Promoting Your Creativity or Blog with "Extras" Shop & Fan Support...

I've just this week started a blog with "Buy me a coffee", and I've found it to be very elegant and intuitive. I especially like it because it basically allows you to create posts (which you can have open to anyone, or restrict to "followers"). 

What I especially like about it is the it allows you to post what it calls "Extras" - items for sale, coupons, offers, etc.

The whole concept is that you build up a following of fans and supporters, and it is aimed at creatives.

I've only just joined myself, but feel quite enthused about it, and at the end of the day its another area where I can promote myself.

Read more here: Buymeacoffee...

Cartoons for Retail and Shopkeepers. Shopping Theme.

I have produced a number of Cartoons that feature shops and retail establishments.

There are also many gift items that have these cartoons some of which can be personalised.

Take a look at the collection on my store where you will see many examples.

Shops & Shopworkers
by Cartoons by Nigel

A Fun Flintstone T-shirt...

 Who can resist this fun Fred Flintstone and Barny Rubble T-shirt?

Barney Rubble and Fred Flintstone T-Shirt
by theflintstones

How to Save Money at Golf - My Fun Golf-Themed Money Box!

I've produced an entirely new product this week - a Money Box! 

I've designed it so that it features three of my cartoons, in colour. I like the way they fit perfectly around the outside.

Yes, I know many think we're heading towards a cashless society, but I'm sure we'll be handling coins for a good while to come.

So, if you know some one who likes to save the pennies, and enjoys playing golf, this could be a nice gift item for them!

You can see the money box in my Etsy store here...

Hope you like this item!

Police Officer Retirement or Long Service Recognition Watches

I have designed police watches that can be personalised as special retirement gifts, or as a recognition of long and loyal service, for police officers, policemen, police constables, and those who have made their career working in the police force.

The watches have sold around the world, to police in countries including the UK and Australia.

Below you can see examples of the kind of watches that I have designed which have then been especially personalised by the purchaser for police officers, and presented as gifts and awards to show the appreciation of the local community.

Police Long Service Award. Pocket Watch

Police - Detective Inspector Watch

Police Long Service Award. Pocket Watch

Woman Police Constable Commemorative Watch

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I also have fun Police Gift Mugs in my Etsy Store. Take a look at these examples:

Police Training School Fun Cartoon Mug

Police Gift Mug with 2 Cartoon - One on Each Side

In my Etsy Store I have many more Gifts for Police. Please take a look...

Retirement Gift Watch for a Mariner, Ship Captain, or Skipper

I created this watch design as a retirement gift, or a long service award, suitable for the Captain of a ship.

The watch can be personalised to feature the name of the recipient as well as the ship name and sates of service.

Ship's Captain Watch
by NigelSutherland

Fun Medical T-Shirt Design for a Doctor...

T-Shirt for a Doctor

This fun t-shirt is a perfect gift for a doctor or physician...

T-Shirt for a Doctor

The shirt features one of my cartoons, framed in a square border, and with the wording, "Trust me I'm a doctor".

Fun and practical, this t-shirt is sure to bring a smile to the face of anyone that sees it.

Medical Gift Items

This shirt is not available in any shops, and can only be bought from my Zazzle Store.

You can see some images of colour variations on this page of my website.

You can buy this shirt in various sizes and colours here...

Medical Department

Did you know, I also draw original cartoons for health bodies and institutions? See examples of my NHS Cartoons on my website HERE

Lots of Gift Ideas that can be Personalised...

Looking for something personal to by that special someone?

I've designed a number of gift ideas that you can adjust to include the name of the recipient!

Here is just one example...

Recipe Book that can be personalised

See many more products that can be personalised in my Zazzle stores...

The Make It Personal Collection
by Fun Graphics

Art Teacher Long Service Award Gift Watch

Gift for an Art Teacher

I designed this gift watch for the Art Teacher who is retiring, or a gift to recognise an Art Teacher's Long Service.

The watch is entirely customisable so that you can add the name and other details that are relevant to the recipient.

There are watches and other gift items for all kinds of professions and trades.

Art Teacher Watch
by NigelSutherland

Gift for a Bridesmaid or Maid of Honour

A Gift for a Bridesmaid is something that many couple like to present after a wedding. It is extra special if it can be tailored to reflect the special day, and even more so if it includes the name of the Bridesmaid or Maid of Honour.

I designed a Commemorative Mug that allows for the monogram initial, the name of the recipient, the role undertaken, the date of the ceremony, and also the details of marriage being celebrated.

You can see this Bridesmaid Gift Mug in my store HERE.

I have other designs for Bridesmaids, including this one pictured below. Or I can design one for you by request.

Thank You Bridesmaid Two-Tone Coffee Mug
by NigelSutherland

Palm Tree Design Cushions Now in my Etsy Store

Here are a few of my cushions that are over in my Etsy Store.

These shown here are the 14" size. They are also available in the large size as well as lumbar cushions.

Take a look...


via GIPHY

Four Lollipop Man Cartoons as an Animated Gif...

I thought I would experiment with making an animated gif. I used Giphy.

What do you think?

via GIPHY

One-Off Business Gifts Make Good Commercial Sense...

In the past, when you wanted to create business gift items, you would have to order a large number to make the exercise worthwhile. For example, if you wanted to to have a mug with your company image and relevant contact details, to give out as a promotional item, you would have had to order a quantity of 1000 at least, to bring the cost per unit down to an acceptable level.

How things have changed, and, for small companies, for the better. Now, a business with limited funds can create a one-off product, or order just a few, knowing that they can revisit the product to buy more in the future as and when needed.

Imagine a small building company that has been hired to build a new house, or maybe just an extension to an existing property for a customer, and he wants to let that client have a small but permanent token of appreciation. One answer could be to present the customer with a coffee mug with the business name and contact information (like the example below).

 The cost for this bespoke item? Less than $20... Surely a good low cost investment which any customer will appreciate.

Business Mugs

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Related Article: How Business T-Shirts can help you make a good impression and at the same time promote your company >>

Keeping Up-To-Date With Your Zazzle Stats

One very useful feature that Zazzle offers to anyone using the platform to create and sell items, is being able to analyse how well a product is doing. Every item you have available for sale has a list of stats beneath it that keep you informed. 

Take a look at this example.

More Recipe Book Designs >>

The product is a Notebook that I have adapted and designed a cover for aimed at cooks. It is now a Recipe Book, and the recipient will have their own name on the cover. I have already specified a recipe book page style inside as the default for any purchasers, although they have the option to pick other page styles such as ruled lines.

The information that Zazzle gives me when I view the product reminds me of the date when I created the item, the last time it was purchased, and how long it's been since it was last viewed.

It also lets me see how many orders have been taken, and the number of items that have been sold since its creation. What's the difference? Well, as an example, I recently had an order for twenty-five key rings. It was 1 order, and 25 items were sold in that purchase. You can therefore see how the stats can be so different, and why they are shown as separate figures.

You can control what information you see in your stats by ticking the check-boxes in the settings.

TIP: If one of the products you have for sale on Zazzle isn't selling, or isn't even getting many views, you may need to improve the description you've written for it, and also its tags (the keywords you've given the item to help buyers find it when searching).

If you are looking for more Recipe Book Designs, you can find them here...

You can see my Zazzle Store here...

Designing Shoes that are Quite Unique...

Inspiration from Palm Trees

Some years ago, on one of my earliest visits to the Philippines, I spent an hour or so taking photographs of some towering palm trees that were alongside a beach in Puerto Princesa, Palawan. I remember that they looked quite magnificent against the cloudless blue backdrop of sky.

Fast forward a couple of years, and I was experimenting with the photos, making posterised effects, and then progressing to trying various colour combinations.

It was around this time that I was getting involved with creating designs for Zazzle. I had a hunch that the colourful palm tree designs I had made would look effective on the shoes. I got to work and started adding my images to the shoe elements - left side, right side, rear, tongue, ensuring that the left and right shoe mirrored each other. Once the shoe looked good, I made it available for sale from my online store.

So there it was - a shoe with my design, totally unique. Something that one would not find available in any shopping mall!

High Backed Shoes in Blue and Orange

I then set about adding the other colour combinations to my collection, as well as additional footwear types, increasing the choice available, but keeping the overall theme.

Zazzle does something quite brilliantly. When they know you have a product with the same basic design, but in a number of different colour-ways, they indicate that alongside, and the colours link to the variations. For example, here's what you will see on the product page I linked to above:

Indication of variety of colours available

Here are a few examples of the shoes I have so far designed...

Design in Black & White

Palm Tree Design in Posterised Effect of Greens and Blues

Shoes with Red and Yellow Pattern

Designing for shoes would have been farthest from my mind while on that deserted Philippines beach taking my photographs. However I am glad that those pictures eventually gave me the inspiration to create the colourful patterns that you see now. You can view the full range of shoes in my Zazzle collection...

Unique Footwear Designs

Rubber Stamp for Crafters, and Homemade Gift Makers...

Promoting Your Crafts Business

Designed to last a lifetime, this large 5" x 4" rubber stamp is for small crafting businesses. The rubber stamp effect, once printed, is sure to complement the sale of hand made items, especially if the message is stamped onto paper that has a nice character to it.

So, if you're in the business of selling handmade or artisan craft products, this rubber stamp could be the finishing touch, once you've personalised it with your own wording of course!

Here's an idea of how the stamp looks.

View This Rubber Stamp in my Zazzle Store

And here's the message that the above example would create.

View Rubber Stamp in my Zazzle Store

Rubber Stamp Variations

Rubber stamps can be made in smaller sizes, and if you'd like me to create one for you, let me know. I'll be happy to help.

Business Stickers & Stamps
by Fun Graphics

You can sign up with Zazzle and start making money from your own designs and creations by clicking the banner below...

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See more of my cartoons at www.nigelsutherland.co.uk

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Yoga Mats with Tropical Palm Tree Designs

Yoga Mats with Palm Tree Designs

Several years ago, whilst in Palawan, Philippines, I took some photos of lofty palm trees against a cloudless blue sky.
I really liked the photographs, especially when I started to play around with them, creating what we graphic designers used to call "line drop-out" effects (giving the images a posterised style, at the most extreme almost like a silhouette).

Altering the Colours with Imaging Software

Having posterised the images, I was able to create a number of different colour versions using Photoshop. The colour would be changed by converting to a monotone, and then specifying what that colour was. I could also add a background colour. I created a series of images, some with backgrounds, and some without, having just a plain white background.

Adding the Images to Yoga Mats

I had created these images as large file sizes, so they would replicate easily on some of the bigger items that I would be utilising on Zazzle. One of the items I felt appropriate was the Yoga Mat. In fact I created a collection of designs, some of which included the option to personalise with a name.

Yoga Mat in Green and White, with Owner's Name

Yoga Mats with Variations in Colour

I used the different colour versions of my palm trees image to create a range of Yoga Mats. Here are several more examples.

Yoga Mat in Black and White

Yoga Mat in Red and Yellow, with Name in White

I also created a version of the posterised photograph with a greater number of colours, although still limited. I thought this one looked quite effective. What do you think?

Posterised Yoga Mat in Blues and Greens

The Yoga Mat Collection

There are further colour options that I have designed. You can see these in the Yoga Mat Collection in my Typically Tropical Zazzle Shop. Here is a link to the full Yoga Mat collection.

Tropical Yoga Mats
by Typically Tropical

You can sign up with Zazzle and start making money from your own designs and creations by clicking the banner below...

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See more of my cartoons at www.nigelsutherland.co.uk

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How's My Driving?

It's been a few years now since vehicles started appearing with the wording "How's my Driving?" added to their rear ends. Usually this would be on business vehicles such as vans and lorries. No doubt company bosses felt this would be a good way to ensure that employees took care over the way they drove when out on their travels.

It prompted me to draw two cartoons, both of which have produced nice feedback. Here's the first...

The other example has a golf theme. I decided to promote this to golf enthusiasts, and managed to sell quite a few, on greetings cards etc. The picture shows the cartoon on a car air freshener.

View Car Air Freshener on Zazzle

It just shows that the stimulus for cartoon ideas can come from practically anything!

You can sign up with Zazzle and start making money from your own designs and creations by clicking the banner below...

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See more of my cartoons at www.nigelsutherland.co.uk

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My Collection of 20 Lollipop Man (and Lady) Cartoons...

In a previous article I promised to write a follow-up post to show off my Lollipop Man cartoons. Well here they are!

Collection of Lollipop Crossing Patrol Cartoons

Lollipop Man is Sleeping

Lollipop Men Play "Tennis"

Manhole Cover Removal

Lollipop Man Goes Fishing

Lollipop Man Turns Surreal

Lollipop Man & Lollipop Lady Relax with Drinks and Karaoke

Lollipop Man Braves the Floods

Lollipop Man is Gardening

Lollipop Man is Looking for Love

Lollipop Man Has a Date

Lollipop Man is Chivalrous

Lollipop Man gets Married

Lollipop Man Controls the School Children

Lollipop Man Helps Retrieve a Ball

Lollipop Man Competes in a Pancake Race

Lollipop Man Shows Off

Lollipop Man Cooks Breakfast

Lollipop Man Enjoys a Pizza

Lollipop Man Plays Snooker

Lollipop Man Serves Dinner

Update: I have now created a large poster 28"x20" featuring 16 of the Lollipop Man cartoons! If you'd like one, order directly here... View & Purchase 

View Lollipop Man Poster

I hope the Lollipop Man cartoons made you smile. If they did, please share...

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Lollipop Men T-Shirts & Other Items...

School Crossing Patrol - The Lollipop Men

You can sign up with Zazzle and start making money from your own designs and creations by clicking the banner below...

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See more of my cartoons at www.nigelsutherland.co.uk

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