All She Wrote Notes Colorful Studio Tour

If we’ve ever seen a more bubbly and colorful studio, we can’t recall. Maghon Taylor squeezed every ounce of fun she could into her All She Wrote Notes calligraphy studio. And it’s the cutest! We can’t picture an office that exudes her happy-go-lucky personality better. Maghon herself is sharing all about her space and her business with us here, and we feel lucky to have her! Sit in for a minute while we chat running your own business and decorating an office to match it with the help of Stephanie Scholl! Also, she dubs her style ‘celebratory calligraphy’ and we love that!

Tell us a little bit about All She Wrote Notes! How did you get into calligraphy and why did you start this business?

All She Wrote Notes is a celebratory calligraphy studio in North Carolina that specializes in spreading happiness through my handwriting. I have been lettering as far back as I can possibly remember because my mom decided that “Maghon” looked prettier to write! I have always taken pride in my hand lettering – I was always the go-to friend with the pretty handwriting all the way back in middle school. In college, I actually started creating personalized stationery in my dorm room and sold my first set of cards on ebay in 2005 for $4! My business back then was called simply aMAYzing. But it wasn’t too amazing since the only people shopping with me were my mom and my suite-mates.

Fast forward almost seven years and I was working full-time in event planning. I loved coming up with ideas for parties and celebrations but I really missed getting my own hands dirty. There was a beautiful calendar on my desk that I looked at every day and I kept thinking ‘if I could just figure out what font that is, I know I could write like that.’ A few google searches helped me learn that this was calligraphy. And that this company hired a calligrapher to letter these months of the year. My mind was blown! I had never even imagined putting my handwriting on products and I just knew I had to learn.

I signed up for an 8 week calligraphy course and jumped in with both feet. I got all of my supplies and I just KNEW I was going to love it! Y’all, I hated it. I was SO disappointed to find out that it was extremely rigid, stuffy and strict. I would write these pretty letters, but it didn’t feel like ME when I would look at the paper. It was like they were training me to write for the White House.

I like pink and glitter and confetti, and I am always wearing bright colors and being loud. I wanted it to look like a party on the paper. So I took all of the basic skills that I learned in my class with the old fashioned tools like a metal nib and a jar of ink and started doodling in my swirly script I’ve used since middle school and celebratory calligraphy was born. I want people to think of more than just weddings when they think of All She Wrote Notes. There are so many moments worth celebrating and LIFE is a special occasion.

I was running late to book club a few weeks after this class and I needed a hostess gift. I came into my spare bedroom (which is now my studio), cut some paper and made my first set of southern sayings notecards. Then, I packaged them up and took them to book club and the girls there were SO encouraging. They hadn’t seen calligraphy written out in such a FUN way! They wanted to purchase a set and encouraged me to start selling my work.

At that time in my life I had just purchased my first home and started a new job. So it seemed like every dollar was going towards paying a bill. This was only three years ago, but believe it or not, I didn’t have internet at home. I spent all day at work on the computer and that seemed like the one utility I could do without. That Wednesday night after book club I came home and in my bed, on my iphone4, I started All She Wrote Notes.

I posted a photo of the set of cards I gave my friend Laura, I started my Instagram account with just one follower (which was me on my other account!), and in just a few days I got my first sale! You can imagine my excitement when it wasn’t a “pity purchase” from a family member. It was a REAL stranger in New Orleans. The only problem was that I had given the set in the photo away to my friend. So without a computer, printer or internet, I decided I would simply write another set of cards.

For the first year & a half of my business, more than a thousand orders were individually hand written. I would work all day at my full-time job and then come home and straight into my studio to get to work filling orders until about midnight. I would wake up at 5 a.m., pack up everything that dried overnight and drop it off at the post office on the way back to work! After two years, I was able to leave my full-time job to pursue All She Wrote Notes full time! It was a dream come true. Now I have the privilege of working in this sweet little office every day!

Your office is SO cute! What goes on here?

This is my happy place. Even in the early days of All She Wrote Notes, I did all of my creating in this one room. I have one desk where I write in calligraphy, letter paint or draw for my business. And on the other desk, I spend time designing, digitizing my lettering, and answering emails from customers. I pack and ship everything just a few feet away. I find inspiration when I am surrounded by happy sayings, thoughtful cards and this meaningful collection of surcees that make me smile.

What was your inspiration for the decor?

I need to be in a colorful environment to be inspired. I love the joy that I feel every time I step in this room. That is a huge part of why I am able to put so much heart into everything that I create. I tell people that my office looks and feels like how I feel on the inside. Every item in here holds special meaning to me whether it was a thoughtful gift, a unique find or just something that made me laugh or smile in the store.

What’s the story behind Teddy Confetti + all of your piñata donkeys!

I have always been head over heels for color. My husband says that my spirit animal is a donkey piñata because I wear ALL of the colors at the same time! I have collected mini piñatas since college and would give them to people for their birthdays. I’ve always loved any reason to celebrate. Big or small. Confetti is also a huge part of my business and totally goes along with the party theme, but to me it is so much more than that.

Early on, when I was writing each individual piece I messed up ALL the time. It broke my heart to throw away all of that paper, so I saved all of the bloopers and popped that scrap paper out into confetti. I literally make confetti out of my mistakes. I put little confetti pieces into each individual order so it feels like you’re getting a present every single time. Anytime I look up and see my confetti wall, I am reminded that you can turn your mess into a message that makes others happy.

P.S. My license plate on my car actually reads “Confetti.” I also have a new addition to the All She Wrote Notes team- our office mascot, Mr. Teddy Confetti. He’s a goldendoodle and is only 10 weeks old, but he loves to party!