The ULTIMATE Brand Collaboration Guide!
- Carolyn Quan Design
- Aug 2, 2024
- 5 min read
Updated: Oct 2, 2024
If you are a brand or business ready to elevate your products through an artist collaboration, this blog post is for you!
Collaborating with a professional artist, illustrator, or textile print designer can bring fresh and innovative ideas to your brand, helping it stand out from competitors. It allows for customised artwork tailored to your brand's specific needs and vision and can be cost-effective compared to working with a big design agency.
If you are excited about amplifying your brand's story through the power of colour, print and pattern, then read on, my friend!
Are you ready to collaborate? Let's go!
STEP ONE:
Introduction to Collaboration
First, we hop on a discovery call. In this free, 20-minute meeting, we will explore your brand's needs while also making sure our values are aligned!
How to know we are a good fit? You value creativity and originality, support independent artists, and have a clear vision for your brand.
Bonus points to you if you produce in small batches, own a slow fashion brand or promote sustainable manufacturing practices! (let's be friends!)
Please feel free to ask as many questions as you can think of about working with a freelance textile designer. We will likely discuss expectations regarding communication frequency, feedback processes, payment structure, and project milestones.
If we both get good vibes from each other and are happy to proceed, I will send you a project proposal for sign-off and collect a deposit to schedule time in my calendar.
STEP TWO:
Understanding Your Brand Identity
Once we have both decided that we are a good fit for each other, I will investigate your brand by defining its brand identity, including its vision, mission, values, and target audience.
A few questions I may ask include...
Who is your target customer?
How would you describe your brand vibe?
How do you want your customers to feel (with this custom print design)?
Where do you see your brand one year from now?
Which brands or fashion labels do you admire the most?
The goal here is to create a textile print design that communicates your brand aesthetic, style preferences, and design aspirations, so we must dive deep into the brand's history, story, and future plans.
STEP THREE:
Research and Inspiration
The fun part. MOOD BOARDS!
Mood boards are essential in solidifying the brand vision in a visual, documented format. There are two ways to go about this:
Option 1: I will invite you to provide your mood board. Gather inspiration from various sources, such as Pinterest, Vogue Runway, magazines, Instagram, trend forecasts, and competitor image research.
Option 2: Based on our brand exploration exercise from step two, I can create a mood or trend board for you.
It would also be beneficial to start developing a rough colour story while gathering visual research. Need colour inspo? Check out my Pinterest board here.
Either way, If you need extra help creating mood boards or generating colour palettes, you can check out one of my previous blog posts here.
STEP FOUR:
Creative Brief Development
Now that we have prepared mood boards as a starting point, we need a clear and concise creative brief.
The process of creating a comprehensive creative brief for the textile designer includes:
Outlining project objectives: How many prints are required? Is it a placement print, repeat yardage, beaded embellishment or embroidery design?
Design requirements: How will the artwork be printed? What is the desired file format? Do you have specific colour codes I need to follow?
Project kick-off: I am typically booked 2 to 4 weeks in advance so it's first come best dressed. A 50% deposit is required to confirm your booking and officially secure your project start date.
Delivery dates: When do you need the artwork? Do you have a cut-off date for working with your manufacturer? Have you allocated enough time for revisions and updates during the sampling and strike-off stage? A custom print design typically takes 2 to 4 weeks to create and deliver.
STEP FIVE
Collaborative Design Process
Time to get to work. Design and development will begin on your allocated project start date. The key stages of the collaborative design process include:
Concept and ideation: I start to draw, paint and render initial concepts and ideas in the form of motifs that follow the creative brief
Motifs for pre-approval: I will submit my motifs for pre-approval to ensure we are both on the same page.
Layout design: After the motifs have been approved, I will move on to the layout. This could be an all-over repeat, border, placement print, or print engineered as specified by the creative brief.
First version: I submit one or two versions for the first round of notes and feedback.
Second version: If any changes are required, I will resubmit the design for comments and approval.
Third version: This is the last revision before moving on to the final print. At this stage, very tiny tweaks, such as hue or saturation adjustments, are made.
Final artwork for approval: The design is finished and submitted for sign-off. Once approved, I will check and prepare files for print or further textile development. This includes artwork spec sheets and Pantone callouts.
Invoice: The invoice is sent to the client and files will be released after payment in full.
Final file delivery: I will save all digital files to Dropbox, which includes the working files (that are editable), print files (usually merged or flattened), CADS or mock-ups (for visualisation purposes), artwork spec sheet (to make sure your sample is manufactured correctly) and Pantone codes (for colour matching)
STEP SIX
Sampling and Production
The rest is now up to you! But fear not. I will assist and guide you through the fabric sampling process.
If, after sampling, you need slight adjustments to the artwork, let me know, and l will offer you personalised design support. This can include:
Scale adjustments: I can resize the artwork for you in case a print comes back, and the overall effect feels too small or too large
Colour adjustments: Sometimes, the printing process will yield a lot darker or lighter results than your desired outcome. I can make tweaks to the print if required.
Additional colourway: Sometimes, things change during the development cycle, and the print no longer fits within the collection. Colours and styles get axed all the time. I can create a new colourway to match the latest colours in your range.
Conclusion and Next Steps
Collaborating with a freelance illustrator or artist to create commercial artwork for your brand can be exciting! But it's a two-way street that involves a healthy and cooperative partnership:
Firstly, are we a good match? Check that the artist or designer is suitable for your brand
You must be prepared with a clear brand vision, market research, mood boards and/or an art brief
Make sure to allocate enough time and budget for the entire creative process, from ideation to final execution
Keep channels of communication open, and don't be afraid to ask questions
Trust the designer and the process!
In return, you will receive...
Unique and original designs tailored to the brand's vision
Fresh perspectives and creative ideas
Flexibility in project timelines and deliverables
Cost-effectiveness compared to hiring a full-time designer
Access to specialised skills and expertise!
If you want to work with me, I have an extensive questionnaire just for you! Go check it out here.
If you find this blog post valuable, share it with your friends and network!
Thanks so much for following along, and let me know if you have any questions about collaborating with me.
You are always welcome to email me: hello@carolynquan.design
Carolyn
