I never in a million years thought I’d be invited for an interview. Now I have my face and living room on YouTube – What?! I’m trying to hang on to the memories of the process since we filmed October last year and I think this experience deserves to be shared. So, without further ado… HEYYY, welcome to my first official blog post.

Picture this scene for a minute. Sitting on my couch, I look through the window and notice this tiny cat that clearly is unaware I can see her. Apparently I’m her latest prey. She reminds me a lot the kitten from Simon’s Cat. After the hunt is over, she’s off to look for something easier to prey and I’m still wondering how to start this post. One thing I know for sure is that this blog will be the place where I share my experiences and motivations as an illustrator/designer and to be honest, forcing myself to write more in English (wink, wink). So, please pardon any major typos and weird sentence structuring while I give my insight into the freelance life. I’ve only started this adventure a year ago and I thought it could be interesting to bring you guys along.

I lived the first 23 years of my life in Lisbon and I moved to London four and half years ago. You’re probably thinking I’m crazy for leaving a country blessed with sunshine and warm weather. But there’s more to Portugal than good weather and good food. Unfortunately, there was also a major economic crisis, but more on that some other time! Right after finishing Uni I had the opportunity to work at Proximity Lisbon for a year, doing all sorts of design work focused on advertising. Shortly after, I received an unexpected call from one the design directors at Isobar London offering me a job. I remember being so happy and scared at the same time! Working overseas especially on a big city like London was very exciting, but the payoff was having to leave my family and friends behind. Luckily everyone was super supportive and understanding. To make things better my partner decided to move with me! If that’s not love, I don’t know what is!

It was in London I first considered doing illustration as a freelancer. With time, working on a permanent role was proving to be a bit restrictive for me. While at work I’d be getting these ideas for illustrations and I’d get home and proceed to work on those. That’s where my passion truly is. I started craving more freedom, I wanted to be able to choose the people I work with and to be involved in portfolio worthy projects. A year ago or so, I went full-time freelance.

This is where YunoJuno comes in. YJ is a platform/community of freelancers where you have access to a variety of briefs from different companies. A benefit that caught my eye right from the start was their 14 day payment guarantee. Let’s be honest, no one is particularly fond of chasing invoices, especially when you’re just starting right?! There’s also something very compelling about YunoJuno being created by three people from the creative and tech world and I love that.

YunoJuno contacted me last year asking me if I was interested in being interviewed with other two lovely freelancers, Ben Stapleton and Sarah Wharton. The invite left me wondering “Why me? I’m just starting!”. In the end, I guess it’s important to share the insight of a less experienced freelancer like myself. I saw it as an opportunity to share my work environment, which is very important to me, and to show the origin of the colour palette on my illustrations.

I think Ricky Gibb produced something really lovely. We filmed part of the interview in the beautiful Havas offices where they captured my awkward laugh…CRINGE! There were people constantly interrupting and I had to remember what I was trying to say, no easy task for sure! We also filmed part of it in my living room where I have my teeny tiny studio and finally we filmed in the most beautiful streets of Notting Hill. The pastel colours of the houses there are to die for, I truly recommend you to go there if you’re visiting London. To finish I just want thank YJ once again for the opportunity, I really enjoy being involved.