74 ways to be inspired: talking with …

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The 74 ways to be Inspired series is all about finding inspiration and applying it to your creative life ~ whether it be for your own satisfaction or as part of the process of setting up and maintaining a small creative business. These interviews aim to inspire by gaining an insight into the inspirational and creative process of those who are doing exactly that. Today we are talking with Nic from Yardage Design.

First off, an introduction, tell us a little about yourself, what you do and perhaps, briefly, how it came about.

My name is Nic and I live in Melbourne with my husband and young son. I am an environmental scientist by profession, who has been dabbling in creative pursuits since childhood. I took a screen printing course about eighteen months ago for fun, then a few months after that visited the 2009 Stitches and Craft Show where I had a light bulb moment! The Incubators showed me a clever, cool, crafty world that I didn’t know existed, and I wanted in! It took me about 6 months to get up enough courage to start a blog and another few months to decide to make my passion for fabric and fabric design into a business reality.

What was the inspiration behind the name of your shop/blog?
The name of my business is Yardage Design. The name actually came from a simple circular design (my logo) that was one of the first graphics I created when thinking about starting a textile business. The circle motif represents the end of a bolt of fabric, and that got me thinking about words associated with fabric. I settled on yardage because I like its vintage appeal and it was my goal to print fabric by the metre.

{fabric from yardage design}

Now this series is about inspiration, so where do you find inspiration? Either online, in the “real world” or from whom? What kinds of things inspire you?
I am inspired by shapes, lines and shadows from everyday life – both natural and urban elements. I am also inspired by heritage and architecture – I like the idea of mixing old and new, soft and hard. Magazines, blogs, books and my local environment are great sources of imagery and ideas.

Tell us how did you come to your signature style and your focus on environmentally friendly fabrics?
My style is quite simple – I really design and make things that suit my needs (we’re currently renovating our 1890’s cottage) and colour palette. I have a strong professional and personal background in environmental management, so the decision to use more environmentally friendly fabrics and inks for me was automatic and obvious. Natural and organic fibres are just so beautiful to touch and use – what’s not to love!

{Nic's Tram Roll Tea Towel in her newly renovated kitchen}

Do you catalogue your inspiration in some way, either virtually, clippings in a notebook or perhaps an inspiration board?
I keep a sketchbook of ideas, photo’s, words, whatever takes my fancy. It is a great resource and a bit of a history of my development as a designer too.  I also have a very long list of website favourites, as well as many virtual folders of photographs I’ve taken.

Tell us a little about your creating process, do you set aside time and focus or do you find yourself multi-tasking?
I try to set aside some time every couple of weeks to just develop ideas and designs, but it’s rare that this is not done whilst doing something else like cooking dinner! Other times, an idea will just come to me, I’ll work on it as soon as I can, and it’s done within a day or two.

How do you find juggling the creative life with your home and/or work life?
Tricky! I basically only work for Yardage Design two days per week while my son is at kindy. I can sometimes fit in work at night, but I generally try and keep work life and home life as separate as possible. I’m very lucky to have great support from my husband – I could not do this at all without him.

{yardage design favourites ~ including the great DIY bunting kit}

Running a small business can be quite the time consuming, can you share with us how you organise your time ~ what with online marketing, staying up to date and then the actually creating?
Lists! I am the queen of lists – I have two days to get everything done! I write a list of things that need to be done for the week, and then I basically divide up those two days into chunks of time (e.g. printing, packaging, responding to emails and orders, admin). I also have a business plan with a longer term view of where I want to be which also guides what I spend my time on.

And because we are in blogland, can you share a couple of your favourite or most inspirational blogs/sites.
Hmmm I’m finding new ones all the time, but my top few favourites at the moment are:
Kirin ~ Lara is one half of Ink & Spindle and has a great aesthetic
Decor8 ~ Holly is a style guru!
Lil Sonny Sky ~ Lisa is such a talented illustrator
Print + Pattern ~ Great interviews and ideas
52 Suburbs ~ Excellent photography

Thanks Nic for stopping by 74 Lime Lane.

I’m so glad Nic agreed to this interview. I have been watching Nic’s business grow from the sidelines and am often amazed at her ideas and creativity. She is a fantastic inspiration for small businesses.

You can find more of Yardage Design at:

website | blog | shop