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11 April, 2013#

New home, new dog, new services

Studio Dog eBook Design

It’s been a busy few months at Harvey Towers. In November I moved home (and office) and now find myself based in the beautiful spa town of Ilkley (no singing please). Also around that time, a small spaniel named Charlie appeared in the house ensuring that every second of my time is now filled with hard work of one sort or another.

Design wise, demand for infographics continues to go from strength to strength, with lots of great new clients coming on board. However, despite the litany of data based graphics that dominate my recent portfolio, I feel it’s important to emphasise that I do offer much more.

In fact, I’m happy to announce that I can now provide comprehensive services for both eBook design and presentation design. Perhaps you’re a budding author looking to bring your new thriller to the market, or a company approaching a big pitch with a potential new client; combined with my extensive print and online design services, I’ll almost certainly be able to help you.

Next on my list is smartphone app design, with an exciting little project currently in development, so watch this space!

In the meantime, should you need any marketing advice or a design quote, all you have to do is say hello.

 

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13 June, 2012#

Wetherby Whaler Fish & Chip Restaurant, Guiseley

Wetherby Whaler Guiseley

Hands up (or leave a comment) if you’ve ever eaten at Harry Ramsden’s? I’d hazard a guess most of us at one point or another. Now, let’s try another one; hands up if you’ve eaten there in the past decade? I thought not.

In recent years the company’s original Guiseley branch struggled to survive; a far cry from the glory days of people queuing round the block just to get inside the place (resisting predictable fish-based pun). Indeed the restaurant still holds the world record for most fish and chips sold in a single day; a whopping 10,000 portions!

The business started all the way back in 1888 when Harry Ramsden began selling fish and chips from a modest wooden hut behind where today’s restaurant now stands – quality and value was the name of the game and it quickly made a name for itself. The business expanded and a grand palace devoted to serving the ‘people’s food’ was built – Harry’s nephew and Sooty creator Harry Corbett even tickled the ivories of the restaurant’s grand piano. Half a century, and multiple takeovers and franchises later, food standards slipped and the original values of the brand were lost.

The standard of fish and chips in this country is incredibly high, especially in Yorkshire’s Haddock Triangle. Here in Otley there are about six chip shops within a one mile radius of my front door, with all but one of them (don’t get me started on that plaice – sorry, couldn’t resist the temptation this time) offering delicious hearty fare, so why would anyone choose to eat at Harry Ramsden’s?

Of course nobody did and in December 2011 the famous restaurant closed its doors for the last time. The company claimed that the restaurant was no longer commercially viable and the recession was the last nail in the coffin, but lack of investment and poor food had to be the ultimate cause. After all, Yorkshire’s other fish and chip institution, Murgatroyds, continues to to go from strength to strength just a couple of miles down the road.

My reaction was one of both sadness and relief. Sadness that such an iconic British brand was disowning its heritage but relieved that the original site is no longer associated with such a lost, soulless and defeatist chain. I mean, what sort of a company closes down their flagship branch? Harry must have turned in his grave.

But fear not, we’re told, the Wetherby Whaler is stepping in to restore its former glory.

Walking into the art nouveau-styled restaurant it’s great to see the original features retained – the stained glass shining, the pillars gleaming and chandeliers sparkling – even the piano still in its place, but despite being eight o’clock on a Friday night, the dining room is practically empty. When busy, large rooms and high ceilings can make for an incomparably exciting atmosphere, but when quiet you may as well be dining in a cave.

Feeling rather foolish for booking ahead (even more so considering we still inform the waiter of our booking name) we’re led over to our table. It has the feel of an old Blackpool bingo hall, or at least how I imagine one to be – a grand building that once knew greatness, sadly no more. Formica furniture, 60s looking tableware and a serving of cheap looking, ultra thin sliced bread and butter.

Murgatroyds is much the same in that it feels dated and a little kitsch, but it serves excellent fish and chips in a cosy, unpretentious environment. The Wetherby Whaler tries to do the same but beneath chandeliers – it feels confused and a little bit depressing.

The staff arrive to take our order – they seem a little dowdy and unprofessional, and talk to you like they’re you’re best friend rather than knowledgeable representatives. Service should be friendly though it shouldn’t cross the line. But like any restaurant, I’m prepared to reserve ultimate judgement until after I’ve tasted the food.

The main event arrives, fish and chips of course, plus baked beans for me (since I’m not quite northern enough for mushy peas). My partner is more of a garden peas kind of person but unfortunately they’re not on the menu. Disappointing. I’ve eaten at the Wetherby branch of the Whaler before and had absolutely no worries regarding the standard of the food. However, the batter on my fish is dark and smooth, just like how spam fritters used to look in my school canteen – this one is crispy and tastes better than it looks but it’s not what I’d associate with a good quality, flakey batter. Fish and chips is a simple treat and the batter often makes or breaks the dish. That said, the fish itself is moist and tastes very fresh. Same goes for the chips and beans, though you’d be hard pressed to mess those up (microwave the tin can?)

Prices are perfectly reasonable; between £8 and £12 for fish and chips and there’s a good range of wine and local bottled ales, besides the usual teas and coffees.

And so we leave, appetites satisfied but after the hype of the opening I can’t help but feel like we’d have been better off paying half as much at the adjoining takeaway.

It’s early days for the restaurant and I want to see it do well but I do think it’s confused. My whole experience was clearly tainted by the lack of atmosphere on the night but the other issues would still be enough to deter me from returning regularly. Perhaps there isn’t enough room in the area for two Murgatroyds? Perhaps a competitor will need to adapt and offer something a bit different and more befitting of what is quite an affluent area, otherwise, I think it could easily suffer the same fate as “good old” Harry’s.

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1 February, 2012#

A designer in Otley: Notes from a small town

Otley Graphic Designer

Recently, in a surprise move, I found myself living in Otley; an historic market town nestled between the city of Leeds and the picturesque Yorkshire Dales. This seems to have resulted in me spending an inordinate amount of time explaining to people why I’m living here, rather than in London where it’s all “happening”.

Well, quite frankly, it’s just not “happening” for me.

Working from home in the city I quickly became tired of spending so much of my life in a glorified Duplo block, with only a car park for a view and an unsociable, Kings of Leon playing neighbour as a “colleague”. And this was Leeds, had I been in London my block would have been more Lego than Duplo (a small Lego block at that, probably the small square one – the sort small children choke on), I’d have been paying twice as much, and sharing my space with a bunch of strangers with enlarged egos.

Don’t get me wrong, I understand the draw of cities when you’re young, especially London, and I’d be lying if I said I didn’t feel jealous at times, but besides the social and cultural offerings, most people are there because that’s where their job is. As a freelancer with no real need to be in the capital it just doesn’t make financial sense. Plus, what with the advent of the Internet, I doubt anybody goes out and enjoys things anymore anyway.

It’s really not a bad life here; I get so much more bang for my buck rental wise (I can finally have my own home studio), an abundance of watering holes, stunning views and if I need to be in London it’s just a two hour train journey away. Plus I can see Guy Fawke’s old house from my window – can you?

No, you keep your flat white, I’ve got my flat cap* and I’m happy. Who knows which provincial UK town I’ll crop up in next?

*never gets worn.

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1 February, 2012#
1 February, 2012#

Year of the Infographic

Infographic

Over the past few months, I’ve been approached to do many infographics and I predict that they’ll become 2012′s must have.

For those of you who aren’t familiar with them already, an infographic is essentially a way of converting dry statistics into fun, easy to digest illustrations.

They’re a fantastic marketing tool as they really get the reader involved in the topic, as opposed to a long paragraph full of data which they may well just ignore.

Take the infographic above, for example (click here for a full sized version). It illustrates just how much value can be added to your home by undertaking several different home improvement projects. Now imagine you’re an architect, a builder, or a landscape artist – you could just distribute a black and white spreadsheet stating the benefits but that’s not going to excite anybody. Instead, you could have a bright and cheery infographic that immediately grabs people’s attention.

Check out my portfolio for more of my recent infographic designs.

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1 February, 2012#
8 December, 2011#

One year on: Life as a freelance graphic designer

Thomas Harvey Design Office

Despite being sat at my desk at work, I’m writing this post whilst listening (and singing along to) hits of the ’80s*, eating a bowl of cornflakes, and, if it wasn’t winter, I’d probably be in my dressing gown, or less.

No, I’m not the office freak – my name’s Thomas Harvey and I’m a UK-based freelance graphic designer**. For over a year now I’ve been intimately getting to know the life of a sole trader – the ups, the downs and the downright silly.

The Dream

Like many freelancers, the dream started whilst doing the same job but as a lowly employee. I think for most people in this industry there comes a point where they stop and say***: You know what? I could do all this for myself and without anybody taking a cut of the profits.

I was no different.

Still in my early twenties, many people**** said I was too young, with not enough clients to make a success of it so early on. It’s true, I didn’t have that many contacts but I can honestly say that I’ve never looked back.

Finding Clients

To begin with, finding clients does take up a disproportionate amount of your time. As somebody who’s never been too thrilled by networking (I’m not doubting its usefulness***** but to me many of the groups come across as elitist clubs containing a few too many oversized egos), I’ve relied heavily upon the internet. I worked hard on my website, trying to capture the local market (Leeds / Yorkshire), as well as the wider country and beyond.

Although controversial, I’ve also found Elance to be a useful source of new business. Elance is a competitive market place, with plenty of people (particularly from abroad) offering to work for peanuts, but there really are people on there who want quality work for a fair price – like sifting through a charity shop or TK Maxx, there are gems to be found******.

If you approach every single project with a determination to deliver high quality work and an excellent service, it really will make a difference. I get plenty of repeat business, and what’s more, plenty of recommendations – all-in-all, it’s led to a pretty steady flow of work.

Once you’ve built up a few contacts and established a bit of a reputation (for the right reasons), you’ll soon find yourself spending less time searching for new projects, and more time actually working. Yes, I have the occasional quiet patch, but as long you stay confident and concentrate on the task in hand, the work is out there for the taking, and the good times will follow…

The Lifestyle

I love working from home. It takes discipline and can be very lonely at times*******, but the rewards are obvious; you do what you want, when you want, how you want. Of course you’ve still got to work hard (in fact, probably more so than an employee) but there’s no boss there to under-appreciate you and you’re not tied to your desk when things are quiet. If I want to take an afternoon off to visit a medieval ruin or take part in a weekday fun-run, then I will.

For a long time I worked in my living room******** but you really need to separate your work and home lives. This isn’t a 9 to 5 job but having your own office, and vowing to leave it by a certain time, definitely does help. Where your office is situated is another matter…

As a freelancer, you choose your own holidays. Unfortunately you’re not going to get any holiday pay but who’s thinking about that when they’re sitting on a beach, gin and tonic in hand?! ME! That’s who. Fortunately, as a graphic designer I can be in the office anywhere that has a computer and an internet connection. Suddenly the beach doesn’t sound like such a bad idea!*********

Chasing Payments

This can be a pain and is something I witnessed time and time again whilst working for design agencies. You’re always going to come across the odd person who wants to withhold payment for one reason or another and I can almost guarantee it will happen to you at some point during your freelancing career. However, my advice would be not to get too hung up chasing that illusive £150 – in the time spent doing so you probably could have earned ten times that.

Instead, look at what went wrong and ensure your working practices are set up in such a way that it won’t happen again. This may involve upfront payments (especially from new clients) or getting them to sign contracts / agreements beforehand – most clients won’t have a problem with this unless they’ve something to hide.

That said, occasionally for larger sums of money it might be worth consulting legal aid – remember that even an email can stand up as proof, so try to leave a paper trail!

Conclusion

All considered, I love freelancing. It’s not without its problems and really does take a lot of motivation, but nothing beats the feeling of running your own business and being completely in control of your own success. So what if I don’t know how much I’m going to earn each month, find it difficult to get a mortgage, and have forgotten what the outside world looks like? I’ve still got my dressing gown and the biggest bowl of corn flakes you’ve ever seen. So there.

Good luck!**********

–
* The song was ‘Paul Young – Everytime You Go Away’.
** Implying I work from home – hence, no one can see me.
*** Not literally.
**** Figure of speech – people were in fact largely supportive.
***** I am.
****** Such as these guys - http://www.thomasharveydesign.co.uk/portfolio/testing-planet-newspaper-ebook/
******* Nothing a mirror and a range of humorous voices can’t fix.
******** Bed.
********* It’s a terrible idea – sand in your keyboard, temperamental wi-fi – stay well away.
********** Far too many asterisks.

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24 August, 2011#

Kettlewell Scarecrow Festival

At the weekend I visited the annual Kettlewell Scarecrow Festival. Each year the sleepy Yorkshire Dales village plays host to literally hundreds of scarecrows of all shapes and sizes, including classic creations from fiction and popular culture, to topical parodies of modern day characters and events.

Here are a selection of my favourite creations:


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16 October, 2010#

Jamie’s Italian, Park Row, Leeds

Jamie Oliver Italian Leeds

Went to Jamie’s Italian a couple of months back and wasn’t disappointed. We queued for 40 minutes outside just to get in (which shames me when I consider it is still essentially a chain restaurant) and then sat in the restaurant bar for another 20 minutes waiting for a table to come up. I wouldn’t usually want to queue outside to get in any restaurant, but I had my heart set on going that evening and spirits were high enough to wait things out. Constant acknowledgement from the waiting staff helped things along and the offering of free nibbles while we waited also went some way to help things along.

Once inside we were faced with an incredibly busy, lively and loud environment. The main kitchen is on show to diners and almost immediately apparent as you walk through the door. Located beside it is the bar where you can begin to work your way through a large array of Italian beers, wines and spirits with a background soundtrack of “Two beef, one lamb”, “Yes, Chef” and “Service, please” playing at full volume. If television cookery programmes have taught me nothing else it’s that a loud kitchen is a good kitchen. Whilst the manic atmosphere only added to the enjoyment of the experience, the small bar made for a slow service and felt overly cramped.

Eventually a table became available and we were led to the upstairs of the restaurant and past another kitchen, lined with hanging cured meats and an abundance of fresh and brightly coloured vegetables. The overall transformation of this former bank is something to behold in itself. The walls and ceilings have been stripped back to their original states and provide a modern yet rustic feel, very in keeping with the Jamie Oliver “brand”. The high ceilings, low lights and fully occupied tables made for the perfect atmosphere.

Our waitress came across very well rehearsed and knowledgeable of her menu, without feeling in any way robotic, which nice to see in such a new venue. For starters we opted for the seasonal meat platter (£6.65 per head), which was served on a stand made from two tins of chopped tomatoes, again adding to the rustic charm, and the squid (£5.10). Both were delicious, looked stunning and generally very impressive for the price. The modest prices continued into the main dishes too. I opted for the chopped steak beef burger (£10.95), which made me feel a little unadventurous but having seen Jamie make something similar, I simply couldn’t resist. I requested for it to be cooked medium rare and did come out a little underdone, but what it lacked in temperature it made up for in taste. Upon discovering that my partner’s first choice of pork belly had sold out, she opted for the chicken cooked under a brick (£12.85). Luckily she was not disappointed, with the flavours of what was essentially a very simple dish really jumping off the plate. We also ordered a side of mozzarella salad (£4.35) and “posh chips” (£3.15), coated in truffle oil and sprinkled with parmesan – yummy. Washed down with a bottle of highly quaffable Primitivo (£16.25) left us feeling more than satisfied. Feeling suitably stuffed we could manage nothing more than a dish of sorbets (£3.95) and a liqueur coffee (£4.90). Again, no complaints and some nice presentation to boot.

Up to now, I’d always felt that Restaurant Bar & Grill in City Square was the most important restaurant in Leeds city centre but Jamie’s Italian certainly gives it a run for its money (quite literally as it’s actually cheaper). Neither is going to set the culinary world alight, but that’s not what they’re aiming for; as a place to eat quality food at reasonable prices and in a busy, vibrant atmosphere, they really can’t be beaten – but maybe wait until the queues die down.

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2 November, 2010#

Veritas, Great George Street, Leeds

Veritas Leeds

I’ve always been very fond of the Market Town Taverns (MTT) group. Launching in 1999, they appeared to be one of the first chains to truly identify the resurgent trend towards beer and real ale, and, luckily enough for me, always seem to set up shop wherever I go. Bar t’at in Ilkley, one of the company’s first ventures, had always been a local sixth-form favourite of mine and nowadays is one of the only drinking establishments worth going to in the town. As a student living in Headingley, I found Arcadia a welcome retreat from the usual fancy-dress wearing Otley Runners and now, as a “young professional” living in the city centre, I have Veritas.

Walking in, you immediately know you’re in a MTT. They’ve stuck to the same winning formula; a predominantly wooden interior, old beer related memorabilia on the walls and a bar lined with an endless choice of hand-pulls. Tucked around the side is a deli counter, stocked with local cheeses, chutneys, cakes and other delicacies which will no doubt please the lunchtime crowd and is a great addition to the place. One thing that did strike me, though, was the combination of bright lighting and white washed walls doesn’t make the place feel quite as cosy as I feel it should be.

At the bar we opted for the Wobbly Bob ale brewed by Phoenix across the Pennines in Heywood. I hadn’t noticed its 6% strength when ordering and had I have done, probably wouldn’t have chosen it. Ale just shouldn’t be that strong in my opinion, I find the alcohol level masks too much of the beer’s true flavours. Besides ale, you’ll find a good selection of wines and ciders and a fantastic selection of continental bottled beers. An occasional favourite of mine is the Brooklyn Black Chocolate Stout which comes in at a whopping 10% (going back on what I said about strong ales, but this just works). On this occasion we only stayed for a single pint but I’ll no doubt return soon and see how the place is getting on.

Veritas already seems to be quite a popular destination but there are several other places in the city centre offering the same sort of fare (North Bar, Hop, Mr Foley’s etc). I wish this new venture every success but it’s going to have to compete with quite a few of the more established (and more central) venues.

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