I’m pretty sure that when you think about graphic design, you have this image in your head of someone sitting in a luxuriously spacious studio apartment, with some gigantic easel and probably a large compass. That is a common misconception and also 99% wrong.
Then there’s the relaxed student sitting in a cafe with their laptop, drinking coffee and occasionally tapping away at their keypad, making computer magic. That’s pretty wrong too. My first few years as a graphic designer were spent hunched over a desk in a dimly lit office, making sure the website colours matched up and looked pretty. I was barely allowed near the nice software. It was slightly soul-crushing, but it was a start. Then I went freelance, and found my true calling.
That calling was custom designer wallpaper. This wasn’t a result of a deep desire from my childhood, or anything. I didn’t visit historical buildings in my youth, tracing a finger along the elaborate designs and hoping, praying, that I would someday render such designs with thine own hands.
Uh, no. I actually did a fairly boring job for a graphic design company, and while I was there they had some really nice wallpaper. Like…REALLY nice. It was custom printed brick wallpaper, with quotes from famous artists framed and scattered around. It didn’t blow me off my feet, but it was pretty eye-catching. I asked how they did it, and they told me about the process. I became interested, and things kind of took off from there.
After I’d done a few jobs for the company, I heard about an opening in the design department, and I jumped on it. Over the last few years I’ve done all kinds of wallpaper for people, from animals prints to movie posters. A large part of my job actually involves walking round houses, recommending shades and designs and generally making walls more interesting.
And yeah, I have become a bit of a wall snob, but I really enjoy what I do and as graphic designing goes, I think I might have found my calling. Custom designer wallpaper. I suppose that’s how wallpaper can change your life. Graphic design goes so deep, you’re bound to find something that suits you.