Our Story

Hello there! We are so happy you found us!

Hi! We are Grace and Leah, sisters who both love creating illustrations that bring joy into this world.

As kids we competed against each other to see who could make the best art, and we hung it proudly on the pantry doors.

Being a productive worker bee, Grace’s door was normally filled top to bottom with work, while Leah was a bit more self-conscious of her art, and her door was sparse but her drawings carefully executed.

At a certain point, Leah’s love for art took off and she ended up going to college to study oil painting. After graduating, she realized that illustration, animals, and tiny houses were more her thing.

Oh, the joyous coincidence that we both turned towards illustration!

Obviously it’s way more fun to create things with a teammate (and who better than a sibling?!) so in the Spring of 2016, Leah suggested that they work together to spread joy into the world.

It was a perfect idea: Leah was filled with creativity and a passion for illustration and web design—but let’s be honest, finances and deadlines are not her forte. On the flip side, Grace is a fastidious record keeper and driven to have “best practices.” Unfortunately, her wrists suffer from carpel tunnel. She was running a custom stationery shop on Etsy, where she sold individually handmade greeting cards. Her work was crippling her wrists. One day as we were having a sisterly chat, Leah suggested that we team up. “Let me be your hands, Grace! (And you can be my brain!)”

The road hasn’t been easy. In August of 2018, Leah/Tiny was in a life altering accident while working construction for Habitat for Humanity (her “day job” while she was hustling at night and weekends to work on T & S). A forklift tipped over, crushing Leah underneath. Her spine was severed. In an instant, she was fighting for her life.

Leah is paralyzed from the armpits down and her right leg was amputated. One of the first questions she asked in the ICU when she could communicate was “Can I still draw?” Miraculously, yes. Tiny can still draw and paint. This company of ours has become more important to us than ever as its growth will mean that Leah can sustain herself as a full-time artist. We are truly sisters: both opinionated, but pretty much on the same page aesthetically. We butt heads occasionally, but in the end we know we are so much stronger as a team. As far as our art goes,

Our motto is: if it doesn’t make us laugh out loud, or ache with the beauty, go back to the drawing board. (Pun completely intended.)

Illustrating unicorns, dogs, and flowers brings us so much joy. We want to help you package that joy and send it to make someone else’s mailbox a whole lot happier. We are obsessed with using the amazing, magical invention of the Postal Service to infuse love into people’s days. In an age of technology, snail mail isn’t just a novelty—it’s powerful. Seeing someone’s handwriting is such an intimate, beautiful thing these days. Being able to cherish their words. Being able to set a card on your desk and bring a smile to your face every time you see it. We believe that technology will never be as gosh darn magical as a paper card. Thanks for following our journey! Your support means the WORLD to us!

Why the name Tiny & Snail?

We searched high and low for a good name. Many a phone call was spent sharing our brainstorm lists with each other. Lots of charming names became contenders but the perfect name continued to elude us – until we discovered that our company name was directly under our noses, coming from the creative mind of a sweet 6 year-old named Ellie. Ellie lives in South Dakota and we’re friends with her family. One day while scrolling Instagram, Leah chanced upon a comic that Ellie had drawn for her dad titled Tiny & Snail. ZING! That was it! Leah had spent the past 2 years designing and building a tiny house and tiny studio. Grace has loved snail mail for an eternity. The name seemed perfect for our sister-sister company (and kind of sounds like a law firm which is extra hilarious and delightful). We reached out to Ellie and asked whether she would be willing to let us take her name into the stationery world and she graciously agreed. Ellie, it’s brilliant and we love your creativity! Here’s a picture of us with Ellie the extraordinary. She’s simply the best.

Leah, Ellie, and Grace

Ellie's comic that inspired our name

Podcasts We've been on:

Self Discovery with Jaclyn Steele-- "Life Can Change in an Instant: Meet Artist, Poet, & Paraplegic, Leah Nixon Fitzgerald"
Self Discovery with Jaclyn Steele — "The Way Through with Poet, Philosopher, & Tiny & Snail Owner, Grace Nixon Peterson"
The Product Boss— "Female Founder: Two Sisters Turned Business Partners Who Keep Dancing No Matter How Many Times They Get Knocked Down with Grace and Leah of Tiny & Snail"
The Postcardist: "E83: A Big Day with Tiny & Snail"
Terrible, Thanks for Asking: "Tiny and Snail"
The Paper Fold
You're Not Alone with Townsend:
Ep095-Paraplegia feat. Leah Fitzgerald
The Paper Fold: Leah and Grace of Tiny and Snail

Blogs we've been on:

Cup of Jo--My Beauty Uniform: Leah Nixon Fitzgerald
The Paper Nerd: The Tiny and Snail Sisters
The Paper Nerd: Tiny and Snail's Greatest Floral Hits
The Paper Nerd: Comfort, Via Snail Mail

Such vibrant colors!! I love supporting small business!!! These cards are gorgeous!!!!

Beautifully done

The loveliest of cards!

Beautiful cards and a very nice texture of paper. Excited to get them in the mail and share them with friends.

Beautiful art work and such a dear message.

The art on this card is incredibly sweet... just like its message. The strawberries are beautifully drawn and the background blue and green colors are gorgeous. It was so wise to add the ladybug so the card sends good fortune to the friend or companion as well as admiration and gratitude.

Life Is Sweeter With You (Strawberries and Ladybugs)

Such a beautiful and uplifting card!

I love this card and so did the friend I gave it to. The vivid, beautiful colors and repetition of its message are a strong reminder that during dark times, we can (and must) find beauty.

Gorgeous and meaningful card!

I was an English teacher and I have a lot of friends who read books, so this card really speaks to me. It is an absolutely beautiful card and makes me think of quiet moments of enjoyment, learning, and reflection. Who wouldn't want to wish this for people?

May You Read Some Excellent Books This Year

The best stickers!

Tiny and Snail have the most gorgeous stickers with beautiful heart felt messages! They are perfect to include in one of their amazing cards sent to that special someone. And they are both incredible people and small business owners!

Lovely Card

This card is a beautiful way to remind someone that they are lovely and loved. Everyone needs to feel that they are loved and the sentiment on this card along with a loving personal handwritten sentiment on the inside is the perfect way to send that reminder! Love these cards!!

Lovely cards!

I just got my new set of autumn cards and they are so pretty! I can’t wait to sit down and write.

Look for the Light Mini Pack of 5 - Autumn edition

Lovely Collection to Have on Hand

I bought 8 of these because it is so nice to have something beautiful at hand to send people who are special to me.

Totally worth it!

Love these cards. Cute packaging. I’ll be buying from you again!

Absolutely stunning!

I love Tiny and Snail cards so much and couldn't wait to receive my package! The artwork is exquisite and I love the sentiments of so many of the cards. One of my favorites it "Grateful for you in every season". I am so gratefult to have found Tiny and Snail and I love the new card box I got with my last order. It fits the cards perfectly!

Beautiful Card!

I bought this card for a very specific friend whom I had not heard from recently. She is a mycophile (fungus afficionado, mushroom lover, etc.) and absolutely adored it and called me to thank me for the sweet note and beautiful card. I would never have found a card like that elsewhere. You guys think of everything! Thank you!

There is a Magic About You That is All Your Own Mushroom Card

Feel Good

Another amazing card! I love color and this card - May the Sun Shine Warm upon Your Face - is so colorful and happy. The BEST sentiment for anyone. I feel good sending the card and the recipient feels good receiving the card.
Thanks for bringing joy to so many!!

May The Sun Shine Warm Upon Your Face (Indigo Bunting in Peach Tree)

So Useful

I love all the professionally designed cards on firm cardstock from Tiny and Snail. Delivery is fast and I love every message. I hope the recipients of these cards love them as much as I do. I always put a green arrow pointing to the back so they know where I bought your cards!

All The Swears and All The Prayers (Wild Roses)

Precious unique and special

These cards are so wonderful and I am happy to continue to buy and send them to friends and family to brighten their day. So unique and magnificent art

My Firefly — Gratitude and Encouragement Kit

Gift Pack Trio

Another well crafted card pack, glad to support.

Recent Purchase

Tiny and Small create such artistic and thoughtfully written cards. Love to support them in this endeavor.

Great quality, sentimental sayings and wonderful product!

Best Cards Ever

Tiny and Snail is simply extraordinary! The paper quality is top-notch, and every card feels special and substantial in your hands. Their designs are breathtaking - whimsical, thoughtful and truly works of art. But what makes them stand out even more is the powerful story of the sisters who created this company. Their creativity and heart shine through in every card. I can’t recommend Tiny and Snail enough!

Fun assortment to have in my stash.

These colorful designs and playful messages welcome the blank space inside for me to write the perfect tailored message. Nice to have the stash!

Pretty and precious

These are the perfect postcards for dashing off quick notes to the many people who make my heart sing. I plan to keep these in stock.

Set of 10 Grateful For You In This Very Full Season (Peony Postcard)

Inspiration for card writing

I was away in Scotland and knew I’d received the beautiful cards. I immediately started thinking of people I wanted to send them to back home. I looooove the sweet art work. I just sent one to my 87 yr old cousin in Scotland. I’m just she will love it.

These are wonderful cards to send to friends and family.

Country/region