Saturday 31 May 2014

Triumphs and Tribulations.

Again it's been ages since I published a blog post. I have been busy finishing up Module 4 of the Art and Business of Surface Pattern Design (see previous post). It has been really full on trying to submit to all the live briefs and I put an a great deal of effort to make sure I did my best.

So why is this post called "Triumphs and Tribulations"? Well it sums up my life as a designer at the moment. I've had some really good moves forward and then times where I have been rejected and dejected. It really is hard to find a balance between the two and yesterday I spent a lot of time pondering this range of emotions.

Module 4 has really helped me hone my style and be confident in my viewpoint and with this in mind I tackled one of Spoonflower's weekly contests, "Terrariums". I was thrilled when I placed third with this. I really felt that my design was putting all that I had learned into practice. My design, "Contained Cacti", has become my most popular design!

So a triumph for me which I was really proud of. Then the self doubt creeps in again. There has been some feedback from my live brief submissions and unfortunately none of my work has been singled out. I'm really pleased for those that have been highlighted and the community is so supportive but you can't help but be a little bit deflated. From high to low and back again. That's the life a designer I suppose. Does anyone have good strategies for staying positive? For me I think it's looking towards the next challenge and just keep drawing, designing and making...