Our second ever Friday Feature is the lovely Jen from March and Bloom. What Jen doesn’t know about good branding and graphic design, isn’t worth knowing! With a focus on brands who want to change their industry or community for the better, Jen brings heart, soul, and passion into her design work – creating brands that really make a difference.
We asked Jen some questions to get to know more about her:
Because graphic design is the absolute best. Because the moment I learned what graphic design was (at age 15) I was absolutely hooked. Because I cannot imagine doing anything else with my life. Because graphic design is everywhere and it’s one of my missions to make people understand its importance.
It kind of started by accident though it was something I always knew I wanted to do. When I was on maternity leave with my second child, I had the opportunity to pitch for a dream project via a former coworker who was starting a skincare brand. I had been doing a little freelance at that time but nothing major, so I spent a lot of time crafting a beautiful proposal for her. I sent it off…and was hired! Little did I know that would be the kickstart of what is now my own design studio. I realized while working on that project that the autonomy I now had to make my own creative and time management decisions was golden. After spending 15 years working for agencies, this was a dream. Especially being a mum to two young children at this early point (a 3 year old and now a baby).
Many people think it “doesn’t make a difference”. Total nonsense…Good design makes a HUGE difference and should always infuse substance with style, research with planning and intelligence with commonsense.
Trying to do all the things all the time and all at the same time. As a small business owner I have a nonstop, running list of client deadlines. Then I have another list of “business tasks” that need to be done. Marketing, new business outreach, sales, accounting, IT support, copywriting, social media planning, social media creation, client follow-ups, hydrating, caffeinating. You name it, if it’s not a creative design task, I have trouble motivating myself to do most of them. I am a member of a monthly business coaching group and that has made a world of difference in understanding that I don’t need to do everything all at once. I also have accountability when I say I’ll do something one month – I need to have that done before the next month.
I never really had a classic “first day” in business. My business grew very organically and one day I realized, “wow, I have a business!”.
Sounds trite but I feel seriously fortunate and honoured to do what I do. I surround myself with mostly other female small business owners and it’s a wonderful space. It’s challenging for sure, but honestly, I can’t imagine not being a part of it. Running a small business immediately puts you in this “club” of people who get it – regardless of what their business is. I also love being a creative sounding board for so many businesses, not just clients but others who I know as I am more than happy to share my opinion on branding and even just life as a small business owner.
A homemade cup of coffee, the right music (I specifically select music that goes with what I am about to design), Sharpies and tracing paper are where I start. Sometimes I take a stroll through the grocery store and spend a good twenty minutes picking up packaging and really looking at their tiny details. Also a run or a walk in our local common – fresh air is a huge one for me before I start work on a new project or even if I am stuck and can’t seem to get anything creative out of my head.
Absolutely love it and do not do it nearly enough. There are so many little ways I try to be creative outside of my business and so many more I’d love to. I love baking and cooking and find those both creative, especially when it comes to plating. Or if it’s baking, deciding what the finishing and/or decoration on top looks like. If I buy flowers from the shop, I like to make my own arrangements – playing with size, scale and colour. I also love drawing and put so little time into it, and even bought myself an Apple Pencil thinking I’d use it all the time but have used it very seldomly.
I don’t think there is enough space in this interview for all of the random creative ideas I have BUT top two are as follows: First, a city illustration series of all of the cities I’ve ever traveled to. I have done four so far (London, New York, Barcelona and Marrakech) and absolutely loved creating them. They are hand-drawn and take two elements from that city and put them together in a composition (usually one is a piece of known architecture from that city and the other something a bit more organic). Maybe I sell them as prints one day? Maybe I print them and hang them in my house? Maybe they just live on my computer? No idea, but I’d love to make time to do more of them.
The second hobby I’d like to try one day – making my own holiday wreath for our front door (just need to figure out where to buy the materials!).
The juggle is real. I often feel like I’m borrowing time from myself all day and all week. If I take an hour out for a workout now (or for a meeting at my kids’ school or a lunch with a client), that’s one hour less to work later which means I have to take an hour from tomorrow. I often feel I am in a deficit of hours but things generally seem to even out at the end of the week. I do think the juggle is much more manageable because I am in charge of my own time management. I can create timelines for my clients (for the most part) and also (for the most part) they are very flexible if “life” comes up and pushes a task back by a day or two. Another way I handle the juggle is by setting boundaries for work hours with new clients, trying not to work late at night if I don’t have to, and lastly by constantly running to school pick-ups (because I’m always trying to do that “one last thing” before collecting the kids).
We’re sure so many women will relate to Jen’s feelings around the juggle of life, not having enough time for creative hobbies, wanting/trying to do everything but needing to step back. It’s such a tricky balance and yet, as Jen says, being in charge of your own time does have its advantages too.
If you’re looking for a branding or graphic designer who will help your mission-led brand ignite change in your industry or community, go take a look at Jen’s Instagram (@marchandbloom) to see some of her gorgeous work for clients.
If you haven’t already found us over on Instagram – why not come say hi and give us a follow. We would love for you to join the conversation.
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