A completely different take on the Sturgeon Moon this month, practicing some of the skills I am learning at the moment…
A bit rough round the edges, but I like the concept, playing with simple lines and uncial-style lettering. And of course my metallic watercolours that I love at the moment!
Just before the lockdown began, I was approached by an old colleague to help with this logo. They needed it quickly, and had some ideas of what they needed, so I was able to get to work and get the logo designed for them.
They wanted something professional, but showed that they were a healthcare company. They had ideas on colours, and the sort of typography they wanted, so I got to work on the icon and putting it all together. It was all done as quickly as we could, which was odd as after this job I had weeks of very little or no work due to the quarantine!
Here are a few of the ideas I came up with…
Before we decided on this final design..
You can find out more about Stirling Harmston and what they do here: stirlingharmston.com.
By the end of May the lockdown was taking it’s toll slightly, and whilst I have had a trickle of work, a 2 year old, many DIY and personal creative projects and normal life to get on with, I decided to take on another challenge…
Lettering Daily teamed up with @calligraphymasters and held a June Lettering challenge. Here are the prompts…
And here are my pieces…
As you can see, these vary wildly from very finished and skilful to doodles and in one case, a photo of just my practice runs as I was struggling with paper and ink bleed…
I tried very hard to try some different styles, and come back to them a few times, and I was studying for a course on uncial calligraphy so here’s a bit of that in there too…! I enjoyed the 3D lettering, and the pencil sketching, but found it difficult to think of an idea, mock it up a few times, and then do it in ink/paint etc. all in one day, day after day… but that was the challenge…! The photos vary from being well lit and nicely composed, to dark and snappy… sometimes it was late at night and I was tired.
The final prompt tied in with the end of my Uncial course which asked for a scanned in piece of calligraphy to be turned into a digital file, and I was so pleased with the results I thought I’d post it too! (More about these courses soon.)
I think I’ll give daily challenges a miss for a little while, I am getting a bit busy, but this was a good way to spend some time and improve some skills. You can see work from others participating in this challenge on Instagram #cmldchallenge.
Devon Carers needed a new logo for their new initiative, Carer Friendly Communities. I have been working with Devon Carers for 10 years, so I’m very familiar with their existing branding and their voice. The idea is to get local businesses, organisations and companies to sign up, get information and training on how they can be aware and support carers, and the carers themselves can use these businesses etc. and get support, help and awareness. You can read more about the scheme here.
They asked me to design a new logo for the scheme – that stands out and is recognisable, but used the existing Devon Carers logo and branding. It needed to be used as a badge/sticker as well as a logo for other uses, so I designed it in a circle, using the colours and fonts from the branding palette.
You can see this project in my portfolio here.
Here is July’s moon… the Buck Moon!
I really took my time, used some of the lessons I have learnt from tutorials and courses recently, and here it is. Watercolour paint and ink on watercolour paper.
Below are a few images of the in-between stages!
I graduated in 2009, just after a massive recession. I didn’t go from A-levels to University, (that would have been too easy…) After my A-levels, I went to the local college to do my Art and Design Foundation Course (a necessity before an Art or Design based degree back in them days). After completing this I spent some time working and saving money, then flew to Florida with an older friend of mine, who was moving her family to Florida to live and travel on a sailboat. I stayed and sailed with them for 6 months, from Florida, down to the Keys, to the Bahamas, Bermuda, The Azores, Northern Spain and finally Mevagissey and then Plymouth. Once I was home, I ended up working as a barmaid at my local Yacht Club, meeting someone and moving in with them, and starting a job as an apprentice sailmaker. After a year, I realised this was not for me and I really wanted to go to University, so I reapplied for Graphic Design, got a place at Plymouth University, and the rest, as they say, is history.
I graduated with a 2:1, and before I had even completed my course I started applying for jobs, in a tricky job market. My first job out of Uni was “Communications and Information Officer” for Devon Carers Link, working in Exeter 2-3 days a week. I enjoyed the job, but it was only part time, and whilst studying, I had helped a few friends with graphic design for their companies etc. After a small quarter-life crisis, I decided to take matters into my own hands and go for it… become self employed.
I started Laurapakora Design in the May 2010. The name comes from a nickname I was given by a friend at school that stuck, and I thought it would be easier for people to remember than my actual name. I had a MacBook, a spare room turned into an office and 2 clients. I wrote a business plan, had to go and have a meeting with the bank manager in person to open a bank account, and bought myself a domain and an email address.
I had 2 clients to begin with – some of the work from my job at Devon Carers Link was now a freelance job, and some work for a friend’s local business. I designed a logo (unfortunately I can’t find my original logo, but it was pink script… not my proudest moment) and built a website and slowly built up a few clients.
By the end of 2011, I had built up a portfolio of work, taken on some more permanent clients and started a contract with a local business. They ran 2 businesses – Daisy Memories – biodegradable wicker and bamboo coffins and urns, and DCUK – the Duck Company, selling wooden ducks (and other animals eventually too). I rebranded – you can see the 2 versions of this logo I used for the next few years:
I worked a few days a week in Totnes with this company for a few years. I took on more and more work, and was nominated and shortlisted for the local Young Entrepreneur of the Year in 2012. In late 2013 I was contacted by the Met Office and asked if I would like to work a 3 month full time contract in their design studio. I left the Duck Company and Daisy Memories at Christmas, and started at the Met Office in January 2014. I loved the job, it was great fun and I enjoyed working part of a team. I was nominated for a commendation at their Annual Awards Ceremony for some work I did on icons and presenting the weather online and in an app. I started an Etsy store around this time, selling cake toppers which I had been making for friends and family at the time.
By the middle of 2014 I was going through a bit of a rough patch personally, and due to this I started working down at my local yacht club again as a barmaid to top up my earnings. The job evolved and grew into Front of House Manager – I was already on the committee and involved heavily in the sailing side, and had been doing some work for them anyway, and this became more committed. I carried on working freelance and at the club, until the summer of 2016, when I decided I needed a break. I left my job at the club, packed up or sold most of my belongings, and flew out to Australia to see my sister. I spent 2 months in Australia, visiting friends, and a few weeks in Thailand. I flew home with a sketchbook full of ideas and thoughts, and ready to go back to work!
Since late 2016 I have been working hard with some new businesses, branching out and taking on some more and varied work, working on the more creative side of my business, and of course, having a child. I started working part time for Paignton Zoo at Christmas, and although the pandemic has slowed down, postponed or cancelled some of my work, I’ve been using this time to work on my website and business, learning some new skills and getting some ideas together for new ventures.
So, what’s next…?
As I mentioned, I have been working on learning new skills and thinking a lot about the business during lockdown. My life has changed a lot since I started!
Firstly, I am going to give the website a bit of a refresh, nothing major, but it needs updating and tidying up. I’m hoping this will be done in the next few weeks. I want to take on some different projects, I have been working on lettering and book design, so I’m hoping to branch out n this direction a bit more! I also want to improve my social media presence too.
Secondly, I want to work on a more creative side of the business. I have some works in progress ready for the Etsy store, and will be re-launching soon with more products. I’ll post more soon, but there will be more paintings, lettering and calligraphy and cake toppers.
Thanks for your support over the last 10 years, and here’s to at least another 10!
June’s moon… went a bit awry! I started with a completely different idea. It went a bit wrong, and I ran out of time, so I started again with a different idea – a quick watercolour drawing with a bit of calligraphy.
And of course, it’s June, and despite the Coronavirus and lockdown and everything else, the world keeps turning and this month we celebrated Summer Solstice.
New finite metallic watercolours, watercolour and ink. And a pagan summer solstice blessing.
Tristan approached me about a banner in 2019. We came up with a design for his boat as he was planning to sell fresh fish caught by him straight from the boat – something that could be seen from afar, and described exactly what he was doing. I designed this banner and got it printed ready for our town’s annual Pirate Festival – where he was a big success! He carried on selling direct from the boat to customers throughout the year.
Fast forward to April 2020 and with the lockdown in place, Tristan has gone from strength to strength and is selling not only fresh fish he has caught but also fresh fish and seafood sourced from other local fishermen, straight from his boat. He has a spot on a pontoon in the harbour, and people can follow him on Facebook, see when he’s in and come down and buy from his boat, queuing outside, 2m apart (of course) and get some lovely fresh produce.
I designed an updated banner for him, and some leaflets for a weekend of selling from our local caravan park, and of course, bought some fresh fish straight from his boat… lovely stuff! A nice little lockdown project, and I supported local small business too!
Before lockdown hit, I had been looking at some courses to improve my drawing/painting skills. I learnt the basics years ago at Art School, and drew, painted and sketched a fair bit during my degree, but since then, until recently, I hadn’t really done a lot. A few gifts for people, sketches and layouts for work… not a great deal. In the last year or so, I have been doing more, working on my lettering, calligraphy, doing more for fun, working on artwork for people or for work, and I decided to refresh my skills.
I was already planning on doing an online course, I didn’t have a lot of time, so I wanted something flexible, and that I didn’t have to go to far (or leave the house at all if possible) as I was planning on doing it in between looking after Willow, and in the evenings. I did some research and at the time Udemy had a deal on their courses, and seemed to have the best reviews, so I bought the course. Within a few weeks, I had gathered some supplies, and then the lockdown hit. I bought several more courses… and I began.
This course was just over 11 hours, and most of the videos were around 10-15 minutes long. Most of the videos, I drew along with the instructor, and made a few notes, then either went off and did my ‘homework’ or re-did the tutorial at my own speed. The instructor – Jaysen Batchelor – was very good at explaining the concepts, and going over how to do things, and I was surprised at how quickly and how well I managed to draw most of the ideas and lessons. I am not a beginner, but there were definitely some things that looked or felt very intimidating that were actually not too bad, some little tips here and there that have greatly improved my drawing and all in all a good chance to practice.
Here are a few of the many, many pages of drawings and sketches that I did during the course…
And some of the pieces I was particularly pleased with…
In particular, I really enjoyed drawing the perspective landscapes and buildings, it took me back to when I was 16-18, doing A-level Design & Technology, and I loved the look of the images. I also loved drawing people, specifically faces. I have always avoided it as I thought it was hard, and that I could never do it, but once I took the classes in this course, I really enjoyed drawing eyes, noses, mouths, ears… I found it hard to stop!
I have signed up for two more courses on Udemy, another illustration course incorporating coloured pencils and paint, and an ink and watercolour course, so once I’m done I’ll report back…! This course was brilliant, having joined the Facebook page and seen other people’s work as well, I definitely think this is a good course for beginners right through to very advanced who want to brush up on skills and concepts. The videos were the perfect length, I could fit one in here and there, or sit and go through a few at a time, and there were resources for you to use as well (imagery, grid sheets etc.) The course is normally £149.99, I had a discount code and bought it during a sale, and paid £19.99, but it was worth more than this! Well worth a look if you have some time on your hands and want to learn.
Final catch up post – here’s May’s moon…
I thoroughly enjoyed doing this, I think it took me about 3 days all in all! Here’s some images of the work in progress, pencil sketch on watercolour paper, coloured and inked in with fineliners, calligraphy ink and watercolour.
I’ll post June’s moon this month, along with the Summer Solstice work too.
