Inside a Surface Pattern Designer’s Sketchbook

When it comes to having a low barrier creative outlet I love to just sit down at times and simply start a pattern in my sketchbook without thinking too much. I do it whenever I need a creative jump start and try to have it hand at all times so I can make use of time that I would otherwise waste on trains, planes and queues looking out of windows, staring into space or getting sucked into a social media session! It is a nice break from the ‘serious’ surface pattern designing I set myself to do most of the time. I find it’s nice to just have a bit of pattern play sometimes!

My sketchbook is a simple squared Moleskine cahier. I take the square grid as a starting point and challenge myself to draw something new every single time, although I do explore and repeat themes and shapes at times. Sometimes I'll start out sketching with pencil and thinking a bit more about composition but mostly I'll force myself to use pen and markers to encourage making quick and intuitive decisions and discourage too much thinking. I like how I never quite know what the page is going to look like when I start. I try not to care too much about the end result as drawing in this specific sketchbook is meant as an creative exercise, but if I do end up with something I particularly like, I might recreate it digitally. I'll then either add it to my portfolio of licensable prints or upload it to one of the print-on-demand websites I submit to such as Society6 for products or Motiflow for fabrics. 

I love to see the sketchbooks of other designers and artists as it's an uncensored peek into their creativity. I find that it can be quite a personal thing as most things I draw in this sketchbook aren't meant for public display but I also like to be able to share more than finished designs, so I'll try to post more sneak peeks inside my surface pattern design sketchbook!