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We are going to be showcasing some lovely greetings cards and mounted inspirational prints at Darby’s Coffee and Arts Lounge in Urmston, Manchester. Now it’s just a matter of managing the logistics of delivering all this good stuff and getting it all set up!

If you don’t know Darby’s already, you should – it is a wonderful little independent cafe and eatery on Flixton Road in Urmston, serving great food and home-made cakes. Plus, the people who run it are super nice :-)

And if homemade cakes wasn’t enough of a reason to visit (and it really should be!), then you’ll be able to buy some inspirational artwork from of Hello Inspiration too – happy days.

Caffeine and inspiration – what better reasons could you have for shopping local and helping business from your area to thrive?!

See you there!

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With that in mind, I set my brain working on a new collection of inspirational artwork designed especially for kids. I wanted to produce a some designs which would suit being displayed on a child’s bedroom wall, and would give the kids a set of guiding principles to consider as they grow up – some ‘Life Lessons’.

The result is still a work in progress, but I wanted to share the initial ideas that I am developing. These are simple concepts that are universally understandable, and which – coincidentally – apply just as well to adult life too!

If we can get children to start thinking about life in different ways, they we may just end up with a more inspired, kind and happy generation of children! Fingers crossed.

‘Life Lessons’ Artwork

So here are the three ‘Life Lessons’ artwork designs I have produced so far…

It seems like kindness is a severely underrated commodity these days. Just doing something good for someone without any hope for anything in return is a wonderful thing. And the strange thing is, even though we aren’t expecting it, the kindness normally does come back round to us (and the same goes for being unkind).

It sounds so simple, and in reality, it is. Honesty is the glue which holds relationships together – whether it is a friendship, a marriage, a family, a customer or a nation.

This is the simplest idea in the world, right? Then why do so many of us seemingly forget this basic and fundamental piece of advice for living our lives? Why do we insist on doing things which make us unhappy? Why don’t we measure every decision through a ‘happiness’ lens? It may not be the only factor which drives your life, but it should at least be a consideration.

Each of the three designs is available to purchase as an unframed print, a framed print and a mounted print. They look great on their own, but I think they really work amazingly well when displayed together – choose the life lessons that suit you and your child, and display them all side by side. Commissions welcome, so if you have a different set of words you would like to use, that is no problem.

Please also check out our kids name artwork here.

Life Lessons – ‘Be Kind’ Image Credit: Evelyn Flint/Texture
Life Lessons – ‘Be Honest’ Image Credit: Saral
Life Lessons – ‘Be Happy’ Image Credit: Meg Stewart

The post ‘Life Lessons’ Inspirational Artwork for Kids appeared first on Hello Inspiration.

Welcome to the third instalment of the Inspiring the Inspirers project – a visual design project that examines the nature of inspiration, and how it affects different people in their daily lives.

I have been working with Steve Brennan on a unique design for the last few months. Steve runs Bespoke | Web Specialists, a web agency in Preston in the north-west of England. The agency started 13 years ago and Steve has now grown it to an established company with 13 full-time permanent staff. The company was a finalist for Creative Business of the Year at the 2014 BIBAs (Be Inspired Business Awards). He is truly an entrepreneur at heart, having run businesses from the school playground before the internet was even a twinkle in a modem’s eye.

I wanted to work with Steve to find out what inspires the spirit of entrepreneurship in him. I started off asking about the origins of his business.

“I had always wanted to own my own business.”

“I was working as a print designer, and when the web came into being, it felt like an opportunity. I had always wanted to own my own business – even as a kid I had little enterprises on the go, selling football programmes and making short-run magazines.”

I asked what guidance Steve would he give to someone just starting out in business now.

“Talk to loads of people that have already done what you want to do, and listen very intently to them.”

“The landscape is very different now in this industry – and every industry I guess – but my fundamental advice would be the same,” says Brennan. “Talk to loads of people that have already done what you want to do, and listen very intently to them. Take ingredients from each of them to make your own unique business recipe. There is a certain element of being prepared to take risks I guess, but you have to ensure that you know enough to be comfortable taking them. Above all, don’t let any opportunities slip by – you never know what they might lead to.”

“I’m a big believer that the founders of Factory Records had the right approach – they made up their own rules and succeeded. I definitely see them as inspirational.”

Steve believes that risk is absolutely necessary in the life of an entrepreneur – in fact, he knows that merely being an entrepreneur is a risk in itself. When it comes to taking chances, knowledge is key – a measure of risk diluted with a gallon of research.

“The world needs more entrepreneurs because… it’s fun and exciting…most of the time!”

Armed with knowledge of Steve’s background and business history, I set about producing a set of designs that would mean something to him. He is a quiet and unassuming man, with the genuine air of someone who wants to push his business to deliver ever-better results for his clients. How would he react to a set of designs which attempt to capture the essence of his entrepreneurial spirit?

The final design we agreed upon, after exploring several different concepts, was the “Tunnel Vision” design.

Image Credit: Andrew Sutherland CC-BY-SA 2.0

Steve said “That sums up a lot in a simple phrase, keeping the focus, and also keeping positive – it’s a phrase I use a lot at work.”

“I’m going to hang this in reception in the office – I think it will help to show clients (and staff!) that we are serious about staying focussed on delivery”.

Personally, I love the boldness and the simplicity of the design – it is striking and immediately grabs your attention. I’m hoping to see this in the reception of Bespoke soon, ready to inspire the troops!

Click here to download a FREE screensaver version of the ‘Tunnel Vision’ design artwork

Just remember to say thank you to Steve for the inspiration!

You can view other projects from the Inspiring the Inspirers’ project here, with designs from Ellie Depp and Marie Betty Davis.

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In the meantime, I’ve also produced a simple set of kids name artwork, perfect for displaying in your child’s bedroom. Each piece will be personalised with your child’s name (obviously!) – some examples below. I would love to know what you think about them – please let me know of Twitter, Facebook, or drop me an email. Here they are…

Kids Name Artwork

I love the simplicity of these designs, and I think they will work very well in any child’s bedroom. They will bring a touch of identity and personality into your kid’s space. They will also make the perfect gift for a child of any age, even for a newborn to help them feel at home in their new surroundings!

These are not quite ready for purchase yet, but keep watching this space as they will be ready very soon!

Background images used (in order of appearance): Nicholas Raymond, Evelyn Flint/Texture Time, Penelope Else, Evelyn Flint/Texture Time, evilerin

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Here was a person who was willing to write so openly and honestly about challenges in her life, and how she has overcome them, that I felt sure we would be able to come up with an amazing design.

The first blog post I read of Marie’s was about why she loves vintage fashion. It isn’t really about fashion at all; rather it is about not fitting in, and not being able to wear what everyone else wears. Marie’s writing about the epiphany she felt when she discovered vintage clothing, and the confidence it gave her, was inspiring. She has also written beautifully about her battles with her weight, and reaching acceptance (just about!) with her physical appearance.

Before I even contacted Marie I had lots of ideas floating around in my head, but I wanted to get to know her so I could really design with her in mind. I started by asking who or what inspires her.

“My daughter Lucy is my inspiration, without a doubt. She taught me the meaning of unconditional love.”

“My relationship with her father was quite tumultuous, and broke down when she was only one year old, so it was just me and her for a long time. I realised I needed to do my best for her, not just for me. If I continued feeling ‘messed up’ it would rub off on her and may affect her in later years.”

“The other person who inspires me to work hard is my Dad, who passed away suddenly around the same time that I split from Lucy’s father. He was a hard-working and honest man. A man of few words, but those words were precious to me, because he always made a lot of sense.”

“Dad was a listener and he taught me not to always jump into things; to think before I make decisions.”

I wanted to dig further into Marie’s life and character, and was very interested in a recent experience she had with motivational speaker Sharon Amesu.

“I went to one of Sharon’s motivational events a few weeks ago. I became a tad emotional during one of the sessions, and at the end of the event, a lady I had never met before came over to me and said, ‘Excuse me, can I just say you have the most wonderful aura and persona about you. I can tell you are a lovely person. I just had to tell you that'”

“What a lovely thing to be told, I always used to think I was invisible to people, I just blended into the background. I need to tell myself I am wrong!”.

Having built up a really good picture of Marie and her life, I set to work creating some personalised inspirational designs for her.

I played around with themes of empowerment, self-confidence and defiance.

These themes came through strongly from her writing and from our preparation work for this project. So that we didn’t get too bogged down, I also came up with some more light-hearted concepts around fashion, mannequins and a rather forthright duck!

This is the final design Marie chose:

I wanted to capture something subtle, that hinted at the inner strength that I sensed in Marie.

“I love ladybirds, and I love this design!” said Marie.

“The words are a daily reminder for me that I AM strong and capable, if only I believe in myself.”

If this story and the Ladybirds design has inspired you, you can buy this design as a framed print, mounted print, poster and screensaver here.

You can find Marie on Twitter here.

The post Inspiring the Inspirers – Artwork Design for Marie Betty Davis appeared first on Hello Inspiration.

We’ve been slogging away at Hello Inspiration Towers (OK, Hello Inspiration Basement) and I’m super-pleased to be able to show off these four new greetings card designs. All cards are blank inside for your own message, but their fronts are anything but plain!

Here’s a sneak peek of what they look like…

Most Awesome Person – New Greetings Card Design

‘You’re the most awesome person I know (apart from me).’ Yes, you’re rather amazing. You’re pretty awesome. So awesome, in fact, that I can only think of one person who is more awesome… guess who?!

Amazeballs – New Greetings Card Design

‘Amazeballs’. I don’t want to blow your trumpet or anything, but you’re pretty amazeballs.

Super Awesome Fantastic – New Greetings Card Design

‘Hey There Super Awesome Fantastic Amazing Person’. Credit where it’s due – I could have gone on and on listing the superlatives, but hopefully you get the idea. You’re awesome. Amazing. Brilliant. Etc.

O.M.G. – New Greetings Card Design

‘O.M.G.’ Sometimes only a shaggy-haired cow can really help get your message across.

You can also make any of these new greetings card designs into a framed print, mounted print, screensaver or poster print. We’ll also turn it into anything else your little heart desires, apart from a handbag. Here at Hello Inspiration we frown upon photo-printed handbags.

We would love to know what you think of the new greetings card designs – which one is your favourite? Drop us a line to chris@helloinspiration.co.uk and let us know which one you like best, and we might just send you out a free sample!

The post New Greetings Card Designs Just Landed! appeared first on Hello Inspiration.

“Curiosity killed the cat (you’re a human, so you’re probably safe).”

Curiosity may have killed the cat (I can’t confirm or deny), but I find it interesting that so many people use the experience of that solitary feline to limit their behaviour.

Why wouldn’t you want to be curious? Curiosity is WONDERFUL. Curiosity is AMAZING. Curiosity is what drives the world forward.

Without curiosity we wouldn’t enjoy the new people, new experiences, new products and even new civilisations(!) that we’re all privileged to know and love today. We would be stuck in the dark ages without those people from our past who said “I wonder what would happen if…?”.

Our greatest engineers, inventors, explorers, scientists, doctors and pioneers in every field have to constantly question the status quo. They need look at things from a different angle, tinker with experiments and remain curious about the outcomes.

Curiosity is the fuel of discovery.

Don’t get me wrong, I feel sorry for the cat, but curiosity is too important to be afraid of. Get curious, stay curious, keep asking “I wonder what would happen if…?”.

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View the full gallery of Hello Inspiration artwork here, if you’re curious :-)

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One word that says it all – Push.

Move yourself forward, achieve greatness and do it all with this image staring you in the face. It is almost impossible to fail with this level of motivation coursing through your veins.

This is one of the very first designs I produced for Hello Inspiration, and remains one of my all-time favourites. The message is so simple, the image behind it is so bright and colourful, it all combines for a very powerful motivational message.

The design was inspired by an old saying which I love – “It is no surprise that the sign on the door to opportunity says ‘Push’.” I definitely agree – anything worth having is worth pushing for.

You can buy the ‘Push’ here as a greetings card, framed print, mounted print or computer screensaver. Perfect for a birthday present, graduation present, or a gift for someone who is setting out on a new adventure.

Is there anyone in your life that needs a push?

The post “Push” – Inspirational Greetings Card appeared first on Hello Inspiration.

Art by Ellie Depp is hosting a 3 day Pop Up Shop at the Showroom Workstation in Sheffield City Centre. This event will take place on the 18/19/20^th June (Weds, Thurs and Fri) @ The Showroom Workstation, 15 Paternoster Rd, Sheffield City Centre S1 2BX (Next to The Showroom Cinema)

Visit the exciting 3 day Pop Up Shop in June to find the most wonderful local products, with a selection of handmade delights ranging from art work, photography and jewellery to delicious chocolate, felted rugs and furniture. And most amazing of all, some greetings cards by Hello Inspiration!

PLEASE show your support by popping along to see what is on offer – contact organiser Ellie Depp for more details.

• Email: artbyelliedepp@hotmail.com
• Phone: 07590117972

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