Lottie Hall’s greeting card collection perfectly showcases her playful, bright designs!

Lottie Hall has been developing an impressive gallery of greetings cards; a perfect self-initiated project that has seen her apply her bright vector shapes and expressively drawn marks into a range of cards perfect for any occasion.

Featuring illustrations of ovens, mountain sides, fruit bowl characters and playful explorations of type, these cards act as Lottie’s lab, where she can indulge and experiment with her style while keeping in mind  an application and use for the images perfectly described by Lottie as, “little representations of ideas; turned into a physical thing that goes out into the world and can be held in the hand.”

Lottie was kind enough to give us a little more insight into her process and decision making when it came designing this amazing body of work…

What inspired your choice of illustrations for the cards?

I’m inspired by everyday occurrences; different moments and the things that crop up in day to day life; the wonder of people, animals and nature; food, tools and objects that accompany us on our journey. I need to express and release them, to make space in my mind for the next thought that comes along.

They are a way of trying to take the things I see in my head and turning it into something physical that others can see too and relate to; with the hope of it bringing joy to those who do. When they send the card I hope they transfer that feeling to someone else as well.

They are little representations of ideas; turned into a physical thing that goes out into the world and can be held in the hand.

Certain designs group together nicely, was this a conscious decision to theme groups of cards or something that happened naturally?

I think it’s a bit of both. Sometimes I’ll be really into something and create a few designs to try and capture it – such as the cards relating to the sea. Some thoughts are recurring and when this keeps happening for different categories, I can then look at the whole collection, and make links between designs and group them together. This also creates card bundles for my shop that share a common theme. Different themes tend to occur depending on seasons of the year too.

What’s your process like?

It usually starts with quick drawings to capture the idea before it disappears. My studio and stock room is full of bits of paper with little drawings and thoughts on them to come back to later so I don’t forget them. I use Illustrator to develop the idea with vector shapes and drawings using a tablet, where as before I used to use my trackpad. Although a lot of my work is done on Illustrator; I also love to work with other analogue mediums when inspiration strikes. Lately I’ve been drawing with oil pastels – it’s another mode of expression that I can’t help exploring. One of my most popular cards and gift wrap designs ‘Girls’ is from an original painting I did years ago before going to art school. Then the design happened by scanning the painting and creating a repeat pattern with the girls. I don’t paint very often these days but the compulsion to do so could return at any point. Thoughts are whirring late at night and I have to jump out of bed and get it down on paper.

You strike a perfect balance between flat vector shapes and expressive linework, how do you decide which elements will be made using which medium?

I think the line work gives a more human quality to the design and makes it feel a little softer. Sometimes fruit needs to have a face and sometimes it doesn’t, it just depends on the feeling of the work that day. I’ve always personified objects around me and think about the kind of characters they are; and this definitely comes up in some areas of my work. I tend to add line work when I feel like the shape alone is not enough to express an idea. If it is, I leave it out.

How are the cards and bundles printed? And do you have any plans to apply your artwork to different products?

The cards are printed on really lovely 300gsm card stock with a slight texture, and it is FSC certified. The packaging is biodegradable, compostable and recyclable. My envelopes are completely recycled. Single cards are £2.80, and I also sell bundles online of 6 or 12 cards, for £12 and £22.50. You can also build-your-own bundles if you have particular favourites. Duplicates are allowed too!

When I first started designing cards it was intended as a starting point for other things. I am developing and planning other products which are slowly starting to come together. There are always time and financial constraints to deal with. I’m gradually working towards it and there are a few exciting things in the pipeline which I can’t wait to share soon.

To see Lottie’s full portfolio, click here.

To buy Lottie’s greetings cards, click here.