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I’ve entered my “Western Bighorn Sheep” design in the current Spoonflower “Western Americana” Design Challenge! CLICK THE IMAGE below to go to the Design Challenge Voting Page! Public voting closes Tuesday December 3. 
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Graphic T-Shirt Design for Friends of the National Arboretum Fall 5K Run in Washington DC!11/24/2024 On November 10 2024, the Friends of the National Arboretum (FONA) Fall 5K Run was, well, RUN in Washington, DC, and every participant received their Race T-Shirt which I helped design! I'm a runner myself, and whenever I participate in a race, it's always fun to receive the registration package which usually includes a great souvenir Tee! Although I didn't run in this race, I loved seeing the T-Shirts out there! . PHOTO CREDITS: Beth Haubach and Friends of the National Arboretum, Washington DC.      Happy to announce that I’ve partnered with Lumos Bike Helmets in the launch of their newest NYXEL Smart Bike Helmet! Check out their Kickstarter Campaign! Becoming a backer of their campaign lets you vote on the exclusive colours and designs that will ultimately go into production! They’ll release new colours and designs every Tuesday during November (I'll post mentions on my Blog when they go "live"!). This first week the theme is, appropriately, “Cycling”. Here is my vintage bike design, called “Lovely Day”, that’s been included this week! Fun!  QUESTION: Can you tell what words are scrambled up in this new print design that I created for babies and newborns? I’ve entered this one in this week’s Spoonflower “Welcome To The World” Design Challenge! Public voting opens Thursday Oct 24 and you can link to the Voting Page HERE. Note: I forgot I actually entered the Pink version, but it comes in Pink and Blue, as you can see! . My concept for this one...The scrambled letters are meant to convey a heartfelt message (okay, okay, please resist any “funny” answers to my question!), but also nods to childhood development, learning letters, reading and playing with toy blocks! . To SHOP these designs in my Spoonflower Shop on Fabrics, Wallpaper and Home Decor, click on the images below (links to the Small-Scale versions). Both colourways come in Small-, Medium- and Large-Scale versions! 
The current Spoonflower Design Challenge is “Wallpaper Backsplashes” and I took that theme literally! I entered my “Splatter” design (Abstract Expressionism for the walls?) in this colourway, and I want to thank everyone who helped me decide which colourway to enter! Public voting is open until Tuesday Oct 22 and you can link to the Voting Page HERE! I'd love your vote for this one! And if you'd like to SHOP this design, you can check it out in my Spoonflower Shop by clicking the IMAGES below!    I was kinda surprised late on Sunday Sept 1 to find out that entries for the next Spoonflower “Refined Bohemian Wallpaper” Design Challenge would close Tuesday Sept 3. Usually, the Challenges happen every 2 weeks, and since the last one closed August 27, I expected the next Challenge entries would close Tuesday Sept 10 (ie. I should have had another week to create a new design)! So it was a BIT of a scramble, but I did manage to enter my new “Bohemian Garden” design. If I had had more time, I would have fussed ALOT more over this one, but ya know, it was kinda liberating to not do that! Maybe there’s a lesson learned in that, something about spontaneity perhaps?! Public voting for this Challenge closes Tuesday Sept 24, so you still have lots of time to vote! Link to the Voting Page HERE! Click the IMAGES below to SHOP this design in my Spoonflower Shop (it comes in TWO colourways too!)  Of course, I couldn’t resist adding an alternate colourway of my "Bohemian Garden" design to my Spoonflower Shop too: Neutrals, Lavender and Mauve on Powder Blue (see below)...Maybe this 2nd colourway is more “Refined” after all, hmmm, what do you think?!  Playing Catchup #2: My Entry for the Spoonflower "Non-Directional Ditsy Holiday" Design Challenge!9/15/2024 Whoops again! To continue on from my previous Blog Post, here's my "second" catchup of my entries for the last two Spoonflower Design Challenges! Apologies that voting for this Challenge is now closed, but I just wanted to share the story behind my new "Festive Garlands" design. And you can SHOP this design in my Spoonflower Shop by clicking the IMAGES below! My "Non-Directional Ditsy Holiday" Design Challenge Entry: "Festive Garlands" When I check out all those mouth-watering racks of single-sheet gift wrap in stationery stores around the Christmas holidays, it’s usually the “non-traditional” designs that catch my eye. So, for the Spoonflower “Non-Directional Ditsy Holiday” Design Challenge, I just felt the need to do something a little different, ie. something that would catch my eye in a shop BUT would still say “Holiday” to me! So here is my brand new “Festive Garlands” botanical pattern design that has some Christmas colours and festive sparkle-y bits! What do you think? Does it say “Holiday” to you (or maybe “Festive” or “Party Time” or...)? Click the images to see this design in my Spoonflower Shop!  
Playing Catchup #1: My Entry for the Spoonflower "Conversational Wallpaper" Design Challenge!9/15/2024 Whoops! It's been busy here at the studio over the last part of Summer, especially since I was away for most of July, but here's my "first" catchup of my entries for the last two Spoonflower Design Challenges: "Conversational Wallpaper" and "Non-Directional Ditsy Holiday" (see my next Blog Post!)! Apologies that voting for these Challenges are now closed, but I just wanted to share the story behind these new designs. And you can SHOP them in my Spoonflower Shop by clicking the IMAGES below! My "Conversational Wallpaper" Design Challenge Entry: "Pasta Potluck" My “Pasta Potluck” design has a bit of a long history here at UnBlink Studio...I originally created this design quite awhile ago with a set of my Mom’s vintage glass Pyrex casserole dishes in mind (remember those?!) For whatever reason, I moved on and forgot about this design, and so it was relegated to sitting on my hard-drive... But the Spoonflower "Conversational Wallpaper" Design Challenge got me thinking about this design again, and I thought that it just might suit the Challenge theme quite nicely! I did have to really re-work it and OF COURSE, I felt the need to completely revise the COLOURS, but I now love its vintage-y, kitsch-y look all over again! If you’d like to see those original Pyrex dishes that inspired this design, have a look below, my Mom gave them to me! Public Voting for this Challenge closed Tuesday August 13 2024.     Back in 2015 (or was it 2016?), before I even knew “surface pattern design” was a thing, I somehow (and I have no idea how) stumbled upon the online courses offered by the team at Make It In Design (MIID). Online learning was unfamiliar back then, but reading what MIID promised to teach me (ie. surface pattern design, Adobe Illustrator and Photoshop, licensing, agents, and so much more), really lit a lightbulb in me, and I signed up for all the courses MIID then offered (Modules 1, 2 and 3 plus the Ultimate Portfolio Builder). Over the years, I’ve participated in their Live Hub membership; taken many other courses they later offered; made so many connections with the community of designers that grew around MIID; and was even an invited panelist for their “Superstars of Make It In Design” Live Panel Discussion in 2022. I also met co-founder Rachael Taylor in person at the Guggenheim in NYC when I attended Surtex 2017 (or was it 2018?)
But now the team that started it all for me has just announced they will be closing the MIID doors forever as of December 31 2024. I understand the online course landscape has changed dramatically since I took those first MIID courses, and maybe we’re all a bit weary and sceptical of how many courses are being advertised to us now, but MIID was one of the early pioneers of online creative courses, and I will always always be grateful to them for building my confidence, and starting me on this creative, inspiring and successful journey. I would just like to say to them, "You will be missed", and I wish you all the best in your new projects. You can read the MIID Closing Announcement HERE (until December 31 2024). I just got back from an absolutely FANTASTIC (can I say it again, FANTASTIC) trip to the UK, spending time in London, the Isle of Wight and along the Cornish Coast where we stayed in the small fishing village of Polperro and hiked the gorgeous amazing Coastal Path! I really loved staying in small old hotels full of character, and came to love starting the day with a Full English Breakfast served on an outdoor terrace. Very civilized! So here's my ode to the "Full English Breakfast" which usually includes: eggs, toast, sausages (in my case, veggie), mushrooms, tomatoes and baked beans, with tea, of course. I must go back! . AND I've just entered this brand new "Full English Breakfast" food-themed pattern design in this week's Spoonflower "Yes, Chef!" Design Challenge! Public voting for this Challenge opens Thursday August 1 and you can link to the Voting Page HERE. . And a SHOUT-OUT to @claremontpolperro in the coastal village of Polperro, Cornwall. It was mostly your breakfasts I had in mind when I designed this pattern! Thank you for our recent stay and your hospitality, we loved your hotel and Polperro! Click HERE to SHOP this new pattern design in my Spoonflower Shop on Fabrics, Wallpaper and Home Decor (it comes in several scales too)!  ILLUSTRATORS FOR HIRE Member I recently applied to join Illustrators For Hire (@illustratorsforhire) and was accepted! As an IFH Member, I'm joining a curated group of select professional illustrators and surface pattern designers. Check out my Florals + Plants and Patterns pages there! Get in touch with me if you'd like to discuss working together on your project! 
CREATIVEHOWL Surface Pattern Designer Directory You can now find me listed in the Surface Pattern Designer Directory on Creativehowl (@creativehowl)!  "Washi Tape Patchwork" for the Spoonflower "Winter Holiday Patchwork" Design Challenge! Why Not?!7/3/2024 Here is my entry for this week’s Spoonflower “Winter Holiday Patchwork” Design Challenge, called “Washi Tape Patchwork”. You might ask: Why Washi Tape? My answer: Why not?! Not to mention I’d LOVE to create designs for Washi Tape!! Public Voting for this Challenge opens Thursday July 4, and you can link to the Voting Page HERE! Click the Image below to SHOP this design in my Spoonflower Shop (it comes in several scales too)  This week’s Spoonflower Design Challenge is “Hide and Seek Wallpaper”. For this one, I started thinking about those “Where’s Waldo?” books that are so fun (if you don’t know, Waldo had round glasses and a striped shirt and you had to spot him in a sea of detailed drawings in various settings; sometimes you’d think you found him because you’d find what you thought was his striped shirt only to realize that it wasn’t him, just the stripes were on something else to trick you!) So I started thinking about stripes on stripes and “hiding” something in amongst the stripes! So here is my “I Spy A Bird” pattern design. Can you spot the bird (I know, I know, it’s not super difficult)! Public voting for this Challenge opens Thursday June 20 and you can link to the Voting Page HERE! I entered the first Light Aqua and Dark Teal version, but it also comes in Beige and Salmon Red, and Beige and Charcoal Black too (all colours influenced by Japanese kimono style)! And it just might come in some other colours soon too…😉 . If you'd like to SHOP these print designs in my Spoonflower Shop on Fabrics, Wallpaper and Home Decor, click on the images below (they link to the Large-Scale versions, but they also come in Small- and Medium-Scale versions too!) . If you'd prefer, you can also SHOP these designs in my Happywall Shop on Wallpaper (one scale only). All products in my Happywall are produced in and ship from Sweden! 
 My Entry for the Spoonflower "Cottagecore Halloween" Design Challenge is "Sugar Skulls Celebration"!6/5/2024 This week’s Spoonflower Design Challenge is “Cottagecore Halloween” and I really didn’t know what to do with this one! I pondered it for days (this is normal for me, I often mull over a theme while I go about my daily life and work until something just hits me!) Then I tried something with tossed pumpkins, but wasn’t feeling it. Then I tried fun gourds with jack-o-lantern faces but nah, it looked more Autumn Harvest than Cottagecore Halloween. And suddenly it was Monday (ie. the day before this Challenge closed), and then it hit me...Sugar Skulls! I added flowers and pastel colours for that Cottagecore feel, then felt the need to add bunting (not sure why)...And yay! I managed to get my new “Sugar Skulls Celebration” print design done on time to enter in this week’s Spoonflower Challenge! Spooky but sweet?! Creepy but cottage-y?! . Public voting for the Spoonflower “Cottagecore Halloween” Design Challenge opens Thursday June 6 and you can link to the Voting Page HERE! I'd love your vote for this one!   With thanks to @theindoorsyproject for this fun mockup!
I’ve entered my new “Garden Beauties” floral print in the Spoonflower “Vintage Glam Metallic Wallpaper” Design Challenge! This Challenge was a bit, well, challenging because it required envisioning how the gold metallic of the wallpaper would change the overall look of the design (FYI: white parts of a design will print as gold metallic). I stuck with just Black & White or, I guess, Black & Gold. If you’d like to see how this floral looks in its “original” Black & White colours (available on non-metallic wallpapers) scroll down to the last image! . If you would like to vote in this Challenge, SO SORRY! Voting closed Tuesday June 4 (WHAT? June already?!), but you can still vote in the next Spoonflower Design Challenge: "Cottagecore Halloween"...See my next Blog Post! . If you'd like to see my "Garden Beauties" Gold Metallic wallpaper in my Spoonflower Shop, just click the images below!  
See below for my new "Garden Beauties" floral print in its original Black & White colourway (pssst, it also comes in a lot of other colours too in my Spoonflower Shop!)  |
AuthorJackie Tahara of UnBlink Studio Archives
November 2024
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All images on this website are Copyright © Jackie Tahara. All rights reserved.
If sharing, pinning or blogging my images, please always credit me and link back to my website. Supporting artists is a good thing to do! Thank you!
If sharing, pinning or blogging my images, please always credit me and link back to my website. Supporting artists is a good thing to do! Thank you!