Hello First name /  

 

I went to a subtle networking meeting hosted by Drive The Network this week for great conversation and reflection. Unexpectedly, the theme tune to Why Don't You? came into my head, though I forget the context! Why Don't You was officially called “Why don’t you just switch off your television set and go and do something less boring instead?” Can you imagine the headache that would have given the Radio Times typesetters? It was on during the school holidays from 1973 to 1995 and featured games and activities to stop kids from being bored or watching endless television. Sensibly named kids (no Berenice's here!) were set free in a warehouse to make things. Yes, there's an irony in this being on television. 

 

Thinking about it brought back memories of sitting with my brother on the sofa, with snacks, learning how to make fake injuries and magic tricks from matchboxes. 

 

The absence of an adult meant this was peer-to-peer teaching with kids showing other kids, so children at home could learn with them. I love that sense of collaboration that came from programmes like Why Don't You, and that's a big part of my life philosophy. 

 

I genuinely believe in sharing knowledge. I have been grateful to learn from my peers, from top designers who share their wisdom, lecturers on my MA, and people I have worked with. I also gain a lot from clients. I have recently updated the testimonial page so that there is an opportunity for more learning.

 

As AI changes our ways of working, we have much to learn from each other and being human.

 

What have you discovered recently? Let me know on social media. 

 

Best wishes

 

Berenice

 

P.S. Here's the Why Don't You theme tune and closing credits, listen at your peril as it'll be an earworm for weeks.

 

Sit me down in front of a teacher with pen and paper, and within a few minutes, I'm daydreaming or doodling. My school reports attest to my ability to do both, with one teacher observing that if such education existed, I'd be top of the class for both (thanks, Mr Lemon).

 

Learning should be interesting and relevant, and I'm doing exactly that with Design Club. It's something I have wanted to do for a long time and builds on the blogs on the Hello Lovely Design and Co website. It's for anyone who is interested in design, has been tasked with design jobs, or wishes to bring some order to their visual presence. It will provide you with confidence to brief and work with designers or feel comfortable breaking away from templates.

 

At present, I'm writing and getting used to being recorded on video. My plan is a self-study course with two cohorts supported by webinars. I'm aiming for the first launch in September. As you can see, it's well underway with a lesson plan. If you'd like to know more, head to the website or click on the images below. 

Paola is the senior curator of Architecture and Design at The Museum of Modern Art in New York. In this TEDX talk, she shares her love of design and explains how objects can tell us stories.

 

Marian inspires me because, like mine, her career was accidental. She didn't mean to become a book designer. Her books are a work of art and she advocates working for love, not money through enjoying the work she does. 

 

When I stopped finding fun in art and got too rigid in my practice (is that common with designers?), I did a short course with Louise to loosen up my work. Abstract art isn't my genre, yet Louise's thoughtfulness on art and play is inspiring.

 

 

I love this paper animation on the history of fonts and typography, and it's a joyful 5 minutes and 9 seconds long.

I used QuarkXPress for magazine design early in my publishing career. Under-investment in the software's print side in the early 2000s meant I was one of many designers who went over to Adobe, which had upgraded InDesign. I still use InDesign today for its superior handling of fonts and typography. Excitingly,  QuarkXPress appears to be making a comeback, according to news of a Spring update from the developers. QuarkXPress is bringing in AI tools to support content creation and has integrated font handling, which isn't currently offered by Adobe, which means users have to rely on third-party font-handling software to iron out corrupt typefaces that may result in a damaged document. There's a free trial too. I'm glad to see this as Adobe could use the competition.

 

Monotype has added 1500 fonts to Adobe Fonts and expanded the support for global languages with additions to Arabic, Chinese, Japanese, Korean, Thai and Hindi typefaces. 

 

On LinkedIn this month I shared some words on kindness and feedback after a friend picked up a typo for me. She said, 'It's like a tag hanging out the back of your shirt - I'd want you to tell me, so I gently tell you.' I thought that analogy was so beautiful, I had to share.

 

You can find me hosting The Freelancer Magazine's coworking at least once a month on a Wednesday, sometimes more. I loved this post from Sophie Cross , who founded the magazine, which featured co-host Lucian talking about what being a host means to him.

 

Finally, this happened just as I was about to press send. Digital Women was founded by Lucy Hall. DW empowers 1 million women to stay relevant in an ever-changing digital world through digital education. I'm thrilled to be a finalist!

Image of Berenice in a circle, she has long curly hair and wears glasses. The words say Finalist, Digital/Graphic Designer Digital Women Awards 2025.