Why I Fell in Love with Surface Pattern Design (and How It Changed My Creative Journey)
In 2018, when I had my first baby, something unexpected happened—I picked up a pencil again. I wanted to capture those fleeting little moments with my son, so I started sketching. For that first year, my art was only about him. That was also when I realized: I could actually draw.
Hungry to learn more, I took every chance I could—Skillshare classes, Russian online courses (since I speak the language), and lots of late-night practice. Drawing felt natural, but soon I began to wonder: could I also make money with my art?
Like many beginners, I googled “how to earn money with art” and stumbled into the world of print-on-demand (POD). It sounded magical: upload my designs, have them printed on products, and sell without worrying about shipping or stock. I started with Redbubble, excited but also overwhelmed. There was so much information, and finding real customers was way harder than I thought.
At first, my approach wasn’t the healthiest. I rushed to create as many products as possible, opened a new Instagram, and played the endless cycle of likes, shares, and tags just to trick the algorithm. Looking back, I can say I was chasing quantity over quality.
Then one day, I kept noticing this Skillshare class on pattern design. At first, I ignored it. But curiosity won—and I finally gave it a try. That was when my very first patterns were born. Honestly, they were pretty bad. I was embarrassed by them, but also fascinated. Even though my early goal was just to make products quickly, I accidentally discovered something that felt deeper and more “me” than anything else I’d tried: Surface Pattern Design.
The more I practiced, the more I fell in love with it. Patterns weren’t just another way to decorate products—they opened up a whole new creative language. They connected illustration with rhythm, color, and storytelling in a way I had never experienced before.
Over time, after dozens of Skillshare classes and countless experiments, my work improved. And with it, my perspective shifted: from chasing quick wins to building skills, from uploading “just to have products” to creating designs I could be proud of.
✨ That’s how I fell in love with surface pattern design—not through a perfect plan, but through a messy, very human journey. Looking back, those “bad” early patterns weren’t failures at all—they were the first stepping stones toward a creative path that still excites me today.
