Early work: thortful
Before retraining in UX, I spent several years at Thortful, a startup greetings card marketplace supporting independent artists. I joined as part of a small creative team with no formal brand system in place, working closely with our digital designer to craft cohesive, playful campaigns that stood out creatively from competitors. As the business scaled, I continued collaborating across an expanding design team, helping to adapt and deliver campaigns consistently across digital channels.
My role included guiding creative decisions and creating digital marketing assets across social and email channels. Using brand elements supplied by our digital designer, I composed and adapted artwork for multiple formats, optimised layouts for each platform, and ensured visual cohesion across channels.
This experience sharpened my eye for composition, colour, and hierarchy, and taught me to design with both aesthetic and functional intent — skills I now bring to user-centred digital experiences.
NHS Charities Together Partnership (2020–2021)
Context:
Amid the Covid-19 pandemic, Thortful partnered with NHS Charities Together to raise funds for frontline workers. Following the success of our “Thank Our Heroes” campaign — which raised £130k and generated strong engagement — the collaboration returned for Mother’s Day 2021.
My focus:
Created digital assets across email and social channels using supplied elements (including a rainbow motif — a national symbol of hope).
Kept layouts clean and minimal to let the creators’ card messages take centre stage.
Balanced NHS Charities Together branding with Thortful’s own identity to ensure authenticity and sensitivity.
Outcome:
A visually unified, emotionally resonant campaign that strengthened audience trust and reinforced Thortful’s community values during lockdown.
Valentine’s Day 2020 — “Love Is in the Air”
Context:
A dreamy, pastel-toned campaign using playful motifs — paper hearts, lovebirds, and clouds — to evoke a lighthearted, romantic feel and drive Valentine’s card sales.
My focus:
Supported the launch of Secret Message Cards, a novelty range featuring hidden messages revealed only through special glasses.
Communicated the product’s concept visually with minimal copy, using supplied brand illustrations to make the idea instantly clear.
Adapted designs across formats, ensuring balance and clarity while retaining a warm, whimsical tone.
Included an “As seen on TV” badge in select assets, celebrating Thortful’s second television campaign — a proud milestone for us as a growing startup.
Father’s Day 2020
Context
A campaign celebrating dad humour — Thortful’s best-selling category — with a bright, masculine-leaning palette of blues, greens, and oranges that appealed to both male recipients and the largely female audience purchasing the cards.
My focus
Created adaptable social templates for paid and organic posts, giving the card designs visual prominence.
Optimised layouts for engagement: rectangular formats to maximise feed space, logo included for Facebook and omitted for Instagram.
Used soft gradients and translucent overlays to subtly reference the “sky” theme.
Carefully paired background tones with each card design to ensure colour contrast and harmony across formats.
Mother’s Day 2020 — “Cards for Every Kind of Mum”
Context
A spring-inspired campaign with a soft palette of purples, pinks, and blues to create a warm, comforting feel. Floral illustrations and design assets were supplied by our digital designer.
My focus
Composed and adapted campaign layouts for email and social channels, maintaining clarity and consistency across touchpoints.
Promoted “Cards for Every Kind of Mum” with segmented hero images tailored to audience groups (humorous, heartfelt, or child-led).
Launched Thortful’s Mother’s Day flower bouquets across organic social channels.
Developed interactive posts — such as a “tag your mum” competition and a Facebook poll to vote for favourite bouquets — transforming sales content into engaging, community-led moments.
Outcome
Helped strengthen engagement and build a sense of connection around a product launch that could have otherwise felt purely promotional.
Christmas 2020
Context
As Thortful scaled rapidly during lockdown, our design team expanded from two to three. With sales booming, we aimed to streamline production while maintaining a cohesive festive identity.
My focus
Collaborated with the wider design team to adapt campaign artwork for social, cover imagery, and email hero assets.
Introduced a systemised workflow, repurposing core visuals across platforms with small compositional tweaks to fit each format.
Supported the launch of Thortful Mini Trees, aligning their visuals with the campaign’s uplifting tone.
Outcome
Delivered a faster, more unified rollout that maintained quality while improving production efficiency during a critical growth period.
These early campaigns strengthened my understanding of how visual decisions influence engagement, emotion, and trust. That awareness of audience behaviour and clarity naturally evolved into a passion for crafting intuitive, user-centred digital experiences.