Full-time illustrator Andy Scullion from Nottingham, UK is our Designer of the Month. Tandem, racing, cruiser or collapsible—Andy’s Showroom is a cycling enthusiast’s heaven!
Name: Andy Scullion
Age: 33
Lives in: UK
Occupation: Full time Illustrator
Software: Adobe illustrator/Photoshop
Hardware: Imac
Joined Spreadshirt: Years ago! When I first started as an illustrator, 6/7 years ago.
Hi Andy! Thanks for taking the time to tell us more about your work. You’ve been on Spreadshirt for many years and you also run your own illustration business. All of your Showroom designs feature whimsical or true-to-life bicycle designs. You obviously love cycling…Where does your love of bikes come from? Have you always been a cycling fan?
I have always been into cycling— ever since my dad would take us all out as kids through the countryside. I got back into it around 2012 when I was commuting 9 miles each way by bicycle. This was also around the same time everyone in Britain got into it as we started doing really well in the Olympics and the Tour de France.
Yes, the Tour de France is coming up, isn’t it? Are you a sport cycling enthusiast? Do you follow the Tour de France?
Yes, I watch it every year, I also try to watch the Giro which is the Italian version of the Tour de France. I try and watch as much of the live race as I can— but my productivity goes down drastically!
Your Showroom is full of designs of different kinds of bicycles. Do you have a favorite kind of bike or a dream bike you’d love to have one day?
I love the Brompton. I love how it’s remained the same for so many years with incremental changes to the design to continually improve it. I almost wish I still commuted so I could buy one!
Commuting by bicycle is great! So what is cycling culture like in Nottingham? Is it bike-friendly?
Nottingham is a typical British city, so cycling is typically commuting or recreational. We have a bicycle hire system which can be useful. Sadly, as I only work 10 minute walk from my house I don’t cycle half as much as I would like to these days.
Where is your favorite place to cycle?
I have cycled to my parents’ house 50 miles away on a couple of occasions. I would love to do it again. The best thing about this is that it’s just you and the bike. You have no support, you’re on your own, and if something goes wrong you have to sort it out. It’s an adventure!
That’s for sure. It’s not always easy or possible to go such long distances by bike. If you could change one thing about the world to make it more bike-friendly, what would it be?
There is zero downside to riding a bicycle apart from the vulnerability. In the Netherlands, the bicycle is seen as almost more important than the car, whereas in the UK the bicycle is seen as an annoyance on the roads. I’m sure this leads to less care being taken in the UK by drivers.
Let’s hope that cities only become safer and more bike-friendly in the future. Let’s talk a bit about your Marketplace Showroom. Why did you decide to start selling your cycling designs on Spreadshirt in the first place?
It’s one of many print on demand sites I looked into and I liked the way it looked. Print on demand works so well for two reasons. You can test designs and see what works without spending any money. And you can do it in your free time, you can pick it up and put it down when you want.
Are you a full-time designer or is it more of a side hobby?
This is my job, I’m a full-time designer. Spreadshirt was massively useful in the early days of setting up on my own, they deal with everything for you and so you can start while you still have a job!
It’s wonderful that you can make a living doing what you love! How do you create your designs? Which tools or software do you use? What’s your process like?
I always start with Adobe Illustrator. I love vector, I love the accuracy and the precision. I will often take my image to Photoshop to finish it off, but not always.
What are your goals for your Showroom?
My ultimate goal is to add more of my designs so I can offer my full collection on Spreadshirt.
Sounds like a sensible direction to go in. You’re an old hand on Spreadshirt by now—any advice for newbies?
My advice for anyone thinking of it is to just get on and do it. You’ll make mistakes, you’ll spend hours doing things that in retrospect were not worth doing— but at least you’re doing something. The worst thing you can do is not do something and just always dream about it.
That’s a piece of advice we can all learn from! Thanks again to Andy for taking the time to chat with us.
Check out his Marketplace Showroom to browse his bike-themed designs. You can also find him on Instagram and on his website Wyatt9.
