Observing the natural behaviour of the card illustrator’s inspirations and design trends, PG Buzz checks out some of the motifs and colourways sighted on Valentine’s and Easter cards for 2019.
Capturing new hearts: Valentine’s Day, 14 February 2019
Celebrating passion, secret admirers and BFFs (best friends forever), Valentine’s Day has widened its arms to embrace multifarious forms of admiration and love in the modern age. And reflecting this evolvement, Valentine’s card designs for 2019 have a flock of loved-up flamingos, honey sweet bees, shy care bears and even the odd adorable otter, who light-heartedly share their loving, cute or quirky message of endearment in hand-written fonts or the brushstrokes of calligraphy.
There’s a loose painterly feel to many of the designs too, with watercolour washes or gouache smudges ‘making their mark’ and contemporising the bursts of hearts and flowers that traditionally adorn Valentine’s designs.
And mirroring the cosmic trend of ethereal and other-worldly starry states, dreamlike declarations of affection and love are ‘written in the stars’ in constellations and midnight blues, all twinkling with gold foil finishes.
Bursting with life: Easter, 21 April 2019
According to retailer reports, Easter is ‘cracking’ the Spring Seasons market and as an event is growing each year, with over 14 million Easter cards bought in the UK, according to the GCA’s Market Report.
After a long, cold, dark British winter, Easter seems to be the signal that spring has truly arrived and nature is awakening from her slumber. The advent and optimism of bursts of daffodils and primroses, green shoots, blossom and warmer days, and as nature begins its new cycle of life with the emergence of new born fauna, such as bouncing lambs, bunnies and fluffy chicks, Easter has become a time to celebrate with family and friends – and decorative Easter trees, bonnets, baskets of chocolate eggs and hunts and, of course, cards.
This natural, cute and delicious iconography are illustrated on Easter card designs for 2019 in a gorgeous explosion of pastel yellow, baby pink, duck egg blue and bright green hues, capturing the shades of springtime.
And with Easter remaining an important religious occasion for many, Christian symbols, such as floral crosses and village steepled churches, adorn designs in dreamy watercolour washes.
