When I first started drawing, illustration felt like the obvious path. I learned by sketching little moments, taking online classes, and admiring artists who created beautiful images for books, prints, and commissions. For a while, I thought illustration would be my journey too.

In fact, I began illustration for a very personal reason: in 2019, when my son was born, I wanted to capture our moments together. Drawing became a way to treasure those early memories. Over time, life grew busier and I no longer had the same time to keep illustrating our days, but those drawings laid the foundation for everything I do now.

I’m forever grateful to my son, because without him I might never have picked up illustration in the first place. Before that, I struggled to know what I wanted, what I was passionate about, or what kind of mark I wished to leave in this life. Illustration gave my days meaning—and eventually led me to the path I love most today: surface pattern design

Illustration vs. Pattern: A Subtle Difference

Illustration often finds its home in a single piece—a framed artwork, a book, or a digital post. There’s a magic in that, but it also felt limiting to me. I realized I wanted to see my work move beyond a page or a canvas.

I like to experiment with different pattern layouts, to play with rhythm, flow, and repetition. And the most exciting part? Watching those patterns make their way into everyday products—on fabric, wallpaper, stationery, or even a simple notebook or pillow. That sense of application, of design living in the real world, was what drew me in.

Why Surface Pattern Design Spoke to Me

Practical magic: Patterns don’t just sit still; they live on. They wrap around objects, walls, and spaces, becoming part of people’s daily lives.

Endless exploration: Unlike illustration, which often ends with a finished piece, pattern design invites me to create variations, repeats, and experiments with layouts.

Freedom to grow: With platforms like Spoonflower, Patternbank, or POD services, pattern design opens doors to commercial possibilities without restricting creativity.

Lifestyle fit: I want to work as a freedom designer, to follow my own rhythm, rather than depending solely on commissions.

Lessons Along the Way

This doesn’t mean illustration has less value. In fact, illustration gave me the foundation—skills in drawing, storytelling, and digital tools—that I now carry into my patterns. And more than that, it gave me purpose at a time when I needed it most.

I’m thankful to illustration for teaching me, and thankful to my son for leading me to it. Without those first sketches of us together, I might never have found the clarity, passion, and meaning I have in my art today.

Closing Thoughts

Creative paths aren’t linear. Some people thrive in illustration; others in pattern design. For me, the choice became clear when I realized what made my heart beat faster: seeing my designs repeat endlessly, finding rhythm in the flow, and watching them come alive on real products.