Products We Love – Sketch.inc

We have been swooning over Sketch.inc, and decided that it was a little selfish of us to keep them to ourselves. Sketch.inc is a whimsical world of character design and pattern exploration which can be enjoyed by children and adults alike. Opening its virtual doors in 2011 Sketch.inc creations now reside in more than 30 countries around the world. Sketch.inc has a little something for everyone. Their designs can be worn on brooches, eaten off plates, given as gifts on cards, written on stationary, hung as prints and played with as dolls.

We asked Becky from Sketch.inc to share her history, inspirations, and favorites with our readers. Here is what she had to say:

1. What made you want to start Sketch inc?

Sketch.inc was kind of an accident really. Since Art College I was painting and having a few shows in my spare time but soon became lost in a job I wasn’t particularly passionate about. When I packed a sketchbook for a meeting instead of my presentation notes I realised I was in the wrong job. My Mum suggested I join Etsy and try to sell my prints and paintings to free up some wall space in my tiny cottage and the rest is history. One year later I resigned from the day job and Sketch.inc has been my focus ever since. I can’t imagine doing anything else.

ANNA KOKESHI

2. What sets your products apart from others?

I guess it boils down to the fact that I’m creating for myself and not for others. Selfishly if I don’t want to make a product or loose excitement for it during the design process it wont be made. As a one girl handmade operation I don’t have a team to bounce ideas around with so it’s left entirely up to my own preference.

I love the diversity of my products and it’s very hard to credit all of them under one style but that’s exactly why I love running a small business, the freedom to produce anything!
Sketch.inc is my attempt to fill my home with lovable characters, minimal abstraction and beautiful pattern design… luckily for me others seem to want the same thing I do.

PIE CHART BROOCH

3. How did sketch inc get it’s name?

Ha ha! It’s no mystery really. Sketch.inc simply refers to my love of sketching in ink. When I researched the name Sketch.ink it was copyrighted to a tattoo company so the K became a C.

FRIDA PRINT

4. What are your inspirations and motivations?

I love classic Japanese illustration and Nordic design, which in its self sounds like a contradiction but the simple aesthetics of both are very inspiring to me. I strive to never stay still and for Sketch.inc to be forever changing, exploring the creative possibilities available to a small business. There’s nothing I enjoy more than discovering a new tool or process and seeing where it can lead me. Without the restraints of one particular product line or strict brand identity I can in theory create anything and go wherever my imagination takes me. In short my motivation is the journey ahead and I think my people enjoy the ride as well.

Ink’d Prints

5. What do you have coming up for sketch inc that you are excited about?

I’ve been working on my AW14 catalogue for the last few months ready for September which will include new Kokeshi Doll shapes allowing for a wider variety of icons past and present….keep your eyes peeled for Marie Antoinette. Hopefully there’ll be three new brooches to add to the enamel animal collection and I’m playing with metallic foil embossing teamed with black and white graphics for a new line of prints which I’m really excited about.