At Spaghetti Tree every puzzle starts with a sketch. Loni, our co-owner and in-house artist, is the creative behind every hand-drawn design that you see. We’ve gotten a lot of questions about what her creative process looks like so we decided to do a Q&A to share a little bit of what that looks like. Let us know if you have any other questions for Loni, or designs you would like to see featured on future puzzles.
Q&A
What’s your background in art/design?
I have a BFA from Utah State University. I worked there for a while and then moved to AZ where I started freelancing and connected with my agency, Pink Light Studio. I have been with them for about 14 years now.
How do you come up with ideas for your next design?
I try to consider a combination of things: trend research, what has sold well for us previously, thinking about what subject matter makes an interesting puzzle, thinking about what season and audience we are trying to create for, and lastly, what I think would be cute and fun to draw.
Once you’ve chosen a design, what is your first step in creating the puzzle?
The first step is lots of research including creating a mood board with color, style and content inspiration.
How do you know when your design is complete?
A lot of times I just have to say, “we have to go to print, it's time to finish this up!” haha. I think I could keep working on some of the designs longer and refine and rework and add things but at some point I have to think about timelines and other art I need to spend time on.
What is the hardest part of designing a puzzle? Easiest?
I struggle the most with the scenery puzzles, but they also push my skills and make me a better artist. I can make the grid-style puzzles much faster because they align more with the art licensing work I have been doing for years.
Spaghetti Tree puzzles are known for catering to casual puzzlers with their easy-to-sort pieces. How do you ensure that?
I spend a lot of time and effort when designing our puzzles to make sure that there are no broad swaths of a solid color, or too many repeats of similar colors and textures. If I have similar icons in a puzzle, I will vary the color slightly and add a different overlay pattern, etc. so that when the puzzle is being sorted they can easily be distinguished from each other.
How long does it take to create each design?
LOTS of hours. I am actually a pretty fast artist but they still take a lot of time!
What design and illustration tools/mediums do you use?
I do our puzzle art exclusively on my computer (I have a Wacom drawing monitor and draw on the screen in Photoshop) or on my ipad. It is digital art, but it is produced by hand (not AI). I am physically drawing it myself. I am grateful for these tools because they enable me to work faster and more efficiently–even then I have a hard time keeping up with all our art needs! I am working my fastest to bring our customers more new and exciting hand-drawn designs!
What is Spaghetti Tree’s stance on AI generated art?
It’s a big no go for me, ethically and stylistically. At Spaghetti Tree, we value human-made art. It’s one thing that sets us apart and that’s something that will never change.
What’s a puzzle you’ve always wanted to make but haven’t yet?
Some design ideas on my list that I haven’t gotten to yet: a really beautiful spring floral that fills the whole puzzle, more southwest designs, cooking, fruit, skiing, and a puzzle of classic book covers that I design!
What does it mean to have so many people buying your artwork in puzzle form?
I am continually grateful that people buy our puzzles with my artwork and that people keep showing up and supporting us. I also feel so grateful when we get comments from customers about how much they love the art and enjoy the puzzles. A lot of time and thought goes into them, but I spend most of that time alone working in my office. To get this kind of feedback means a lot to me.
Make sure to join to our newsletter and follow us on Instagram to see what Loni comes up with next!