Carol Woldhuis Designs
Chicago, Illinois
Carol is a hidden gem in the Midwest wedding industry. I met her while speaking at ISSE Chicago, and after thumbing through some of her samples I was blown away. She truly took her talent, found her niche and made a name for herself in the custom stationery world. Hand-drawn and painted custom stationery at that.
How
did
you
get
started
in
the
world
of
paper
and
stationery?
I am an artisan that has been involved creating art since childhood. Dabbling in many artist mediums over the years such as, floral design, event planning, catering and food but mostly have always gone back to my first love and training concentration of painting and drawing.
I design Custom Event Stationery for weddings and other special occasions. Artist genes were embedded into my from many family members. My grandfather was a talented “Rembrandt” style artist, that enjoyed the ability to express himself through oils and music. My mother was a seasoned wedding floral designer for over 20 years, so it is only natural I would fall into this pattern.
I often thinks that is was my “given” talent when I was born, to be able to visualize something before My pen or brush hits the paper. My motto is always to remember “to have faith and keep believing in yourself, no mater what you have heard…impossible is NOT a word.”
I guess I have always loved paper, paints. Anything colorful. About five years ago I decided to blow the dust off my brushes and sketch pads and begin drawing and designing again. My niece was getting married and asked me to help with her invitations…thinking, “Okay, I did paint my own.” The response was so great that I began to investigate who was out there designing invites. I started creating all sorts of samples but seemed to always fall back on the custom hand-paints. It became my niche – what set me apart from other stationers.
What
is
your
biggest
source
of
inspiration
when
designing?
Kinda of funny…I guess I get my inspiration from a lot of places. Magazines, fabric, online, and now Pinterest has me wired sometimes. Most of my designs will come to me in the middle of the night…so as I say, I need to get up and do a “creative dump”…sketching out the images so the next morning I can tackle the design.
What
would
you
classify
your
stationery
/
invitation
style
as?
I would say my design style has evolved over time but has been talked about as whimsy, arts. My tag line and blog title is …where ART meets Stationery.
What
do
you
think
sets
you
apart
from
other
vendors
in
the
industry?
I believe it’s the hand–painting part. Most vendors that say they are custom work with stock images, all of my designs are original pen and inks and watercolors that I turn into my invitations.
What
advice
would
you
give
to
a
bride
and / or
groom
who
is
on
the
hunt
for
their perfect
invitation
suite?
When working on your invitation suite, 1. begin to collect items of inspiration. I love when a couple can bring my ideas of things they like. Even if it is clothing or home décor, it tells a lot about people. 2. Going the custom route? Start early as it can take some time for everyone to be on the same page and design the perfect suite for them. 3. Be open to artistic suggestions, an idea might not be something you were thinking of but when it was designed you may fall in love.
Outside
of
the
world
of
paper,
what
do
you
enjoy
doing?
Hmmm…spending time with my family, I have three great kids that are now “adults” so we don’t always all get together a lot, but when we can there are always lots of laughs while we are catching up. Reading when I can, Scrapbooking, which I am way behind on since I spend most of my time playing with paper for my invitations. But one day I will get back to that. I just try to always remember that no matter where I am or look there is always a “creation” waiting to happen. I love the color RED, I have never been one to have white walls and probably never will.
