Hey, First name / friends!

It may have felt like summer has been in full swing over the last couple of weeks (it certainly has here in Thailand! 🥵) but this week marks the official first day of summer!

 

In honor of the occasion I thought we should do a fun, summery prompt with a little Italian flare. (Bonus: This motif is actually a fairly evergreen trend!)

This week, your challenge is to create a zesty lemon illustration! Lemons perform well in lots of art licensing categories including fashion, stationery, home decor, and more. 

 

Remember the “tomato girl summer” trend that got popular in July last year? The gist of the trend was to curate a Mediterranean aesthetic with Italian-summer vibes. 

 

While the name may have centered around tomatoes, the idea was to romanticize life and feel like you were living on the Amalfi Coast. And the trend is still going strong. Take Anthropologie for example, their entire summer collection is filled with lemons, tomatoes, and Mediterranean vibes!  

My citrus illustrations get picked up for licensing often, so I'm always adding new variations to my portfolio. I'd recommend starting with a pattern since it is so versatile and can be used on lots of different products!

If you want to take this prompt to the next level, you can create a citrus mini collection like I did here! 

Check out this blog post to learn more about the strategy behind mini collections and how you can put one of your own together. It even comes with a free tear sheet template so you can quickly and easily format your mini collection!

I can't wait to see your lemon illustrations! Don't forget to share them on Instagram with the hashtag #CreateWithCatCoq and don't forget to tag me in your post (@catcoq) so I can see it and share it on my Instagram stories!

Have a fabulous week!