This one is for the dreamers
I wanted to take a moment to talk a little bit more about my upcoming launch on April 18th.
The collection includes 9 products:
3 die-cut stickers
3 tote bags
2 travel mugs
1 keychain
As mentioned in my previous blog post, the die-cut stickers and tote bags both underwent some upgrades, with the stickers now having a durable clear coating on them and the totes being a new larger size.
The mugs and the keychains are completely new to the game and a bit of an experiment for me. The travel mugs are made of plastic, and are pretty plain and simple— that is, until they get decorated with permanent adhesive vinyl! I am releasing 2 mug designs with this launch and will base future designs off of how well they perform. If they do well, I am going to research higher quality mugs and begin polling my audiences for more design ideas, so stay tuned!
The keychains are outsourced by a 3rd party manufacturer, something that always seems risky at first, but I am happy to report that I had a wonderful 1st experience ordering from Sticker Mule. Their clear acrylic keychains have a low minimum order quantity (MOQ), making it a lower upfront cost for me, which was very ideal, given the fact that I’m still not sure if keychains are going to be a top seller for me. I’m only releasing 1 design with this launch, but will be taking notes on how well it sells and using that to inform future product launches.
I want to zoom out a bit now and talk more about a common theme or ‘thread’, if you will, that can be seen throughout this product launch— dreams. My first design for this launch was the “Full-Time Dreamer” graphic, which quickly became a sticker (available in both white and clear) and then made it’s way onto a mug design, and lastly a tote. This design is very personal to me, as it’s so fitting for where I’m at in my own life right now, working a 9-to-5 job and striving to create my online business during my sporadic moments of free time. This design is for anyone out there who, like me, spends your work days dreaming of something bigger and better, clocking hours on the weekend to make those dreams into a reality.
Following closely behind that design, we have the “Running on Caffeine and Dreams” design, which is going to be released as a travel mug and a tote. This design speaks to a very common theme within my brand— coffee! The design itself is surrounded by hearts and coffee beans, giving equal credit to my coffee and my heart fueling my creative endeavors.
Then, we have an archived design making a re-appearance: “Art Supplies Before Guys” was a sticker design that existed in my old online shop before I underwent some major re-branding and decided to launch this new shop in January. It’s a design that is still near and dear to my heart. I tried to make this design work on t-shirts and totes in the past, but had limited knowledge of heat-press vinyl (HTV) at the time. Now that I have some experience under my belt, this vinyl design is my most complex to date, and looks absolutely fantastic on a tote if I do say so myself.
Speaking of designs that are perfect for my fellow artists out there, we have the “I’m Silently Judging Your Font” sticker, featuring some of my own hand-lettering and strongly held beliefs about font choices. This sticker was born from a suggestion made by someone on my instagram account, who asked if I could some stickers geared towards graphic designers. Being that my dad is a graphic designer, I grew up with some pretty strong opinions about color and design choices, and felt I was up for the task! This sticker, with all it’s sparkle and sass is proudly a part of this next launch series.
Lastly, but certainly not least, we have the “Keep Going” sticker, a simple yet impactful die-cut design featuring my hand-lettering. This design was another suggestion from someone on instagram, Arianna Giorgio, better known as Aria. She is an incredibly talented musician, who uses her platform to spread awareness about physical and mental health. She’s a 2X cancer survivor and recently overcame a near-lethal car accident. We grew up in the same town and knew each other briefly in high school, but reconnected through the power of social media. I cannot tell you how much of an inspiration she is to me personally, and I find it incredibly humbling that she has become a supporter of my small business. She suggested a sticker design with these words: Keep going. I immediately loved the idea, since it reminded me so much of my own journey over the past year, which involved a lot of personal turmoil and growth. So while this sticker is definitely for Aria, I think we can all find our own unique meaning in it.
This launch is sure to inspire folks from all walks of life, which is the whole point of my little shop. Whether you are an artist, a small business owner, a 9-to-5er with a dream inside you, I hope this collection resonates with you and brings a smile to your face.
Cheers to many more to come!
Sincerely,
Amanda
