Hey Reader!
Happy Thursday aka Eduletter day!
I was on a coaching call recently and an artist was showing me her Instagram.
She had some really thoughtful mock-ups happening, beautiful stuff actually. But here's where I noticed the gap: they were scattered. A few mock-ups in her stories. Maybe one every few posts in her actual feed. But not systematic. Not leveraged.
So I asked her: "What if you started treating mock-ups like a regular part of your feed strategy instead of an occasional thing?"
And we started talking about what that could look like.
Here's what I realized: you all are creating mock-ups.
You get it. You understand they're powerful. But you’re not using them strategically in the place where the algorithm actually picks them up and shows them to people: the feed.
You’re posting a pattern. Then another pattern. Then another pattern. And somewhere buried in your stories or highlights or every few weeks, there's a mock-up.
But imagine if you flipped that. Imagine if your feed had rhythm.
Pattern, mock-up, pattern, mock-up. Or graphic, mock-up, pattern. You know what you’d be doing?
- Guiding the eye flow.
- Creating movement.
- Making people actually stop scrolling instead of just scroll past.
That's the difference between people seeing your work and people actually wanting your work.
Because you know… people can't buy what they can't envision.
And your job is to make it easy for them to envision it.
And it's not about being everywhere. It's about being understood.
Let me show you what I mean.
Before we dive in, let me shout out some gorgeous work that stopped me mid-scroll this week!
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🦋 Meghan Marie – Reptiles & Ribbons:
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Style: That hand-painted texture and saturated color combo screams high-end boutique—romantic with a twist.
- Theme: Snakes + florals + bows? This one taps into the gothic garden trend without going full dark.
- Perfect For: Boutique wallpaper, luxe gift wrap, or statement notebook covers.
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Rachel Parker – Square by Square:
- Style: The woven, hand-drawn look makes it feel cozy and tactile—like visual quilting.
- Theme: A beautiful nod to mental health and creative recovery—quietly powerful and very real.
- Perfect For: Fabric collections (hello, quilters!), journals, and stationery kits.
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Melody Jeffries – Colorful Bandaids:
- Style: Bold, blocky shapes with clean outlines = super versatile and kid-friendly.
- Theme: Whimsical wellness at its best—turning first aid into feel-good fun.
- Perfect For: Bandages (duh), greeting cards, kids’ PJs, and cheerful fabric prints.
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Now, what did I mean when I said "it's about being understood"?
What makes a pattern be picked by someone is when they can go: “Oh, I want that
Most artists miss that last word- the product. And it actually holds a lot more importance than you realise!
You want people to be able to see themselves using your art. You want them understanding what they're actually buying, and imagining it in their life, in their space.
And that's a skill you can absolutely develop.
Let’s give it a go:
Tip #1: Mock-ups That Guide The Eye Flow
Your design exists in your head as something gorgeous and complete.
But your customer? They're scrolling. They see a flat pattern and think, "That's nice," and keep scrolling.
They can't SEE what it actually becomes.
Mock-ups are the translation. They're you showing people: here's this pattern on a product. Here's this graphic on something you'd actually use. Here's what your space looks like with this design in it.
And suddenly the lightbulb goes off. Suddenly they want it.
The difference in engagement is wild. I'm talking about posts that get scrolled past going completely flat versus posts with mock-ups that people stop to look at, click on, and actually buy from.
But here's where I’m seeing some of my coaching students mess this up: they create mock-ups sporadically. One here, one there. Not part of the plan.
Wouldn’t it be cool if instead you thought about it like a visual rhythm?
Pattern, then mock-up, then pattern, then mock-up. Or mix it up? Graphic, then mock-up, then pattern. You're creating movement through your feed. You're making the eye want to keep scrolling down.
It sounds like a small thing. But it's the difference between someone glancing and someone stopping.
And you want them to stop.
Because every time they stop, there's a chance they click. There's a chance they buy.
Tip #2: You Can Use Society6’s New Shift To Your Advantage
We know that most POD platforms are extremely busy.
And if you know how to draw attention to your POD shops with social media, which you most certainly need to learn anyway, then you should 100% take that route.
But if you are someone who has put in the work and time to learn and improve your design skills, but need more eyes on your art, then this one’s for you.
About ten months ago, Society6, a major print-on-demand platform made a shift that honestly felt restrictive at first.
They stopped accepting just anyone.
Instead, they started requiring artists to apply and pitch themselves. They're essentially curating who gets shelf space.
And you know what my first thought was? "Well that sucks."
But the second thought was “Hmm, this might be interesting.”
Because now when a customer lands on that platform, they're not wading through thousands of mediocre designs. They're browsing work that's been vetted. The artists have put in effort. The designs meet a standard.
Which means less noise. Which means better visibility for the work that is there.
Now, I bet you didn’t think about it this way, but your customer wants to understand what they're buying.
They want to feel confident in their purchase. And when they're on a curated platform, that trust is already built in. The platform did the heavy lifting for them.
Meanwhile, on the saturated platforms? Your customer is overwhelmed. Too many choices. Too much noise. It's hard for them to see you, even if you're good.
Most artists hear "application required" and think it's a barrier.
But it most certainly can be an advantage.
Because the artists who get in are the ones who took the time to say, "This is worth pitching to."
In this case, you're not playing the volume game anymore. You're playing the visibility game.
And visibility is worth a lot more than trying to be everywhere.
So if you’re someone who
- can create patterns that are market-ready
- has taken the time to hone the technical skills of pattern design
- probably has “really good art” but needs help with “more people seeing your art”
… then all you need is to pick a few (I’d say 4) of your patterns that can fill the most-bought category (Seasons, flowers, animals, holidays, etc) and convert them into mini-collections.
And then create a portfolio (Do not miss adding mockups) that you can pitch to Society 6!
Your work will be seen by people who already trust the platform.
And if you tick the above boxes, that's worth the effort.
If you’re still a beginner though, I’d suggest you go check out this Eduletter:
Okay, we've established the importance of creating mock-ups.
So let's talk about the fastest way of creating them!
This is a hack that I just can't stop telling everyone about and it IS going to blow you away.
You know that moment when you have the perfect design, but you're scrolling through stock photo sites or Canva for hours trying to find the exact right image to mock it up on?
And even when you find something, getting the pattern to look natural on folds and creases is a nightmare in Photoshop?
Yeah. Stop doing that.
The Nano Banana Hack: Let AI Do Your Mock-ups in Minutes ⚡
Here's what you’re gonna do:
- Open Google Gemini and find the Nano Banana feature (it's the one with the little banana icon)
- Upload your actual pattern or design
- Write a specific prompt like "Place this pattern on a tea towel draped over a victorian kitchen’s oven handle" or "Show this design on a framed print hanging on a bedroom wall with soft natural light"
- Hit generate - and watch as AI places YOUR design on surfaces, handles the folds, the creases, the perspective, the lighting. All of it.
- Save and post - you now have a professional-looking mockup ready to go
That's it. No hunting through Unsplash. No more limited options on Canva. No wrestling with Photoshop trying to make the pattern bend around corners. No guessing if it looks right.
What would take you hours in Photoshop now takes minutes.
And, and, aaaannnddd you can generate multiple versions of the same design in different contexts. Same pattern, different room, different product. You build a whole mockup library in an afternoon that you can reuse again and again with new designs.
Alright, that's all the sauce for this week!
I love sharing some of these nuggets from my coaching calls.
These are obviously specially curated for you, and so much more fun when I get to talk to you 1:1. But I don’t believe in gatekeeping anything, so I keep passing these along.
I know there are some action takers in my tribe here, and this one’s for you!
| And while I still have you here, I'd love to know, what’s the golden nugget for you: |
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Select one here, and just go do it.
I’ll see you next Thursday!
