Q&A With Tegan Price

Hey! Let’s get to know you a little better. Introduce yourself and tell us more about you as an artist.

I’m Tegan (which is pronounced like Megan, but with a T) and I am a full-time illustrator and workshop host! My work is heavily based around typography, sneakers and fashion; I collaborate with brands to bring projects and activations to life through illustration and workshops. I have a very playful style and I’m always finding the next way to bring my illustrations to life, one day it’ll be digital illustration, then I’ll be painting vases, customising sporting goods. Currently, I’m designing a collection of embroidered sweatshirts for SS24… Oh, and I’ve just released a very cute phone case collaboration with Skinny Dip! 😎  

What was the inspiration behind your collection?

I love anything colourful, quirky and energetic, so I wanted my collection to be just that. A few years ago I actually made some sticker designs into a mock phone case, and after talking with the team at Skinny Dip, they were keen to bring that to life, IRL, so I’m very happy to finally be able to launch the design as one of the collaborative cases! There’s a nod to sneakers, alongside lots of plants, flowers and colour. I had to include a globe piece too, which has featured in many projects over the last few years, with the words ‘do it for you’ and a reminder to do that thing you’ve been putting off – a nudge that can be very needed sometimes!

Tell us a bit about how the design process worked?

I always start by sketching out rough compositions, to see how I’d like the cases to work together and what kinds of visual styles I’d like them to have – I always aim to appeal to a few different tastes within a collection. I wanted one to be kind of chaotic, with shapes & colours on a black background, for those who like something a bit bolder. One for those who are looking for something a bit more abstract with an out-of-this-world vibe on the holographic case, and one for those who need those daily motivational reminders with the sticker-style case, this is the one case that included existing artwork from the archives. So if you’ve known my work for a few years, you’ll recognise this one!

If you could describe your collection in 3 words what would they be?

Colourful, playful & vibrant. 

What's your favourite design from the collection and why?

My ‘Do It For You’ globe design. It’s a phrase that stuck with me for a long time when I was in a place I wasn’t happy with a few years ago. Everything you do, even if you don’t really want to do it, usually will benefit your life/career somehow. I hope others who have busy brains can benefit from that extra push the same way I do.

What's been your favourite part of working with us?

So much freedom of expression! Very grateful to have creative license over my designs and for the space Skinny Dip allowed for me to be able to bring my ideas to life in an authentic way.  

Where do you go when you're looking for inspiration?

It’s so easy to, but I try to not rely solely on online sources when starting a project, so I’ll always look through design books to see if there’s any visuals that stand out from them. Day to day, I find myself getting inspiration for colours and patterns in random places, I’m always taking pictures of things I see, or screenshooting anything that I might see on my phone. Of course I don’t miss out the classic making of moodboards on Pinterest and Behance too. Curating all kinds of collections to do with type, layout, colour compositions and whatever else takes my fancy in that moment! You never know when something will spark an idea. 

What's on your bucket list?

On my personal bucket list, to go to Chengdu Panda Base in China to see/hold some pandas, it’s been a dream for around 10 years now! As for my professional bucket list, I’ve always wanted to establish my own fashion/homeware brand and to have everything in a studio/store of colourful goods, so people can come and experience, see the inner workings… an exhibition-meets-store kind of thing. I’ve just started making my own embroidered apparel, so we’ll see how that goes this year!

What's the best piece of advice you've ever been given?

A lot of my favourite quotes I have created into typography pieces during my career haha. My favourites are to always trust in the process of your work and to do what makes you happy – if it’s not making you happy, it’s time to change it up! 

Where can people find you on socials?

You can find me at @byteganprice on pretty much every social channel.