About

Hello! I'm Emma, an illustrator and designer based in Frome. Beautiful Otherness is my little card business that I started during the first lockdown. I'm now running it along side my main job, which also happens to be in greeting cards!

I’ve always collected greetings cards and pictures that I love and displayed them on my wall. And hand made cards have always been something that my Mum and I have made over the years. Cards are like miniature artworks to me. Beautiful Otherness was born out of a desire to create a whole collection, combining my love of drawing, colour, pattern and print.

I grew up in a very creative household. We’re all makers of some sort. Mum used to make clothes for me when I was younger and I really loved fashion, so it seemed natural to do a degree in Fashion Design. That’s when I realised that I didn’t really enjoy the process of making clothes so much, but I loved creating mood boards, designing, styling and fashion illustration.

After that I went into visual merchandising and dressing shop windows for nearly 20 years, always with the dream of doing my own thing one day. I continued with my artwork in my spare time selling cards and prints in a gallery in Westbourne and doing a few pop up shops here and there. Then I got the opportunity to work part time so I could put more time and energy into my dream, which has helped tremendously.

Some of my designs are simple pencil drawings and others are ones that I’ve collaged together with a variety of other drawings, bits of paintings, print and pressed flowers. I love getting into the detail of the drawing and then the complete freedom of arranging all the elements together in the final design.

I love designing and arranging things, whether it's styling my space, creating a mood board or drawing and painting. Your environment and what you expose your senses to has a huge impact on how you feel. I really believe in Marie Kondo's philosophy of only having things in your life that bring you joy, (as much as is possible that is!) So I'm hoping that the cards that I've designed will do just that and be ones that you’ll want to keep!