Laura McKendry for CardMix

We're proud to announce a major new range of x 11 greeting-cards by Laura McKendry for CardMix. A rising star, Laura has created a group of characters full of wit & charm. Launched with success at the Spring Fair, Laura McKendry's new range is the lead image on Card Mix's Christmas catalogue.

"The concept grew out of a simple design I created several years ago of a rather morose-looking reindeer wearing a Christmas jumper – which I liked, but it didn’t really sing out ‘Merry Christmas’! This range needed to be more lively, playful and colourful so I started playing with the Christmas knitwear theme as a background and gave them silly bobble hats. They started to make me smile, especially the polar bear cubs playing in the snow, and became really fun to draw. 

I enjoyed most building variety within a theme, working out how each image within the same range could be different. It gave a structure within which to be playful and creative. The most challenging aspect was working on Christmas images during the summer months! I sang Christmas carols to get myself in the mood.

As I began this series working on a polar theme, I included drawings of roly-poly seal cubs. I was surprised to find out that these kind of images wouldn’t be popular with card buyers because of the risk of offending a recipient with the implication that they were a little roly-poly themselves!

My favourite is the mother and baby deer couple (Mum) which feels quite tender. I also like the playful cub and snoozing Daddy polar bear couple. I like the parent-child relationships the best"

Set to be a hit with retailers and Christmas buyers, we are looking forward to this very speical range hitting the shelves for Christmas 2015!

Laura McKendry in her studio - image credit Adrienne Pitts