FAQs

What equipment do you use?

I’ve listed everything that I use the most on my Amazon page. You can browse through the various categories and see what products I use and love most.

Visit my AMAZON PAGE: https://www.amazon.co.uk/shop/alicethorpe

What software do you use?

I have a full Adobe Creative Cloud subscription. The software I use most regularly are Illustrator, Photoshop, InDesign and Lightroom. I also use Procreate for the iPad Pro. For editing photos on my phone I use Lightroom. And for video editing on my phone I use CapCut.

How did you get started with graphic design?

I’ve pretty much loved designing and making things for as long as I can remember. I actually did a two-week graphic design placement when I was in year 10 at school. That placement didn’t go well, so it put me off the job for a while. But I’d always designed my own branding / advertisements for my photography business. I self-taught a lot of what I know by following online tutorials. When I went to uni, it introduced me to different software and allowed me to expand my knowledge in the Adobe Suite. My degree wasn’t officially a graphic design course, so I’ve not done any formal training.

Where did you go to university? What did you study?

In 2015 I began studying Media Production at the University of Lincoln. I graduated in September 2018 with a 1st Class Honours degree. In my first year I studied; TV, Film, Radio, Photography, Design, and Scriptwriting. Second year was; Digital Media and Design. And for my final year, I studied Design.

Where do you live?

In September 2021 I bought my own house with my partner. I’m lucky enough to use the second bedroom as an office. It’s a perfect space for what I need!

Previously, I lived in Doncaster at my parents’ house. I had a little office in the spare room. When I was at university I lived in Lincoln. I had a shared flat, a studio flat, and two different student houses. All of which you will find rooms tours for on my channel.

How can I start a YouTube channel?

So cliche, but just do it!! I could’ve easily let my inner demons talk me out of creating my channel. But I haven’t had a single regret about starting it. It’s made me who I am today!

What made you start posting content on social media?

I’ve watched YouTube since about the age of 12, so it has been in my life for a while! I actually have a super cringe channel that I started when I was 15 doing ‘music videos’ which basically consisted of me dancing around in my back garden and lip-syncing to a song. Despite some taunting from my peers at school, that’s where I found my love for video editing and the YouTube community. I used to enter competitions with other channels and loved it.

I then grew out of that cringe channel, thank goodness, and took a little break. Fast forward to 2013 when I had just left sixth form and that is when I created my current channel. It’s been a long ol’ ride with my little corner of the internet, but I continue to love it. I am SO happy that I didn’t let people discourage me from pursuing my love.

How do you manage everything? Do you have any tips?

To be honest I’m a workaholic and I love being busy. But don’t get me wrong, I have major meltdowns sometimes when everything gets on top of me.

Some practical tips for time management; use a shared calendar. I have a Google calendar that is connected to all of my devices. This means I can check what I have coming up and add new things to it wherever I am. I also allow myself to have some time off, my brain needs rest sometimes and I won’t work my best if I’m forcing it. So I’ll go and chill and get back to it later.

How did you become a graphic designer?

This is a big question! And not one that has a specific answer that will suit everyone. Personally, my design knowledge has developed over many years of hard work and making many mistakes along the way. There’s not one particular route I took, it was a slow process, including watching lots of tutorials, experimenting with software, working out what looks good, and just practising as much as I could.

If you’re wondering where to start, I’d say just have a go at whatever catches your eye, find tutorials, follow people who you can look up to, and be open to learning new things.