2018 was very much a whirlwind for me as it was a year of new experiences & definitely one for pushing myself out of my comfort zone. It was also a great year for allocating myself quality time to really explore the direction of my business & creative career & now I'm feeling really clear with what I want to achieve in the future.
There are many things that I would like to celebrate but here are my top 16 highlights (from left to right & in no particular favoured order):
- Taking a design trip to the beautiful area of Cinque Terre, Italy & having a much needed sketching adventure.
- Being selected as the Runner Up for the Female Design Champion Award 2018 by The Design Council & Anti-Copying in Design.
- Seeing new design collections come to life through my licensed ranges (this bedding is from my range with DENY Designs).
- Being selected to film & present a design segment for ITV's Good Morning Britain.
- Unexpectedly being selected as the cover girl for the super popular US publication Where Women Create (which also included a 10 page article).
- Experiencing two fun media based photo-shoots with the renowned Alex Cameron & being signed by Lime Management for all my media and speaking related work.
- Seeing the launch of my Creative Coaching venture, which I had been working on for quite some time & feeling overwhelmed by the lovely response & global client sign up.
- Improving my own botanical knowledge skills & practicing self-care by committing to volunteer work at Arley Hall Gardens once a week (you can follow my adventures on @plantgirliris). I've always loved nature and the plant world has really worked wonders for my new design work, along with giving me that all-important headspace & a sense of calm that nature brings.
- Visiting amazing Havana in Cuba, which is now deemed as my ultimate go-to happy place. It was a real feast for the eyes & I was in designer heaven. Since my return it has sparked many new design creations & motivated me to finalise my book title & put the project in motion.
- Overseeing the launch of our brand new amazing members' club #thecolourgang via my sister company Make it in Design.
- I introduced more physical, in-person workshops over at the gorgeous Reloved Works.
- Pushing myself outside my comfort zone further whilst being trained by top TV producer Gareth Campbell at The Presenter Studio.
- Seeing two bespoke projects I designed air on Channel 4.
- Collaborating with the talented Simion Hawtin-Smith of Reloved Upholstery on numerous projects, a personal favourite was presenting together at the Manchester Live Halloween event & at Grand Designs.
- Being selected as a finalist in the workshop category for Shed of The Year 2018, followed by a high volume of press features around it all.
- Last but not least... gifting myself time for that all-important creative freedom to design for the love of designing!
My career has been one exciting rollercoaster however I had come to a crossroads & I was in desperate need of a new direction & some new challenges & 2018 definitely gave me that! It was tough & challenging at times but equally amazing & I'm so proud of myself for trying new things (despite feeling scared). I have big goals that I want to go for this year but I like to have the mind-set that you can achieve anything if you really put your mind to it.
I'm so ready for you 2019!