Instagram {mainly because I'm addicted to it and love ogling everyone's pics} My intention is to take a pic of a moment in my day, everyday, all year. If you want to join in use the hashtag #welcometomyday Hopefully we can get loads of us doing it and a) we can all get some new followers and b) spy on people's lives. I'll try to make sure my life is spicy and interesting for you!

How about you? What are your big plans for 2014

1.01.2014

2013 Year in review

It's kind of overwhelming. Looking back at the past year. So. Much. Went. Down. Since I'm much for a visual person than a wordy one, I thought I'd do a bit of a montage of some of my fav moments. From massive snowfalls to Spring OOAK, to smashing Etsy shop goals to the surreal Christmas OOAK. Overcoming some personal barriers and orders from super fun peeps from all across the globe. Learning new tricks and fancy new haircuts! So many milestones, so many good times. 2013 was a bit of turning point. As with any great success, there are always fallouts. Many old relationships fizzled out but so many shiny new friendships were started this past year. I am blessed to be surrounded my some truly amazing a supportive peeps as I head into another big year. Many some resolutions for some new *friendships* too {but that one you'll just have to see if it plays out on the blog ;}


As for 2014… well there are lot's of thunderpeep goals I hope to achieve, a handful of personal goals and one HUGE resolution.


Etsy has some really fun stickers if you ever see them at an event. I was super excited to get my hands on one of these at the Toronto Etsy Street Teams Christmas Show. Now, I love stickers {who doesn't really} but they come with a certain kind of commitment. So, in order to stick with my one big resolution for 2014 I stuck this sticker right on my Big Poppy Imac. Yep, My focus this year is on building thunderpeep into my 100% money maker. There's a blog post solely on this resolution coming up, for now just enjoy the pretty sticker!

What about you… any lasting thoughts on 2013 or goals for 2014 you want to share?

Happy New Year peeps!

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