History of Ardo Illustrations

I always enjoyed art growing up but I never considered pursuing a 'creative' career. I took GCSE art but was very much more focused on photography than any other medium and generally felt very burnt out by the end.

I set up my first art Instagram account in 2019 whilst at Uni studying Geography. I was mostly doing small watercolour and fine liner bits in a sketchbook and slowly fell back in love with creating and recording the process...

In June 2020, with money from a cancelled holiday due to COVID and free time during summer break at Uni, I bought an iPad and Pencil. Inspired by many other small sticker businesses I created the first version of Ardo Illustrations (Art by Doyle). I had no experience in digital art, nor in business.

I set up an Etsy store and created stickers and greeting cards at home, mostly inspired by whatever I was into at the time. I made a few sales and loved the entire process, from creating and producing to packaging and branding but closed the store when I went back to Uni that September...

I got a free trial on Skillshare and learnt more about developing colour palettes and planning pieces.

Pinterest was my best friend for inspiration (and still is)...

Skillshare is also how I learnt how to create the 'seamless repeating pattern designs' which I still love to create now.

Although I stopped being active on social media and sharing online I continued to rebrand Ardo and create more art. I experimented with dropshipping poster designs - I think I did 1 before making it inactive again.

To me now, Ardo Illustrations isn't about building something I can make money from. Ardo is a way to share my art, whatever format it may be, regardless of the audience. It is a way to document a snapshot of my life at the time. It is a way to fill my cup with no expectations or pressure.

I hope you find something from Ardo you can take and find joy from.