Pine Turns Eight!

It’s been another busy, yet rewarding year here at Pine Design Studio HQ. Not just in terms of work, but in my personal life too. 

Back in 2016 this whole ‘working for myself’ thing was a bit of a dream and an experiment to see whether it was possible. Fast forward 8 years and I’ve definitely proven that it is indeed possible. With a lot of hard work, some luck, a bit of talent, and some incredible clients. 

Here’s a roundup of the highs and lows from 2023. 

Highs:

A collaborative effort

‍One thing I wished for in 2023 was to be more collaborative with other creatives. And this year was so successful in achieving that. 

I worked on some amazing web projects with the fine folks at Root Web Design Studio. Together we delivered some truly creative web projects for a range of clients. 

This collaborative effort has been a vital part of my year and I’m so impressed by the work that we’ve achieved together. 

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New clients‍

As always, my clients are what drive me to work hard and keep creating. And this year I’ve worked with some incredible new clients, as well as my favourite regular clients. 

I recently started working with Freedom From Torture, who are an incredibly passionate charity that supports anyone affected by Torture across the globe. 

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Working from home-office

‍After 8 years of working from home I finally have a purpose built office space. My little garden office allows for a quiet, creative space where I can work efficiently. And at the end of a busy day I can leave work and separate my personal life from my work life. This has been an absolute game-changer this year.

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Giving back to the graphic designers of the future ‍

I have recently started tutoring at Higher Education level. It’s part-time on a Saturday, but I’m really enjoying teaching and applying some of the commercial graphic design skills that I’ve crafted over the last 14 years to educating students that are willing to learn and build their graphic design careers. 

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Lows:

Shocker, but there haven’t really been any major ‘lows’ this year. 

As I take on more work, new projects and new clients I get busier and busier. My time is therefore so much more valuable and I have to manage this as well as I can. 

There is the odd bit of ‘burn out’ that I think most business owners and creatives experience. But at the moment, it’s manageable. 

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Personal life:

‍Stevie, Stevie, Stevie ‍

July 24th 2023 was an unforgettable day. My beautiful daughter Stevie Wynn Seed came along and shook up both mine and my partner Charlotte’s worlds forever. 

Life is now super busy, stressful, joyous, tiring. But I wouldn’t change that for the world. 

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Growing my side hustle 

My side business Furniture By Pine is growing slowly, which works for me, as I’m so busy in my graphic design work. 

I built a completely bespoke TV cabinet for a local customer and this led to more enquiries for custom pieces of furniture. 

I’m looking forward to the future of my furniture business as it slowly picks up pace and I learn new skills. Oh, and if you’re looking for a bespoke piece of furniture or homeware, get in touch. 

A huge thanks to all of my clients, suppliers, collaborators and students this year. As always, it's been an absolute pleasure to push forward and progress this little business. I'm always grateful and never take anything for granted when it comes to work.

Here's to the next year. We're not far away from 10 years in business now!

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