Vibrant Jungle
Moodboard
During my research I discovered that there is so much about the jungle that I find inspiring. The hardest part of creating the mood board was having to select what images inspired me most!
I am aiming for an older but modern market around the ages of 30-60. I'm a big fan of reptiles and strange looking flowers and want to represent these in all their odd and edgy glory. I don't think making this pattern cutesy and with children in mind will have the results I'm hoping for.
Sketches
My goal is to make something really colourful so after my research I found I was quite drawn to the very geometric and vibrant flowers of the jungle. I looked at frogs, snakes and Tapir as my jungle animals and although I've been wanting to include tapir into a design for a while now, I decided they didn't really match frogs so left them out for now.
Colour Palette
Combining the colours from some jungle themed illustrations that I really love, I developed an initial colour palette for my pattern. There's a good chance this will change but it will help me get a good idea of layout and balance as I bring the pattern together.
Coloured Icons/Motifs
Beginning to play with the colours and the style I'd like to carry through the design. I quite like keeping in the line work as it looks clear and bold but without the lines adds a more expressive feel. Once I've coloured all my icons and motifs it might become clearer which direction to go in.
In the end I decided not to use the outlines and work instead with blocks of colour. I want the final pattern to be full and busy without loosing the quality of each individual motif and I think including the lines will make the final pattern over complicated.
Hero Pattern
I have a real love hate with my final hero pattern - these things truly are a labour of love. I'd like to try some different colour palettes, maybe looking at less natural colours and maybe a light background.
I am looking forward to pulling together some complimentary coordinate patterns. As I was building my hero pattern I began to see how the motifs could work together as secondary patterns. Maybe I'll be happier with those than I am with the hero pattern at the moment.
Collection
I certainly got carried away with this part of the project! I really enjoy that at the end of the process of creating a hero pattern, you are rewarded with a stockpile of of your own elements that can be combined in a multitude of arrangements. Can't wait to get some of these printed onto real products but this lovely mock up will do for now.
Thank You!
Thank you so much for this class, Mel. I really did enjoy each step and in the end I have a collection I can be quite proud. I learnt so much about my own style and the gaps in my ability that I need to brush up on (this tutorial certainly filled some of those gaps). Can't wait to give another of your classes a go!
You can find my jungle pattern design on products here: