<p><iframe allow="autoplay *; encrypted-media *; fullscreen *; clipboard-write" frameborder="0" height="175" style="width:100%;max-width:660px;overflow:hidden;border-radius:10px;" sandbox="allow-forms allow-popups allow-same-origin allow-scripts allow-storage-access-by-user-activation allow-top-navigation-by-user-activation" src="https://embed.podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/the-mary-engelbreit/id1517156345?i=1000621386553"></iframe></p>



<p>This month&#8217;s dynamo guest is a trailblazer in countless senses of the word. <a href="https://maryengelbreit.com/" target="_blank" rel="noopener" title="Mary Engelbreit">Mary Engelbreit</a> debuted at National Stationery Show in 1983 with just a dozen card designs and a decidedly under-decorated booth — but neither that quantity or the booth mattered. Mary paired her distinctive illustrations with clever messaging that transported viewers to an unexpected, charming place — ;and the world had never seen anything quite like it! </p>


<div class="wp-block-image">
<figure class="aligncenter size-large is-resized"><img src="https://thepapernerd.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/07/ChairOfBowlies-737x1024.jpg" alt="" class="wp-image-10013735" width="771" height="1071"/><figcaption class="wp-element-caption">One of Mary&#8217;s most recognizable designs is available on a slew of different products today, but it was initially rejected by a greeting card company in 1979.</figcaption></figure>
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<p>Mary&#8217;s cards caught the eye of a <em>NY Magazine</em> editor during that market, and a design empire was born. Today, having generated nearly 6,500 products and over $1 billion in lifetime retail sales, Mary shows no sign of slowing her prolific roll, lately releasing everything from wallpaper to paint-by-number kits. And, she documents it all in her excellent Instagram feed. (If you want your feed to resemble Mary&#8217;s, try following @housewrenstudio @noodleandlou @heybilljoyce @sarahvbattle @vintagebycrystal @davidwalker.)  ; </p>


<div class="wp-block-image">
<figure class="aligncenter size-full"><img src="https://thepapernerd.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/07/PaintByNumber.jpg" alt="" class="wp-image-10013738"/><figcaption class="wp-element-caption">Engelblooms Paint By Number Kits are new this summer.</figcaption></figure>
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<p>The mark of a truly inspired maker is the ability to evolve. To reflect our challenging times, Mary created her stark yet still eloquent Engeldark. Any followers she lost were more than mitigated by those she gained.</p><div class="inline-post clearfix"><div class="see-also byline">See also</div><div id="block-wrap-25861" class="block-wrap-native block-wrap block-wrap-23 block-css-25861 block-wrap-classic columns__m--1 elements-design-3 block-ani block-skin-0 tipi-box block-wrap-thumbnail ppl-m-1 clearfix" data-id="25861" data-base="0"><div class="tipi-row-inner-style clearfix"><div class="tipi-row-inner-box contents sticky--wrap"><div class="block block-23 clearfix"><article class="tipi-xs-12 clearfix with-fi ani-base tipi-xs-typo split-1 split-design-1 loop-0 preview-thumbnail preview-23 elements-design-3 post-23213 post type-post status-publish format-standard has-post-thumbnail hentry category-off-the-press category-sponsored-post tag-nss2018 tag-nss2019 tag-putastamponit tag-clara-kim tag-euni-co tag-goodnewsdrawing tag-legion-paper tag-mcnally-jackson-books tag-national-stationery-show tag-ny-now tag-our-heiday tag-public-school-paper-co tag-sarah-schwartz tag-stationery tag-stationery-blog tag-stationery-design tag-stationery-designer tag-thank-you-stationery tag-the-paper-craft-pantry tag-the-paper-chronicles tag-tiny-bones" style="--animation-order:0"><div class="preview-mini-wrap clearfix"><div class="mask"><a href="https://thepapernerd.com/behind-the-nss2019-booth-euni-co/" class="mask-img"><img width="100" height="100" src="https://i0.wp.com/thepapernerd.com/wp-content/uploads/2018/10/D45649AE-E785-4B9B-BE65-29D475514E30.jpg?resize=100%2C100&;ssl=1" class="attachment-thumbnail size-thumbnail wp-post-image" alt="" srcset="https://i0.wp.com/thepapernerd.com/wp-content/uploads/2018/10/D45649AE-E785-4B9B-BE65-29D475514E30.jpg?w=800&;ssl=1 800w, https://i0.wp.com/thepapernerd.com/wp-content/uploads/2018/10/D45649AE-E785-4B9B-BE65-29D475514E30.jpg?resize=150%2C150&;ssl=1 150w, https://i0.wp.com/thepapernerd.com/wp-content/uploads/2018/10/D45649AE-E785-4B9B-BE65-29D475514E30.jpg?resize=770%2C770&;ssl=1 770w, https://i0.wp.com/thepapernerd.com/wp-content/uploads/2018/10/D45649AE-E785-4B9B-BE65-29D475514E30.jpg?resize=200%2C200&;ssl=1 200w, https://i0.wp.com/thepapernerd.com/wp-content/uploads/2018/10/D45649AE-E785-4B9B-BE65-29D475514E30.jpg?resize=350%2C350&;ssl=1 350w, https://i0.wp.com/thepapernerd.com/wp-content/uploads/2018/10/D45649AE-E785-4B9B-BE65-29D475514E30.jpg?resize=460%2C460&;ssl=1 460w, https://i0.wp.com/thepapernerd.com/wp-content/uploads/2018/10/D45649AE-E785-4B9B-BE65-29D475514E30.jpg?resize=500%2C500&;ssl=1 500w, https://i0.wp.com/thepapernerd.com/wp-content/uploads/2018/10/D45649AE-E785-4B9B-BE65-29D475514E30.jpg?resize=293%2C293&;ssl=1 293w, https://i0.wp.com/thepapernerd.com/wp-content/uploads/2018/10/D45649AE-E785-4B9B-BE65-29D475514E30.jpg?resize=75%2C75&;ssl=1 75w, https://i0.wp.com/thepapernerd.com/wp-content/uploads/2018/10/D45649AE-E785-4B9B-BE65-29D475514E30.jpg?resize=390%2C390&;ssl=1 390w, https://i0.wp.com/thepapernerd.com/wp-content/uploads/2018/10/D45649AE-E785-4B9B-BE65-29D475514E30.jpg?resize=585%2C585&;ssl=1 585w, https://i0.wp.com/thepapernerd.com/wp-content/uploads/2018/10/D45649AE-E785-4B9B-BE65-29D475514E30.jpg?resize=24%2C24&;ssl=1 24w, https://i0.wp.com/thepapernerd.com/wp-content/uploads/2018/10/D45649AE-E785-4B9B-BE65-29D475514E30.jpg?resize=48%2C48&;ssl=1 48w, https://i0.wp.com/thepapernerd.com/wp-content/uploads/2018/10/D45649AE-E785-4B9B-BE65-29D475514E30.jpg?resize=96%2C96&;ssl=1 96w" sizes="(max-width: 100px) 100vw, 100px" /></a></div><div class="meta"><div class="byline byline-2 byline-cats-design-4"><div class="byline-part cats"><a href="https://thepapernerd.com/category/off-the-press/" style="color:#b79b0d" class="cat">Off The Press</a><a href="https://thepapernerd.com/category/sponsored-post/" style="color:#b79b0d" class="cat">Sponsored</a></div></div><div class="title-wrap"><h3 class="title"><a href="https://thepapernerd.com/behind-the-nss2019-booth-euni-co/">Behind the #NSS2019 Booth: Euni + Co.</a></h3></div><div class="byline byline-3"><span class="byline-part date"><i class="tipi-i-calendar" aria-hidden="true"></i> <time class="entry-date published dateCreated flipboard-date" datetime="2018-10-19T14:16:12+00:00">October 19, 2018</time></span><span class="byline-part likes-count"><a href="#" class="tipi-like-count " data-pid="23213"><span class="likes-heart"><i class="tipi-i-heart-o" aria-hidden="true"></i><i class="tipi-i-heart" aria-hidden="true"></i></span><span class="tipi-value">0</span></a></span></div></div></div></article></div></div></div></div></div></tipimidc>


<div class="wp-block-image">
<figure class="aligncenter size-large"><img src="https://thepapernerd.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/07/NoSentenceELDK-870x1024.jpg" alt="" class="wp-image-10013737"/><figcaption class="wp-element-caption">Engeldark launched in 2015, on the heels of Mary’s illustration “No One Teach.” That design marked Mary’s foray into activism, inspired by the outrage she felt following the police killing of Michael Brown in St. Louis.</figcaption></figure>
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<p>Landing an interview with this doyenne of design was a dream come true for this paper nerd. Mary&#8217;s thoughtful, informed perspective on design, licensing, expansion, authenticity, activism and collaboration offer countless insights for the entire stationery community.</p>



<figure class="wp-block-image size-large"><img src="https://thepapernerd.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/07/MaryPHOTOwallpaper-769x1024.jpg" alt="" class="wp-image-10013736"/></figure>

*The* Mary Engelbreit
