At the end of 2020 I decided to gift myself with a new laptop sleeve from my RedBubble shop! I like to order designs from my shop so I can showcase what my designs look like in print, and also test the quality of the items I'm selling for myself. Since my bad cats pattern became so popular in 2020, I decided this would be a good pattern to go with! This is not the first time I have ordered from RedBubble and not the first laptop sleeve - I ordered my first one back when I started my shops in 2015. I had been using that one for the past 5 years, and decided it was time for a change of design. So this isn't just a new laptop sleeve review, it's also a "check in" to show you how my old laptop sleeve has held up over the years!
A bit of background image on RedBubble laptop sleeves! First, they are available in 3 standard sizes for MacBooks (or any kind of laptop that is around the same size of a MacBook - they have a sizing chart on the product page so you can check!) - MacBook 12", MacBook Air / Pro / Retina 13", and MacBook Pro / Retina 15". I purchased the 15" size. The sleeve is made of polyester, with foam padding on the inside to protect your laptop from scratches and minor impacts. The inside of the sleeve is super plush and soft too. The sleeve closes fully with a black zipper, and features high quality print on the front, and a black panel on the back. The outer stitching and sides is all black, and the plush padding on the inside is black too.
I mentioned that I had purchased a laptop sleeve from RedBubble in 2015 too. You might be wondering - how did it hold up over time? How does it compare to the new 2020 one? I can tell you that over time my original sleeve has held up beautifully. The quality of my original sleeve matches the quality of the new one, so if you purchased one a while back and are unsure if a new one would be similar, rest assured that the quality has remained consistent over the years. I've brought it back and forth to work, with me on trips, and generally used it in the house to protect my laptop from any kinds of accidents. The print has not faded and remains crisp and vibrant through all this. The padding has slightly become more compressed over the years, and my new sleeve has much more of a cushion than my old sleeve. There are a couple of catches in the top design from cat claws, but other than that, no major rips or anything (my cat loves this sleeve lol). If it hadn't been for a want of a design change, I would go on using my original 2015 sleeve for many years to come!
The main draw of these laptop sleeves is being able to print completely unique designs on them. And the printing is top notch - despite being printed on fabric, the design is crisp and has minimal bleed. This means the smaller details that I added to my artwork are still visible in the printed product. My 2020 purchase features a simple black and white artwork, which printed as expected (the blacks were black thank goodness! :P ). My original 2015 laptop sleeve featured all the bright peacock blue tones that were in my original artwork, very accurate to the original!
Despite ordering over the Christmas rush, shipping was really quick. I got it within 12 days of ordering. It came via Canada Post too, so I was able to get it from my community mailbox instead of having to drive down to a depot because I missed a delivery.
Shipping is usually a pain point for me here in Canada. Some print on demand websites charge exuberant fees to deliver to Canada. Not only that but I've also been hit with duties and fees at the border - which is especially painful after paying large amounts of shipping. RedBubble is one of the only print on demand websites I have ordered from that have not resulted in me having to pay extra duties & taxes upon delivery, on any of my orders. RedBubble calculates their shipping costs based on the items that are being shipped, and where the order is being shipped to. They do not have a free shipping minimum or anything like that, so you will be paying shipping. I find the shipping costs are fair, and paired with the fact that I was not charged duties or taxes, I can't complain. Rather than using USD they let you choose which currency you will be shopping with too. I like this because I was able to see what my purchase price will be in Canadian dollars. If any of my Canadian friends or family wants to purchase something from my shop, I always recommend they go through RedBubble because I find it more Canadian friendly for shipping (and I can stand behind the quality of their items). Overall, I am incredibly pleased with my laptop sleeve purchase and am thrilled to have something in my bad cats knocking stuff over pattern! I've been using this sleeve for a month now, and I am confident that it will hold up as long as my original 2015 laptop sleeve has. Have you purchased from RedBubble before? What was your experience like? Let me know in the comments below!
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Cats are great pets. They are fun, cute, often cuddly and have such personalities. But... they can also be jerks! Cats have a sassy streak to them that isn't shared by their popular pet counterpart, the dog. When a dog chews a couch or a pillow, they look at you ashamed, sorry to be in trouble, giving you those super sad eyes. When a cat is knocking a glass or your favourite plant off the table, they stare you right in the eyes like "TRY TO STOP ME, FOOL!!". Not sorry at all. This makes for very funny internet cat videos. I could watch cats knocking stuff over for hours. I love it. It just makes cats more awesome in my eyes. :P
Why do cats knock stuff over? It is thought that cats do this when they are not getting the attention that they desire at that particular moment. So, if you're busy doing something and your cat appears and you don't acknowledge it, this could be the moment they decide to stare into your soul and knock your shit over! I do believe this is true. On one occasion where my lovely black cat Darcy came down to see me. I pet her for a while then stopped to do some work. She then proceeded to bite my favourite cactus! I brushed her from the table and got mad at her. She never listens (and I probably just made her angry by telling her no), so she knocked the cactus over, completely defiant and not guilty whatsoever. As cats do. Less funny when it happens to you, more funny in the cat videos. Another funny cats being jerks moment that I find hilarious. My grandparents had a siamese cat named Sukie that loved my mom. One day when she went to visit, she hadn't pet Sukie when she came in, as she usually did. Out of revenge, Sukie peed in my moms shoes. LOL. So yes, I really do believe that when cats don't get the attention that they want, they will act out! So in celebration of this hilarious feature of cats, I drew it! It was an idea I had for a while, and when I finally sat down to create it, I was pretty happy with how it turned out. The original drawing was done with Procreate on the iPad, with a very sketched and hand drawn technique. I thought this light & playful sketch look would add to the fun subject matter. I drew these black cats knocking a variety of stuff over, a potted cactus, a vase of flowers, a mug of coffee, a TV remote, and a glass of water. I even drew some of them staring back, because I find this to be the funniest. Also I mentioned I have a black cat and I love them, so I decided to feature black cats in this drawing. I've made this drawing into a seamless pattern, and added it to a variety of home decor and accessory products! I've also created it as a fabric, so if you are crafty, you can turn it in to whatever you want! (Side note: if you do use it as a fabric, I would loooooove to see what you make! tag me @tanya_draws on instagram!) It is available at my Zazzle, RedBubble, and Society6 shops. I hope you enjoy this pattern as much as I do! Would you like to see a different version created with another type of cat? What kind of cat would you like to see? I've always loved the simplicity of my pineapple pattern, so I've recoloured it on many instances. This version takes my original collage - like pineapple drawing, recoloured in a shimmery looking rose gold glitter texture, with a pretty blush pink background. Rose gold is one of my favourite colour trends, so I just had to add it to one of my favourite patterns!
Since I added this to my Society6 shop it is now most popular designs, becoming a top seller across my home decor line. I think it would be fantastic for a pretty tropical themed room - with matching curtains and duvet cover, you could definitely make a relaxing and comfortable summer feels space! I have also since added it on Society6's new lineup of outdoor decor items. Chair cushions, picnic blankets, foldable chairs and even sun shades form the lineup, so you can create a whole matching pattern themed set up on your patio or backyard area. This would be so cute for a rooftop patio! I've recently started working on my RedBubble shop more, so this pattern is now also available there too on products. I love Redbubble, I find it to be a very international friendly shopping experience - living in Canada, I've personally never had to pay extra duties or shipping fees on products from RedBubble and the print quality (and products) have been excellent. So, it's always the first place that I recommend to my international friends and customers! :) Below is my pineapple pattern on some of my favourite products. If I were to recolour this design again, what colour theme would you like to see? Let me know in the comments! This snail pattern is an oldie, but a goodie! :) I had originally drawn this back in 2014 in markers and ink, before I even started an art shop! I always thought snails had a quirky cuteness to them, so this little illustration became one of my very first patterns in my shop. Flash forward to today, and it's one of those niche drawings that I have that many of you have enjoyed, and purchased on a variety of products.
Looking back at it, one thing I would have done differently is kept the traditional look of the markers. I actually turned this drawing into a vector in illustrator, so that I could resize it for large products like duvet covers and curtains. It was a nice thought, but I could've just as easily scanned and used the original in a repeating pattern such as this! Ah well, you learn as you go. The original marker drawing actually has the snail sliding along amongst tall blades of grass. Now that I know a lot more than I knew then, I plan on revisiting this illustration and making a new pattern, keeping more of it's original charm. While I look back at my oldest pattern I can't help but think of how I would do it differently now - but regardless, it is still an important piece in my portfolio, marking the first pattern I completed where I really felt myself falling in to a style and workflow. And more importantly, I see this pattern and think of how fun it was to draw this with my markers, and it inspires me to break out my traditional tools once again and do more like this! I plan on taking some time off from work this summer to give myself time to work on new pieces, and the light charm that this pattern brings is the direction I want to focus on. Here is my snails pattern on a bunch of stuff - it is on the entire range of products at RedBubble and Society6, and on select products at Zazzle. Recently in the midst of COVID-19, I added fabric masks to my RedBubble product line up, and masks in my snail pattern are by far my best seller so far! If this pattern wasn't clear, let me tell you... I am Canadian, and yes, I love maple syrup. My love for maple syrup runs deep. Love it on my pancakes, my bacon, in my coffee instead of sugar, AS my coffee (if you love flavoured coffees but haven't tried a maple flavour yet, I highly recommend!), and I love those little maple sugar candies, the ones that are melt in your mouth pure sugary goodness. Every year I've taken a trip down to the sugar bush with family or friends, and we enjoy a nice hike through the forest, savouring freshly made maple syrup candies, and taking in the smell of maple sap boiling down into maple syrup. It's something I look forward to doing each March! Unfortunately I wasn't able to go this year due to COVID-19 and missed out on this fave tradition, which reminded me of my maple syrup pattern.
I drew this pattern as part of my daily draw challenge a while back, and for a while decided to focus on patterns of some of my favourite foods! I came up with a creme brûlée pattern, a pancake pattern, and this maple syrup pattern. The maple syrup pattern shares the love of a Canadian favourite in a fun and casual way, through a doodle lined and simply coloured design. If you were to draw your favourite food... what would it be? :) |
About MeHi! I'm Tanya, an illustrator and graphic designer from Ontario, Canada. You can find my illustrations and patterns on a wide variety of websites, such as Zazzle, Redbubble & Society6. Aside from designing, I have a love of cats, reading & video games! If you want to see what I'm creating lately, check out my twitter & Pinterest pages below. Categories
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