Christine Schmidt's art career began in primary school when she won a bike at the local grocer's coloring contest. This bike was red and had ten whole speeds! After a youth spent on the plains of Kansas City and art school in Washington D.C., she and her loverboy, Evan, moved west to a little place perched atop windy Bernal Hill in San Francisco. Fueled by too much black tea and public radio shows, she spent nights creating hand-printed cards and gifts. Seeking out local suppliers and working with fine, momma-earth loving materials, she began honing her line of wares. In 2007, after steeling her nerves, Christine took a box of her goods to some local stores, they placed orders and Yellow Owl Workshop was born.
Current day Yellow Owl Workshop now bustles with a team of hard-working ladies in a sunny Mission district studio. Though Yellow Owl Workshop has grown and can be found in stores worldwide, the original values of expert attention to detail, ecological awareness and premium U.S. made materials are evident in every product. Legend says if you hold a stamp set really closely you can probably still smell the Earl Gray and hear a "Radio Lab" episode.
Notable for a sophisticated yet playful aesthetic, the products include rubber stamps and stamp ink pads, greeting cards and a line of exquisite gold pendants. Though the product line is diverse, consistent themes of innovative function, original graphics and bold colors emerge.
While Christine is handling the creative side of Yellow Owl she is incredibly lucky to have amazing people handling the business of Yellow Owl. Her husband Evan Gross, longtime friend Maria Niubo, and a band of super ladies keep the studio humming along.
Christine and Evan live in San Francisco with their new daughter, Emmy, who will begin entering coloring contests (and hopefully winning bikes!) after she masters solid foods and crawling.
