On the Path

Still Time Away

Field Notes

Analogue Designing Reminder to Update Your Spoonflower Shop

Inspiration

The Liberty Style Morris & Co Wallpaper Books

Studio Notes

How I Work When I Travel How I Create My Designs

Final Thoughts

A Thought for the Journey

Still Time Away

As I am writing this we are still camping out in an apartment near Westmead Hospital in Sydney. We are so grateful to have a place to come back to, wash clothes, prepare meals and reset at the end of every day, but we are all still missing home terribly. Thankfully, Morgan is now on the path to recovery, and we can begin to look forward to the simple things I have missed – spending quality time with my whole family, sitting on the back porch with Kevin and Rowan, and enjoying a leisurely morning tea together. When we will return home is still up in the air, but I am feeling more comfortable entertaining the idea today than I did a week ago. Our daughter has had a few setbacks but is on the mend. So I'm writing this on my very old laptop listening to helicopters, ambulances and the associated sounds of being in a noisy city - something we, thankfully, do not experience at home.

It has made me think about how we were originally planning to spend four or five days away from home, and it's ended up to be six weeks! I've been able to continue working, although in a limited way, during that time. So I thought I'd share a list of the supplies I've brought with me as it seems that packing the right things provides flexibility.

Hopefully, when you open the next newsletter it will be one created in the luxury of my home office, with a desktop computer, a comfy office chair and two golden retrievers lounging at my feet. I'm sure that will be the case. Happy November everybody!

** Some of the sights on my walk to the hospital every morning

Analogue Designing

The Post-It Technique - Tossed Half Drop Repeat

The tossed or scattered repeat is a wonderfully versatile design style. But creating a tossed half-drop is even better! It's particularly suited to fabric, as the motifs are arranged in a way that does not rely on precise pattern matching. This makes the fabric more economical to use, with less wastage when cutting out pattern pieces. Another advantage of a tossed or scattered repeat is that the design can be viewed from any direction and should always make sense. This makes it ideal for products such as gift wrap, where the pattern needs to look just as good no matter how the paper is turned or folded.

To help create fluidity in your design, you will rotate all the notes in a different direction each time you add a motif. And remember, best practice is to add one motif at a time! I've outlined the steps for you below.

To create your own tossed half drop repeat you will need 4 post-it notes.

Draw a motif in the middle of you first note and trace this to the other notes so they are all identical.

2. Arrange the notes as a half-drop as shown. Add an arrow to the bottom right corner so you can keep track of the direction your notes are facing.

3. Turn the notes 90 º (so they face 3 o'clock) and draw a new motif in the middle.

4. Return the notes back to the original position (12 o'clock) and trace this new motif on all other notes.

5. Rotate 180º this time (so they face 6 o'clock), and add a new motif.

6. Turn the notes back to the original position (12 o'clock) and trace this new motif on all other notes as you did before.

7. Rotate 270º this time (9 o'clock), and add a new motif. Return the notes to the upright position and trace the motif on all notes

8. Continue quarter turning the notes, adding one motif, turning them back to 12 o'clock and tracing the motif on all notes until the whole surface is filled.

9. Cut note 3 in half and arrange your notes accordingly. Your scattered or tossed repeat is finished!

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Reminder To Update Your Spoonflower Shop

A big thank you to those of you who have been in touch to remind me to update my Spoonflower shop. Being away from home and promising yourself you will remember to do that important thing later doesn't always work - especially when there's a deadline involved! Get it done by the 5th of November. So for those of you who have forgotten, consider this your timely reminder 😊

The Liberty Style

Liberty London, historically known as Liberty & Co., was founded by Arthur Lasenby Liberty in 1875. It initially sold imported textiles, silks and decorative goods from Asia and the Middle East but soon became associated with innovative textile design, embracing the decorative styles of the Arts & Crafts movement, as well as the flowing lines of Art Nouveau. Over the years, Liberty's fabric collections have become famous around the world, with the iconic Tana Lawn cotton and its delicate floral prints remaining popular today.

When I think of Liberty, I immediately think of intricate detail, beautiful colours and patterns that are finely detailed. Their designs often feature small-scale florals, trailing botanical motifs, delicate leaves and flowers, paisleys and flowing organic shapes. There is a lovely sense of movement within the pattern, with individual elements working together to create a cohesive whole. I love how so much detail can be incorporated into a relatively small repeat without the design feeling overwhelming. The motifs may be intricate, but the overall composition feels considered.

Of course, Liberty is not limited to one style. Its collections have embraced many different influences over the years, from traditional florals and paisleys to more graphic and contemporary designs. Yet they all share a love of pattern, a respect for detail and an understanding of how colour, scale and composition work together.

Images sourced from Alice Caroline.com​

Designing in the Liberty style was covered in the Repertoire course and I must admit it I found it harder to recreate than I thought. I highly recommend having a go yourself. Perhaps practice using the analogue technique I covered earlier to create your own Liberty tossed half-drop design.

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Morris & Co Wallpaper Sample Books

One of my lovely Instagram friends recently messaged me because she had found a wallpaper sample book by Morris & Co. listed on Facebook Marketplace and she thought I would be interested. She was right! Once I'd seen it I had to have it. During Brad's quick trip back home several weeks ago, he collected the package and brought it down to me. I've looked at these designs hundreds of times over the years, but holding them in my hands, seeing them at scale and in the actual colours is next level.

Manufactured in the 1990s the books were created for use by interior designers, to show samples of the stunning wallpaper designs to their clients. 11 designs in varying colourways are included. I especially love how they've included the type of repeat (straight or half-drop), the colour names and the size of the repeating tile on the back of each sample. Gold! Both Brad and I have fallen in love with the book. I found two other sample books that were part of the range. I've ordered them and they should arrive from Germany very soon. Each book is a work of art in its own right, so Brad is planning to build a box for each book to mount on a wall in our home, to display the covers. Very bespoke. Very us.

How I Work When I Travel

When I'm away from home, my working day tends to look a little different. Rather than tackling the bigger tasks, such as finalising collections or preparing submitting work, I use the time to focus on the smaller, less intense parts of my practice. I spend my time sketching new motifs in my sketchbook, experimenting with patterns or palettes, reading books and articles, or working through a tutorial to learn something new. These are tasks that I can pick up and put down around whatever else the day brings. I actually enjoy this change of pace. It gives me the opportunity to experiment without the pressure of a finished outcome and often plants the seeds for ideas I can develop further when I'm back in my usual workspace. The more intense tasks I leave to be completed when I return home.

One of the insights that's come out of this long time away has been discovering that by packing the right equipment I am not limited in what I am able to work on. I have been able to work on both my art and my business, and to my amazement, I have been able to continue working on a fabric collection! So I thought it might be helpful to share with you a list of what I packed, as you may need to do the same.

Analogue Items

My essential everyday non-negotiable thing is my 'Daily Pack'. My 8cm x 8cm sketchbook, lead pencils, eraser, fine liners and sharpener fit inside a small pencil case. I can take it out and play whenever I want. I will be adding a small 15cm ruler when I get home.

Here is a list of the other analogue items I have with me:

• Tracing paper - helpful when I want to create a mirrored repeat in my sketchbook or I get a motif just right but want to reposition it or move it to another page
• A set of compasses for planning circular motifs such as rosettes
• A plain notebook to jot down ideas, thoughts, sketches, plans I have and want to work on when I get home
• My acrylic markers - they have allowed me to add colour to my sketchbook drawings and create mindlessly in the evenings and mornings
• Post-It Notes
• Reading material - books or articles that I find inspiring or educational

Digital Items

My two non-negotiable digital items are my iPad and my laptop. They allow me to take my work time to the next level. Presently Phoebe Fabrics are waiting on my 'Riverview 2' collection. I was thinking that I would be able to finish it a month ago when we were originally scheduled to return home. Whoops! But having the iPad and laptop has allowed me to continue working until I can access my three monitors and my desktop. Here is my digital packing list:

• iPad
• iPad pencil
• iPad pencil charging connector
• iPad stand
• Laptop
• Mouse
• Light board (always with me in the caravan)
• Associated charging cords
• Any passwords that I may need to access websites etc

I've made patchwork covers for both my iPad and my laptop. Besides keeping my tech protected they also help keep everything organised. I can see at a glance where they are in the jumble of packing and unpacking that is a constant nuisance when travelling. Adding a pencil sleeve into the iPad cover ensures I don't misplace it. I'm so glad I did that!

You may remember that a previous tech purchase (perfect for when I'm away from a power source) is 'Humphrey', our portable power bank. It is my constant companion when caravanning and I am so glad we splurged on him. He gives me that little bit of insurance and allows me to work for hours, including at night, independent of where I am or what the weather is doing. (Anyone else give their objects/cars etc names?)

Future Thinkings

To create a finished repeating tile I require the desktop version of Illustrator. This old laptop can open some of my smaller files, but I know it won't be able to deal with my larger ones, or indeed a full collection. That came to the fore when we were travelling along the Murray River last year. Phoebe Fabrics asked me to edit something in a collection I'd turned in months prior. Luckily, it was a name change, and not an actual repeating tile. But the situation made me think I should come up with a solution as we are planning to travel more, not less, and I'd love to work on completing full collections while away if I choose to. The ultimate goal would be to be able to work in the same way wherever I am - at home or while travelling. But can that be a reality?

I love the flexibility of drawing directly onto a tablet screen but I need to access all the tools in the desktop version of Illustrator to make a finished repeating tile and therefore hopefully have the ability to complete a full collection from start to finish while on the road. After a little bit of research it seems that a Surface Pro laptop might be a solution, even if it is an expensive one!

My main question is if it is powerful enough to run Illustrator and to work efficiently and drawing on the screen feels comfortable. I need to ensure my creative process remains intuitive and fluid and the process won't feel 'clunky'. I think you know what I mean.

I'm also keen on looking into a small printer that will fit in the caravan. I find that I rely on printing out my designs to work on determining the scale, something I find really hard to do, but is crucial when working on a collection.

So there will be lots of research and thinking to be done. I will have something to occupy my mind when I eventually return to sitting on our back porch, feeling grateful that these past couple of months are only a memory. I'd love to know if you have solved this issue or if you have any suggestions for me. I'm sure there are so many great products already out there that I am not aware of so please let me know!

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How I Create My Designs

A good Instagram friend asked how I create my designs, and particularly how I achieve smooth lines. So I thought I'd share my process, and the tools I use.

I use a combination of Illustrator on the iPad and on my desktop. I flit back and forth between the two as needed. My basic workflow is to use the iPad to draw the motifs (because I love how easy it is to draw with the pencil on the screen) and to use the desktop for refining everything else, like editing my linework, changing the scale, finalising the colours and creating the final pattern tile. Saving my files to the cloud allows me to access my work on both devices so I can move effortlessly between the two. I just need to remember to let the file sync before opening on the other device!

Step 1 - Motif Development and Layout Creation

My first step is to sketch with pencil and paper. Then I draw and redraw the motifs over and over until I have a 'feel' for the flow of the design, the size and shape of the individual motifs and how they work together (The Principle of Five)! I love that feeling when you add a certain angle or curve and the different motifs sit together pleasingly and it feels just right. That usually occurs after redrawing them many times. Once I'm happy with my individual motifs and how small groups of motifs fit together I move on to determining the layout of the repeat tile.

When creating a trailing floral, mirrored repeat or half drop, or any design where the layout needs to be worked out, I do that on paper too. I like to use tracing paper and my light board to help. Creating that elusive flow is so important and an art in itself. I struggle with achieving that. So this step often takes a lot of time. I've come up with a few templates to help me. I will share those with you in the next newsletter. But if it is a geometric pattern or a design where the layout of the motifs is straight forward I go directly to working on the iPad.

Step 2 - Create the Motifs on the iPad

Once I'm happy with the shape and I feel the repeat has a good chance of being successful, I scan my drawing or take a photo with my iPad. I trace over my sketch on the iPad in Illustrator. I prefer to use the pencil tool because it's easy to use and results in smooth, even lines. I often use a combination of widths but keep these widths consistent throughout the whole design. For example, I may use the pencil tool with a width of 1pt for all the main shapes like the outline of all the petals, but add texture lines and details with a 0.75pt or 0.5pt width.

To ensure I get smooth curves I sometimes remove anchor points, change the anchor point from a sharp angle to a curve, and manipulate the anchor handles until I am happy with the curves. I make sure my lines have a rounded or cap end - this helps to hide the ends of the lines when they butt up against each other. Then I make sure all the lines meet up neatly, are tucked under or over others and make sense. This takes time but I find it a satisfying process.

I have started to incorporate the Blob Brush more in my designs as I am feeling more comfortable with editing the shapes it makes by deleting anchor points or manipulating the handles just like I do with the Pencil Tool. Thank you again to Delores Naskrent's Skillshare Course I watched when attempting to embrace Image Trace! It sparked the idea that I could manipulate the shapes I created with the blob brush. Sometimes inspiration strikes from the most unexpected places!

Step 3 - Get to Work on the Desktop

The final step is to clean up my motifs, work on the colours and scale, test the pattern and ultimately finish and save my repeating tile on the desktop. I do use Pantone Connect in Illustrator and find it an invaluable tool, even though the signing in process can be annoying sometimes.

I am constantly moving between the iPad and the desktop throughout my whole process, so I often 'batch' what I am doing. For example, I will work on developing the main motifs on the iPad, then move to the desktop and refine them all at the same time. I find it is more efficient and results in greater consistency. (I also draw the final edits of all my motifs in the sketching phase all at once. I have found that I am rarely able to draw in the same way the next day if I come back to finish something. So if I want to draw a flower from different angles, I know I need to draw them all during the same drawing session. It's bizarre how the creative process works!)

I hope this sheds light on how I create my designs. Please feel free to reach out and ask me anything you aren't clear on. I'm happy to explain further.

I encourage you to share your process with others. We are all looking for new techniques and ways to make our art and what better way than to learn from each other. So share your process on Instagram, Facebook or wherever you connect with other designers.

A Thought For The Journey

Right now I am being reminded that life doesn't always unfold as we expect, and sometimes our goals and plans need to take a back seat to the things that matter most. But even during these times, we can find small ways to keep moving forward, nurture the dreams that are important to us and keep experiencing a version of normality in our lives when things are far from normal.

Until next time,