In the Press
‘Strong, smart and bold’
Angela Claxton steps up with creativity with Lemonseed & Co.
Published: Monday, June 22, 2009 by The Shelbyville News
By B.J. Fairchild-Newman, Staff writer
Angela Claxton’s new stationery design business, Lemonseed & Co., provides customized designs for a variety of invitations and other personalized paper products. (B.J. Fairchild-Newman photo)
Shelbyville resident Angela Metz Claxton is hoping that the seeds she is busy planting for her Lemonseed & Co. fine stationery design business will take root and flourish. She is offering custom designing for all manner of written correspondence, including invitations, thank-you and note cards and personalized paper products of any description.
“I am so consumed by this business,” Claxton said as she pointed out samples of her work in her cozy home office. “I think about it all the time.”
The 2008 DePauw University graduate and recent bride of Brett Claxton was always interested in art and design projects and studied art and graphic design at college in addition to earning a degree in economics and Spanish. When a college professor in a design course assigned a greeting card project to the class, Claxton knew she had found her passion.
“I have always enjoyed writing letters,” Claxton said, “and I would create my own stationery. I always wanted my letters to be unique.”
Originality is one of the most important aspects of her design business. Anyone can walk into a cardshop and find an array of interesting designs, but customers who want something that no one else can buy, are willing to pay for Claxton’s services.
For example, when she is contacted by a bride looking for wedding invitations, save-the-date, menu and RSVP cards, she sets up a meeting so that she can get to know the engaged couple. By talking to the couple about their plans for the event, Claxton gets ideas for personalized “branding” of each wedding. She finds out the color scheme, looks at pictures of the church and reception hall and asks the bride and groom questions about their vision for the upcoming nuptials and factors in their interests and personalities. The resourceful designer then prepares several design choices and meets with the couple again so that they can decide.
“Brides really like the idea that no one will have a design exactly like theirs,” Claxton said.
She noted that the couple often decides to pull together a design made up of several of her ideas, and she can quickly make these changes and then whisk the order off to Blue River Printing, 55 E. Washington St., the printer who prepares her orders. Claxton said that her relationship with Blue River Printing is essential to the success of her business since printing on the heavy paper needed for the invitations is beyond the ability of the personal printer in her office. She often spends several hours at the print shop, looking at paper samples and getting ideas for new projects.
Although most customers equate personally designed stationery with big bucks, Claxton said that her designs, especially now that she is just starting her business, are very competitive.
“I offer a wide range of pricing,” Claxton said. “Invitations that require hand assembly cost more, of course, because of the time involved, but we can always find ways to cut costs. For example, we can choose a lighter-weight paper or simplify the design.”
Samples of Claxton’s designs are available on her Web site at www.lemonseedandco.com, and she welcomes clients who want to meet at her office or prefer a home visit. The site showcases designs for graduation; anniversary and birthday parties; open houses; engagement, wedding and baby showers; retirements; and any other event imaginable. She also offers “seedlings,” tiny notes that are “perfect for slipping inside a gift bag or atop a present, leaving on a coworker’s desk, tucking inside your loved one’s lunch or making a personal reminder.”
Claxton’s plans for the future include owning her own stationery shop with the ability to print her own orders. She also is working on a special line of cards that she hopes to market to other stationery stores.
Claxton’s goal is to exhibit her designs at the National Stationery Show in New York City in 2012. More than 1,000 designers attend the show each year to promote their latest designs, and thousands of representatives of retail businesses attend to choose new products for their stores.
Although Claxton welcomes big-city exposure for her designs, she hopes to establish her store in Shelbyville. A lifelong resident, she and her husband enjoy the small-town friendliness of Shelbyville and the availability of many friends and family members.
Claxton cited the support and encouragement for her fledgling business from her husband and her mother and father, Julie and Dennis Metz. As executive director of the Shelby County Chamber of Commerce, Julie Metz is in a position to offer plenty of constructive advice.
“Creativity runs in my family,” Claxton said. “My grandfather, Bob Metz, showed his artistry in the cars that he designed, and my aunt Lyndel Floyd is known for her sewing designs. Her May Festival dresses are works of art.”
Claxton believes her confidence and high self-esteem were nurtured by her positive experiences at Shelbyville High School and Girls Inc., where she volunteered as a teenager to work with younger girls.
“The ‘strong, smart and bold’ ideals made a big impression on my life,” Claxton said.
She also credits her high school art teacher, Gayle Wildman, with encouraging her artistic talent. Claxton graduated with an academic rating in the top 10 and was active in sports and other school organizations. During her junior year in college, Claxton was selected as a 500 Festival Princess.
“I had such good teachers at Shelbyville,” Claxton said. “And the scholarships that I won allowed me to attend DePauw University. I have had so much encouragement in my life.”
Designer Inspiration
Angela Claxton is the owner and designer of lemonseed&co. She started the stationery line after graduating from DePauw University in 2008. Her long-time passion for writing letters sparked her creativity for designing her own stationery collection. Angela is married to husband Brett.
