I just finished the embroidery test for my new floral spring tote bag and I’m very happy about the result, I would like to share a bit of my process with you.
First I transferred my drawing to the computer and used a software to create the embroidery stitches. This is the time I decide how the stitches are going to look like, witch direction they are going and how long they are going to be. (Did you notice the flower in my computer is the same as the one in my mug? They are all part of the same collection!)
Then it’s time to choose threads with the best colours for this project. I chose 2 tones of pink, a dark yellow and a dark green.
Did you know my embroidery machine has a name? I call her Fofina, she is the studio pet! At least that’s how I treat her, I adore her but some days she gets a bit grumpy. Today, she was in wonderful mood and gave me gorgeous stitches! I group all designs together so I could save some fabric (I always do that for tests).
After I took out of the machine, I notice I could make the leaves a bit fuller, so I got back to the computer to adjust that. Quality is very important for me, that’s why I always test each design before making it available for purchase. For the final version, the flowers will be scattered in the front of the bag, it will look very delicate.
What do you think about the project so far? Do you have any curiosity about how I create illustrated bags? Send me your question in the comments!
Yesterday I heard in the radio that only 9% of the people keep their New Year resolution by the end of January. That’s so depressing!
Well, I’m determined to keep mine this year! My main resolution is to do things I love and share more here! This year I want to care more about enjoying the process and be happy about every step. That includes drawing more, having more fun with my illustrations, expressing more my feelings and ideas and experiment more with design and photography. Be more artistic and less shy. Let myself out a bit more! Focus more on creativity and worry less about the hard part of the business.
How about you, how are you keeping your resolutions?
Here is just a quick update. In 2023 I’m increasing my range of products, introducing new bag styles, ceramic mugs and new wall décor. Some of these products will be available exclusively here on my website, others will also be on Etsy.
I’m also experimenting a bit with my visual communication, please feel free to send me feedback!
Let me know how are you doing and if you would like to share any goals for the year please leave me a comment!
Hi! Can you believe the year just flew like that? By the end of December I always like to reflect on what I accomplished and what are the goals for the future.
What are you most proud this year?
My illustration studio is a very small company that I started in 2021, introducing illustrated and embroidered products and making the lives of people more beautiful. I hope my creations brought a smile to your face, either by bringing warm memories to your walls, helping you carry your errands in a stylish way or surprising your special ones with the perfect gift.
2022 in review
So many new products were released this year! Here is a small sample of some of my most popular creations:
Picking a favorite is really hard but if I had to choose, I’m very happy with…
The embroidered tote bag
Not only did it have the best reviews and feedback, but I was also very proud to see my designs out in the world. If you haven’t checked them yet, I definitely recommend having a peep and keeping them in mind for your everyday errands.
I also need to mention how happy I’m for having launched two pattern collections. It’s amazing to see how some of you used my patterns this year as fabrics and wallpaper in your homes. I hope they added a bit of fun to your lives!
The Year Ahead
I’m very excited about what is coming for 2023. First up, I’m increasing my range of offered products, introducing coffee mugs and other new illustrated products, they will be available exclusively on my website. Also, new pattern collections are on the way!
Thank you for all your feedback, I appreciate it so much! I’ll continue sharing the behind-the-scenes and latest news.
Thank you so much for being part of my life in 2022. I’m so grateful for your support.
When I thought about Christmas and Winter I always remember happy moments from my childhood. One of those moments were watching Christmas movies. I grew up in Brazil, where Christmas happens during summer. I’ve never seen snow until I moved to Canada, so watching those kids playing in the ice and snow was fascinating for me!
One of my favorite movies when I was a kid was Home Alone. I love movies from the 80s and 90s and I thought that would be the perfect inspiration for my new winter collection.
Choosing the elements
I watched the movies again and did an analysis of some key elements, you can read about it below:
I wanted to design some people but I didn’t want to use the thieves or Kevin’s family. Instead, I focused on characters that barely have a screen time during the movie, like the ice skaters, choir singers and shoppers. I also got inspired by some of the house wallpapers, overall colour palette and ornaments.
Characters: Ice Skaters, Shoppers, Choir Singers, Kevin and Santa Claus
Elements: Wallpapers designs and Santa House
Miscellaneous: Toys, Presents and Christmas ornaments
I designed the elements in my own style and then digitalized using Adobe Illustrator. My goal was not to recreate the movie most famous scenes, instead I tried to illustrate the fun atmosphere of Christmas and winter in the 80s and 90s. I really enjoyed dressing the characters in vintage clothes and vibrant colours.
Slide the picture below to see my original drawings and the digitalized version
Slide and watch the magic!
Creating the Patterns
For this collection I decided to create 5 hero prints,5 secondary prints and 5 blenders.
Hero Prints: the statement ones! Patterns with characters, lots of elements and colours.
Secondary Prints: patterns with smaller elements and medium complexity
Blender Prints: abstract patterns with limited colours
I tried to create patterns that could be used not only for Christmas but also for the whole winter, so colours include not only the basics red, green and golden but also some whites and blues to add a bit of ice and snow to the mix.
Mock-ups
I always like to visualise how the patterns are going to work in products, here are some tests
Printing Fabrics and Licensing
This collection available for purchase in my Spoonflower shop – that means you can shop fabric by the yard and create your own projects.
I ordered a small quilt to make sure colours will look all right, that’s how it’s going to look like:
Producing Embroidered Products
As usual I’m offering some of the designs in an embroidered version. The winter tote bag is a must have, and the hoops are a great idea for decorating your house or for giving as gifts. Visit my Etsy Shop to see what is available.
What did you think about this project? Did you like it? Let me know in the comments!
It’s been more than a year since the last time I drew a surface pattern design collection. Reading is one of my passions and drawing a book collection has always been in my plans. I’m also a big fan of the visuals in the movie You’ve Got Mail, since the main characters are owners of bookstores and there are books everywhere. I’m specifically attracted by the decoration with so many bookshelves and cozy objects, I find it simply brilliant. With a bit of inspiration and lots of imagination, here is a bit of my process creating The Book Lovers Collection.
The Book Lovers Collection
This collection is perfect for book enthusiasts, writers, students, all people who loves vintage vibes of old paper books, typewriters, lots of coffee and a cozy environment. Adding a hint of humor, warm elements and colours, it’s a perfect collection for back to school in the fall or to enjoy the whole year.
Deciding what to draw
I decided I wanted to get most of my inspiration from the movie You’ve Got Mail, so I watched it again. There are so many things to get inspired, like the Shop Around the Corner, or NY in the fall, or even the Fox Books store. But the place I would love to seat and read was actually Kathleen Kelly’s brownstone house. You can read my analysis of her living room here.
I wanted to have a mix of characters, objects and miscellaneous designs. Watching the movie, I tried to focus on the people who visited the house, on objects, patterns and colours that decorate the space. I divided those in 3 categories:
Characters: the people who frequent the house
Elements: The furniture and larger objects
Miscellaneous: Small objects that decorate the place
With that in mind I drew each element by hand in my own style, and later digitalized using Adobe Illustrator. Don’t be surprised if you don’t see a likeness to Meg Ryan, Tom Hanks or Greg Kinnear, that was intentional. I placed these characters in new situations and tried to focus in the book lovers theme. I want my drawings to appeal to all book lovers, not only fans of the movie.
Slide the picture below to see my original drawings and the digitalized version
Slide and watch the magic!
Creating a Pattern Collection
For this collection I decided to create 4 hero prints, 6 secondary prints and 6 blenders.
Hero Prints: the ones with more colours, more elements and higher complexity. All the characters are in the hero prints.
Secondary Prints: patterns with medium complexity, moderate use of colours, medium contrast and no characters
Blender Prints: simple patterns with limited colours and no complex elements, low contrast
When choosing colours I always try to imagine if the patterns were transmitting that cozy, cute and fun atmosphere. My goal was to create an attractive universe for book lovers, with patterns that work well in different applications.
Trying a few mock-ups
It’s always great to visualise how the patterns are going to work in products, so I always make a few mock ups to test.
Printing Fabrics and Licensing
I decided to make this collection available for purchase at Spoonflower – that means you can shop fabric by the yard and create your own projects.
In order to sell on their website we need to print prof the designs and make sure all colours are fine. I ordered a sample of each fabric on a cheater’s quilt (an amazing option available on their website, you can make one for yourself!). Here is how mine is going to look like, in case you need some inspiration. (If you would like to shop these fabrics visit my shop ).
Producing Embroidered Products
And of course I wouldn’t miss the opportunity of offering some of these designs in an embroidered version. So hoops and tote bags are available featuring some of the icons from the collection. Visit my Etsy Shop to purchase them.
I hope you enjoyed learning more about my process. I find it amazing and surprising to see how much we are able to create with few pieces of inspiration. As the times passes I’ll have even more items to grow this collection so keep in touch! And please let me know what do you think in the comments!
This year started with great productivity for me. When we are happy at our work, everything flows better, isn’t right? Since I started creating illustrated embroidery designs I’ve been more relaxed and stable in my process as never before.
One part of me was able to lower my expectations and focus on simple things. I guess on the surface it might look like as I’m not pushing hard or not trying to do anything complex or new. But it’s really interesting how our mind works. As I create a lot of simple designs, I’m having a lot of ideas and I guess you will see some very original projects here if you keep in touch.
You can’t have new ideas if you are not creating. At least that’s how it works for me. I need to do constant research and produce tons of things to start merging all the ideas in my mind. I have way more concepts than I have time to explore them, but I’m not anxious. It’s such a pleasure to create and I’m glad I have a huge list of subjects, I can just pick one and go.
This week I’m launching some floral designs for Valentine’s day and they are inspired by Botanical Illustration. This is a subject I’ve been always thinking about exploring and it’s a constant presence in the interior decorations I’m attracted to. I’m going to add more designs to this first launch but if you enjoy them you can shop the hoops on my shop.
I hope you are having a great start of the year! Keep in touch! Cheers!
I got an embroidery machine. A beautiful, amazing machine and I’m enjoying every minute!
Did I ever tell you I worked with custom embroidered products from when I was 15 until my 20s? When I was teenager, my parents opened an embroidery shop and I worked with them for a long while. We used to make mostly hats and t-shirts. Themes were more casual and we didn’t focus on home decoration.
Working in my family business, 1997. I’m the one on the phone.
A few weeks ago I went to Brazil to visit my parents, and they still have the same shop. While I was explaining my project for illustrated products, my mom insisted that I should buy an embroidery machine. That thought actually crossed my mind a few times but I was not thinking seriously about it. But she was confident I should get a machine now, and I should start creating embroidered illustration.
Well, I got myself some courage, cave in a bit of my savings and here it is. A lovely Brother Innovis NQ1700e.
Her name is Fofina
The machine come with many designs but of course I’m not so interested in using other peoples designs. I want to create my own illustrations and convert them in stiches. For that I use the same program my parents have been using for the last 20 years, a Brazilian software called Bordarte.
Bordarte and I, a partnership of more than 20 years
I’m amazed at how beautiful anything looks as you transform them in thread and stitches. I decided to start as simple as possible so I’m creating just embroidery hoops. Some are ready to shop, and others are custom designs. After that, my next step is to get back to the tote bags, but this time, embroidered.
Check some of my first creations:
A custom name embroidered flower hoopSome sparkling Christmas designs with golden tread details A monochromatic hoop to decorate the studio
It’s been a lovely experience. I really enjoy the texture and the cozy feeling of these pieces and I’m thinking in more ways to explore the machine and software possibilities.
This is just the beginning! I hope you enjoyed my big news and keep in touch to see lots of new cute embroidery designs coming in.
Drawing patterns is an old dream and I did my first course on the subject in 2018 (with the lovely Elizabeth Olwen on Skillshare).
I got way too busy with other things, time passed and I forgot the little I learned.
This year I said: the time has come!
I enrolled in a course by Ana Sanfelippo at Domestika and it is exactly about what I wanted to learn: tell stories with patterns.
1. Chose the theme
NBC Universal
I was inspired by a short scene in the movie Gosford Park. I love the bedroom furniture and ladies style.
If you want to read my full analysis of this bedroom click here.
2. Define what to draw
My drawings were divided in 3 categories:
Characters: the ladies who socialize in the bedroom Elements: the furniture and window Miscellaneous: small objects of the room and wallpaper details
3. Decide where to use the patterns
Early on I decided I wanted to apply the patterns mostly for decoration. Fabrics, wallpapers and art prints are my main goal.
4. Search for references
I always like to get extra references for my projects, so they feel very unique.
For this project I also got inspired by:
Chinese scrolls and vases
French Toile de Jouy fabric and wallpapers
Images: British Museum and Pattern Observer
5. Draw the elements
This part took forever but it’s so important! I drew all elements by hand in my personal style, then digitalized all elements on Illustrator. It was a very long and exhausting process but now that I’m done I understand how important it is to draw each element very carefully.
Slide to see before and after!
Before and after
6. Pattern creation
For this collection I drew 10 patterns, but in this first moment, I’m publishing just 3:
Micro elements
Vertical Stripes
Brick / Toile inspired
7. Have fun with mockups!
I can’t finish an illustration without testing on a mockup. That’s how I adjust colors, proportion and other small details. When I worked as an architect, I couldn’t live without 3D models and mood boards.
I guess my brain still works the same, I need to see it in the real world!
8. Print fabrics and licensing!
Ok I’m not there yet! I’m still waiting for my fabric samples to arrive, but we will get there and I’ll be here updating you ASAP!
In the mean time check this super cute video I did for my my Instagram, speaking about my pattern process.
Gosford Park Scene: NBC Universal / Video Music: Spring @iksonmusic
If you love it and would like to see more, please check my portfolio page:
Thank you so much for reading! Tell me what do you think about it in the comments!
Hi there! It’s been a while I’ve been developing a style for my brand. For long time my logo was just an acrylic painting and my colors were overall basic black and white. Nothing unique.
While their style is completely different from what I want for my own brand, seeing what they’ve done really opened my eyes. I never thought too much about developing an identity. It goes way beyond the logo, it’s more about the feeling you have when you use the website or visit Instagram, is also what kind of impression you have when you receive correspondence.
I’m responsible for the way you perceive me
Being aware of that, I started to research color palettes, fonts, textures and overall feelings I wanted to express. It’s been a lot of research and planning and it’s an ongoing project.
The key words for the studio communications and design are elegant, delicate and modern.
Montserrat is my brand typeface
I chose Montserrat because it looks clean for printed publications but also friendly for Internet in general. I also really like how many apps have at least one variation of Montserrat in their library. It makes easy for me to keep using some of my favorite tools, like WordPress & PicCollage.
A lettering logo
Since I’ve been working with lettering lately, it just makes sense to develop a logo based on my handwriting. I participated in a hand lettering course by Martina Flor and one of the projects was to develop your own brand. I had a great time developing this logo and I’m happy to use it on my personal communication.
An updated icon
I’m going to keep the “studio doll” as portfolio picture for social media, promotional materials and other initiatives. She was redesigned as a digital icon and now I can apply to different contexts and colors.
Branding colors
I wanted to create a feeling of approachability. It was important to balance a modern and delicate side, so the brand has a mix of warm and cold tones and vibrant accent colors.
Functional Colors
Background Colors
Accent Colors
Mood boards
To make sure I was able to achieve the aesthetic I was aiming for, I studied texture and color combination with a few mood boards. I wanted something feminine, professional and efficient.
I also didn’t want my communication to appear not caring or impersonal.
Stationary Application
The new style will be used on my business cards, promotional postcards, documents like invoices or meeting notes and envelopes.
Social Media Application
I created templates for my Instagram stories and other social media applications. The goal is to have a consistent communication in all my online channels and always refer to my brand name. I usually don’t sign my pieces when they are lettering works. Also there are some occasions when my signature is not visible on a picture.
Having a brand template also helps protect my creations.
Studio Wall Application
The new lettering can be used to decorate the studio walls and reinforce the brand image. At this moment I actually don’t have a dedicated studio but I like the idea of having a place, specially if in person meetings become normal again.
This new brand includes many elements that are important for me. It’s quiet and objective enough to let my illustrations stand out but it’s warm, elegant and inviting. It values my creative work and shows how much I care about quality.
There is much more to develop in the future, like photography guidelines and illustrations that are made specific for the brand. It’s an ongoing project and so far I’m very happy about it. How about you? Leave me a message!
