Personalized Pet Plaques

I started making personalized pet plaques a few years ago after a customer requested one. I hadn't thought of creating a pet item until then...I was never much of a pet lover until a few years ago when we decided to get a cat. Here she is...



We fell in love with her and we're so happy we got her.

Then last summer this adrable stray dog came into our lives. Here she is...



We did everything we could to find out if someone lost her...we put an ad in the local paper, we called every animal protection society we knew of and a handful of local vets...but we never heard from anyone. Finally after a few months we made it offical and now we have a sweet, loving and oh-so-cute dog!
So now I GET IT!! I see why the pet industry is booming! People love their pets and want to pamper them like crazy!

Here are more pet plaque samples...the few I have on my site were the first ones I made and now I have a lot more. These photos show different sized plaques created especially for a variety of pets...

I've done lots and lots of dog plaques...




And a few cat plaques...here's one...



Here's a plaque for a bunny...



A mouse...yes...a plaque for a pet mouse who had it's own room...



And a turtle. Yes...this turtle had her own room, too...



And I recently made a plaque for a horse's stall...



So I can pretty much create a plaque for any critter of any size or shape! It's always fun for me and if you have something in mind let me know...I'm always glad to work with you!

I'll be adding more items soon,

Jane

Another fabulous find!

I just found some artwork that I love! I don't own any of her work...yet!

I was just surfing around on a Saturday morning drinking my morning coffee and I found some of her work for sale here...

Rhonda Kullberg Artwork...20th Century Glass, Pottery, Collectibles

After looking over her items I thought I'd try to find her website, but I didn't have any luck. I found lots of sites that sell her work, but not a site that is exclusively hers. I'm thinking that perhaps her artwork is licensed and she sells it in a variety of stores and on a number of websites.

No matter what, I'll find something to buy...her work is just too good to pass up! I'm fascinated by her whimsical style and the colors she uses are fabulous!

Years ago I collected different sayings and kept them in a little notebook. I'd hear or read something that struck a chord in my soul and I'd write it in there. But as my life moved on and changed I must have thrown that little notebook away. I have no idea where it ended up.

Then when I first started selling my work on the Internet I would take part in small auctions--not Ebay--and I sold a number of items that had little sayings on them along with my style of artwork. Maybe that's why Rhonda Kullberg's artwork resonates with me...her art reminds me of some of my early work. Seeing her art makes me wish I could find some time to try my hand at this style again... I loved creating it, but my websites grew and I got so busy that it took me away from painting this way.

Here are pictures of a few my early selling pieces...

I sold lots of plaques that either had a saying about 'Home' or simply a house design...




I found this pig step stool at a flea market. It was plain wood and unpainted. I got the idea to paint 'This Little Piggy...' on it and took it from there. I always liked this item...



And here's another saying by Ralph Waldo Emerson that I liked...I painted and sold many plaques with this saying and the bee hive design...



And one more...I love this saying by Mother Teresa...



Okay...enough about me...I hope you enjoy Rhonda Kullberg's work...I think it's fantastic!

I'll be back soon with more...

Jane

Take a look...

I purchased one of these Wire Card Holders last fall from an online craft show.

Here's a photo...well...part of a photo...of mine with our holiday cards displayed...



I wish I had a better photo to show you, but with the holiday season being so crazy I never got a chance to take a picture of it. Regardless, I got lots of compliments on the card holder over the holidays...everyone thought it was a great idea and a nice way to display all of the cards we received.

Then the holidays were over and it was time to take down the decorations. But I liked the design of the wire so much that I decided to keep it hanging without anything attached to it.

Here's a photo of how it looks now...



You'll notice that on the Wire Home Decor website they have it displayed straight. But I bent mine into an 's' curve to fit it better on my wall. But it really doesn't matter...I think it looks great both ways. And even now with no cards or photos displayed I still get so many compliments on it! Friends and family see it and comment on it all the time! It's an interesting piece of artwork and a great conversation piece.

And the other thing that I love about it--as with so many of the items I use to decorate my house--it's unique, hand crafted and one of a kind. You can't run to Walmart and find one there. They aren't mass produced over in China by some slave who was paid pennies for their hard work.

One of the things about me...and I've always been this way...the items that I use to decorate my home have meaning to me. I don't like to hang anything on my walls unless there's a story behind it.

I know that might sound strange, but I've always been that way.

Years ago when were were still living in our first home I had a friend over and she complimented me on how nice our house was decorated. She said that it had 'character'. I never forgot that comment--it meant a lot to me. And as I look around my house today I see lots of 'stories' hanging on the walls...paintings that my husband's grandmother painted, a few paintings of my own, items that I bought locally and online from other talented artists, and so on.

So click on over to Wire Card Holders and see the creative items they offer. Now that I think about it I really like the Wire Heart Photo Holders, too! My husband is always telling me he wants to display our kids school pictures on his office desk so these might be exactly what he needs!

Until next time...

Jane

6" x 18" Plaque Photos

The 6" x 18" name signs are my biggest sellers. This is where it all began.
The first name sign I ever made was back in 2002 and it was for my daughter. Then I made 2 more for each of my sons and...well...the rest is history!

Since then I have made so many I can't even count. I basically have a variety of samples on my site and, while I'd love to add more, it would be too overwhelming...not only for me to keep adding new pictures, but also for my customers to find all the different designs I've made.

So here on my blog I'm displaying more photos of some name signs that I've made recently that I really like, but don't have on my site...

A mix of stripes and polka dots...I've been seeing more and more of this design being requested...I like this style...it's not only cute, but I think it's a design that will last for a number of years...



Or here's something similar but in plaid...I love this one, too...



And here's a pirate themed plaque...this theme has grown tremendously over the past year...



Here are a few farm themed plaques...I recently had a customer inquiring about this theme and I realized I must not have any farm samples on my site...



And while I have a sample showing the planets I don't have an astronaut themed plaque displayed...



And this one is actually a two-sided plaque...the name was on one side and "Keep Out!" was on the other...



And here's a surfer girl theme...



Okay...enough for now...I'm sure I've overwhelmed you with all of these pictures!

I'll post again soon...I have another great find to share with you!

Until then,

Jane

Another one of my favorites...

I love Lisa Richey's website Cheap Therapy.

I met Lisa 'virtually' when I first started on my business ad'venture' and she was so helpful and kind to me! I've bought a few things from her over the years and each item was beautifully made and greatly appreciated by the recipients.

I bought two of her handmade collage cards...one for each of my sisters. Then rather than just give them a card I framed them. They are still displayed in their homes today!

I also bought three of her handmade blank journals that I use to journal my thoughts of being a mom to each my three children.

And I also purchased one of her handmade books titled ABC's for Life. I gave this to my niece when she graduated from high school.

Please take a look at what Lisa has to offer...she's an incredible artist as well as a spiritual and generous soul! I know you won't be disappointed!

Okay...I'll be back to share more very soon!

Jane

Custom Wall Plaque Photos - 7"x9"

Our 7"x9" wall plaques came into being pretty much the same way the door signs did...a customer wanted to order a plaque but the 6"x18" size was too big and the 6"x6" size was too small. So I decided to offer a more 'middle-of-the-road' size.

(Hmmm...I just had the thought that I should have called these my 'Mama Bear Plaques'! They're not too big and they're not too small...they're just right! Yes...I know I'm strange, but, hey, it takes all kinds!)

These plaques can be hung on a wall or a door. I've made several for kids, but also for adults and pets, too.

Here are a few more designs...

I don't have this photo on my site because it's not very clear, but I love the color combination and the background design of the plaque. I thought the diamond pattern would be tough to paint, but it really wasn't...



And here are a couple kitchen themed plaques...



This one was ordered as a gift...I just can't help but start singing the B 52's song when I see it...ha ha ha!



Oh and I love this design...and not just to look at...but to paint. This is the second plaque I painted with this design. I painted the first one about a year ago and it was for a Principal's office door. Then just recently another customer called and was interested in a teacher plaque, but she didn't want it decorated with the typical teacher details since she was a principal. I showed her a few other teacher designs I had and she chose this one. It's so colorful and it works great in a setting with kids around...



And here's one more with an out of the ordinary theme...again...the photo isn't the best, but I'm sure you'll get the gist of it...



Okay...I'll post more photos sometime soon!

Until then,
Jane

Another nice product...

I bought a personalized birthday plate for my nephew's first birthday a few years ago.

I really like this idea...the design is cute and I feel that it holds up over the years...it's appropriate and cute for a baby, but not babyish...it grows with the child.

Here's a photo of my nephew's plate:



And if you take a look at this photo...



...you'll see how they personalized the back as well. Isn't that great!?!? I loved this feature because now my nephew will always know who gave him the plate! They live out of town so we don't get the chance to celebrate with him on his birthdays in person...but at least we can be there in spirit!

I actually bought another personalized item from this company a few months ago, but I don't have photos yet...I bought coasters for our very close family friends who were celebrating an anniversary. I had them delivered directly to the recipient so I haven't seen them, but my girlfriend loved them and said they were very nicely made. When I get the chance to go visit her I'll try to remember to take a photo and post them here.

So needless to say...I recommend any item from this website!!

I'll share more great finds soon,

Jane

FUN!!

Here's a site I found not too long ago...I just love the concept and had fun creating my 'gal'!

Design-her-Gals

I'm still trying to decide what to order...there are so many products to choose. When I make my purchase I'll be sure to put up a photo so you can see how cool these things are!

I think I might even go back and create a gal for each of my sisters and get them the coffee mugs...what a cute gift idea!

Click on over and check them out...I'm sure you'll have fun!

Talk to you soon,

Jane

Personalized Door Sign Photos

Below I have photos of some door signs that aren't displayed on my site.

I started creating and selling my name signs (which measure 6"x18") in 2002. Then sometime a few months after the initial launch a customer wanted to know if I could make her a smaller sign to hang on her baby girl's bedroom door knob. I'm always willing to try new things so I gave it a whirl and here we are all these years later...

Our personalized door signs measure 6"x6". I can attach a matching ribbon for hanging or I can attach a sawtooth hanger to the back.

Feel free to ask any questions!

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

I wanted to show these not only for the designs, but also to point out that I've noticed a great increase in orders for door signs for psychologists/therapists/psychiatrists to use on their office doors...



This is another use for the heart shaped plaques...



Although there are two photos here this is actually one plaque--it's a 2-sided plaque designed for an elderly woman to help her remember if she put her cat out or not...



And the pirate theme is huge lately! I've done lots of growth charts, a few name plaques and next on the list is a pirate themed step stool! I liked this pirate themed door sign the best though because of the color scheme...



And here's something I don't do very often...laundry room signs...I like these colors, too...



Here's another one that I was happy with...it was made for a customer to use on the bathroom door of their camper...I love how the fire turned out!



Okay...with my next post I'll display the 7"x9" size plaques...

Until then...

Thanks for looking!

Jane Loedding, Artist & Owner
Creative name Signs

Welcome!

I've decided to create a new blog that is related directly to my website Creative Name Signs.

I launched my first blog, 'A Painting Mom', a couple of years ago. I've shared a variety of posts on that blog which deal mainly with my daily life more so than my business and that will continue as usual.

I'll be using the Creative Name Signs Blog as a showcase of my product line. I plan to display photos of my more recent items that aren't shown on my site and I'll be sharing any other necessary information as well.

Plus, I also want to use this blog to recommend other artists and their products. I not only sell items on the internet...I also love to buy things and I've come across some great talent over the years!!

If you have any questions let me know!

Jane Loedding, Artist & Owner
Creative Name Signs