Monthly Archives: November 2016

Greeting cards for sale

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Some of my artwork provides unusual visuals for a variety of different kinds of greeting cards.

Some of my artwork provides unusual visuals for a variety of different kinds of greeting cards.

I decided to expand my list of offerings on my pixels website (http://tom-blood.pixels.com) to include greeting cards that have actual messages on the front of them. Will they sell?

Time will tell. Currently, I only have four options from which to choose but there are more in the works. I got the idea of adding captions to the greeting cards when looking at the thousands of choices available on the site – <a href=”http://pixels.com/shop/greeting+cards” style=”font: 10pt arial; text-decoration: underline;”>greeting cards for sale</a>

There are all kinds of striking images – but very few of them actually had any message on the outside. Those that did didn’t always seem specific to any one topic. <a href=”http://pixels.com/shop/greeting+cards/modern+art” style=”font: 10pt arial; text-decoration: underline;”>modern art greeting cards for sale</a>

Seeing that I’m a writer, it made sense to add a few captions to some of my paintings that could then create for some very interesting messaging about topics that aren’t always found in the greeting card aisle at your local store.

The featured artwork would make for a great birthday card for anyone entering middle age – that nebulous time frame between youth and old age. (Hence the rocking horse and the rocking chair.)

Here's a little card that a husband or boyfriend can send to their significant other as a means of apologizing.

Here’s a little card that a husband or boyfriend can send to their significant other as a means of apologizing.

The greeting card featured above would be a nice little ice-breaker as a means of apologizing for any potential wrong-doings done on the part of a husband or boyfriend. Would it be enough? No, but at least it could maybe break the ice and being able to personalize your message on the inside might help even more.

Here’s another painting that I have created multiple captions that I’ll soon be posting.

Know someone who lost a job or broke a leg or just had a run of bad luck? Here's a great greeting card you could send.

Know someone who lost a job or broke a leg or just had a run of bad luck? Here’s a great greeting card you could send.

I think if you search for contemporary greeting cards, you won’t find many expressing this particular thought, even if you check the contemporary art greeting card section. (<a href=”http://pixels.com/art/paintings/contemporary” style=”font: 10pt arial; text-decoration: underline;”>contemporary paintings for sale</a>)

Here’s another card that would be a fun one to give for someone’s retirement …

Here's a fun retirement card that is sure to stand out.

Here’s a fun retirement card that is sure to stand out.

You can order these cards one at a time. They’re blank on the inside and on the site you can either type in your own message or order the card and write it in once it gets sent to you. Turnaround time is generally less than a week and they’re pretty affordable, too. Soon, I’ll have more on my pixels site so consider bookmarking it and coming back to visit from time to time – I always have new art work in the works.

So check them out and who knows – you might find the perfect occasion for sending one.

All in a day’s work – augmented reality, vehicle signage and video script writing

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I don’t often post about the work I’ve been doing for BloodLines Creative – which is probably bad for business. Yet I’ve been so busy doing things, including continuing to paint in the evening hours, that I just haven’t found the time – or the energy to tout some of the recent projects I’ve been involved in.

That’s okay because business continues to roll along – never at the volume that I would prefer which would be 40+ billable hours a week – but at the end of each workday, I often wonder where did the time go.

These past few weeks I’ve been working on a new business pitch and part of our proposal involved using augmented reality. In case you’re wondering, Augmented reality (AR) is a live, direct or indirect, view of a physical, real-world environment whose elements are augmented by computer-generated sensory input such as sound, video, graphics or GPS data.

In case you’d like to see it in action, here’s a little demo you can view – https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=SaO5tXzj58U

I won’t go into the actual applications that we were proposing but suffice it to say, it has the potential to be pretty cool – if we actually get the business.

I’ve also been involved in creating new vehicle graphics for an electrical contractor we’ve been working with via The Epstein Group. Recently, we got the opportunity to see some of the new graphics put into place on a variety of vehicles in their fleet – vans, bucket trucks, pickups and even a trailer where we wrapped the entire vehicle in graphics.

What’s really exciting is this is part of a comprehensive re-branding effort that will include a new website, print and collateral materials along with new videos.

Speaking of new videos, I’ve written a number of them recently. One for a construction company, another for a new product launch along with a series of internal award videos recognizing the collective efforts of groups or individuals.

No, I’m not naming names or showing the work as some of the projects are confidential in nature or haven’t been approved for public release.

But the work has been both fun and rewarding. And I continue to learn new things and new tactics to utilize in the ever-changing world of advertising and marketing communications.

Regardless of the tactic, they still take smart, strategic thinking in order to stand out, get noticed and acted upon.

Big Ideas Start Here.

BloodLines Creative provides Big Idea Thinking to a wide variety of consumer, B2B and government-related and not-for-profit accounts. The work we do ranges from individual projects to full-scale advertising and marketing communications across all media. If you’re looking for something out-of-the-ordinary, then resist the ordinary. Give us a call at 314.973.9197 today.