Marcy Whitesel, a Stratford woman supported by Community Living Stratford and Area, has begun drawing and printing original holiday cards, and selling them for five dollars apiece.
For as long as she can remember, Marcy Whitesel has loved to draw.
The Stratford woman, who is supported by Community Living Stratford and Area, an organization that helps adults with developmental disabilities live rich and rewarding lives, has also been an avid fan of Japanese anime ever since she began watching the Pokémon television series as a kid, so much so that she adopted that artistic style as inspiration for her own drawings.
Now, Whitesel is sharing her artistic talents with family, friends and acquaintances by selling original holiday cards that she draws and prints herself.
Whitesel said she began making Christmas cards at the end of last year. Then, after being challenged by one of her support workers, she moved on to drawing Valentine’s Day cards over the past several weeks.
“There were eight designs (for Christmas), and I made so many Christmas cards I didn’t even bother counting them,” Whitesel said while showing off some of the reindeer and elf characters she drew for her Christmas cards. “I was selling them to friends and acquaintances.”
Whitesel says it really didn’t take much convincing for her to continue drawing cards for Valentine’s Day, especially since her friends at the Stratford Public Library were able to once again help print her drawings into cards, which she has been selling for $5 apiece.
“This time, the Valentine’s cards have really been selling like hotcakes,” Whitesel said laughing. “There’s only one card left. … I made lots of them. This time I made six copies each of my four Valentine’s Day designs.”
Though her Valentine’s Day cards have nearly sold out, Whitesel is already working on drawing card designs for birthdays, anniversaries, Mother’s Day, Father’s Day and just about any other holiday. Whitesel says she is even taking commissions, having drawn a few portraits of people and pets for friends and family.
“I even drew a picture of my customer’s sister’s puppy for her sister’s birthday,” Whitesel said.
As drawing and selling cards is something she has come to really enjoy, Whitesel is calling her new business, ‘Toonime by Marcy!’, and she has plans to launch a Facebook page where she can display her designs and take orders from customers at some point soon.
For now, Whitesel said anyone who is interested in purchasing one of her cards or commissioning a specific piece of work can send her an email at [email protected].