Cards Are Better When They're Attached To Alcohol
Whether this week was a grind or a breeze, Fridays are all about unwinding. We think we have an idea what WNW Members #2325 Liza Behles and #2328 Courtney Bowditch have planned. "Separately, we are a writer and an art director. Together, we are often tipsy and discussing Brené Brown’s latest podcast appearance... 90% of our friendship involves sitting around drinking wine and talking about feelings." Rather than selfishly master those perfectly paired activities on their own, they've generously taken measures to make it possible for each and every one of you to reach your wine + feelings potential.
The result is Delicate Estates, greeting cards for sensitive occasions that double as wine bottle labels. Our interview below covers all the essentials, like how they decided on the irreverent tone of the labels: "We knew the tone would be less Hallmark, more Camus--but like, if Camus watched Broad City and was considering freezing his eggs.") And how relocating to Los Angeles has influenced their creative style: "If we could figure out some way to ride our bikes to a cute little Delicate Estates office-gallery-wine-tasting-reclaimed-mixed-use-space located conveniently between our respective Santa Monica residences and also overlooking the water... that would be clutch. LA influences us to pursue that dream."
Tell us about your creative backgrounds. Who are Liza & Courtney and how did they get here?
Liza & Courtney are the respective yin and yang of the powerful, shiraz-powered braintrust that is… Liza & Courtney. Separately, we are a writer and an art director. Together, we are often tipsy and discussing Brené Brown’s latest podcast appearance. We met at CP+B Boulder 5 years ago, where we worked, cried, and ate a lot of truffle cheese. In 2012 we wrangled 1 boyfriend, 2 bosses, and a rag-tag crew of underdogs to relocate to LA--because as everyone knows, skiing every weekend can really mess you up. We’ve been freelancing together since.
When and how was the idea for Delicate Estates born? How many glasses in were you?
Since 90% of our friendship involves sitting around drinking wine and talking about feelings, we thought it would be cool to combine those two things into a single product: greeting cards that stick to wine bottles. While the idea itself was not exactly a drunken whim, we definitely expensed a lot of wine while “developing” it. We may or may not be developing it right now.
Did you know right off the bat that you would get irreverent, dark and sardonic with the tone of these greetings? Which ones are your favorites?
We wanted to create cards that correspond to specific drinking occasions--but not the ones where the recipient is like “Oh thanks, you didn’t have to” and definitely the ones where they’re like OMG GET ME A CORKSCREW NOW OR ELSE WATCH ME OPEN THIS WITH MY TEETH. (Disclaimer: don’t do that!). So yeah, we knew the tone would be less Hallmark, more Camus--but like, if Camus watched Broad City and was considering freezing his eggs. In terms of favorite cards, we'll default to the ones that coincided with our favorite reasons to drink: Because Tuesday and You’re Having an Existential Crisis.
Have you collaborated before? What do you each bring to the table?
Yes, we’ve been working together for 5 years as an AD-CW team. Courtney, the AD, brings an outstanding head of hair--which is so luminous that at one time it actually had its own Facebook page. She also brings a really shitty car and some killer P-shop skillz. Liza (the CW) definitely brings more angst, and as of late, an even shittier car. Courtney usually chooses the music and Liza usually tries to change it to a podcast about gut bacteria.
What type of wine makes your cup runneth over? What feelings are you talking about while you imbibe?
In terms of vino, Courtney prefers a crisp rosé and in terms of feelings, general themes include text etiquette and fear of dying alone. Liza usually opts for an unoaked chard, and when it comes to feelings, she LOVES to negatively internalize the success of her peers and (depending on how hard she's chard-ing) quote the self-help book du jour that's helping her forget about those a-holes and live in the now.
How does Los Angeles influence your creative styles and work?
OMG we hate driving. Not only because it conflicts with drinking and/or because we have shitty cars, but also because UGH. It’s just the pits. So if we could figure out some way to ride our bikes to a cute little Delicate Estates office-gallery-wine-tasting-reclaimed-mixed-use-space located conveniently between our respective Santa Monica residences and also overlooking the water... that would be clutch. LA influences us to pursue that dream.
Who are some of your biggest creative idols and influences?
Whoever invented the mushroom toast at Gjelina. And Bruce Springsteen. And Tokyo. And our favorite boss of all time Tom: he will definitely be creeped out by that answer.
What moment or project in your career so far has made you the proudest? What was your biggest career failure?
Our favorite collab is most definitely a charity we helped start back in Boulder called P.ink that provides tattoos to women with mastectomy scars. Working on this makes us feel good, and unlike most advertising-y stuff, the results of the campaign are permanent. Biggest career failure would have to be the time we tried to start a baby onesie line called Sorry not Sorry. That was a bust. Also the time we went to Gjelina and THEY WERE OUT OF MUSHROOM TOAST.
If you weren’t a copywriter & art director, respectively, what do you think you’d be doing instead?
Liza would probably be an anesthesiologist and Courtney would definitely be a WNBA guard. Sliding Doors, man.
What do you do when Not Working?
Besides wine and mushroom toast, we like to travel. Courtney just returned from 11 months in Sydney and Liza just got back from 3 months in SE Asia. Admittedly, these absences made the whole launching-a-startup thing a bit challenging, but… details details.
What cultural and creative venues do you frequent in Los Angeles (arthouse theaters, galleries, museums, bookstores, record stores etc)?
The Last Bookstore. That place is dusty, but also the best. Westside Comedy in Santa Monica. The piano bar at Casa Escobar on Wilshire (especially if you like Hall ‘n Oats covers!). Does listening to NPR’s Off-Ramp in your car count? We’re also creatively partial to rooftops, patios, decks, stoops, and other outdoor spaces with happy hour specials.
Any album, film, television or book recommendations for your fellow WNW members?
Watch: The King of Kong. Iris. Anvil, The Story of Anvil. Beasts of the Southern Wild. All of Broad City. That Portlandia sketch about vegan fart patios. Read: The Art of Looking Sideways to understand life and I Will Teach You To Be Rich to understand why you should enroll in your agency’s 401k program and NOT invest in marijuana penny stocks (Live and learn, man).
Who are some other WNW members whose work you admire, and why?
Brittany Poole. Todd Grinham. Cerra Buckholz. Andy Pearson. Andy Ure. Matt Denyer. Wendy Leicht & Cliff Leicht. Hire these humans or at least drink 100 wines with them (Warning: Cerra can actually do that.)
Anything else you’d like to add?
Please buy our labels. Also, stop what you’re doing right now and go eat the mushroom toast at Gjelina. The gluten is worth it, promise.