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I had intended to do this as a 6 month review, but life happened, I blinked, and then 9 months had passed so here we are. Last September, I redesigned my portfolio and turned it into a platform where I could sell greeting cards, postcards and my very first zine as well as basic commissions and now prints.

 

First things first

Before I get into what I’ve learned, I want to say thank you for the lovely response I got when I launched and ever since. Thank you to anyone who’s bought a card, a commission or even just a sticker. Your support has added so much to this journey. I’m still so blown away that anyone would spend their hard-earned cash on something I’ve made. 

 The Story Behind: My Greeting Card Designs

What I learned setting it up…

You need to give yourself plenty of time

I set a hard deadline for my shop launch because I wanted it to coincide with a year of having my blog – don’t ask me why. But I definitely underestimated the amount of time I would need to spend tweaking and redoing bits and pieces. If I was doing it again, I would recommend breaking it down and to set deadlines for each stage as I worked my way through.

 

Test everything

Get proofs and samples of everything you make before bulk ordering, then be prepared (in terms of time and money) for there to be at least one typo or misprint because it will happen, no matter how careful you are.

 

Just do it

I’d put off setting up a new portfolio and store for so long because I thought it would be too hard, or no one would care, or because I was embarrassed. But now I’ve done it I’m so glad I did. If I can do it, anyone can – seriously.

 

What I learned keeping it going…

Listen to your audience

When I set up my store I added in the option of portrait commissions as a bit of a last-minute whim, but they have proved to be my most popular offering by far, so much so that I’ve had to extend to include couples, groups and patterns. I’ve even drawn a dog (they’re the same as people in my opinion)! Listening to what people have asked me for and the feedback they’ve given has helped me improve my offering so much while remaining true to the kind of work I want to be producing.

 

Selling your work works

I am a very reluctant salesperson, it makes me feel super cringey, and I hate the idea of just leveraging whatever audience I have through this blog or my social media just to sell things. But I’ve come to realise that the only way to get people interested in what you’re doing is to show and tell them about it. I came to that earth-shattering realization after two social media posts pretty much led to all of my valentine’s day sales. You don’t have to be over the top, but you do need to remind people and do a little bit of an attention seeking dance. Plus selling doesn’t have to alienate your audience, in fact, I think I probably have closer, more meaningful, relationships with the people I’ve drawn portraits for because it’s an exercise in making a connection as well as illustration.

 

Don’t go to the post office at lunchtime

This is just good life advice, but if you live in the UK and you have to post something the convenience of just nipping out isn’t worth the hours of your life you will spend in the queue unless there’s a meeting you want to avoid.

 

You need to be Jane Ryan’s Filofax level of organized to hit the holidays

Last year I left myself a month to get ready for Christmas, thinking I was prepared. I wasn’t. I should probably be donning my antlers and prepping now instead of writing this blog post if I’m honest. I had never realized how hyper-aware of holidays you need to be in order to run a store, especially one that includes cards and gifts, before and now I have so much respect (and fear) for everyone who manages to do it and make it look so smooth.

 The Story Behind: My Postcard Designs

What I want to do with it now…

Making a content calendar

This is marketing 101 but it’s something I’ve ignored up until now. I’m going to put together a schedule to remind me when I need to start thinking about seasonal work and to remind me to actually talk about my store.

 

Promote a little bit harder

On the back of that, I’m going to start actively promoting my store and making my portfolio more attractive. I’ve put the effort into making it and it would be a shame just to let it slip away.

 

Produce some new work

I’ve largely left the products up in my store unchanged since my September launch with the exception of Christmas cards and commission options. Taking the time to reflect on having had my store for 9 months has reminded me how much fun I had creating products and I want to do more of it. Plus, now I’ve stepped back from blogging a little bit I have some breathing space. So expect some exciting new things coming your way in the coming months.

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As I think I’ve mentioned about a million times now, I really want to learn to make more this year. I’ve now got some stamp carving on the go and I’m thinking about trying my hand at knitting. But today I want to talk about something extra special that I made just over a month ago whilst I was on holiday using The Workbench Box.

 

What is it?

The Workbench Box is a ring carving kit. It comes with everything you need to carve your own ring from the wax (and a spare in case you make a mistake), to the tools you need, some handy instructional videos and then the magic of Katie and Kirstie to turn your blue creation into something cast in silver or gold at the end.

You can carve your ring in the comfort of your own home and really take your time before posting it off to become something wonderful and shiny.

It’s worth mentioning that the ladies also do loads of classes, so if you want to have a full ring carving experience with friends or just have that bit of extra guidance I’d definitely check those out.

 

What did I think?

I loved getting the opportunity to make a piece of jewellery that’s completely my own. I ended up making something completely different to anything I owned before, and that juxtaposition (gold vs silver, chunky signet style vs more delicate pieces) makes the fact that it’s mine that little bit clearer.

The instructional videos that come with the box make it easy to get started and as soon as I’d made my first few cuts with the craft knife I felt really confident in my carving abilities, even though I was on my own. 

I decided to go with the box rather than the class to give myself that little bit of extra time to carve, because I know I’m a bit of a slow whittler and more than a bit of a perfectionist. Plus, it was a lovely activity to take with me on my solo weekend away.

 

Any top tips?

I don’t think there’s much advice I can give that’s not in Katie and Kirstie’s instructional videos at the start, so I think the main thing to say is to watch those and be patient with yourself.

But if there’s one thing I think I would have wanted to have known before I ordered it’s: know what you want to make before you start carving. Make sure you know what kind of ring you want to make before you start, using the helpful advice on carving and finishes, and stick to that plan. I’d also recommend working out where you want to wear your ring before you commit because I had a good half an hour of taking rings off and on to try and work out how to fit in my new piece.

Oh and if you’re carving for a special occasion make sure you give yourself plenty of time to order, carve and then have your ring cast.

 

Would I recommend it?

If you’re a big jewellery fan or if you just want something super personal, I would definitely recommend the Workbench Box. And while I’ve not been to one of their classes, from everything I’ve heard and seen (and tried through the self-lead box) I can’t imagine them being anything less than brilliant.

I’m already planning my next ring – I’m thinking something much daintier now I’m more confident with the wax. So, there’s definitely going to be a refill pack somewhere in my future.

 

FYI – This is not a sponsored post, just something I enjoyed and wanted to share with you.

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It’s time for another monthly round up of my favourite gems from the internet about art, design and creativity. April seems to have been a great time for long-form writing, so get comfy and make yourself a cuppa then get reading.

stop watch illustration

SHORT READS, IF YOU’VE ONLY GOT A FEW MINUTES:

ISLE OF DOGS | Making of: Animators | FOX Searchlight

If you’ve seen and loved the wonderful animation in Wes Anderson’s new film Isle of Dogs you need to see this super short mini-documentary where animation director Mark Waring and lead animator Jason Stalman begin to explain some of their meticulous process in a new short documentary, “Making of: Animators.”

 

braille neue typeface by kosuke takahashi wins one for information-equality

Kosuke Takahashi’s font which combines both English and Japanese characters with their braille counterparts is both a break through for universal design but also a wonderful thing to behold.

 

Finding Your “Product-Market Fit” as a Creative Freelancer

You know I’ve been struggling to find my place recently, so I found this interview with Any Miller AKA Dr Pizza of Creative Pep Talk (and just being a great illustrator) fame is absolutely fascinating. Plus it’s a great kick to get moving and defining if you need one.

 

15 Ways that travel inspires creativity

Now that we’re past Easter my mind has firmly turned to dreaming about a summer holiday (as yet unplanned). If you’re in a similar position, or you’ve got some travel on the horizon Jean Julien’s illustrated guide to how travel can inspire creativity is so fun you might feel like you’re on holiday just reading it and seeing his photos from the road to Big Sur.

Dentures illustration

LONG READS, IF YOU WANT SOMETHING TO GET YOUR TEETH STUCK INTO:

Key projects in London’s design history

Aiga’s Eye on Design recently did a full London guide, which is well worth a read if you live in London or are interested in learning a bit more about the capital’s relationship with design. One of my favourite pieces was this run down of London’s design history – there were definitely a few projects in there I didn’t know about!

 

How to effectively design everything at the last minute

Pablo Stanley’s twelve steps to procrastinate like a professional are equal parts true and terrifyingly accurate. Bonus points for the wonderful animated illustrations which accompany this piece.

 

Meet the Designers behind Your Favourite Book Covers

You all know I love book cover design, it’s a big part of why I started my monthly Book Club. Here Alexxa Gotthardt talks with five designers whose book jackets are routinely hailed as the leaders of the pack and crowd favourites, giving you a little bit of insight into the people behind the covers you admire on shelves.

 

The Controversial Process of Redesigning the Wheelchair Symbol

It has its own emoji, but where did the new Accessible Icon come from and why did it need an update? Design history and universal design fans, this one’s for you.

 

What about ‘The Breakfast Club’?

While this isn’t necessarily about design/art, it is one of the best things I’ve read this week. Molly Ringwald’s discussion of The Breakfast Club, and what it means to watch it knowing there’s so much that would be deemed problematic today is sensitive and insightful and one of the best critiques that takes into account the issues and the joy of a film at once.

 

Mind the Gap

With the release of the gender pay gap statistics this month and equal pay day, I’ve been thinking a lot about pay dynamics. One of the best pieces I’ve read about in the design industry comes from Ruby Goss who shares her story of how “we are discriminated against in the most insidious of ways – by the gender pay gap” for Intern Mag and it’s a good read.

WHO TO FOLLOW, IF YOU WANT TO SPRUCE UP YOUR INSTAGRAM FEED:

This month I shared a list of ten smaller wonderful art instagrammers you should be following, so if you’re looking for some new favourites I’d start there. But here’s a short list of some of the best from that list, plus a couple of extras!

@dorotaliwacz

Dorota Liwacz was recommended to me by the lovely Asti and I’m so so so glad that I’ve found her. I know I say this all the time but her characters have real character, and I love how jam packed her illustrations are – each one is over flowing with goodness. Plus look at all of the pink!

@thanksforbeingu

I stumbled across Son Eunkyoung’s illustrations on Twitter by way of some absolutely stunning Korean posters for Call Me By Your Name. Since then I’ve fallen in love with every layered pencil portrait, scene and sketch I’ve seen – each one is tender and full of emotion.

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A little while ago I went to Design Thinkers Bootcamp, a week-long course to teach you the tools you need to get to work creating human-centred products and services and to reinvigorate your excitement for making. I had a great time and came away with a few new tricks and a bucket load more confidence.

I told a friend about the course and we got to talking about design thinking, and he asked me what design thinking even had to do with design anymore – “hasn’t it just become a karaoke tool for solving business problems?”. And as with all tough questions, I didn’t have a good answer then but I did think of some things I wanted to say on the journey home. These are those thoughts.

First, what is design thinking? “Design thinking is a human-centred approach to innovation” (Tim Brown, CEO of IDEO) which is based on a number of tools and processes commonly used by designers. However, its use is not exclusive to design as it can be applied to almost any problem. There are four rough stages of design thinking, as defined by the Design Council’s double diamond:

  1. Discover – where you research the problem and most importantly everyone it might affect through interacting with them
  2. Define – where you analyse and narrow down that research into small nuggets of human insight which you can work on
  3. Develop – where you start to create and prototype solutions based on those small nuggets of insight and test them with users as you go
  4. Deliver – where you create a final product which is feasible (can be built), desirable (wanted), and viable (commercially sensible)

As there are lots of people practising and selling different versions of design thinking, these stages often take on different names or get broken out into smaller parts. But, the overall process and the focus on the user remains through every model.

That similarity remains because design thinking always serves a specific purpose. It’s used to create practical, well-developed, and most importantly human-centred solutions to real-world problems.

So what does that have to do with “design”? Well that all comes down to how you view design. Personally, I think Todd Olson’s definition works very well here:

design (verb), as a discipline: plan the creation of a product or service with the intention of improving human experience with respect to a specified problem.

(It’s worth reading his thinking behind that definition)

Design isn’t about making things pretty, as it is often seen to be, it’s about creating products or services that work for real people. That means that design can, and ultimately, should be a part of every business.

That said, I will admit, it has been co-opted and made trendy. As I mentioned earlier so many businesses have made their own branded versions, either to sell to clients or as classes. Often when design thinking is rebranded it can become overly codified or seen as a stamp to put on a project which instantly makes it “design”. Just going through the motions of discover, define, develop, deliver with no understanding of why you’re doing it or taking the time to create more of a culture around putting people at the core of solutions, of research before business goals being set, of testing and failing fast, isn’t going to solve all of a company’s issues. It certainly isn’t going to make every business a design business.

However, I don’t think that’s something we should be too worried about. Those changes take time, and there’s plenty of space for the design community to start to shape how those changes are going to impact the future. What’s more important is that human-centred solutions are becoming the norm, that businesses are starting to actually engage with their users to make products they need and ultimately want to use.

Design thinking certainly isn’t perfect, but it’s a force for good.

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As part of something I’ve been working on for work (my actual job!) I’ve had to research universal design, and I’ve ended up coming across some wonderful pieces of design which I wanted to share with you all as inspiration and as a reminder that inclusivity should be in built to the extent that you don’t even think about it.

Before we jump in, what even is universal design? Universal design, sometimes known as inclusive design, “is the design and composition of an environment so that it can be accessed, understood and used to the greatest extent possible by all people regardless of their age, size, ability or disability” which to me just seems like common sense. Open what you make up to the world, and bring as many people in as you can from the start, because we work best when we work together and feel included.

So now we’re all on the same page, here are a few of my favourite examples of universal design.

OXO Good Grips

OXO’s range of Good Grips kitchen utensils are frequently cited as great examples of universal design with good reason. Sam Farber and his wife loved to cook. However, when she developed arthritis it became increasingly difficult for them to share a lot of the tasks. Initially, the Farbers thought it was just part and parcel of her condition. But, after a while, he realised it wasn’t Betsy it was the fact that the tools she was using just weren’t fit for purpose. So he, and his son John, set up OXO working with industrial designers SmartDesign. The team they created brought in users from different age groups, with different hand sizes, manual strength and manual dexterity abilities to test their products. Thanks to that their ergonomic designs, featuring pressure-absorbing non-slip handles are so much easier to use for everyone than standard kitchen tools. They started with peelers but since then they’ve made salad spinners you can use with one hand, measuring jugs you don’t have to bend down to read and so much more. That range has won over 100 design awards and produced huge sales.

The Electric Toothbrush

What do you use to brush your teeth? If you have an electric toothbrush you might not know that they were originally created for patients in hospitals and those with reduced motor skills because they require you to move your hand far less than a manual brush. A manual brush requires lots of small tricky movements, that can become nearly impossible if your joints stiffen or your muscles weaken. So electric toothbrushes were developed to be easy to grip and to clean your teeth with a minimum of effort, which means they’re great for a wide range of users including those of us who are just super lazy.

The Ford Focus

Car design has traditionally been focused on attracting young drivers. However, in 2001, the designers at Ford were encouraged to design for the needs of a much older market. In order to design for a different user group, the team at Ford were encouraged to build empathy with their target market. So, they built what was known as the ‘Third Age Suit’ which simulated the effects of old age such as decreased mobility. When wearing the suit the design team discovered just how hard it was to even get into and out of one of their previous designs. Taking their new findings back to the drawing board the Ford Focus was designed with seats that are higher and doors which are bigger than any other design before. They also made the dashboard controls easier to use by those who have lost fine motor control. By taking into account the needs of their user, they might not have designer the sexiest car, but they designed a supremely usable one which is why it’s one of the best selling models of all time.

Apple Multi-touch

John Elias and Wayne Westerman set up a company called FingerWorks in 1998 and developed a number of multi-touch input devices including keyboards and touch-pads. Westerman was motivated to develop the multi-touch devices, inspired by playing the piano, after suffering from a stubborn bout of tendonitis which he developed through years of designing. Their products helped those who suffered from RSI and other illnesses that would make it difficult to use standard keyboards. They were a cult hit. Then in 2005 their tech was bought by Apple and made part of the first iPhone release. That multi-touch capability has been one of the key usability features of the iPhone and made it such a hit with so many different groups of users.