I don’t even know where to begin with this one. Because I actually began a year and a half ago and have been toiling away on this ever since (in between my work with my Northill clients and wrangling two little redheads). But here we are (FINALLY!). And I could not be more excited.
Meet Parallelograms, themed art kits designed for you and yours to do alongside each other (in parallel!), delivered straight to your door (like telegrams!). Each series is available in two versions: one with artist-quality supplies, the other with kid-friendly supplies (ages 3+).
Our first series? Colourful cacti and fancy flamingos. Summer in a nutshell!
The concept behind Parallelograms was inspired by a table we have that’s devoted to art (in the sense that it’s covered in more art supplies than a Michael’s). I noticed whenever our friends came over — our friends, not our kids’ — they would plunk themselves down and start doodling and scribbling and painting and whatnot. And these weren’t our artsy fartsy friends either. In fact, they would probably tell you they don’t have a creative bone in their bodies.
Yet, they’d sit and make art while we hung out. My hunch is that it has something to do with how easily everything is laid out, how low the stakes are (the kid sitting beside you sure isn’t going to judge your work!) and how relaxing it can be to create something with your hands.
Then, when I was on the verge of serious burnout after I had my second baby (such exhausting times, those!), I bought myself some artist-quality supplies. I’d fill a sketchbook while my older daughter filled a colouring book right beside me. It’s as close as I ever get to meditating. And I swear it’s just as restorative. (It’s actually something I touched on in this post about creativity and burnout.)
I’m a writer and somehow creating visual art restored my ability to write. I figure if my friends and I were finding some magic in this, then hopefully others would too.
So here we are!
I would love, love, love your feedback on all things Parallelograms so please share. And thank you to every single one of you who helped me bring this to life. I am forever indebted to you!
[First and third photo by Hayley Hudson, second and fourth photo by Kelsey Dundon for @Parallelograms.co on Instagram]
P.S. I’ve been getting a lot of questions about the concept and branding so I’m going to write a series of posts that will take you through exactly that: the naming, the branding, the logo (which was done by my frequent Northill collaborator Sonja Keserich — I love it more than I could tell you!), and all the other pieces it took to launch this thing.
Now, if you’ll excuse me, I’ve got to go ship the first batch of Parallelograms orders. (Yay! THANK YOU!!!)
