Wandering & Wondering: How Travel and Gardens Inspire My Surface Designs

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9 June

Pattern and Colour Inspiration at the top of the world

Every pattern I create is a journey in itself — born from the places I’ve wandered and the quiet beauty of my own back garden. As a surface pattern designer, I’ve learned that inspiration doesn’t always come from sitting at a desk. Sometimes, it comes from the curve of an iron balcony in Italy, the colours of a Moroccan spice market, or the way dappled sunlight hits the petals of a peony.

✈️ The Joy of Travel

Travel is one of my biggest creative catalysts; it brings me alive and fills me with so much excitement and wonder.. Whether I’m strolling through an unfamiliar city street, being overwhelmed by a landscape more awesome than can be comprehended or absorbing the humanity, culture and language of a new people over the rim of a coffee cup, I find endless inspiration in new textures, patterns, and palettes. The layering of architecture, the rhythm of local life, even the colours of traditional clothing — all of it feed into the visual stories I go on to tell in my work.
Some of my favourite collections have grown from unexpected moments: the bright yet worn doors of Malta, the jewelled colours of the flowers of the Balkans or the colourful ocean sunsets of Croatia. These visuals don't just stick in my mind — they evolve into motifs and compositions that shape the Krafty Chameleon style.

🌸 The Secret Garden Muse

When I’m not travelling, I’m grounded in something just as rich: my garden. It's my little piece of calm — filled with rhododendrons, clematis, and the buzz of bees doing their daily work. I find constant joy in the smallest of changes, the intricate forms of petals and leaves, the surprise of new growth. My favourite time of the day is in the early morning, before the rest of the world has woken up and the dew is just clearing from the plants and grass. The light is beautiful, the flowers bring a peace and its like the world belongs to only you. Its a deep and powerful source of energy for me and I capture many floral moments in that first hour of the day that go on to form a part of my patterns.
Nature is the original pattern-maker. From the spirals of a snail shell to the repeating lines on a fern, the natural world provides both peace and endless possibility. Pattern is absolutely everywhere in the natural world and while it can be easy to see it in the most spectacular places it can be so easy to overlook in the simplest. My garden gives me time to breathe, recharge, and reconnect with creativity at a slower, deeper pace and its mine; other’s take inspiration from nature but only I take inspiration from my unique patch of nature.

🖼 Turning Inspiration Into Pattern

Bringing these inspirations to life involves more than snapping a photo or jotting a sketch. That’s where the moment and emotion is first captured but a pattern that speaks to that moment and can transport someone else there through image alone is about observing closely — noting the feeling of a place, the mood of a moment; working out what it is that’s speaking to you and holding your attention. Then its calling on all your senses and connection while translating that moment in time into a pattern that resonates with others.
I often begin with colour. Travel and nature inspire bold, unexpected colour combinations that form the heart of my palettes. From there, I sketch motifs; this is the very heart of the pattern. Finding shapes and images that are so inherently a part of that place and that moment that they catch the eye and pull the heart straight there. Finally I play with composition, and build repeats that catch the eye and carry the emotion and rhythm of where the idea began.

✨ Finding Your Own Creative Spark

Whether you have a creative soul or just want to connect more deeply with the world and your place in it, I encourage you to start looking at your surroundings as a design playground. You don’t need to fly across the globe — sometimes the best inspiration is right outside your window. The simplest moments of connection can open your eyes to things you pass by without realising it:

Take a walk and photograph textures and shapes
Visit a garden centre or botanical garden with a sketchbook
Collect colour inspiration from your last holiday snaps
Pause and reflect on how a place made you feel

💬 Let’s Share Stories

Design is storytelling, and everyone has a story worth telling (a message the universe sent to me on the wall of Magnolia bakery in Waco Texas). Whether you’re a seasoned artist or someone just starting out, your surroundings can become your most powerful muse and your deepest connection to what gives you power and energy. If you’ve found inspiration in your own travels or garden or somewhere completely unexpected and different, I’d love to hear about it. Join the fun on Instagram and share what provides you inspiration and ideas. Let’s celebrate the beauty in the every day together.
🌈 Connect with me to chat creative journeys, colour palettes, or potential projects: rachelanne@thekraftychameleon.com