Mae Stoll Art Gallery

joey notes is the brainchild of Staunton, Virginia designer Marsha Vayvada, who first conceived the card idea in 1998. Vayvada, a fine arts graduate from the College of William and Mary was inspired by a childhood memory. She recalls browsing an old Childcraft Encyclopedia series and being disappointed by a jack-o-lantern card. "When you pulled on the stem a black card pulled out and I remember thinking, 'That doesn't work. That's not fun or clever enough.'" Marsha developed an invitation designed to look like a place setting with the fork and napkin insert pulling out to reveal the invite. The idea was so well received, friends and colleagues encouraged her to try marketing it WHY THE NAME joey notes? A baby kangaroo is called joey. Its mother's pouch provides a safe place for a joey to stay until it develops and is ready to leave the pocket. We have our 'joey' inserts that are tucked inside each pocket waiting to be pull out and get carried away.