Live Brief: Chinese New Year-Inspired Stationery Collection
The brief was creating a cohesive stationery range, including greeting cards, notecards, notepads, gift bags, and wrapping paper. The brief welcomed a wide range of graphic and illustrative styles, including painterly illustrations, character designs, patterns, lettering, and humour-based concepts.
The final concept drew inspiration from the Chinese Zodiac, celebrating all twelve zodiac animals. Rather than focusing on a specific year—such as 2021’s Year of the Ox—the collection was designed to be evergreen, allowing each piece to be gifted at any time. For example, an individual born in the Year of the Dragon could receive a personalised card featuring their zodiac animal, regardless of the current zodiac year.
A key feature of the collection was a custom-designed calendar, included to help users easily identify the correct animal for their recipient, adding a thoughtful and personal element to the range.
This project allowed cultural themes to be explored through playful illustration and pattern design, while ensuring the final outcome remained functional, engaging, and adaptable for year-round use.
