Hattie Evans

In the design world, personal skills are just as important as technical ones. For Hattie Evans, midweight designer at Kit Studio, building confidence, making the most of her network and reaching out to brands that inspire her has helped shape a successful path as a designer. At the same time, she knows the value of staying creative off the clock and keeping her creative flow going. Here, she chats collaborative processes, bouncing back from redundancy with the help of the creative community and finding colleagues on her wavelength.

What I do

How would you describe your job title?
I’m a designer, but I feel like it’s a pretty broad term. Specifically, I’m a graphic designer, although I’d describe myself as a visual storyteller.

What does a typical day in your role look like?
Day-to-day, what I do can look quite different. I could be at the initial stage of a project, coming up with ideas, doing sketches, exploring concepts and brainstorming with the team. There's a lot of conversation and collaborative work. Then, midway through a project, I'll be developing ideas, using Illustrator and InDesign to figure things out, like crafting a logo or hunting for typefaces and occasionally trying to create my own – but that's a challenging task. At a later stage of the project, we'll be doing final artwork and creating brand guidelines.

Throughout our whole process and day-to-day, we’re always presenting to clients and each other, getting feedback along the way.

What three skills are the most important for someone who wants to step into your role?
Time management is a huge one – I struggled a lot with that when I first started, especially as I'm a bit of a perfectionist. But it's a busy industry, so managing your time well while taking care of what you’re doing is really important. It's good to learn that early.

Secondly, I'd say effective communication all-round is a really good skill to have as a designer. Being a good communicator is important in everyday life already, and so is communicating well with the people you work with. It also really helps when it comes to networking. Especially in design and the creative industries, communication is so crucial because that's essentially what you're doing day-to-day through visuals.

Attention to detail is a good skill to have as well, because sometimes that extra detail will be what makes a difference in a project or in applying for a job – people notice if you are putting in that extra effort to craft something.

How I got here

How did you secure your current role at Kit Studio?
Before working at Kit Studio, I didn't know anything about them. I'd put out this LinkedIn post about being made redundant and looking for work, and it was then through LinkedIn that they messaged me.

I came into the studio and met them for an interview; they showed me some of their work, and I showed them some of mine. It was a really great interview, and I think the combination of seeing the breadth and variety of their work mixed with the fact that they're really lovely made me really want to work there.

What was an unexpected challenge you faced getting into the industry and how did you overcome it?
One of the hardest things I faced during my journey into the industry was being made redundant quite early on, at my second job. It's not a nice situation for anyone involved, and it can make you feel quite helpless or like you’ve failed, but it can also teach you a lot of lessons. In that situation, I especially learned that there are so many people around you to help you and that the creative community can be really supportive.

Take advantage of that help. Also, take advantage of LinkedIn; following the encouragement of others, I ended up doing a post about being made redundant. I was nervous to put the post out there, but that's actually how I ended up here at Kit Studio.

What’s a skill not listed in your job description that emerging designers might need to enter the industry?
Confidence is a huge one and quite key in the design industry. Confidence is often this thing that people expect you to have, even though it's difficult to acquire if it doesn't come naturally to you. Sometimes I think you can be looked at slightly differently if you are quiet or introverted, but I know a lot of creative people who are that way.

Sometimes it's about working with other creatives and being outwardly passionate, but you can also be really inwardly passionate. Both of those things are really valuable. The effort to become more confident in design spaces might not always be noticed or appreciated, but it’s definitely a strength to have and build as you go through your career.

What was your favourite piece of work you’ve done at your company so far?
My favourite piece of work that I’ve done recently was a branding and identity project for Raise the Roof, an organisation running music events where all the proceeds and ticket sales go to Centrepoint – the UK charity for youth homelessness. It was a really lovely piece of work because it was cultural, with that element of fun and youthfulness to it, combined with the fact that it’s a project doing good. You have another level of enthusiasm and satisfaction when a project is making a difference in some way too.

With that project in particular, the hardest part was translating our idea into the visual. For a while, I think we thought we might have to scrap the idea, but we finally managed to crack the style of it. That challenge also made it a really enjoyable project to work on.

How would you describe the environment and the team at Kit Studio?
I feel like Kit, as both a place and a team, is really understanding and flexible – flexible in the literal sense of if you need to work from home or from somewhere else for a period, but also flexible in terms of adapting to the industry and wanting to evolve. And then, obviously, it’s creative. I feel like I'm surrounded by really creative people and people who are on a similar wavelength to me. It's a really nice environment to be in.

Which fictional character would make a great designer?
Edna from The Incredibles would be, and already is, a great designer. She's got the style, a good eye and is very innovative – and she wouldn't sacrifice function for style. Also, she would probably never miss a deadline. She's got the classic creative director look – the glasses, bob, dressed in all black. She's the perfect designer already, although I wouldn't like to work with her.

My advice

How can someone just starting out gain the skills needed to do your role?
Starting out, there are many things you can do, but it’s also important to just be creative in your own time. A lot of effort and focus will go into finding a new job and getting into the industry, so keeping that creativity and enjoyment going is really important – otherwise, you can lose the passion for it a bit. Explore different things that are available to you: keep reading and finding inspiration. It helps to keep your mind fresh with new ideas and to not lose the creative flow; don’t get too caught up in the logistical side of applying for jobs.

Another thing is communicating. Being in contact with people is really important, and they are there to help you. Sometimes, just sending someone a message or getting on someone's radar can be really beneficial. I used to think that they’d never remember you, but then I had experiences where someone actually followed up down the line.

Do you have any other advice?
When I started my first internship, really simple questions that I thought I should know the answer to would come up, but you learn that people are there to help you and give you advice. You're not supposed to know everything right at the beginning. Take advantage of the people around you and don’t be afraid to ask questions.

Also, don't be afraid to apply for something or do something that might seem a bit above your level – it's all good experience. When I started out, I ended up applying for a mid-weight position that I knew I was probably never going to get, but it was at a place that I really admired. I was lucky enough to be accepted for an interview. Although I really didn't have a lot of experience at the time, one of those people stayed in contact with me, so it was still a really beneficial experience.