Hey Reader

Last week I told you something was coming and to keep an eye out for this email. So here we are.

Creative Systems Lab goes live Wednesday, June 24. It’s free. Over 400 creative business owners are already registered. You can save your seat right now at creativesystemslab.com — or scroll to the bottom of this email for all the details.

Before you scroll, let me tell you what it actually is, who it’s for, and why I’m finally doing this. (If you’ve been on this list for a while, you know I do not launch things lightly.)

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I've been quietly building Creative Systems Lab for several months. A few weeks ago, I soft-launched it just to test the thing out, no fanfare. And more than 200 people signed up.

I was blown away. And it confirmed something I suspected: you need this.

Here's the deal. There's a mountain of AI information out there right now. Some of it is hype. Some of it is so technical it makes my eyes glaze over. And sorting the useful stuff from the noise takes time none of us actually have.

So that's the idea behind CSL: cut through the noise and help creative business owners build time-saving tools to take care of the soul-crushing admin work we hate doing. CSL is one of the things I'm most proud of building. And I think you're going to surprise yourself with what you can do once you're in.

Here goes.

Ketikayo – Tropical Botanical This Is What "Deep Love for Your Subject" Looks Like​ Anna says she has a deep love for tropical flora and half her botanical elements came from real observation. Dark ground, orange heliconias, purple leaves, hibiscus, plumeria — the whole thing radiates the kind of confidence you only get when you actually know your subject matter. You can feel it. Full-Coverage Tropical Repeat​ Multiple scales, bold silhouettes, dark ground making every color punch harder than it would anywhere else. Dense without being claustrophobic. The outline details on the leaves add just enough depth to keep it from going flat. Great for Apparel, Home Décor & Licensing​ Resort wear, drapery fabric, statement wallpaper, tote bags. The kind of tropical print that doesn't look like every other tropical print. That's the whole game. Show them some love on IG

Ali Brookes – Dark Floral Folk She Questioned Her Sanity Making This. Worth It.​ Navy ground, bold folk-style blooms in hot pink, coral, yellow, and purple — maximalist, graphic, completely committed. She said the motifs came from... somewhere chaotic. The result is a pattern that feels like it was made by someone who said yes to every idea and somehow it all worked. Dense Folk Floral Repeat​ Strong outlines, flat color fills, varied bloom types keeping the eye moving. The dark ground holds it all together without flattening it. Controlled chaos, pulled off. Great for Apparel, Stationery & Home Décor​ Tote bags, dresses, journal covers, wallpaper. Bold buyers only — and those are the best buyers. Show them some love on IG

Bella Boss | Bee Creates – You Don't Have to Be the Best Not a pattern this week — just something that stopped me mid-scroll and I think you need to see it. "You don't have to be the best (or even good) to enjoy doing something." The hand lettering, the rainbow palette, the whole chaotic joyful energy of it — this one is for every person who has ever talked themselves out of creating because they weren't good enough yet. Which is most of us, most of the time. Keep going. Make the thing anyway. Show them some love on IG

Tip #1: What Creative Systems Lab Is (and What It Isn't)

CSL is a 2x/month live build series for creative business owners. Two sessions per month — every other week, 24 sessions a year — 90 minutes each, live with me, where you don’t just learn something. You walk away with the thing actually built and working in your business.

That’s my promise: you will walk away with something built, not just something learned. Every session is a build session.

Here’s what each session looks like. The first five minutes are “here’s what we’re building today.” The next fifteen are “here’s how it works” — short, no fluff, no padding. Then we spend a full sixty minutes building it together — you do the work alongside me in real time. The last ten minutes are celebrating the win and previewing what’s next.

Now let me tell you what CSL is NOT. This is not about using AI to generate art. Your patterns, your illustrations, your designs — those are 100% made by you. CSL is about using AI to run the business around your art. The emails. The launches. The content. The systems that hold your business together but eat away at your creative time.

A few more answers to questions I know you have:

• “Is this just for surface designers?” No. CSL is for any creative business owner — illustrators, makers, Etsy shop owners, coaches, anyone running a business around what they create. The session is set up to work for every creative business in the room.
• “Do I need to be techy?” No. If you can open a browser tab, you can do this. We are starting from zero. I will walk you through it live, on screen, with friction points covered (Yes, including “I forgot my password”).
• “What if I miss it live?” Live attendees get a replay automatically. If you can’t make it live, you can still register at creativesystemslab.com and watch the replay. (More on the structure in a sec.)
• “Why Claude and not ChatGPT?” CSL is a Claude lab. I picked one tool and I teach it deeply — the same way some educators teach Procreate instead of Photoshop. You’ll get better results because I’m not splitting my attention. If you’re on ChatGPT the concepts translate, but you’ll get the most out of every session in Claude.

That’s the offer. Live build, 90 minutes, twice a month, you leave with the thing actually working.

Tip #2: Why I Built This Now

For the last several years, I’ve watched the same pattern play out over and over — creative business owners who are brilliant at their craft, doing well enough to keep going, but completely buried under the business side of their business. The emails that never get written. The launches that feel like emergencies. The content calendar that gets rebuilt from zero every single month.

Nobody was teaching this. Not in a way that actually worked.

There are plenty of people teaching surface design. Plenty of people teaching marketing. Plenty of people teaching AI prompting. But almost nobody is teaching the specific combination that creative business owners actually need — systems for a creative business, built using AI as the engine, taught by someone who actually runs a creative business.

That is the lane I’m in. And it’s the lane CSL is built for.

Here’s a little of what’s unfair about my background, in the good way — before I was a surface pattern designer, I was a programmer. I have an actual programming degree and I taught network engineering and web design for a decade before I came back to art full-time. Which means I see both sides of this. The creative side and the systems side. Most people in this space are designers who learned a little business. I’m a tech person who became an artist who built a business who built a software product. That intersection is rare. And CSL is what I built out of it.

The first session is AI 101 Part 1: Why Claude & How to Set It Up for Your Business. You will leave with Claude set up, configured specifically for your business, and your first real output already in hand. Not “I know more about AI now.” I have Claude working for my business right now. That’s the difference.

It’s free. It’s live June 24. The room is already 400+ deep with creative business owners who want exactly this. And the seat is yours if you want it — creativesystemslab.com.

How to Actually Show Up Ready for Session 1

Look — I know how this usually goes. You sign up for a free webinar with good intentions, the day arrives, three things blow up before noon, and you watch the replay later (maybe). I am not going to pretend I haven’t done this myself. I have. Many times.

So here’s the 10-minute prep that gets you actually in the room on June 24, fully ready, and means you walk away with the thing built.

Right now (before you close this email):

1. Register for Session 1 at creativesystemslab.com. Takes 30 seconds. Do this part now — you can do the rest later. Over 400 people have already done it; you’ll be in good company.
2. Block your calendar for June 24 with the note “CSL Session 1 — Claude setup.” Block 15 extra minutes before the call starts. Use that time to settle and focus, so you can hit the ground running. (Exact session time is on your registration confirmation — add it from there so the timezone math is handled for you.)
3. Reply to this email with a YES if you’re committing.

The morning of:

1. Close every tab that’s not Claude. Open claude.ai in a fresh tab. If you don’t have an account yet, signing up takes 2 minutes. Do yourself a favor. If you don't already have a Claude account, create one now. Don't wait until the day of Session 1.
2. Have two short answers ready in your head: Who do you sell to? What are your top 2-3 products or services? I’ll walk you through the rest live.
3. Show up 5 minutes early. Tea, coffee, water, margarita (no judgements). Not in a panic. Settled in.

A quick word on replays: Can't make it live? As long as you sign up before June 24, you'll still get the recording.

Live is best, but I get it, the time won't work for everyone. Session 2 is also free and works the same way (I'll share the details at the end of Session 1). After that, we move to paid sessions: $67 each, recording yours to keep. One product, one price.

But here's the catch: if you don't sign up before Session 1 goes live, you miss it. Pre-registered folks get the recording, everyone else is out of luck.

So show up live if you can. That's where the real work happens, and where you'll walk away actually knowing how to put Claude to work in your business.

🎟️ YOUR SEAT IS WAITING

CSL Session 1 — AI 101 Part 1: Why Claude & How to Set It Up for Your Business

📅 Wednesday, June 24, 2026

💻 Live on Zoom — 90 minutes

👥 400+ creative business owners already registered.

💸 FREE for the live session.

👉 Save your seat at creativesystemslab.com​

You’ll walk away having taken the first step toward configuring Claude for your business, and your first real AI tool ready to use.

See you in there.

P.S. If you’ve been eyeing AI for your business and wondering what all the hype is about, why not test the waters? Session 1 is free. It’s live. You walk away with a finished AI tool. creativesystemslab.com — grab your seat before June 24.

Aaaand whenever you're ready, here's how I can help you ⬇

Live, 90-min business sessions for creatives 💡 ​Learn with CSL →​

Get a personalized blueprint for your art biz 🎯 ​Build your plan →​

Create & sell a market-ready mini pattern collection 🔥 ​Let's go →​