Autumn 2016 Cape Cod Home Magazine

The world is their alphabet

Cape Cod Home  /  Autumn 2016 / , , ,

Writer: Ashley Owen

The world is their alphabet

Autumn 2016 Cape Cod Home Magazine

Cape Cod Home  /  Autumn 2016 / , , ,

Writer: Ashley Owen

Letters Cape

“It’s so much fun, it’s addictive. Just to watch people make their signs up is fascinating,” says Jan. “Some people take forever to pick out letters. …  Sometimes I’ll give them the letters to take home so they don’t have to decide right there.”

In late 2011, after their first summer season with Letters, the Capeces expanded beyond the signs and started making greeting cards, which quickly became very popular. Jan designs the cards, and Chris produces them, using Adobe Illustrator and a small army of printers in their home studio. They currently have 500 different greeting cards, which vary from traditional lines—like Happy Birthday, Thanks,  Congrats—to more creative ones—Beach Girl, Shark, and Ahoy are among the most popular. It’s almost a sure bet they have cards with every well-known beach or landmark on the Cape, and if not, they’ll make one up custom.

“We actually started the cards because they’re frame-able,” says Chris. “People even buy them as souvenirs. People like to take a memory from the Cape home. If you do a framed card, it’s easy to carry.”

Always taking photos

Jan and Chris, both originally from New Jersey, are used to always carrying cameras, though photography was only a hobby until recently. On a “girls’ getaway” to Charleston, S.C., in the fall of 2010, Jan bought a framed series of letters that spelled out her daughter’s name, E-m-i-l-y, and inspiration struck. She had seen letter art before, but never with a Cape Cod or coastal theme. She had found her niche.