Business & Tech
Relative Marmalade Creates Custom Designs with Children's Artwork
Business owners in La Grange, La Grange Park and Western Springs tell Patch how their businesses came about and what makes them unique in town.
Business: Relative Marmalade, web-based in Western Springs
Owner: Kelley Clark
Founded: 2011
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Check out the Relative Marmalade website to learn more.
How did the business come to be?
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After working in design + production for 10 years, I began this endeavor as a reaction to the abundance of artwork my children brought home from school. Torn between throwing away their work and tempting a hoarding compulsion, I decided to digitally archive them.
After a few months of archiving and building a relationship with the material, I began playing with layout...then color...then size until eventually I had 40 pieces that Hank had created into 1 design.
Why did you choose the area of work you did?
When I began working with children's artwork, I connected to the bright colors, forceful strokes and the wild abandon of it all. It was like going back to the basics.
I'm inspired by figuring out the best way to structure the artwork, using parent's style and decor within the design. Customizing artwork allows parents to keep the artwork out of storage and create a keepsake for generations to enjoy.
What does your business offer?
Relative Marmalade is an extension of my business and design practices. It is a boutique firm specializing in custom design pieces made from children's artwork. I employ various techniques including digital illustration, photography, typography, and painting.
What's something interesting about your business your customers might not know?
I also do background design and restoration of vintage photographs that are always interesting depending on the family members.
What's your most popular product or service?
My most popular product is definitely The Family Tree. It is a design of a tree that I did a couple years ago for a friend who wanted to combine her two children's artwork into one piece. It includes scribbles, hand prints and foot prints of her children as babies. A few years later, she had another and we revised the design and print to include the additional sibling. Most parents love this idea of combining several pieces into one to clear out some of the clutter in storage or in the art room.The most popular service is the custom design. Clients most often want something that is personal to them or their home. They often want to transform one of the children's pieces into a background and play with layout of the other pieces surrounding.
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