Windy City Media Group Frontpage News

THE VOICE OF CHICAGO'S GAY, LESBIAN, BI, TRANS AND QUEER COMMUNITY SINCE 1985

home search facebook twitter join
Gay News Sponsor Windy City Times 2023-12-13
DOWNLOAD ISSUE
Donate

Sponsor
Sponsor
Sponsor

  WINDY CITY TIMES

Company launches LGBT-focused greeting cards
by Ross Forman, Windy City Times
2015-08-05

This article shared 5841 times since Wed Aug 5, 2015
facebook twitter pin it google +1 reddit email


Jason Bradley-Krauss married his husband, Chris, last October in New York City, and they received numerous gift cards of congratulations—including six of the exact same card, sent from friends.

"I quickly realized that there was a big hole in the marketplace; there weren't a lot of card options to be sent to gay people, to congratulate them on being married," Bradley-Krauss said. "I did more research and realized that there were not a lot of greeting cards that talked to the gay community as a whole.

"So I decided to jump into that market."

Design with Heart—a progressive, inclusive, new greeting card and gift-wrap design studio dedicated to the idea that "love is love"—made its debut in mid-May at the National Stationery Show in New York.

"Design with Heart adheres to a belief that love is an all-embracing truth all people have in common—no matter who they are, who they love or what the occasion," said Bradley-Krauss, 47, who lives in Worthington, Ohio, with his husband and their two adopted children ( Spencer, 11; and Maria, 8 ).

He decided this past January to develop the greeting card line and soon had designed 250 cards. He launched 160 of them at the National Stationary Show.

"We worked 'round the clock [since January], spent considerable time thinking about the look of the cards, and as much about the messaging," he said. "I'm very proud of the line we now offer."

To get to the launch, and make it as affective as possible, they once had 250 cards spread out on their living room floor. They had friends over to vote on the strongest cards, the ones which would have the most impact. "That was kind of fun," he said.

"I founded this company on a simple but powerful premise—that love is love. Love permeates all that is good and hopeful," Bradley-Krauss said. "I have had a smile on my face every day that I have been able to work on this [project].

"I thought I would be developing a line of greeting cards that was purely marriage equality-based, and purely LGBT community-based. Instead, what I ended up developing is a line [of greeting cards] that really supports those causes beautifully, but what has come back to me is, love does permeate all that is good and hopeful and it's universal."

In addition to a full line of greeting cards, his company also has developed wedding invitations for LGBT, and they also will do custom invitations.

"It's been a really wonderful experience. I feel re-invigorated as a creative person jumping into this line," said Bradley-Krauss, who has worked as a graphic designer and art director, and has owned a graphic design firm for 18 years.

He has long worked with Fortune 500 companies, "but to work on something so personal, and to bring it to market, it just feels … different, so much more personal," he said.

And vulnerable, too, he admitted. "I'm putting myself out there on the line," he said.

"My goal is with the company is, now the LGBT community will have some options. I want to design a line [of cards] that is classic, crisp, and one that also allows us to freely use our own voices."

The card line includes offerings for families that are adopting, for anniversaries with LGBT-focused text, and more.

"We were very well-received" at the National Stationary Show, he said.

The cards have been picked up by 18 national companies, including the Museum of Art Design in New York City. Meanwhile, Bed, Bath and Beyond commissioned the company to produce 20 different cards for same-sex weddings. The cards also are available through finestationary.com and elsewhere.

The cards are available locally at Elizabeth Grace Paperie & Gifts, 2438 N. Clark St.

For more information, go to www.designwithheart.com .


This article shared 5841 times since Wed Aug 5, 2015
facebook twitter pin it google +1 reddit email

Out and Aging
Presented By

  ARTICLES YOU MIGHT LIKE

Gay News

After 30 Under 30: MAP Executive Director Naomi Goldberg 2024-03-25
- NOTE: In this series, Windy City Times will profile some of its past 30 Under 30 honorees. Windy City Times started its 30 Under 30 Awards in 2001, presenting them each year through 2019. This year, ...


Gay News

THEATER When growth is paramount: Jim Corti helps fuel Aurora theater expansion 2024-03-01
- Out actor/director/choreographer Jim Corti made his Broadway debut in 1974, in the ensemble of Leonard Bernstein's musical Candide. Director Harold Prince's acclaimed Tony Award-winning revival is often cited as a ...


Gay News

MOVIES Director Daniel Peddle on the sequel to the classic doc 'The Aggressives' 2023-12-05
- In 2005, Daniel Peddle released The Aggressives—a groundbreaking documentary filmed during the late '90s and early '00s in New York City that profiled several masculine-presenting/transmasculine people of color. Fast-forward to ...


Gay News

SHOWBIZ 'Black Adam,' Cyndi Lauper, Sondheim, Oscars, OutFest 2023-03-18
- Cultured Magazine recently profiled Quintessa Swindell—who became the first out, non-binary actor to play a lead superhero in the DC universe when they portrayed Cyclone in the 2022 movie Black Adam. Swindell grew up in Virginia ...


Gay News

Show about trans+ women models to debut Aug. 5 on Here TV 2022-07-29
- The Here TV docuseries Road to the Runway—which focuses on trans+ women models—will debut Friday, Aug. 5. The series profiles the 20 hopefuls competing in this year's annual Slay Model search. Cameras follow the women to ...


Gay News

Local writer from Hillman Grad Productions Mentorship Lab to tell stories about immigrant experiences 2022-06-04
- Growing up on the South Side of Chicago without any sort of U.S. citizenship, Ruben Mendive said he started developing his identity as a writer while he was sitting in front of the TV, devouring "every show that came out ...


Gay News

PASSAGES Writer, attorney, activist Takeia R. Johnson 2021-07-25
- The local organization Affinity Community Services announced the recent passing of Takeia R. Johnson. According to Johnson's LinkedIn profile, she was editor-in-chief and lead writer at Inclusion at Work as well as a Ph.D. student focusing ...


Gay News

SAVOR Talking with new Travelle Chef de Cuisine Qi Ai; Profile of Travelle's breakfast 2021-06-09
- Travelle Chef de Cuisine Qi Ai Travelle at the Langham (330 N Wabash Ave.; https://www.travellechicago.com/) has undergone a major change during the COVID pandemic: New Chef de Cuisine Qi (pronounced "tee") Ai was promoted from sous ...


Gay News

MOVIES Dutch journalist talks about making 'My Friend, the Mayor' 2021-02-17
- In the Amazon Prime Video documentary My Friend, the Mayor: Small-town Democracy in the Age of Trump, Dutch journalist Max Westerman profiles friend Sean Strub, an openly gay activist, activist, long-term AIDS survivor and POZ magazine ...


Gay News

Booksellers launch "Boxed Out" campaign, a look at consumer choices 2020-10-22
--From a press release - (New York, New York) 20% of independent bookstores across the country are in danger of closing. Today, theAmerican Booksellers Association launched the "Boxed Out" campaign to draw attention to the high stakes indie bookstores face this ...


Gay News

Author/academic John D'Emilio on new book, future endeavors 2020-10-01
- Queer Legacies: Stories from Chicago's LGBTQ Archives is a new book by Gerber/Hart Library and Archives President and University of Illinois at Chicago History and Women's and Gender Studies Professor Emeritus John ...


Gay News

Out Illinois State coach dives into new position 2020-09-16
- Logan Pearsall, an accomplished college diver who has since transitioned into master's level diving, was competing at the 2017 FINA World Masters Championships in Budapest, Hungary. He was doing a challenging inward dive from a one-meter ...


Gay News

Joseph Baar Topinka preserves legacy of mother: Pro-gay Republican Judy 2020-09-02
- Riverside resident Joseph Baar Topinka is still impressed with the resolve and stamina with which his late mother, longtime GOP politician Judy Baar Topinka, was able to "slug it out" in the political arena. "She got ...


Gay News

'Making Sweet Tea': Out NU dean talks about new documentary 2020-08-18
- Performer and Northwestern University Dean E. Patrick Johnson discussed his new film and the importance of reclaiming storytelling agency in a virtual Q&A Lambda Legal hosted Aug. 9. Johnson, dean of Northwestern University's School of Communication, ...


Gay News

Asha Ransby-Sporn talks building on the anti-racism movement's legacy 2020-08-05
- With anti-racism protests happening around the United States, in what some media outlets are saying is the largest movement in this country's history, demands to abolish the police have increasingly been a part of the rallying ...


 


Copyright © 2024 Windy City Media Group. All rights reserved.
Reprint by permission only. PDFs for back issues are downloadable from
our online archives.

Return postage must accompany all manuscripts, drawings, and
photographs submitted if they are to be returned, and no
responsibility may be assumed for unsolicited materials.

All rights to letters, art and photos sent to Nightspots
(Chicago GLBT Nightlife News) and Windy City Times (a Chicago
Gay and Lesbian News and Feature Publication) will be treated
as unconditionally assigned for publication purposes and as such,
subject to editing and comment. The opinions expressed by the
columnists, cartoonists, letter writers, and commentators are
their own and do not necessarily reflect the position of Nightspots
(Chicago GLBT Nightlife News) and Windy City Times (a Chicago Gay,
Lesbian, Bisexual and Transgender News and Feature Publication).

The appearance of a name, image or photo of a person or group in
Nightspots (Chicago GLBT Nightlife News) and Windy City Times
(a Chicago Gay, Lesbian, Bisexual and Transgender News and Feature
Publication) does not indicate the sexual orientation of such
individuals or groups. While we encourage readers to support the
advertisers who make this newspaper possible, Nightspots (Chicago
GLBT Nightlife News) and Windy City Times (a Chicago Gay, Lesbian
News and Feature Publication) cannot accept responsibility for
any advertising claims or promotions.

 
 

TRENDINGBREAKINGPHOTOS







Sponsor


 



Donate


About WCMG      Contact Us      Online Front  Page      Windy City  Times      Nightspots
Identity      BLACKlines      En La Vida      Archives      Advanced Search     
Windy City Queercast      Queercast Archives     
Press  Releases      Join WCMG  Email List      Email Blast      Blogs     
Upcoming Events      Todays Events      Ongoing Events      Bar Guide      Community Groups      In Memoriam     
Privacy Policy     

Windy City Media Group publishes Windy City Times,
The Bi-Weekly Voice of the Gay, Lesbian, Bisexual and Trans Community.
5315 N. Clark St. #192, Chicago, IL 60640-2113 • PH (773) 871-7610 • FAX (773) 871-7609.