Lauren + Jessi Update & Sneak Peek

We asked Lauren and Jessi Jung for an update on what they have been doing since their first line, Botany for Moda, was released this month. Can I just say — I got tired just reading all of the stuff they’re doing. Weddings… a new job… patterns… scrapbook paper… And on top of that, they are showing the most enticing little bits of their next line for Moda! Read for details! In the meantime, I’m gonna go take a nap 😉 And, I’m stowing away that fabric photo-booth idea for the future! Thanks, Lauren!

I’m so excited to see Botany showing up in stores. It’s been exactly a year since we submitted our designs to Moda (read their last post for the whole funny story), and it’s wonderful being able to see what has come out of all the hard work!

In the months following Market, things have gotten CRAZY for the both of us. First, we had to tie up loose ends with Botany…I was in charge of finishing up our website and blog, while my mom has been busy with patterns and trunk shows…She actually just participated in one this past Saturday at one of her favorite quilt shops – Inman Quilt Cottage in South Carolina. They displayed our collection of items sewn using Botany. The shop had free patterns, fat-quarter giveaways, and quilt kit drawings all featuring Botany! All in all, it was a HUGE success, and there were many happy winners. (Pssst, the photo on the left is a free pattern on the L+J website!)

In addition to all of the fabric stuff, I recently got a new job in New Jersey at a software component company where I’m in charge of redesigning the company logo, their product branding, and the website…a responsibility that I’m finding to be a LOT of fun! I generally design in a rather girly style, so working for a software company has definitely required me to stretch myself artistically!

But back to fabric…both my mom and I have been stunned by all of the awesome and creative projects (using Botany), that we’ve seen popping up on blogs…quilts, table runners, clothes, and purses…we’ve both been very impressed. One of the most unique ideas actually came from a friend of mine, Megan Kibby. She’s a wedding photographer in Atlanta, GA, who used three banners of Botany as a backdrop to a photobooth that she set up for a recent wedding.

The guests had a great time with this, as you can see…which really added to that “photo booth effect”. These photos then went into a hand bound album that everyone signed. (On a sidenote: I’ve been in the process of redesigning her photography website, and it will be launching this Friday!) In exchange for my website help, she’s been busy taking all of the photographs for our patterns that will be coming out with our next line…a win/win for both of us!)

And while we’re on the subject of weddings, my mom has been super busy planning my younger sister, Carrie’s wedding. They are working with a garden theme, which sounds simple, right? But my mom is finding out that a natural setting doesn’t just “happen”. It has to be planned down to the letter! My contribution in this enormous family activity has been the invitations and the bachelorette party. The invitations took a long time to design and produce. Actually, after I finished the designs, I made about two invitations before I got sick of them and passed them off to my sister…the bride. Many paper cuts later, she finished and sent them out.

Immediately following Market we began working on our next line, Hideaway. We wanted to change courses a bit from our last line. So rather than illustrating in the same, loose/organic style that we used in Botany, we took a more structured decorative/festive approach.

We’ve both been fascinated by Cuckoo clocks for as long as I can remember, so that was our jumping off point. The line has, of course, evolved since then, but it definitely gives off the vibe of the Swiss Alps and their intricate folk-inspired style of painting. Hideaway will debut in July, 2010, and in an effort to really push the line, my mom has been cranking out patterns that will complement our fabric. We’ve also designed these neat business cards using Hideaway patterns in the bird-shaped di-cut.

Another big endeavor is our new scrapbooking gig! Timecraft, a paper company in the UK, has recently reached out to us about creating some paper lines for them! We were able to use some of our previous prints, but a lot of additions needed to be made. I’ve been busy adding to this original set of patterns, since scrapbooking lines consist of a whopping set of 24 patterns (as opposed to the 8-10 patterns you will find in your average fabric line).

And…that about wraps up our last few months. Like I said…it’s been CRAZY!

Lauren Jung
L + J website
L + J blog