Wednesday 29 January 2014

Imagining Alice

Getting Wrapped up in 'Alice'


Ever since I first had the idea to start up my own handmade venture I've always had a notion of 'Alice' being at the centre of it. The business name ‘All Wrapped Up By Alice’ was fixed in my mind from the start; creating Alice herself has, however, been a longer process. Creating Alice has been a labour of love between me and my best (and very talented) friend Michael. Together, we’ve spent hours researching, debating, sketching and designing; all in order to bring Alice to life. So, as I finally debut her first incarnation, I thought I would share with you the creative process that has brought Alice to this point.

So, who is Alice?


Not an easy question to answer. Technically Alice is not me; my real name is Zoe; but Alice is my middle name, as well as being a family name, so has always been dear to my heart. I like to think of it as this: in the real-world I’m Zoe, but in the handmade-world I’m Alice. I guess you could say Alice is a version of me - a version fit to take her place in the handmade-world (and let’s face it, the handmade world is a much nicer place to be!)

So, with all this in mind, creating Alice was going to be a personal project, and one I wanted to share with my closest friend (who just happens to also be a talented illustrator, and graphic designer - lucky me!)

Alice as an Icon:


We quickly decided several attributes which we felt would be key in making Alice into an iconic image for the brand.

The hair:

We decided that the hair would be the key to Alice’s look; the inspiration for the styling would be Hocus Pocus (a nod to 90’s kids cinema there!) My hair is probably my most defining physical feature (I have masses of it) and I am a big fan of the top knot; a style Michael affectionately refers to as my ‘Hocus Pocus Hair’ – check out Kathy Najimy’s character and you will understand! 

Kathy Najimy as Mary in Hocus Pocus 


The Dress: 

We knew we definitely wanted Alice to be wearing a dress, at least for her first incarnation anyway; we felt this would give her the right look for the handmade world, whilst also reflecting my own style.


The Bow: 

We definitely wanted to incorporate a large bow to reflect the business name 'All Wrapped Up', and what we do.


Coordination: 

Alice had to blend beautifully alongside the 'All Wrapped Up By Alice' logo, which we had already designed:




Creating Alice


So with these starting points in mind we both began sketching. Here are a couple of pics of our very first sketches:


My first sketch of Alice

Michael's first sketch of Alice

As you can see our two styles of illustration are quite different, but all the key features we had discussed were present in both drawings. Michael added the idea of Alice holding a wrapped present, with the ribbons of the bow coming out to meet you - a great addition, and a definite focal point for the image.


We continued sketching in our spare time, emailing each other our work, discussing Alice over the phone and in person. We were experimenting with styles trying to find the Alice that we would both fall in love with, and that we felt represented 'All Wrapped Up' as a brand.


Experimenting with faces:

Michael's glamorous Alice
My simple floating heads

Experimenting with clothes and shoes:

Trying different shoes
Experimenting with outfits
Putting body and head together, and seeing what we had come up with:

My Alice (not with a top knot!)
Michael's Alice


Alice as a Logo


Oddly enough, drawing these more detailed versions of Alice helped enormously in crystalising in our minds the vision of Alice as a logo; it was easy to see how we could distill her key features - the top knot, the peter pan collar on the dress, and of course the present and bow - into one iconic image. We drew up a quick draft and then began perfecting the Alice logo:


Initial sketch of Alice logo


Initial design of Alice logo
As you can see, the Alice logo has changed very little from the initial sketch above to the finished design below, as the saying goes, 'when it's right, you just know'!


The Final Design

It is fair to say that me and Michael have both fallen in love with Alice through the creative process; and, like all the best loves, it grows every time we see her! We decided that with Valentine's Day fast approaching it was only appropriate to dress Alice in a peachy pink for her debut, we hope you like her as much as we do!

What's Next for Alice?


Well, we have lots of plans for Alice - none of those initial sketches will be going to waste! We see Alice not just as a logo but as a full character, and amidst all the sketches we think we've hit upon a style for her that we both love, and are very excited about:

Meet our chosen Alice (still a work in progress!) 

We plan to feature this Alice in many of our upcoming products, including wrapping paper, cards, and more! We also have plans for an Alice side-kick, and are working on ideas for that at the moment; here is a sneeky peek:

Rough sketch of a Valentine's Alice



Thursday 9 January 2014

#TwitterSisters Are Doing It For Themselves!

I thought, what better way to start the new year than with a bit of positivity, and a very big thank you! 



I have been overwhelmed by the support I've received from fellow women in business since setting off on my handmade journey just a few months ago. I have been even more surprised at just where this support has come from...get ready for...


My Twitter Tale


When I first went about setting up my business I was reasonably reluctant to join Twitter; it seemed complicated and confusing, not to mention hostile; there had been so many stories in the press focusing on Twitter as a predatory place, where witch hunts play out, and - even more worryingly - women are subjected to appalling taunts merely for voicing an opinion at all.

Luckily, one of my friends, who uses Twitter all the time for work and personal projects, persuaded me to give it a go, and, well...I love it! Not only has it been easy to pick up and incredibly useful for promoting my products, it has also been a wonderful source of support and advice from fellow women in business.

At a time when it seems society is increasingly attempting to stereotype relationships between women - bitchiness, competition, envy, dominance and submission, are all variations on a theme - Twitter actually offers (in my own experience) an antidote to such crass characterisations.


Give a shout-out to your #twittersisters!

Since joining Twitter a few months ago, easily 90 per cent of the followers I have gained have been women; more significantly, more than 99 percent of those who have actively supported me in my endeavors have also been women; and, interestingly enough, most of them are women who run their own small businesses too. Yet, far from feeling in competition, or wanting to see me fail, they have actively supported me and celebrated and shared in my successes; as I celebrate and share in theirs'.

So, in summary a very big thank you to all my #TwitterSisters! 


Twitter Tips for #Womeninbiz


If you own a small business and want to get in on the action, but feel a bit clueless about Twitter, here are my personal favourite networking hours for a small, handmade business:


#wineoclock #womaninbiz - use these hashtags every weekday evening between 18.00 and 19.00 to network with fellow businesswomen, promote your products and services, and generally have a natter.

#handmadehour - if you have a handmade business this one is a must! Use this hashtag every Wednesday evening between 19.30 and 20.30 to showcase your handmade products.

#twittersisters - use this hashtag every Thursday evening, 20.30 to 21.30, to network, and promote your products.