“Wild” The Pattern Challenge by Mel SS23
Having been a long-time lover of Melanie Johnsson’s work, I was excited when I saw she was running her pattern challenge again this summer. I’ve never taken part, but always enjoyed seeing the work that other designers create from it.
If you haven’t come across it before, the idea is that Mel posts a list of prompts (one prompt a day for a month) and invites creatives to design patterns interpreting them. This season it was The Wild Edition. The prompts were completely random and fun.
The timing was perfect for me. I was between projects and it’s always nice to have some direction during quiet weeks. The prompts were great too – it was just the loose brief that I needed to try some new things, practice my craft and play!
I challenged myself not to overthink it and not to worry about it being perfect. Instead, focus on trying things and seeing how they turn out. It ended up being a lovely refresh. Bonus was that it actually got me posting on Insta too!
If you’re interested in purchasing any of these designs or you’d like to develop custom prints, get in touch – we can work together to create something amazing.
Multicolour Large Scale ‘Blob’ Print
I love making a large scale prints for kids. Playing with proportion always gives a really playful look. Bigger prints like this are not always the most commercial, but on the right garments, can be total bestsellers! And is there anything better than adding fun faces?
‘Lollipop’ Conversational Print
When I sketched this design out, it didn’t feel like anything special. But, that’s where the power of colour comes into play! This pattern was brought to life with scattered bright, neon, contrasting colours and subtle illustration detail.
Ryan Gosling ‘Heartthrob’ Repeat Pattern
When I saw the Heartthrob prompt, there was only response: Ryan Gosling. Using looks from his Barbie movie promo tour, I created a pastel toned repeat pattern. Is it a good design for kidswear? No. Is it now my phone wallpaper? Yes. Was it great getting to stare at Ryan Gosling while sketching. Definitely!
Pretty Blue Floral ‘Meadow’ Print
This prompt put me back in my comfort zone – sketchy all over florals. I love ‘em. I kept it loose and mixed up the style of the flowers to give it the meadow feel. The colour palette turned out really well too. I like the warm blue and lilac with the pop of bright red to give it an overall lift.
Illustrated ‘Tequila’ Inspired Geo Print
A Tequila prompt, when I was designing for kids, was tricky! I focused on the fun you feel after a shot (not me, I just feel sick) teamed with classic representations of the spirit and Mexico. This kind of layout was a new style for me – one that I will be using again for sure.
‘Riviera’ Beach Hut Pattern
Inspired by my seaside home, I choose to draw the Essex Riviera! Beach huts line my local beach, all painted in cute pastel colours. The storytelling of this design worked really well. It would look great on swimwear too.
Abstract Splatter ‘Aura’ Pattern
This was the last prompt and such a different vibe. There had been a lot of conversational prints up until this point so I chose to interpret the aura prompt in a much more abstract way. I layered up different colour splatters to create real depth in the pattern. Can totally imagine this working well on sportswear, not just for kids either.
Neon ‘Dot’ Print
I started using this stamp technique a little while ago. It’s a really nice way of giving flat colour (used for screen printing) some depth. Love how the scattered layout turned out and how the different sized dots make it a really interesting pattern.
Cheeky ‘Monkey’ Illustrated Print
I find characters a bit challenging. Sometimes they turn out great, sometimes they are just missing a bit of… character! I always say I’m a print designer, not an illustrator and characters are where that shows up. In the case of these cheeky monkeys, though, they are full of character!
All prints for this challenge were designed as seamless repeat patterns with Pantone references. Can’t wait for Mel’s next #patternchallengebymel.
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