WHAT’S New WITH PEAK. PAPER CO?
We Moved!
From Instagram
From Alberta to Georgian Bay area, Ontario
If you've been following along on Instagram or email, you might have seen that we
just moved across the country,
bought our new home sight unseen,
in a city we've never been to before,
just months after having a baby
and publishing my first book…
LOL
Suffice to say, it's been a whirlwind. In case you missed it, here are some links to posts I've shared about the process on Instagram:
Seeing our new home for the first time
A 'peak' inside my new (totally not unpacked) studio
A very special “sign” from my late dad
New favourite painting spot outside
Now that we're here and slowly settling in, I'm easing back into work and plan to make email a place that I spend more time with you.
I've had the idea of sending out a 'weekly peaks' newsletter for a LONG time (like, 5 years, long) and I'm finally making it happen.
Look out for simple studio updates, encouragement and happy links to inspire your creativity. Plus, a big gift from time to time. The first Weekly Peaks gift was a download of my entire uppercase and lowercase calligraphy worksheets.
Each week also includes a Journaling Prompt to inspire your own writing practice.
Join me by signing up at the bottom of your screen below!
Download my Habit Tracker
Hi, fellow writing aficionados!
If you’ve taken one of my Montblanc’s Inspire Writing series workshops on modern calligraphy or creative bullet journaling, you know how much I love to combine art and writing.
And if you’re anything like me, you want to find ways to make ordinary tasks like organizing and planning more creative and enjoyable. It’s also proven that when you write things down, you retain them better and hold yourself accountable. And in order for you to successfully create a new habit, you need to make it rewarding too. The act of checking off a task and marking it complete motivates you to continue doing it!
Sign up for Peak Paper Co emails to receive an instant digital download link to my habit tracker below! You’ll also be first to hear about upcoming art workshops along with pet portrait and product releases:
If you haven’t already, put Atomic Habits at the top of your reading list. You’ll learn all this and a million times more to help motivate you and keep you accountable to your goals (all while letting go of bad habits that are getting in the way).
For example, I wanted to start getting up before my daughter at 6:00am so that I had time to myself to write each morning.
With my new habit tracker (above), I colour in a box for each day that I successfully woke up at 6:00am. (It’s like the equivalent of getting an ice cream for scoring a soccer goal when I was kid!)
I also wanted to start reading at least a few pages of a book before bed, so I added that to my habit tracker. Every day, I colour in the box if I read before bed and it’s highly motivating and also interesting to see what your “streaks” are like.
Excited to learn more? I also offer three signature art kits that all include anytime access to a virtual class:
Pet Portrait FAQs
Interested in ordering a custom watercolour pet portrait? Here’s everything you need to know!
Email subscribers always get first access to pet portraits, workshop tickets and all the fun new Peak Paper Co. creations.
They get released once per month: the third Sunday of the month at 9am MST. They've sold out in under 10 minutes every single month exclusively to email subscribers - thank you!! - so if you're new around here or curious about these adorable pet paintings, I'm answering some frequently asked questions below so that you're all set.
Here we go!
How do I get on the list?
Once you’re signed up for emails, you’ll be first to hear! Be sure to set a reminder to check your inbox right at 9am Mountain Time Standard time on the release date (The third Sunday of every month) and click the link to purchase the type of portrait you’d like.
What sizes are available?
5x7 inches
OR
8x10 inches
OR
2 pets painted together (10x8 inches)
What is the cost?
Custom pet portraits start at $249 CAD for a 5x7 size OR $359 CAD for an 8x10 size. This includes a signature original watercolour painting of your pet's head and part of their neck along with personalization (pet’s name hand-lettered in calligraphy) optional and included. +tax and shipping across Canada and The United States.
If I have two pets, can they be painted together?
Yes! There’s now an option to order 2 pets together. They’ll be painted side by side on a size 10x8 paper ($499 CAD)
How long does it take?
All portraits are lovingly hand-painted in my studio within 6-8 weeks. Secure, trackable shipping is available all across Canada and the United States. If you have a specific date in mind, please message me the details.
What if my pet (or the gift recipient's) has passed away?
These paintings are truly the greatest honour to create. Getting to know their stories and choosing your favourite photos is all part of the process of commemorating your beloved pet in watercolour. I'll send you the guidelines and details on how to share your photos - you'll have one full week after purchase to find and share your favourites with me.
How do I send you photos and what are the requirements?
Please wait for a direct email from me on the same day of your purchase. I'll send you the guidelines and details on how to share your photos, even if your beloved pet has passed. You'll have 1 week to find or take your favourite ones :)
Pet Portrait Photo Guidelines:
1. Get on your pet’s level (don’t take the photo from above)
2. Take the photo face forward or profile (side view) and include eyes, ears and neck
3. Try to take the photo where there’s natural light, shadows and lots of clarity
4. High quality images are best – if shooting with a smartphone, just make sure the image isn’t pixelated or a screenshot
As always, I'm here to help! Please reach out with any questions. I can't even wait to paint your pets!
💛xo
Brittany
Live Art: The Atelier Collective Jilly Brunch 2019
A recap of my afternoon of rose, wonderful women and live calligraphy with Jillian Harris at The Atelier Collective Jilly Brunch in Toronto.
The first time I hosted a calligraphy workshop, I felt it: I love to teach. But the more markets I hosted and events I got to perform live art at, I realized it was more than just teaching that I loved. It was getting to connect in-person. Share what I’m passionate about. Learn about everyone else’s experiences. Get feedback on my work and form partnerships and relationships.
So when I was planning my first events of 2019, I immediately thought of The Atelier Collective - a new and breakthrough women’s conference that started in Niagara on the Lake in 2018 and has successfully sold out every year since.
Crafting the idea
Within a few moments on my first conference call with founders Ang & Taryn, we just clicked. It was incredible. And the ideas started flowing.
They told me about the private brunch they were planning with special guest, Jillian Harris, the day after the conference and how it would be an intimate setting with 150 women. They were eager to work together and gave me full creative freedom to come up with a new live art plan for this event!
The Creative Process
Since I’m already a huge fan of Jillian Harris and Team Jilly, it was such a fun challenge to come up with an idea that suited this exclusive brunch.
Florals, pastels, whimsy, romantic, refined - those are the words that instantly come to mind and what ultimately led to the final loose watercolour florals I painted for the Jilly Brunch.
I also hand-lettered three inspirational saying that guests could choose from and get personalized on the event day:
Dream
Plan
Do
Make your own magic
She believed she could so she did
Personalizing live at the event
Going into Ricarda’s Toronto, I was most excited about three things: meeting Taryn & Ang, live lettering, meeting Jillian Harris and her team! And all were such incredible experiences. A true *pinch me* day!!
I spent nearly four hours personalizing prints and writing custom quotes for all the women at the brunch. It was a flurry of pretty pink rose glasses, gorgeous decor, delicious foods and incredible conversations. And to my delight, my floral print design and jumpsuit matched the event design perfectly! 😂
Among fabulous company
I was absolutely away by the connections I made at the brunch. I met the owners of Smash x Tess rompers, event planner extraordinaire Melissa Andre, incredible industry photographers, fashion designers, lifestyle influencers, PR professionals and was surrounded by SO. MANY. WOMEN making things happen. Taking risks. Pushing boundaries. Empowering and inspiring each other to be our best selves (like The Birds Papaya - go follow her if you don’t already!)
And my vendor neighbours, Elate Cosmetics, shared such incredible advice and inspiration about starting her small business and growing it to where’s it is today in Victoria, BC.
I was quite literally in awe to be among such fabulous company and kept nudging my sister to say “is this real life?!”
Hearing real and honest positive feedback about my artwork from people I respect so much was seriously amazing.
“You miss 100% of the shots you don’t take” - Wayne Gretzky
To end a perfect day, Taryn & Ang shared that they and their guests were singing my praises and gave my sister and I bottles of Two Sisters Vineyards’ rose (our favourite!).
After having just finished another amazing live event with The Fairmont Hotels in Jasper, that really solidified it for me: live art is 100% my passion and purpose.
I left walking on cloud 9. And I haven’t come down since ☁️
Live Art: Fairmont Jasper Park Lodge "Dog Days of May"
How I got to paint 30 dogs at my favourite hotel in the Canadian Rockies!
One of my many passions in life is loving on our dog, Bubba. He’s our precious little Boston terrier mix who came into our lives 3 years ago. So when I was planning our wedding invitations and stationery, I knew he had to be the star of the show.
Well, let’s just say I got hooked on painting pet portraits. And as I was painting, I remembered that the Fairmont Jasper Park Lodge holds an annual event all for dogs called Dog Days of May. It’s a 3-day event in Jasper National Park filled with dog-friendly activities like agility courses, doggy massages, pop up shops, guided hikes and more all on the gorgeous Fairmont grounds.
Approaching the Fairmont
After creating a thorough pitch, I reached out to my favourite luxury hotel in the Rockies; fingers crossed that they would be as excited by the idea of me painting all the four-legged guests at this year’s Dog Days of May event as I was.
Fortunately, they were!
Prepping for an out of town live art event
30 dogs were already registered to attend and we decided that each portrait would have the Fairmont logo on it and be placed in a matted black frame.
I prepared all those materials from Edmonton in advance before driving out to Jasper with all my supplies to spend the May long weekend at the Fairmont. This prepping process took a couple months to nail down the details.
Mountains and Dogs - What more could you want?
From the moment we arrived, I was in heaven. I got to meet all 30 dogs individually to take their photos in the communal dog park on the first night (That’s what I used to paint their portraits from)!
And for the rest of the weekend, I had the unique pleasure of walking around the resort and knowing all the special canine guests’ names.
Me all weekend:
“Hey, Norman!”
“Looking cute, Mickey!”
Our dog Bubba was also a special guest and got to take part in the festivities. He even got a welcome bag of treats and bowls in our hotel room on arrival.
My live art station was in one of the main ballrooms beside Zen Dog Massage and other canine vendors. Pawrents could pop in before scheduled activities to watch their pup getting painted - and I was in there for a solid 10 hours!
In between, my younger sister (and assistant for the weekend) and I rented a red canoe and paddled around Lac Beauvert - where I got engaged last year! We also got to dine at big family style tables with all the event guests and enjoy the facilities - which are second to none if you haven’t been there yet!
The farewell: when guests picked up their custom pet portraits
After finishing up the last few pet portraits into the wee hours of the morning from our lodge room, it was time to get all 30 custom dog paintings into frames.
My younger sister was such a trooper and framed every single one!
After our group breakfast, everyone headed into the ballroom to find their frames displayed on a large, long table. It was so fun watching them pick out exactly which one was their dog and say lovely things like “oh my gosh! You got his floppy ear just right” and “even the freckle on her tongue is there!”
Big smiles and big thank yous - the ultimate compliments 😊
What came next
A month after this event, I had another live art event in Toronto for The Atelier Collective where I was personalizing prints with calligraphy for an an exclusive brunch with none other than Jillian Harris!
After realizing how much people loved their pet portraits, I decided to paint one for the event’s guest of honour, Jillian herself, of her two cute boxers: Nacho and Peaches.
Well, turns out ya’ll love your pets and Jillian Harris as much as I do! Because wow. In less than 24 hours of launching my custom pet portrait service, all of the spots have sold out every month this year 🙌💛
I’m so incredibly grateful for the opportunity to have live painted all of the four-legged friends at The Fairmont Jasper Park Lodge’s Dog Days of May Event for 2019 and can’t wait to be back the Lodge again for another partnership soon!
Shop Peak Paper Co
The Curated Shop is now open downtown inside Edmonton City Centre Mall. My stock list includes watercolour paintings, quotes on vintage maps, greeting cards and more home decor!
The Curated Shop is located on the Pedway level, right next to Tim Hortons and opened permanently on February 22nd. The shop features over 40 makers' handmade in Alberta products.
Two store photos by Kendra Allen Design
2018 Workshops
The first workshop of the year was on March 24, 2018! To find out about future workshops, join my mailing list below.
