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Office Space

At the desk of a Hallmark Cards illustrator

MATTHEW COLLINS { special to ink }

Hallmark Cards illustrator Robyn Fabsits-Grine started about 10 years ago in the humor department, where she continues to work today. The plush doll (upper left) named a gender-neutral “Sam,” was an experiment she worked on. She created him with movable parts and facial expressions so he could be photographed, then scanned into the computer to be manipulated for use with card design. “A lot of times when you create a plush, if it doesn’t have joints or isn’t movable and you can’t change facial expressions, it’s a one time shot,” she says.

MATTHEW COLLINS { special to ink }

Several of Fabsits-Grine’s cards are on display on a rack outside her cubicle. The picture of the small boy with socks on his hands is actually a childhood photo of her husband, Chris, who also works for Hallmark. “He didn’t know I had used it until he had to sign the release,” she says.

MATTHEW COLLINS { special to ink }

Fabsits-Grine decorated her office with things that inspire her, including photos of her family. Her 3-year-old daughter, Violet, is pictured in an Ewok “Star Wars” costume from last Halloween. “I was Princess Leia, and my husband built a stormtrooper suit. The kids down the street just loved that,” she says.

MATTHEW COLLINS { special to ink }

When she’s not at work, Fabsits-Grine spends a lot of her time making stuffed plush figures. She takes her creations to four or five shows each year to display her work alongside that of other plush artists. Her work can sell for $50 to $400. “These aren’t pieces that are going to be played with by kids,” she says.

MATTHEW COLLINS { special to ink }

Fabsits-Grine collects small vinyl toys that come in sets and are sold in these “blind boxes.” The boxes don’t tell you which character in the set you’re buying, so although she has gotten duplicates, Fabsits-Grine says she appreciates the boxes just as much as the toys. She’s drawn to things like this that have strong and interesting design work.

Brianne Pfannenstiel

Ink

Who she is: Robyn Fabsits-Grine, an illustrator with Hallmark Cards

How long she’s been doing it: Fabsits-Grine started about 10 years ago in the humor department, where she continues to work today.

Creativity is in the air: To get to her workspace, you need a map. Literally. Columns throughout the Hallmark Corporate office are marked with numbers and letters to help workers and visitors navigate the expansive space. That sense of order holds things together, though if you wander, you’ll stumble across a birthday party complete with a WWI-themed birthday cake or a half-played game of Trivial Pursuit.

The walls near Fabsits-Grine’s cubicle are painted a bright shade of green and adorned with posters created by the illustrators who occupy the space.

Design process: Ideas for cards are delivered to her desk, including the words that should be on the card and its basic theme and feel. For almost all of her cards, she draws the design on paper, scans it into her computer and finishes it in Adobe Photoshop or Illustrator.

She can finish a simple illustrated card in about a day and a half, she says, but if you add things such as special folds, cuts or glitter, it can take up to a week and a half.

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