As a perfect follow up to my previous post on Day of the Dead, I thought I’d share a fun project that I did as a surprise for Two Hands Paperie. This gorgeous store is in historic downtown Boulder, Colorado and it is owned by one of my dearest friends, Mia Semingson, and her husband Gerald Trainor.
Two Hands Paperie is such a magical place, full to the brim with decorative papers, journals, fine pens, cards, stationary, art supplies, books…. the list goes on and on!
photos by Fran Meneley
Mia is an incredible artist as well and her talents and enthusiasm are evident in every room, corner, and display area. I especially love how she decorates and celebrates
Day of the Dead in the store.
Here is a wonderful decorative sign on the front door made out of contact paper!
So clever! (photo by Fran Meneley)
Every year Mia builds a beautiful altar in the store and encourages anyone and everyone to contribute to it. You can see another fantastic design, cut out of contact paper, on the window behind the shrine.
And here are the beautiful women of Two Hands Paperie in true celebratory spirit!
Mia, on the far left, has started a wonderful tradition of having everyone’s faces painted for the occasion. The very talented Jessica Quintanilla does the amazing face painting.
I so wish I lived closer so I could join in the fun!
I’ve always wanted to go and visit Mia for Day of the Dead, this year I was determined to at least be there in spirit. I created this papel picado design as a festive surprise for the store. I had fun incorporating her logo (the two hands). I silkscreen printed banners to decorate the store and merchandise bags to give out to customers.
The bags were too large and flimsy to fit in my drying racks so I had to spread them out on every inch of my studio floor to dry, they looked so beautiful!
Here’s a lovely promotional piece that Mia put together for the store.
So, if you find yourself near Boulder, Two Hands Paperie is really worth a visit….
for Day of the Dead or anytime of year.
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