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Today we get to know a self-described “design geek” who we think happens to be one of the coolest members of our community. No doubt by now you’re familiar with Eric Comstock’s or e-ray’s whimsical, hand-drawn lettering and delightful cherry and blueberry color pairings. Eric is a veteran designer who came to minted with a very large portfolio and a lot of experience in both the advertising and design worlds. We hope you enjoy getting to know Eric a little better!

A cool marquee letter Eric found on ebay.

When did you first realize you wanted to be a designer?
I loved art from the time I was a kid, but it was really when I was working in advertising as an art director that I really started to think about it seriously. I was jealous of the graphic designers at our agency. It just seemed to me that they had the really fun job.

A drawing that I did when I was 14. When I did this drawing I realized I wanted to go into advertising. I didn’t even understand what one did in advertising but I thought if I could do drawings like this all day I would love it. Ten years after getting into advertising I left that career and started working with my wife. We spent a lot of time designing surface design. Advertising was good but I really love what I do now.

How would you describe your style?
Definitely not serious. I like to have fun and create things that make people smile. So, I think modern with a quirky flair and emphasis on typography is a pretty good description.

What is your normal workflow or process like?
You mean after I’m done procrastinating? Well, I usually draw out some sketches on paper, then scan them into illustrator to finish.

How many iterations does it take for a design to become final?
I guess it depends on the design.

How did you hear about minted?
I read about minted on designworklife.com. Shortly after, I met Mariam and the rest of her team at SurTex and they invited me to participate. I’ve loved it ever since!

Favorite design for sale on minted and why you like it?
The Retro ABC notebook is my favorite because I really love the colors and the texture from the hand drawn letters.

Favorite design challenge to date?
I have enjoyed the art poster challenge best of all. One of the things I love about Minted is having the opportunity to work on these different assignments. Every challenge gives me a chance to solve a new problem and some fun solutions have come from that.

It seems like you had a ton of fun with letters during the notebook challenge. All of your designs are incredible. Can you walk us through what it’s like to hand letter an entire alphabet?
It can be a challenge to create new ways of designing a letter, but that is also the fun part. Sometimes creating a new way of looking at the alphabet can lead to a bunch of other ideas.

I believe you’re married… what was your wedding invitation like?
I am married… My wife had her neighbor, a talented artist, hand letter our invitation. The lettering was shot with a stat camera and printed on an ivory cardstock.

Favorite pen?
Uniball Vision (Fine)

Favorite notebook?
My Retro ABC notebook, of course!

Favorite design tool?
Illustrator, Wacom tablet and my scanner

A sketchbook pic.

How does living in the Utah influence your design?
I’m not sure Utah has really influenced my design much. Sitting on our deck enjoying the perfect summers here with a glass of wine might not hurt too much though.

Although I will say that because I am not skier (not a fan of the winter here) it forces me to stay at my desk. I wouldn’t be surprised if Fall and Winter are my most productive times of the year.

Another sketchbook pic.

What are the places in your hometown that you would recommend a visitor check out?
Caffe Ibis for really great coffee, lunch or breakfast. Logan Canyon for hiking. Sardine Canyon in the fall for seeing the leaves change.

Eric thoughtfully brought Mariam a bag of his beloved Caffe Ibis coffee to our Salt Lake City meet-up.

Where do you go for design inspiration?
I put on some really good jazz music, pour a really tasty cup of coffee and then I just wait. Sometimes they show up and sometimes they don’t.

My desk. Sort of boring. This is how my desk looks for about 5 minutes after I have cleaned it.

On the wall above my desk is a print that Nate Williams sent me. The other is a print by Jim Flora that I bought on fab.com.

Where do you like to shop? What are your favorite stores?

Being 6′ 5″, I shop online mostly. I like JCrew, Gap, Etsy and Fab.com (my latest favorite).

What are your favorite online design sites and blogs?
designworklife.com, designsponge.com, grainedit.com and of course my own site that I just put together with the help of virb.com, the url is www.eray.us (a work in progress).

What designers do you really admire?
Alexander Gerard, Ray and Charles Eames, Miroslave Sasek, Jim Flora and Richard Diebenkorn whose paintings I just love.

What advice would you give a new designer?
The more work you do, the stronger you will become at what you love doing. When I worked in advertising, we were expected to come up with 20-30, maybe even 50 ideas for each assignment. Only 3-5 of those ideas would make it to the first round of presenting to our creative director. It would be narrowed further from there. Persistence is more important than talent. Don’t give up!

Keep in touch with Eric on his website here.

Being obsessed with great design and beautiful paper, you’d think the biggest perk of my job here at Minted would be my ever expanding stationery collection. It is quite lovely. However, the very best part of my job is getting to correspond with the immensely talented designers who comprise the Minted Community. In December when you’d think holiday cards would be old news to us, Jen and I were positively giddy to open all of the fun cards and thoughtful treats that came our way. Thank you so much for thinking of Minted this holiday season!

Amy Ehmann of Design Lotus created this design for us during our first ever Minted t-shirt challenge in Spring of 2010. She used bits and pieces from winning Minted designs to create the heart. We were so excited to receive letterpress prints from Amy for everyone on the team this year and even more impressed when we heard Meg Gleason of Moglea printed them herself at her letterpress in Iowa. You can see some fun behind the scenes photos on Meg’s blog.

I did a bit of decorating with designer cards at my apartment. They were by far the most unique cards I received this year and look beautiful all together. I may never take them down.

Kelli Hall sent us this folded version of her “Statement Wreath” holiday card, doubling as a birth announcement. Inside is an adorable photo of her family’s newest addition. Jack Knoebber of jackmove sent us a non-photo version of “Etched,” Jenna Lyons’ favorite holiday card of the season. We were delighted to open a small box from Megan Davis of toast & laurel to find a sweet muslin bag with her perfectly Texan holiday card. She also included this sparkly jingle bell.

Hailey Myziuk of Hello Hailey sent us her “Good Tidings” holiday card with a photo of Mucha, her cat. His whiskers are adorable! We love Wendy Fessler’s rounded corner card and the fantastic photo of her daughters. On the back she included some great shots from a trip to San Francisco and a lovely note. We were big fans of her Wolverine stamp on the matching red envelope.

Liz Libré of Linda and Harriett sent us her “Handlettered Merry Christmas” with hand drawn Christmas trees and stars as accents. This card looks great in yellow and we really appreciate the personalized touch. Cécile Kotsch of Cécile Paper Lounge sent us a beautiful photo card that was similar to her “Magie de Noel” design in a captivating purple. Her very cute little one matches perfectly.

Emily Ranneby knows us far too well. The way to our hearts is truly through our stomachs and we could not get enough of the Swedish chocolates she sent our way. They were so yummy and we loved the type driven packaging design. These were the perfect complement to her scripty holiday cards.

Thank you so much Minties! We hope you have a wonderful weekend.

Minted is so happy to be a sponsor of the Alt. conference this year. Mariam asked the creative team to come up with a unique and seriously cute take away to be included in the gift bags for the attendants. We decided on a mini gallery kit, the perfect introduction to Minted’s new art prints. We hand stamped 550 muslin bags, included a collection of 3 art prints, and added mini clothes pins and twine so that people could create their own displays.


It was a lot of fun to see our lovely art prints in person and we couldn’t resist coming up with a few more creative options to display the pieces:

We’re very excited to be announcing the guest judges awards from our Head Over Heels wedding invitation challenge today! Our guest judges are pretty much the most impressive, sweetest and most talented ladies we’ve come across so it comes as no surprise that their winning selections are nothing short of swoon-worthy.

Heather Lee, the Associate Editor at Brides.com, awarded her prize to: Gallery Hopping by Annie Clark. “I REALLY love that one,” says Heather. “And I’m totally not a “pink” person! I love the look of the stacked all-capped letters and the large wash of pale pink is very Rothko-esque. This design is perfect for modern couples hosting their nuptials in an artistic venue, such a Chelsea art gallery, renovated warehouse, or former foundry.”

Before deciding, Heather asked her readers for help and their favorite design was In the Park by Amanda Larsen Design. Says Heather of their selection: “I’ve seen plenty of faux bois invitations—it’s a popular look for outdoor weddings and this design is done particularly well. The typography reminds me of chalkboard lettering, which gives the design a nostalgic feel, while the flower and leaf details add a touch of sweetness to the overall rustic look.”

Cathleya Schroeckenstein, the Editor-in-Chief of Weddingbee.com, asked the Bees at Wedding Bee to help her decide and they all voted for Love Story by Cadence Paige Design.

Their second place favorite was Flourishing by Griffinbell Studios.

Cyd Converse from The Sweetest Occasion chose Leaf Specimen by Krista Messer. Says Cyd of her selection: “I’m always a sucker for great type and hand lettering so I instantly loved this invitation. Plus, it’s just super pretty so you can’t help but love it.”

One of Cyd’s other favorites was chalkboard by Alethea and Ruth. “The bold mix of neutrals on this invitation is modern while still feeling timeless,” Cyd says. “I love the white type against the dark background, it makes the design feel both whimsical and modern.”

A huge hip, hip hooray to Heather, Cathy and Cyd for their excellent input! We really appreciate your time ladies. Thanks so much!!

A big congratulations to Aimee at 4 The Love of Animals. Minted will be sponsoring her pass to the ALTitude Design Summit next week in Salt Lake City. We look forward to meeting you next week Aimee. To arrange details, please email natasha@minted.com. Thanks so much!