Kindred & Co

This is it. The last post. And it only feels fitting to end with -

THANK YOU 🫶

to every customer, friend, family member, fellow small business owner, collaborator, printer, and coffee shop that sustained me.

You made the “trying the business” into a “doing the actual thing” a reality for the last 5 years and I don’t know if I’ll ever fully comprehend that.

A full thank you and a final love letter is on the blog (link in bio). And if you want to stay connected, you can find me on my personal page or send me a DM (as this account will no longer be monitored after Monday).

May the years ahead of each of us continue to see us living out our human being-ness amidst life’s doing. May they be filled with joy, wholehearted connection, beauty and intentionally.

With joy & gratitude,
Val 💛

how it started ➡️ how it’s going

what started as a “temp retail job” became a “oh I really like it here + these people.”

Which turned into those same people encouraging me to launch my own business which turned into our first popup in 2021.

and has become our second pop-up with them this week! the story just gets more and more full circle as it goes 🫶

✨join me this Thursday(12/12) at the Madewell in the from 1-5PM! I’ll specifically be hand lettering gift tags for Madewell customers but will have a handful of other paper goods with me too ✨

hope to see you there for this full circle moment 🎄


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You’re wrapping your holiday gifts, which color tag + ribbon are you reaching for? ⬇️

I’m prepping for a pop up at Madewell (eep!) where I’m going to be personalizing gift tags for people as they shop! But I need to know what you think I should prep and bring.

Red, green, blue, yellow or blank accent tags?

Red, green, blue, white or gold silk ribbon?

Give me your opinions below!

✨And if you’re in the Boston area, come grab your personalized set of hand lettered gift tags from me at the Prudential Madewell on Thursday December 12th ✨

If you’re not in the Boston area, be on the lookout in the coming days for ordering your own personalized gift tags 👀




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Dear friend,

I have felt many things leading up to this Election Day. Sadness and frustration for how people have chosen to act towards one another. Disappointment for how individuals claiming to be authority figures seem to act more like my three year old than the adults they are. Numbness as the temptation to tune it all out creeps in. And somewhere in there, a small inkling of hope in belief that it will be better, one day.

I imagine I am not alone in feeling a range of emotions, and I invite you to take a moment of breath with me.

To stop the scroll (especially the doom scroll), to slow our fingers from typing, and check in with ourselves.

My daughter has been practicing her deep breaths to help regulate her emotions so would you do that with me now?

Deep breath in. Deep breath out.

And as you go about today, would we be people committed to practice kindness and respect? To see people with dignity because they are human beings with worth?

I confess I sometimes don’t want to do that, but then that means I buy into the lie of this or that when a lot of life is “both and.”

I can both disagree with someone and still have a quality conversation with them. I can both struggle to understand a viewpoint and also still commit to seeing the person beyond what their views are. I can also both distance myself from people who are out for violent rhetoric and not bash them unnecessarily.

So today, let’s take our deep breaths. Maybe step away from the media. Check in with our hearts. And practice a posture of both and.

With joy & gratitude,
Val



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Starting a new planner can either be intimidating or exciting. Which one are you? Drop it below.

I'm the excited person (can you tell?). I love the fresh unwritten pages and while I'm nervous to put my pen down the first time, just give me a few more days and I'm scribbling all over the place, neatness gone.

But for those of us that find new planners intimidating or even where to begin, I've got some tips for you.

And for our pros, maybe you'll learn something new and/or share with us your best planner tips. Here we go:

1. Start with last year's planner - flip through the 2022 year and see what was true about your year to help you dream up your new year

2. Use last year's groundwork for this year's growth - i.e. what dreams were sparked or started in 2022 you want to step into this year? what rhythms would have been helpful in 2022 you want to try for 2023

3. Turn those into actionable items - whether that's setting a phone limit every day, setting a water drinking limit, or buying a book you'll read the next 30 days - choose something actionable to help you work towards that growth.

Bonus: write it all down in your new planner prep pages. That way it lives somewhere for all the year for you to reference.

For more tips and tricks, check out the most recent post living on our blog (link in bio)



#2023