All in the family
La Familia Green offers stationery and other paper goodies that pluck at all your heart strings
By Andrea Hart
Published: February 8th, 2007 | 2:22pm
Arts and crafts time never ends for Mollie Green; it's a full-time job.
Six years ago, Green graduated from the School of the Art Institute Chicago with a fondness for print media and bookbinding. Eventually excursions to antique stores, where she would rummage for quality record covers, went from a hobby to a routine. These routines, in turn, became La Familia Green, a D.I.Y. paper goods business.
Green chops up albums, books, and VHS covers to create customized journals. Other times she's sprawled on the floor, crafting a woodland creature Valentine's card or pin.
Her inspirations may vary, but for 27-year-old Green one thing's clear: This is a family business.
"I'm obsessed with cats, squirrels, and Mexican wrestlers; they're all part of the family." Green admitted, reflecting on the line and her designs.
By fusing together her childhood in Lubbock, Texas; knowledge gained from husband Andrew; and everyday obsessions; Green has developed a style where "Mexican folk art meets Scandinavian design meets wildlife preserve... where West Texas meets the Midwest."
Behind the scenes of this expanding business are Green's quirky methodologies and distinctive manufacturing.
DYNAMIC DUO
Though Mollie heads up the business, husband Andrew contributes to designs, Web layout, and distribution. The couple met ten years ago while working at J. Crew in Woodfield Mall.
"Meeting him and being exposed to that culture has influenced me. I was always attracted to Scandinavian textiles and that sensibility."
Although Andrew may have a "full-time real" job, he still jet sets with Mollie to visit interested buyers. "Last year we went to San Francisco and visited a bunch of stores, and we're planning a trip to Savannah and Charleston." Green said.
Together they've built an extensive small business and an independent boutique commercial network. Along each coast and across the Midwest, Green says she's developed friendships with shop owners.
Green is content with her community of friends, admitting that this is where she belongs.
"I want to keep it small enough that it's special, but nothing that's over-saturated." Green said.
ARTISTIC OUTLETS
"Two or three weeks ago, I left my job and started doing this full time." Green said, fondly remembering her days at Paper Boy in Chicago.
While working at the papyrus headquarters, Green's artistry developed as did her niche in the stationery world. "I worked at Paperboy and it opened me up to paper good designers, more inspired by those carpe lines than in the art world."
Although Paper Boy community was inviting, the owners, according to Green, were hands off. "I did all of the ordering, and got a good sense of what sells," she said, noting her current business savvy.
Aside from Paper Boy, Mollie's studio has become a sanctuary of design. Her studio doubles as a playroom, cluttered with color and trinkets.
"I make things that have wit and humor to them. It's about finding the humor in everyday things." Green asserted.
This mantra has led to unusual muses. "I just hung up two vintage tennis racquets on my wall. I have an owl collection, lots of little objects, gnomes," chuckled Green, looking at the objects amassed in the studio.
Her passion is so outright, it's no wonder Green has trouble leaving the studio: "The cool thing about cards is that they reach a lot of people, you never know where it's going to end up, it has a life, it doesn't just die with that person who sees it, it just goes on from there."
View the complete line of La Familia Green products online at lafamiliagreen.com.
Issue #35
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