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Designing Wallpaper that Sells: A Peek into my Creative Process

Lina Callisto

Disclosure: This post may contain affiliate links, meaning I get a commission if you decide to make a purchase through my links, at no cost to you.


Floral blue wallpaper
My Beatrice wallpaper with Décor Imprimé

Wallpaper is making a comeback


There’s no better feeling than seeing your designs be part of someone’s most treasured space: their home. It means they liked your design enough to purchase it, and install it in a space they’ll see almost every day. Pretty cool, right?


We’ve seen wallpaper make a comeback in the interior design world in the past few years. Wallpaper can completely transform a space, adding personality, charm and a ton of visual interest. In residential spaces, it can serve as a focal point, complement existing decor, and be a great way to showcase your personality. In commercial spaces such as restaurants, offices and hotels, wallpaper can be a great conversation starter and reinforce a brand.


It's a great occasion for us designers to take advantage of this market by selling and licensing our designs, seeing them come to life in people’s homes and public spaces. It is such a great feeling to have someone want something that YOU created in their homes.


I’ve been lucky enough to have my designs licensed and produced as traditional and peel & stick wallpaper, wall decals, murals, and even as translucent films for windows. I've worked as a freelancer, designing wallpaper based on creative briefs, and I’ve created custom designs directly for clients’ homes. I’m here to share a peek at my creative process when designing wallpaper, and how you can make money from those designs. Let’s dive in!


Pink nursery wallpaper
My latest custom wallpaper design for a baby girl's nursery

My Creative Process


For most of my designs, my process looks like this:


  • Gather inspiration

  • Create a moodboard

  • Sketch & brainstorm concepts

  • Create the design

  • Test & Refine design

  • Share


Let's go through these steps in a bit more depth.


First, I look at popular themes, colours and trends from different sources. My favourites are Pinterest, Instagram, and my own photos and pieces I’ve gathered over the years. 

Then, I take a look at the visuals I’ve gathered and ask myself: what do I feel like creating? There’s no point spending time creating something new if I’m not feeling inspired or excited by it - this is why I became a designer in the first place, and why I love creating!


Once I pick a direction, I typically create a moodboard, either on Pinterest, InDesign or Procreate, to guide me throughout the design process. It includes a handful of the most inspiring images I found, including patterns, interior decor, photography, and anything else that catches my eye as I’m looking for ideas. I add a few key words to describe the overall vibe I’m going for and the main colours I want to work with. This acts as my guide throughout the creative process, making sure I'm on track with my overall vision.


Moodboard with inspirational images
Here's the moodboard I created for my Into the Wild collection

I might skip this step if I already have a clear vision of what I want to create and am feeling confident I can produce what I have in mind. But, especially if I’m working on a collection of designs or am still unsure of what I want to create, I make sure to create a moodboard and refer back to it as I’m designing.


Next, I grab my notebook or Procreate app on my Ipad, and get to sketching. This is my brainstorming phase, where I try not to be too precious or critical with my ideas. My focus isn’t on the details, but on the overall shapes, motifs, scale and style I’m going for. The goal is to get those initial ideas on paper and test a bunch of different options. Sometimes this phase is super fast, and sometimes it drags on until I have something I’m feeling confident with. 


Rough concept sketches
Some very rough thumbnail sketches for a tropical inspired pattern collections. This stage isn't meant to look pretty. :)

Once I have at least one concept I’m happy with, I’ll start working on my repeat pattern tile. Depending on the style I’m going for, I’ll either stay in Procreate (for more painterly, hand drawn styles) or move into Adobe Illustrator (for geometric, graphic & precise styles). This is where I redraw my motifs with more care, start adding colour more intentionally, and create the repeating pattern.


Testing Your Designs: AN ESSENTIAL Step Before Finalizing


Once I have the first draft of my repeat done, I move on to the next essential step: testing my design in a mockup. I never finalize a design without doing this. I have my library of wallpaper mockups I’ve gathered over the years, where I test my designs. 9 times out of 10, after putting it in a mockup, I’ll go back and adjust things like the scale of my pattern or colour palettes until it looks just right. Those mockups are also super important when sharing your work online or pitching to companies, so they can visualize the final outcome of your design. 



Floral wallpaper mockup
Mockup by Creatsy on Creative Market

Keep in mind that some wallpaper companies print on rolls that are either 24” or 48” wide, while others will print a custom size. Because of this, I usually design my repeat tile in a 12” x 12” square, and scale it up or down, depending on the scale of the final design I’m looking for. 


If I have a pattern I’ve already designed for another type of product and want to adapt it to wallpaper, I’ll focus on adjusting the colours and scale so it better fits into home decor. This might mean toning down colours, creating neutral variations and/or changing the scale of the motifs. Because people's tastes can vary, and everyone's home is different, I try to create at least 3 to 5 colour variations for each design. Even if I offer the option to customize my designs, it's helpful to have enough options for people to visualize your design in their space.


Sharing Your New Designs


And now, the most important part: sharing your designs! Use those mockups you created to pitch to wallpaper companies for licensing or freelance work, share on your social media profiles, and upload to your website. If you’d like, you can also upload these designs to Print-on-demand websites such as Society6 or Spoonflower for potential sales and visibility. If ever a company wants an exclusive license for your design, you can easily take it down from those websites.


When pitching to companies, take the time to target ones that sell designs in a similar style to yours. It doesn’t have to be identical, but if you think your work would fit well with their current line-up, you’ll have a better chance of getting a “yes”. Take the time to craft a personalized email introducing yourself, what drew you to submitting your work to them, and include a few examples of your designs. My secret for success? Pick 4-5 of your favourite designs that would work well for that company, and create an animated GIF to include directly into the email.


You can also attach a PDF and/or re-direct them to your website, but I find going the extra step and adding either a GIF or a few curated images of my work directly in the body of the email goes a long way in getting a response.


Wallpaper design GIF
One of the GIFs I created to send in my pitch emails to wallpaper companies

If you’d like to learn more about licensing and pitching your work, there are tons of great resources out there, including classes on Skillshare, or my personal favourite online course by Elizabeth Silver: Start your Surface Pattern Business - the class that helped me land my very first wallpaper design contracts. 


Turning Your Passion for Design into Profit


To wrap up, if you have a love for patterns and an interest in the home decor market, take advantage of the growing demand for custom wallpaper to showcase your creativity and turn your designs into tangible products. By following a creative process, from trend research and moodboarding to sketching and mockups, you can have fun creating designs that become a part of people’s everyday lives.


Of course, your creative process might look different to mine. My own process is constantly evolving as I learn new tools and gain more experience. As you practice, you’ll discover what yours is, and find one that fits you.


Tell me in the comments below, what does your creative process look like right now?


As always, let me know if you have any questions on my process or wallpaper design in general. I'd love to help.


 Until next time!


Lina

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