Postcards + 15% off!

I'm taking my Grandmother on a cruise to Alaska to celebrate her upcoming 80th birthday and while I'm away I decided to bring back my favorite shop promotion to coincide with the trip! Starting today, if you use the coupon code "AHOY15" on any order you will receive 15% off and (if you're in the US) a hand-written postcard from me! In order to receive a postcard, your order must be placed before September 15th . And the best part? All US orders of $25+ ship free, even if you're also using the coupon code! Yay! Click here to shop!

The "AHOY15" discount applies to all orders worldwide, but the postcard part of that offer is only good for US orders. You can still use the code to receive 15% off through September 16th, but keep in mind that the postcard offer is only good through September 15th. This offer can not be applied retroactively, and it only applies to orders placed at kategabrielle.com. Pins and patches are in stock and will ship while I'm away. Made to order items will ship when I return. Thank you for your patience! xo Kate

Goodbye black and white acrylic!

We've decided to start phasing out the black and white acrylic jewelry in the shop. If there's a piece that you were interested in, now would be the time to snatch it up! (Especially with our 15% off promotion going on, details right here.)

Mindy Kaling lapel pins!

My Mindy Kaling brooch design is FINALLY back in stock as a brand new lapel pin! I'm so incredibly happy with how these came out. You can find them in the shop right here.

ps. Don't forget, my 15% off shop promotion is still going on! Click here for details.

Vacation Promotion!

This afternoon I'll be on my way to Paris and Rome for a week! I had wanted to do my regular postcard promotion, but the postage would have been a little too costly so I came up with something different, and maybe even better!

If you use the coupon code "LADOLCEVITA" while I'm away you'll receive 15% off your entire order, plus a signed Instax photo from my trip! I'm bringing a bunch of film along with me and snapping photos along the way.

Click here to shop!

This offer applies to all orders worldwide. Kyle will be back home manning the shop while I'm away, so if you placed an order before my vacation he'll still be shipping it within our regular time frame and he'll be answering emails as well. Items purchased while I'm away will be made and shipped when I get back.

à bientôt!

new items in the shop

Clever Girl lapel pins are new, improved, and back in stock! They're going fast though (only 10 left as of this post) so grab one now before they go on pre-order.



I'm always seeing products with fake Marilyn Monroe quotes (some of them are SO bad!) so I wanted to make something with an authentic quote, something that really shows what a beautiful, complicated and poetic writer she was. This was taken from a letter that she wrote to her doctor in 1961. You can read the letter in its entirety here.

The patch is available here.



I'm slowly starting to add tote bags to the shop! There are currently two designs available to now and I'm hoping to add more when I get back from my trip to Europe next week. These are nice tote bags with stand-up bottoms (not flat tote bags where you can't actually fit anything inside!) They're available in the shop here.

New UFO Patch

New patch in the shop! This is a 3" sew-on patch featuring my pastel drawing of a UFO inside of a pretty scalloped border. *Possibly* my favorite patch design to date. It's available in the shop right here.

And then there were two!

For the last couple of years my approach to my business has been "throw spaghetti against the wall and see what sticks." My brain is not built for business. In addition, my approach to social media has been "I hate the internet and I want no part of it." I do post erratically on instagram and have my blog posts auto-feed to facebook, but for the most part I've felt like letting social media play an active part in my life only sours my mood and makes me feel less good about human beings.

Enter Kyle... aka, my little brother.

While I'm strictly a right-brained-girl with no mind for analytical or logical thinking, my brother was blessed with a pretty even helping of right-brain and left-brain-ness (?) He's insanely clever and creative, but he also knows how to run numbers, make plans, and figure things out. While I'm throwing spaghetti against the wall, he's concocting a brilliant plan for a new type of noodle that will stick more often, while simultaneously cooking up a strategy to market this new noodle on social media.

So we've joined forces. Kyle will be handling my marketing, business structure, product photography, customer service (you might have already spoken with him if you've contacted my etsy shops or shopify store!) and social media.

Now, as far as social media goes, I'm still creating the content. Kyle is creating a more structured schedule for me (not just a random cat picture once every two weeks) and he'll be sharing posting-duties with me so that I'm not spending more time online than I'm comfortable with.

How will this affect you if you're a customer or follower of mine online? The only change you should notice is that I'll probably be posting more often than I used to (but still not TOO MUCH because I don't want to annoy anyone!) and your e-mails and convos will be answered by Kyle. Otherwise you'll still be seeing the same content, the same cats (#mylittlearrietty on instagram -- go look!) and the same me. The only real difference is that because Kyle is taking over a lot of my day-to-day busywork, I already have more time for creating more products, redesigning packaging, uploading more outfit posts to my style blog, creating wishlists (something missing from my blog since 2014) and brainstorming ways to expand and grow my business.

Just since Kyle started in mid-June I've already finished two projects that had been sitting on my to-do list for months (they'll be hitting the shop this month), I designed three new lapel pins (one is coming this week, two more should hit the store in early August) and I completely revamped my branding.

And the best part of the new arrangement is that I get to spend more time with my brother! He's an incredibly smart, funny and kind person and I know that my business and my customers are in good hands with him. If you see any new posts pop up on social media tonight, be sure to say "hello" and wish him well! :)

Now it's time for me to get back to drawing! :D

Live every week like it's Shark Week

A.V. Club had a headline today that said "Live every week like it's shark week -- especially this one, because it is." and I was like "DARN! Why didn't I think of that!"

My 30 Rock/Shark Week design is finally available as a patch! And as much as I wish I could say that I planned the release to coincide with Shark Week, it's actually a happy accident! I didn't even realize this was Shark Week until I saw somebody tweet about it last night (I'm clearly more of a 30 Rock fan than a Shark Week fan) Perfect timing though.

The patch is available in the shop right here.

Edith Head brooch

My love of fashion and classic Hollywood are colliding for this new product, a black and white acrylic brooch featuring my illustration of Edith Head. If you aren't familiar with Edith Head, she was possibly the most prolific costume designer from the golden age of cinema. She was nominated for 35 Oscars (!!!) and won 8! In addition to designing iconic looks for the stars, Head sported a pretty iconic look herself with dark tinted glasses and Bettie Page bangs. Oh, and if you're more of a Disney fan than a classic film fan -- Head was the inspiration behind The Incredibles character Edna Mode!

The brooch is available in the shop right here.

#NationalBestFriendsDay sale!

It's National Best Friends Day, so for today only you can take 15% off all of my BFF goodies with the coupon code "BFF4EVER" And if you're best friend is your kitty, don't worry, the sale includes my Cat BFF pendant set too! ;)

Click here to shop the sale!

"My religion is the cinema. I believe in Charlie Chaplin"

I just finished reading a book of interviews with François Truffaut (this one, and I highly recommend it if you're even remotely interested in Truffaut, or just movies in general) and one of my favorite quotes was "My religion is the cinema. I believe in Charlie Chaplin." It resonated with me pretty strongly, and then this week I went to see City Lights, one of Chaplin's last silent films, at Lincoln Center with live accompaniment from the New York Philharmonic. Talk about a religious experience. Whoa.

Anyway, I whipped up this print afterwards. The drawing of Chaplin is actually taken from an older piece that I painted in 2009 or 2010. I love re-purposing some of my older drawings and paintings and giving them a new life. It's like the drawing equivalent of a dance remix... maybe?

The print is available here.

Mystery Grab Bags

So they're technically mystery grab BOXES. Each box contains at least $30 worth of products, including at least two brooches. Everything is in good condition, with most of the items being either overstock or prototypes that never made it into my store. I only have a limited number of boxes available, so if you're interested you can go snatch one up right here.

Three new patch designs!

I just added three new patch designs to the shop! Back in March I mentioned that my woman inherits the earth patch makes up what seems like 99% of my sales, and I couldn't figure out if it was that particular design; the fact that it's a patch; the colors of the design, etc. I just couldn't figure out why it was my only item that sold well. So I decided to make more patches, hoping maybe that was the ticket. And it's definitely not. That is still my best-selling item to the practical total exclusion of everything else in my store.. c'est la vie!

With that said, I made more patches again anyway. Because I have no business sense WHATSOEVER. Seriously, I have no clue what I'm doing.

The first patch is a quote from the movie Heathers (I'm especially in love with the muted purple thread color on this one!)



Next up is something that's entirely a passion project, and will likely NEVER sell but I love it so much. (Again, I have no clue what I'm doing!) It's a quote from one of my all-time favorite movies, The Trouble with Angels. This quote was the inspiration behind my blog title, Scathingly Brilliant, and it's something my mom and I say to each other constantly.



Last but not least is my time travel agent patch. The saying comes from one of Frank's hats on 30 Rock (he wears a trucker hat with a different saying on it in each episode) but it's also kind of my dream job.

All of the new patches are available here.

Back in stock - X-Files patches!

X-Files patches are back in stock! You can find them in my shop, right here.

[UPDATED] Postcards + 15% off

I'm off to California to attend the TCM Film Festival and I'm bringing back my favorite shop promotion to coincide with the trip! Starting today, if you use the coupon code "SILVERSCREEN" on any order of $10+ you will receive 15% off and (if you're in the US) a hand-written postcard from me! In order to receive a postcard, your order must be placed before 9AM PST on May 1st. And the best part? All US orders of $25+ ship free, even if you're also using the coupon code! Yay! Click here to shop!

ALSO! International customers! In the past I haven't extended the postcard offer beyond US borders because International stamps (even just for tiny light little postcards) are kind of pricey. But I've heard your cries (too dramatic?) and for the first time I'm finally offering postcards for International orders. If you want to take advantage of the 15% discount and not get a postcard, you can totally still do that (just use code "SILVERSCREEN") but if you'd prefer a postcard over a steep discount, use code "TINSELTOWN" instead. It'll deduct a flat $1 from your $15+ order, and you'll (finally!) get a hand-written postcard from me! Please keep in mind that International postcards might take a while in transit.

The "SILVERSCREEN" discount applies to all orders worldwide, but the postcard part of that offer is only good for US orders. You can still use the code to receive 15% off through May 2nd, but keep in mind that the postcard offer is only good through 9AM PST on May 1st. This offer can not be applied retroactively, and it only applies to orders placed at shopkategabrielle.com. I will begin making and shipping items after I return home. Thank you for your patience.

[This post has been updated to reflect a change from a $15 minimum spend to $10 minimum spend for the "SILVERSCREEN" coupon code. If you're thinking "she must be doing that because nobody wanted to spend the minimum of $15 in her store and she's getting desperate, DING DING DING!!! You are right my friend! I have zero shame.]

Enamel lapel pins! At a special introductory price!

I finally decided to join the ranks of artists turning their designs into enamel lapel pins. I know, I know, if everyone jumped off a bridge would I jump too? Well.. if it meant I could stay relevant in an ever-changing marketplace and continue to pay my bills... probably.

Anyway. I had my first small-run batch of pins made, and they're available at a special introductory price today only. You can buy them here.

Interview on Spellbound by Movies

Spellbound by Movies posted an interview with me today, which you can read right here. I talk a little bit about my love of classic film, my movie-inspired products, and the inspiration behind some of my artwork. I had a lot of fun coming up with my answers & hopefully they're just as fun to read :)

Also, I just recently had my dream photo shoot in a movie theater and this was my favorite picture from the batch. I worked with Edwards Media and I highly recommend them if you're in the NJ/NY area and need any kind of photos or videography.

Communiversity + a new painting!

Communiversity is this Sunday and I'll have a booth on Nassau Street! If you're in the Princeton area I hope you'll drop by and say hello (although I'm horribly awkward and shy, just a warning) The photo above was taken at Communiversity last year before I chopped off all of my hair and dyed it pink again. It feels like I'm looking at a photo of a totally different person!

Speaking of photos of me -- they've been lacking considerably for the last couple weeks on my style blog, mostly because I've been up to my ears in preparations for this weekend and have rarely been wearing anything other than paint stained pajamas. What I've lacked in style I've made up for in productivity, though. Just yesterday I started and finished seven paintings in the span of 24 hours. (!!!) Six of the seven are new versions of old Puns Intended paintings. I hadn't come up with a brand new one since 2013, but yesterday I finally added a fresh face to my roster of punny paintings:



This falls into the category of "kind of obscure references that will probably never actually sell" but I really love it! It's a scene from Hitchcock's movie Vertigo, but painted in the style of Van Gogh. So, it's Vertigogh. 

Puns Intended used to be my main thing -- from 2005 through 2009 I only did pun paintings. After starting Flapper Doodle in 2009 (and then Sweet and Lovely in 2012) Puns Intended kind of fell by the wayside. As far as my online sales go, it probably makes up like .0001% so I often forget about it or neglect it a bit. But when I do art shows, like Communiversity, I'm reminded of how fun it is to sell funny artwork. I've wanted to do something new since I exhibited last April, and -- I'm obviously someone who works better under pressure -- I finally painted this three days before Communiversity! Phew!

If you won't be in Princeton this weekend and you're that rare soul who enjoys Hitchcock movies, Van Gogh paintings, and bad puns -- prints are also available in my shop right here.

Nerdist feature + restocked Jurassic Park brooches

My line of Jurassic Park-themed goodies was featured on Nerdist.com today! And not just included in a list of other Jurassic Park stuff, I mean a whole entire article devoted to my designs. WHOA! This might be one of the coolest things that has ever happened (and I'm not just saying that because I'm a giant Nerdist/Chris Hardwick fan.)

You can read the whole write-up right here. And it's perfect timing, because yesterday I just shot new photos for a restock of two of my Jurassic Park brooch designs. My hand-painted wooden 'clever girl' brooches are back in two new colors, and I tweaked my hand-painted 'woman inherits the earth' brooches, and they're back in the shop too!

Also, I only have NINE 'woman inherits the earth' patches left in stock before they go on pre-order. You can find all of my Jurassic Park stuff in my shop right here.

Almost gone: free X-Files pin with purchase

I only have 15 of these left and then they're gone for good! This is your last chance to get a free X-Files lapel pin with any purchase of $10+ Just use coupon code "TRUSTNO1" at checkout. Click here to shop.

Please note - The coupon will also deduct 1 penny from your order total, sorry for any confusion that causes!

Two new black heart brooches

There are two new black heart brooches in the shop! The first one is a quote from April Ludgate, from Parks and Recreation. The second isn't a quote from anything, just kind of a PSA to wear when you're around people who might want to go in for a hug.

For all I know, this might just be a "me" thing but it seems like I always meet people who say to me, "Sorry! I'm a hugger!" and then they proceed to engulf me in their unwelcome embrace. It's practically impossible to alert people ahead of time that I value my personal space and saying "I'm not a hugger" seems insulting after someone is already coming at you with their arms open wide. My hope is that this pin will send a kind of a subtle (maybe not so subtle?) message to potential huggers that your body is off-limits. No hugs and no feelings hurt - win/win!

Both pins are available in my shop right here.

I. Love. Bread.

Inspired by Oprah and my own deep, abiding love of bread -- new brooch available right here. (ps. I'm bringing back hand-painted brooches. I'll post an update when they are fully restocked again.)

Free X-Files lapel pin with purchase

While supplies last, get a free Trust No One lapel pin with any purchase of $10+ in my shop. Just use coupon code "TRUSTNO1" at checkout. These are not available for purchase on their own and I won't be restocking them when I run out. They are UV printed metal lapel pins with tie-tack backs.

Click here to shop! Or click here to shop all of my other x-files merchandise.

#TCMFF button set for the TCM Film Festival

Last year I made some buttons for the TCM Film Festival and this year I decided to kick it up a notch and make this TCMFF button set!

It includes nine buttons total -- one 2.25" button for sharing your social networking username so that your online friends will be able to recognize you in person (you can choose Twitter or Facebook), one 2.25" button to show off how many festivals you've attended (they're available with either Bette Davis or Cary Grant, and for each year the actors get progressively older. You can see all 14 options in the photos below), a 1.5" Robert Osborne fan club button, a 1.5" Ben Mankiewicz fan club button, and five little 1" buttons that feature images of some of the 2016 TCMFF attendees and featured films.

The button set is available in my shop right here. If you're heading to Hollywood for the festival, I'd recommend getting your order in before April 15th to ensure it arrives in time. But I can't stress enough how much "the sooner the better" applies here -- sometimes USPS messes things up, so the earlier you order the more likely everything will be at your doorstep with plenty of time to spare. This applies to my buttons but also anything else you might be ordering online before you travel :)

ps. I also finally made a category in my shop for movie-themed merchandise, since there's so much of it! You can view it all right here.

Clever Girl patches

New in the shop! Clever Girl patches. These have aqua text on a silvery background. Very pretty in person! I'm planning on trying a different colorway next time so if you're fond of the mint green, grab it now! I will not be restocking this exact patch once it sells out.

They're available in the shop right here.

New X-Files patches!

New patch design in the shop! My woman inherits the earth patches make up what seems like 99% of my sales, and I can't figure out if it's because everyone loves patches or because everyone loves that particular design as a patch. I guess this will help me figure out the mystery!

Anyway! It's available in the shop right here.

BFF pendant/necklace set for you and your kitty!

New in the shop! BFF necklace/charm sets for you and your kitty! Me and my cat are already wearing a set :) The charms are silver-plated nickel and very lightweight, so you don't have to worry about weighing down your cat's collar.

I'm incredibly excited about these (I know I always say that!) It's my first time designing something in metal, and I don't really know how else to put this but it just feels so REAL. I love having my designs laser-cut in wood or acrylic, or sewn onto patches, but there's something so .... real.... about seeing something you illustrated become a little metal charm.

They're available in my shop right here.

Best Friend cell phone cases

New in the shop! Best friend phone cases featuring my flapper doodle telephone illustrations. The cases are available in a few different iphone and galaxy models (you can mix and match if you and your friend don't have the same exact phone model) They're available in the shop right here.

Easter egg brooches

New in the shop! Easter egg brooches, laser cut from my drawings and then hand-painted with pastel glittered flocking powder. It produces a precious soft, fuzzy texture that's similar to a lot of vintage holiday decorations from the 60's. There are three designs to choose from, and they're all available right here.

Chocolate scented Easter bunny brooches

New in the shop! Chocolate scented Easter bunny brooches! Available right here.

I know I say this about everything, but I'm so excited about how these turned out! This is one of those projects that took a ton of trial and error before it finally came out right. I made and tossed out six bunny molds before I finally got one that worked. To get the brown color just right I tried three different types of spray paint (didn't work) and I tried mixing brown acrylic paint into the resin (didn't work, but you can see the super weird chemical reaction that occurred when I tried it right here. Trigger warning if you have trypophobia) What finally ended up working was mixing resin tint (DUH!) in my resin.

I added a "do not eat" sticker on the back just in case your brooch falls into the unsuspecting hands of a chocoholic ;) I'm partially joking, but honestly these REALLY look like candy. I made these, I'm the one who created them, and yet when I saw one was sitting in direct sunlight earlier today I went to move it because I was afraid the chocolate would melt. Seriously.

The cutie pi dress

I'm super thrilled to announce that as of today, I'm adding "dresses" to the long list of products available in my store. If you've ever seen photos of my closet, it probably won't come as much of a shock that I really love dresses. In particular I have an affinity for a good novelty-print, and enjoy wearing dresses that match a particular holiday, activity, occasion, or event.

For years I've wanted a Pi Day dress that didn't have baked pies on it. That seems to be the only option out there, and while apple pie is one of my favorite foods of all time, I was craving something a little less sweet and a little more mathematical. I feel like I should acknowledge here that, yes, this is definitely a very niche dress to start off with. I know that I'm in the minority when it comes to my obsession with this holiday, and my pi products hardly ever sell. But I wanted to launch my dress collection with a design that was very special to me, not just something that might sell. If that makes sense? I'll definitely be adding designs with broader appeal in the weeks to come, but for my very first dress I wanted it to be something that I've desperately wanted in my closet for a long time and just couldn't find anywhere else. And that was a pi dress.



My dresses are being manufactured in Montreal, Canada. It's an ethically and environmentally friendly company where workers are paid a fair wage, receive paid breaks, and work normal hours. Extra and irregular clothing is donated to local shelters. The fabric itself is manufactured in Montreal using a process that uses a third less energy and water than normal polyester processes usually do.

I am very smitten with how these came out. The colors were printed exactly the way I intended, vibrant but still pastel. The print is crisp and clear, and the fabric is really comfy. It kind of reminds me of a thinner version of neoprene, very sleek and soft, but not shiny.

The dress has some stretch to it, but I'd recommend sizing up if you're between sizes. I got the medium based on my bust/waist measurements, but it's a little snug in the hips so next time I'm going to go with a large. The medium still fits pretty well though, as you can see in the photo above. You can view my size chart below:



I'm so excited to finally be offering dresses! Ideally someday I'd love to design vintage-style garments (like chiffon dresses with knife pleats and bell sleeves, oh my!) but for now this is pretty darn exciting. If you're interested in the cutie pi dress, it's available right here. And I'll have other designs available within the next month or so.

Please note, if you're ordering the cutie pi dress for Pi Day, be sure to order as soon as humanly possible. These are all made to order and have a turnaround time of 1-10 days so the sooner you order, the better your chances of having the dress in time for March 14th!

Let the Pi Day fun begin!

As you might already know, I'm a bit of a Pi Day fanatic. In Princeton they go all-out for the holiday, seeing as it's also Einstein's birthday, complete with pie-eating contests, pi-recitation contests, pi-shaped chocolates, pie-flavored ice cream, you name it! I personally don't participate in any of the contests, which means I usually celebrate by just eating a lot of fruit pie and pizza pie. And while that's clearly very fun, it's not actually related to the 3.14 version of the word.

Enter -- Yippi!

Last year my dad printed out the first 25 or so digits of pi on copy paper and set two dice on the kitchen table. The object of the game was to roll the dice, and cross off the numbers of pi as you rolled the corresponding digits. Over the course of the game we all came up with some simple rules, and Yippi! was born! This year I decided to turn our family game into a real dice game that other Pi Day fanatics could own & play for themselves! :)

The game comes with 25 Pi Cards (printed with the first 64 digits of pi), 2 dice, an instruction card, and a hand-stamped 5" x 7" muslin carrying case.



I say this a lot, but this is one of my favorite things I've ever worked on. I love seeing an idea come to life in such a tangible way -- starting out as sketches in a notebook, then digital designs on a computer screen, then assembling the final product. It's definitely a passion project (I doubt there's a really high demand for math-themed games) but those are usually my favorites. In fact, it's practically a statistical rule that my most-beloved creations hardly ever sell while my lesser-loved items are usually my best sellers.

However, if you're one of the rare souls who IS clamoring for a very fun, PI-not-PIE way to celebrate March 14th this year, my Yippi! game is available in my shop right here. Be sure to order soon in order to receive your game in time for Pi Day! :)