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Working with a Freelance Wallpaper Designer and Separation Artist: Transforming Watercolours into Wallpaper
An exclusive look into my collaboration with Erin Daniels transforming her botanical watercolours into a statement wallpaper. From initial concept through to finalising the design, we’ll delve into the process of working with a freelance wallpaper designer and separation artist.
It all began with a message on LinkedIn…
“I am in the beginning stages of developing wallpaper designs from my botanical watercolours and not particularly tech-savvy… you may be just the person I have been searching for!”
Introducing Erin Daniels: The Artist Behind the Brush
Encourage by her artist Grandmother, Erin Daniels began painting watercolour florals at the age of 5. Throughout her career, Erin has worked with a variety of mediums, including paint and fabric, to create her exquisitely crafted pieces.
Erin’s botanical paintings are a memoir of a sort, inspired by genealogical research, daily illustrations documenting plants and flowers – exploring connection, possibility, and a sense of place. Her discerning eye for detail and love of colour and pattern is equal parts heredity, education, and experience.
by Erin Daniels
by Erin Daniels
by Erin Daniels
The Vision: Bringing Together Botanical Watercolours and Wallpaper
The vision began with Erin wanting her first wallpaper design to use original watercolours in a collage-style layout, creating a garden-like pattern across the wall. We talked through her ideas and came up with a plan on how we would develop the watercolours into wallpaper.
As soon as I laid eyes on Erin’s original watercolour paintings, I knew we were on the path to creating a stunning wallpaper.
Working Together Across Borders: A Transatlantic Design Collaboration
As my first international client, I learnt a lot working with Erin. Being based in the UK, I wasn’t sure how successful remote working with a client in the US could be. Yet, the flexibility of setting my own work hours, combined with the many ways of connecting online and, crucially, Erin’s trust in my approach, made this project an absolute pleasure from start to finish.
Inspired by the original watercolours and Erin’s vision, I began the project by bringing the initial concept of a collaged layout to life. The first step involved digitally cutting out the individual watercolour paintings, in preparation for them to be layered on top of each other.
From Artwork to Final Design: The Journey of Erin’s Wallpaper
With the individual watercolours ready, I developed a collage-style pattern that created the feeling of a blossoming garden across the design. Exploring various scales and orientations, the final all-over repeat was well-balanced in both colour and object.
Erin’s feedback said it all…
“Wow! I only have a moment to glance at this but this far exceeds my expectations! It is fabulous.”
Working with a Separation Artist: The Art of Colour Separation
Working with a separation artist ensures your design is properly prepared for printing. The art of colour separation allows you to create multiple colourings from a single design as well as giving your printers complete colour control during production.
After some tweaking and fine-tuning, the botanical design was approved by Erin and ready for separation. Each watercolour was separated individually to ensure the highest quality outcome for each floral motif.
Whilst most separated files typically consist of up to 20 layers, this design takes complexity to another level with a whopping 59 separate colour layers – oops!
Choosing the Perfect Scale: A Crucial Wallpaper Design Decision
It’s crucial to ensure the perfect scale is chosen for a wallpaper. After the design was separated, Erin wanted to see the pattern enlarged to a wide width wallpaper.
Grasping scale on a screen can be challenging, so I created printable A4 sheets for each scale, providing the clearest representation of how each would appear.
Creating Captivating Colourings Across the Pond: Working with a Freelance Designer
To tackle creating colourings long distance, Erin and I relied on paint charts as our common reference. Erin selected four paint swatches that appealed to her, and I built colour palettes as the foundation for creating the colourings of the botanical design.
The use of paint charts proved to be an ideal way to discuss colour with Erin. We both had access to the same paint charts, ensuring we were on the same page regarding colour choices, regardless of the distance between us.
Navigating Colour Limitations
When creating the colourings for the botanical wallpaper, I used the printer profile of the manufacturer to ensure I was only creating colourways that could be printed.
I developed four colourings for each paint swatch chosen, resulting in 16 colourings of the design for Erin to consider.
Botanical Watercolours into Wallpaper: Bringing the Vision to Life with Mock Ups
To help Erin visualise how her botanical watercolours would appear as wallpaper, I created a series of interior mock ups showcasing the design in a room.
Mock ups are a great way to see how a wallpaper will look in an interior and serve as a valuable marketing tool for potential customers to envision the product in their homes.
In Living Colour: A Vibrant Conclusion
This project has been an absolute joy to work on. Working with Erin on her debut wallpaper design has been an interesting exploration and I’ve enjoyed the full creative journey. Her creativity and vision, combined with my design skills and technical knowhow, resulted in a collaboration that surpassed expectations.
With this project now complete, I’m left eagerly waiting for future collaborations with Erin, excited to see where our creative journey will take us next.
Where to Find Erin Daniel’s Watercolour Botanical Wallpaper: Garden Diary
Discover the stunning “Garden Diary” botanical wallpaper, available as a wide-width wallpaper, at www.margaretjamesdesign.com/wallpaper.
Client Testimonial: A Watercolourist’s Perspective
“Working with Lauren has been such a pleasure!
Developing a repeat pattern from my original botanical watercolors seemed like a daunting task but something that I had dreamt about for years. I took the plunge and contracted with Lauren to work with me to develop my vision and she made the process smooth and stress free. She talked me through any and all questions I had about the process and always had a prompt reply to my emails (even though we are on different sides of the Atlantic we never had any problems communicating in a timely manner).
I couldn’t be happier with my wallpaper pattern and look forward to developing my next design together.”
– Erin Daniels
Find Erin online: Instagram @erindaniels_artist | www.margaretjamesdesign.com
Working with a Freelance Designer & Separation Artist
I’m Lauren Peploe, a passionate freelance designer & separation artist based in the UK. I will work with you to turn your creative ideas into wallpaper, fabric, and other decorative print products. I can help with all processes needed in the lifecycle of decorative print.
Whether you’re just starting out and unsure of where to begin, you need help resolving a tricky repeat, you’re looking for a separation artist, or anything in between, I can work with you to develop your creative ideas.
If you’re looking to embark on a creative journey or you want to bring your designs to life, I’d love to collaborate with you. I’m here to help, let’s explore the endless possibilities of design together!