Focus On...

Our third ‘Focus On…’ introduces you to Dodo who is the creative arms behind diedododa. Her Botanical Alphabet cards are our best sellers and watch this space for more of her quirky colourful prints

C: Tell me a little bit about yourself and diedododa

D: My name is Dodo and together with my business partner Stu we run diedododa. I am the artist and designer behind all the artwork, do all the hands-on work and management while he is tech-savvy administrator and organiser. We run our own print studio in Edinburgh with the motto: stare at art not walls. Our main focus are consistently colourful art prints and unexpectedly witty greeting cards.

C: How did you get into doing what you are doing

D: I have drawn and painted and created my entire life so somehow getting into it as a business a few years ago seemed almost inevitable, yet we arrived at figuring out exactly where we wanted to take it fairly recently. Initially I reworked and luxecycled furniture and whatnot with original artwork hanging on the walls. People started to ask about prints and slowly but surely after long months of research we set up our little print studio!

C: What does a ‘normal’ day look like?

D: A normal day starts with me getting just before 7 and doing some exercise, then coffee, shower, and walking to the studio to pack and send orders. After that I often do test prints of new artwork or some product photography. The latter either at the studio or back at home. Afternoon/evening is usually spent working on new designs.

Of course right now I am still limiting trips to the studio and working from home catching up with long overdue content and product descriptions for the website.....and of course more hours to create!

C:What’s been your biggest achievement to date?

D: Having taught myself every creative skill that I have.

 C: What’s been the favourite thing you’ve designed?

D: Usually whatever I am working on right now. I find nothing more exciting than seeing an idea come to life! 

More recently also decorating the flat I moved into last September (first non-rental!)

C: What’s the best thing about running your own business?

D: Being able to choose what to work on when. Being very colour and image focused my head needs to be more in “business mode” for coming up with descriptions and “wordy” things. Not having to force that is delightful.

I also love that work and life fuse and interact effortlessly. I now use my flat for product pics, and some artwork i created for the flat have become a print designs that found their way onto the website.

C: What advice would you give to anyone looking to turn their hobby into a business?

D: While the emotional side is essential for the creative part, learn to turn it off to assess your skill level and product range realistically. Never stop learning and challenging yourself.

 C: Is there a craft / activity you haven’t tried but would like to?

D: I can’t wait to somehow create in VR!

 C: Why should people shop local?

D: For me small (or large), well curated and imaginatively presented local shops are the last proper shopping experiences. The only places that inspire creativity, put a smile on your face and an “oh my goodness this is soo cute/cool/amazing/different” reaction.

 C: Have you had to adapt your business during Covid  - any positives you’ve managed to take from it all?

D: Initially we paused the business entirely for a few weeks. In that time I enjoyed having uninterrupted peace and quiet to focus on creating and taking proper time out...which when running a small business is quite rare. Of course the uncertainty of the whole situation was, and to some extent is, very unsettling. Having said that I do firmly believe in intensely focusing on the positives of any situation that is beyond my immediate control.

Since those early weeks I am still mostly working from home, although going to the studio to send orders about twice a week. As it’s only myself in the space and I have always walked there early with not many people about in the streets, the overall impact on how I can run things has thankfully been very manageable. Stu has worked his magic remotely for quite a while anyway!

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