The job hunt has begun!

After quite a bit of decision making I have decided to go on the search for a full time job.  Working for myself has been fantastic and I've loved every minute, but whilst there are tons of advantages to being a freelance designer there are also negatives.  I'm self motivated by nature so have no problem with getting on with my work, everyone gets a little distracted from time to time but on the whole I'm a hard worker and am happy with designing without needing someone stood over me making sure I'm not procrastinating!

One of the hardest parts I find about being a freelance designer is the lack of human contact, I imagine it is a lot quicker to improve your designs when you are in a studio full of other creatives whom you can bounce ideas off.  Working on your own can often be quite hard to see what is missing in a pattern or illustration, so you end up leaving it and coming back to it with fresh eyes the next day.  I have a fantastic online network of wonderful designers but am looking forward to getting into a studio full of them and feeling the pressure of a fast paced environment.

It can be quite difficult, when writing covering letters and CV's, to get your passion for the job across. You have to maintain a certain level of professionalism and can't really start warbling on about how designing is all you would dream of doing, how you sometimes feel like your bursting with ideas and are so keen to learn and progress through a company that you would jump at any opportunity!

So I've written this blogpost full of my passion for the industry and a bit about myself too.

Why do I love pattern and designing for print?  That has to be one of the hardest questions to put into words, I honestly can't imagine doing anything else, I love to draw, I love to come up with lovely colour palettes, I love to see my designs go from initial idea to finished digital piece to the final printed product.  I enjoy everything about designing prints and illustrations, patterns really appeal to the organised side of me and it takes a good eye to make sure the composition works and the colours are well placed so the pattern flows without your eye being drawn to one particular part of it.

I've always been a hard worker in everything I do, I worked part time whilst at University and took part in quite a few societies aswell as the usual student nights out.  I was constantly juggling all of my commitments, but I thrive on the feeling of being under pressure.

I've worked in restaurants for over 8 years and I would much rather the restaurant was crammed to the seams than only having a handful of tables.  I can somehow stay calm and organised when the environment around me is chaotic.  This is the same for being in the design studio where I am more than prepared to push myself and my design abilities, I find I've designed some of my best work when there was a tight deadline looming over me.

My drawback is I can be a little shy at times, and yet I have probably signed up and achieved more than your average 23 year old.  I single handedly sourced and designed all of the costumes for a University theatre production (my assistants backed out at the last minute), I completed my Gold Duke of Edinburgh which included going to Edinburgh on my own to volunteer on a children's summer camp, I've travelled over to America a number of times on my own,  I took up kickboxing (which no one expected!) and probably one of the biggest - I set up my own business.

Everyone has their flaws but I don't let mine hold me back, I'm always tackling my shyness head on and just go for it despite sometimes feeling terrified!  One way I get over this is to be prepared, I like to do a lot of research so I go into a situation feeling confident in my answers, it really helps you to feel ready for anything that might get thrown at you.  That is until the interviewer asks you a rather nasty question you've not thought of, in which case, don't panic!

Matthew's being helping me to prepare for interviews and such as he has been through quite a few and now appears to be an expert.  It's quite funny he's helping me with regards to interviews because even though he landed himself a fantastic engineering job, he has had some rather embarrassing moments on his job hunting journey.  I don't plan to follow in his footsteps! I won't go into detail as I know people who know him may read this, but as long as I make sure to double check the city in which the interview is I should avoid at least one of his mishaps...

I've updated my LinkedIn profile so my CV is available online for you to have a look at and I've launched a new website which has my portfolio for everyone to take a look at too.