I am starting to feel like a ‘designer’.
Two years ago, after fifteen years in full-time work, I left my job. Writing that still feels slightly odd, not because it was dramatic, but because it marked a very clear change in direction.
ANNE INSKIP, YORK, UK
GRAPHIC DESIGN FOR BEGINNERS DESIGN LEVEL 1 COURSE
GRAPHIC DESIGN LEVEL 2 COURSE
I’m especially glad to write this because it was a testimonial like this one that helped me make the decision myself. University wasn’t an option for me, so I started looking for other routes into graphic design that could sit alongside paid work. Flexibility mattered, as did having regular contact with a tutor. Some courses I looked at o ered only monthly sessions, which felt too hands-o for the way I wanted to work. I was also clear that I needed to start from the beginning. I hadn’t used Adobe before, had never worked on a Mac, and didn’t have Art GCSE. So initially I asked myself questions about would I be able to do it in a technical as well as creative sense.
I am starting to feel like a ‘designer’
When I spoke to Pete at Creative Design School, the conversation was straightforward. He explained how the course worked, what was expected, and how it could fit around my life. I could also start straight away, which suited me. By the end of the call, it felt like a sensible next step.
My first project was a logo for a sustainability conference in Austria. The focus was on working ideas through properly, sketching, testing, discarding what didn’t work, and starting again. Over time, that way of working has become very familiar! I am still excited to see how my ideas take form.
From there, I completed my Level 1 qualification and moved on to Level 2. One of the ongoing features of the course has been its flexibility. It adjusts to what you’re actually doing. At the moment, that includes building a website for my own business, something I hadn’t imagined doing when I started. It’s been interesting to see how that has taken shape.
Alongside the course, I am starting to feel like a ‘designer’. I was given a signwriting course as a birthday present which has been a useful counterpoint to working on screen and has sharpened my sense of craft I’ve started keeping notebooks and scrapbooks collecting bits of typography and layout that catch my eye My phone is full of photographs of colour combinations shopfront lettering fragments of posters I’ve also found myself buying books I would previously have walked past, on perspective grid systems editorial design Two years on, it turns out that you don’t need the perfect background, the right age, or a grand plan!
Visit my website at: https://anneinskip.co.uk/
