February’s featured designer is Lindsay at Happy Potamus Designs!
Hi! I’m Lindsay, a graphic designer and owner of Happy Potamus Designs. I’m also a stay-at-home-mom to a wonderful daughter and am so happy that I get to stay home with her and still do what I love. At Happy Potamus, I specialize in custom blog designs, invitations, announcements, and more. Creating custom designs for each unique client and bringing their ideas to life is one of my favorite things about my business. In my “free” time (which is usually called nap time for the little one), I love making all kinds of crafty things as another creative outlet and sharing my projects on my blog, Artsy-Fartsy Mama.
I am so grateful to be featured at The Blog Designer Network, and I wouldn’t be here without my fantastic clients!
Here is what some of her former clients had to say in their nominations.
When I decided to get a new blog design, I didn’t give a second thought to the blog designer I was going to use! I had seen some the other fabulous designs by Lindsay at Happy Potamus Designs and knew she was extremely talented, but she really outdid herself when she created my blog design! I gave her a few very random ideas about what I wanted on my new design, but I really wasn’t sure what I wanted exactly. Well, somehow, she did! It was PERFECT the very first time! I knew she would do a great job, but I had no idea it would turn out this fabulous! She is super-sweet and so easy to work with! Her rates are also extremely reasonable! Lindsay is definitely who I am going to continue to use for any other design work I need in the future! — Crystal, Homemaker In Heels
I chose to hire Lindsay to redesign my blog after seeing all the amazing things she’s done for other’s blogs! She has been really great in working with me to come up with something that really embodied my personality, as well as my two girls, who inspired my blog, “vanilla bean girls.” She has been a complete joy to work with, and I absolutely love my new blog design, and my readers have been going nuts over it! Lindsay also just participated in my birthday bash giveaway in which she’s giving away a new blog design to our lucky winner! I can’t believe what a generous and talented lady she is!! — Ellie Perez, Vanilla Bean Girls
She did such a great job achieving my vision for my photography site. She is creative, kind, and easy to work with. — Angela McAllister, Angela McAllister Photography
Here are some examples of Lindsay’s work!
You can follow Happy Potamus Designs on Facebook and be sure to check out her design site too!
If you are interested in the nomination process, or would like to nominate your blog designer – please read this post and fill out the corresponding form. Thank you!
Thanks so much!! I’m so excited about this :)
no troll, but i don’t think i understand why some blog designers describe themselves as stay-at-home moms. to me, it screams unprofessional
Because we are moms. We stay at home with our kids all day while still balancing a job (be it a full time job or a part time gig). Until I made design a full time thing (meaning I work on design over 40 hours a week), I considered myself a SAHM because my primary role in our house was to take care of our son. Now, I’m a work at home mom because I’m not only pulling 40 hours of design work a week, I also spend all day, every day homeschooling my son and doing the other “normal” things that stay-at-home moms do. It’s not unprofessional at all. It’s reality.
That is because we stay at home to work. I work on my design business at least 40 hours a week while maintaining my household, taking care of my children and husband and still producing professional results. I work from home instead of going to an office – although I actually have an office at my house. I get up and get my kids on the bus, fill my husband’s thermos with coffee, throw in some laundry, do what I have to do for dinner preparation, vacuum or whatever else needs done then I go into my office and work – just like a regular job. My day does not end with dinner and bedtime – sometimes I have to finish working in the evening as well. On top of all of that – I am in art school. Yes, I stay at home and still work full time, attend school part time and keep my household running. There is nothing unprofessional about it at all.
I am actually more impressed by those able to juggle being a work at home mom. The amount of work it takes to just be a stay at home mom and then add working and maintaining a business on your own is astounding. If a designer can juggle all of that then I am definitely impressed and not at all going to think it’s unprofessional.
Not to mention, the amount of honesty that a designer pours out when divulging this information is very revealing. It makes her more relatable, more realistic, and the designer I would want to work with.
I think some people should try to wear the shoes of a woman playing the role of a stay-at-home-mom and a work-at-home-mom and a small business owner all at the same time. They’ll see that if you don’t have professionalism then you are not going to make it. Having a thriving design business is proof that you’re doing something right.
I believe it is very professional for a designer to announce if they are a stay-at-home-mom, because it is a way for them to establish realistic expectations with potential clients. In my opinion, being a mother trumps any other role I have, so in the case of illness/unexpected circumstances my family will always come before a client and their needs. It is important for my clients to understand this hierarchy if they choose to work with me. This way there are no surprises. They know right away that I am not always available for a phone call if needed, or that I work random and sporadic hours, and my emails may come at any time during the day or night.
I am proud of the many roles I play….Wife, Mother, Business Owner (multiple businesses), Volunteer, Leader, Friend, etc….and my ability to juggle all of these roles. I suppose announcing that I work-from-home is just another way of keeping it real and trying to connect with other like-minded individuals.
Its a niche thing. Some people market to SAHM and some dont its not unprofessional. Its all about wording. Awesome feature by the way and gratz !
It is a noble and beautiful thing to be an industrious woman. The woman who has the finesse to take care of the home, the needs of her family, herself, AND devote time to allow her artistic and creative mind to bless others, represents the very essence of professionalism. A woman who fully pursues those things which she is passionate about, and truly enjoys the various roles she plays each day, will experience much greater freedom to design, create, inspire and innovate- regardless if that woman has children or not, or if she works from home or not. We are not defined by labels, but by strength of character and integrity. I know far too many “professionals” for whom their job is a source of income and nothing more. Without passion, creativity is limited. And I think I can speak for all WAHM designers- that passion for our families and passion for design drives us to pursue to be all that we can be for our husbands and children, and for our clients whom we respect and value. I am a professional no matter what my “office” looks like. (Or whether or not I wear PJs while “at” work :)