Monica Lee is an illustrator and designer who has been illustrating for the editorial market and children’s market for several years. She has illustrated several book covers for the young adult and tween market. She loves to bring out her inner fashionista when she illustrates, “I figure a woman may not always dress the way she feels inside so I like to draw like a female feels inside!”
Monica got her start when she opened her own greeting card company in the 90s. “I learned the ropes about running a cottage business because I literally ran it out of my California beach cottage!” After several years of designing and manufacturing greeting cards, she decided to focus on illustrating. “There is something about having a baby that causes you to focus on what you really want out of life!” Even as she worked on editorial illustration for clients like Gotham Magazine and The Wall Street Journal, she always had one foot in the gift and greeting card industry.
Last year she found herself back at the National Stationery Show/ Surtex Show, in the same place she exhibited her greeting card line years before. Monica designed a fabulous eye-catching booth for her first time exhibiting at Surtex in New York this past May. She signed with agent, Suzie Domick from Branding Inc. and had super meetings with manufacturers in all stationery categories, plus craft, gift and home décor. She loves putting her feminine, chic touch on art for licensing.
She is delighted to announce deals with Checks-in-the-Mail for direct to consumer stationery products, and Design Design for greeting cards, paper tableware, gift packaging; continuous roll gift wrap, tissue and paper totes. She is also in discussions to add licensees in fabric, tabletop and additional stationery categories…more news to come later.
