SO NICE TO MEET YOU!

As a mom, a wife and a designer, my days are filled with everything from cotton letterpress to cotton footed jammies, Pantone books to Elmo books, design sketches to finger paints and cappuccino (and a good glass of cabernet) to apple juice. Balancing the parts of my life that fill my heart to its brim is an adventure full of ups, downs and the occasional loop. I wouldn’t trade this craziness for the world. When I began my company, Emily Ley Paper, three years ago, my goal was to take control of my future and create a life full of joy, tradition and love for my family. I wanted to do it all – pursue my dream and be a mom. Over the years I’ve expanded my interests and involvements and am so blessed to do the work that I love… work that doesn’t detract from my family but underscores my commitment and love for what matters most in life.

Emily Ley Creative is a collection of my most treasured work. Very early in my career at Making Things Happen in Watercolor, Florida, I defined the work that sets my heart ablaze with the word “build.” That word is the foundation upon which the four parts of ELC are founded. I’m so blessed to be part of the Making Things Happen movement now. In 2010 and 2011 I travelled over 15,000 miles with Lara Casey, Gina Zeidler and Natalie Norton meeting passionate, fired-up creatives ready to take the world by storm. MTH has done nothing short of change my life.

Somewhere over the Pacific Ocean, Lara Casey and I decided to join forces and founded Making Brands Happen: a boutique branding and business consulting company dedicated to building powerful, authentic brands and businesses from the ground up. This work sets my heart ablaze. In 2011, we launched over 30 beautiful, strong brands and met some of the most inspiring people I’ve ever known.

Whitney English Kolb and I founded The Stationery Academy in 2010 as a business and branding workshop for paper-preneurs. We hosted 25 of the best-of-the-best budding designers in Pensacola, Florida last August. These women inspire me daily and are already making huge marks on the stationery industry. I’ve really found that the work that fills my heart the most is connecting one-on-one with other women determined to do it all. There are so many roads and curves to navigate as a designer and I’m thrilled to offer stationery brand consulting.

Just writing these words makes my heart smile. There is no greater feeling than knowing that your days are filled with the work and people you love the most.  ELC is founded on the idea that you can do it all without sacrificing one for the other and use your loves to build each other up.