In this episode of The Designated Designer, I’m joined by the lovely Vickie Moore from Design Some Moore! She's a fellow creative spirit navigating the wild world of freelancing, design education, and community building!

We talk about the messy middle of figuring it all out — from leaving the 9–5 to embracing self-discovery, learning the business side of design, and finding your creative rhythm along the way. Vickie opens up about how hosting co-working calls positively impacted her career, what design school didn’t teach, and why meaning matters more than just making things pretty.

If you’ve ever felt alone on your design journey or unsure of your next creative step, this one’s a reminder that we’re all figuring it out together! One project, one client, and one breakthrough at a time 💖✨

This week, I sat down with Gareth; a seasoned UK-based designer whose story is as much about resilience as it is about design. From the early days of chasing creative work, to backpacking across Australia, to facing the ripple effects of Brexit and COVID in his business, Gareth’s path has been anything but straightforward.

We talk about why networking is non-negotiable, how rebranding his business to Graphic Studio simplified everything, and why trusting your gut is one of the most underrated tools in business. Gareth also opens up about mental health, pacing yourself to avoid burnout, and why growth often comes from stepping way outside your comfort zone.

If you’ve ever felt like your creative journey is full of detours, setbacks, and second guesses — this conversation is proof that those twists and turns might just be leading you somewhere better. ✨

Remember that episode I did where I tried to tackle finances as a creative? Well, after posting it I felt like I didn’t fully answer my listener’s question the way I wanted to. Why? Because I’m not a financial professional (shocking, I know 😅). So I decided to fix that.

In this episode, I brought in financial expert Mike Braun to really dig into the money side of being a solopreneur. We talk QuickBooks vs. FreshBooks, invoicing, payment terms, how to avoid check headaches, banking choices, payroll, taxes, and all the unglamorous but totally necessary stuff that makes running your creative business actually sustainable.

If you’ve ever felt like money management is the missing puzzle piece in your business, this one’s for you. Think of it as the follow-up episode you didn’t know you needed—but your bank account will thank you for.