Designer Spotlight: WhoDrew

We thought we’d kick off the month of May with a brand new ‘Designer Spotlight’ segment. Give a warm welcome to apparel designer and illustrator, Peggy McGrath of Whodrew New York.

1. What made you decide to venture out on your own?

I have always loved doing watercolors on the weekends, especially fashion illustrations. I created a calendar for my mom as a Christmas present three years back. Each month was represented with a fashion illustration. She loved it and lots of her friends asked for a print. That was when I started thinking that I could sell my art. I created a small collection of notecards and a new calendar then started my website. It is fun and exciting to work with new clients and customers. It has grown into a range of custom projects, focusing on bridal portraits, house illustrations, custom invitations, and wedding designs for menus, programs and Save the Dates.

2. How do you balance a full-time job and a successful side business?

This is the hardest part! I work on Whodrew in the evenings and on weekends. Successful time management is the key for me. I work a little bit each and every day, create a reasonable schedule, observe deadlines, and integrate small incentives (coffee breaks!) along the way. Fortunately, I love it and it doesn’t seem like work to spend a full Saturday sketching and designing. There’s great truth in following your passion for a happy work day!

3. What is the best part about owning your own business?

I think having ownership over the design process from start to finish is exciting. For example, invitations start with client conversations to discuss their vision. Incorporating their inspirations, I will illustrate different elements using watercolor. Then I bring these designs into Photoshop to edit them. Adding typography is my final step in creating the design options. Once a design is chosen, I am involved in the printing and packaging. Usually in a company, designers don’t get their hands on all of these steps! I also love social media. I try to post on Instagram every day, showing past projects or something fun and relatable for that day.

4. Tell us about your brand and what sets you apart?

I use watercolor in a fun, sophisticated, feminine way! I think followers can easily get a sense of my fashion taste. I like to challenge myself with new subjects. I recently drew a dog for a client 🙂 For those of you who know me, I am NOT a dog person at all. I think my brand feels different because I am merging a classic artist style of watercolor and pairing it with modern text or layouts to create a design that feels new.

5. What long term opportunities do you see for your creative viewpoint and products?

I am very focused on custom projects at this time, but I would love to expand the products for the website. I have several ideas for thank you cards, birthday cards, monogram designs, and invitation templates. Hopefully in the next few months I will be able to develop this side of the business, that way the designs are more readily available for anyone shopping for stationery! Long term goal is to have a studio space and work on Whodrew full time!

You can find Whodrew below-

Website: https://whodrew.com

Instagram: whodrewnyc

Email: info@whodrew.com