Pretty Useful Co.

Because the kids need to touch grass too... 🌱 We've got brand-new youth sizes in the Overton Park shop! You'll find our classic Overton Park logo tee, the new Beast of Rainbow Lake line, and Touch Grass tees in both adult and youth sizes. We've also got a sweet new cap and boxy crop tee featuring park icons designed by our friends at @prettyuseful . Check them all out at the link in our bio or at overtonpark.org/shop!

Had to jump on the @logoarchive (@logoarchive.now ) bandwagon and dig through our own archives to find some of our favorite marks we’ve made ✍️

🌎 If we had to describe @nativemaps in a word, it would be “thoughtful”. David puts care and consideration into every choice in his business — the city maps he screen prints, the eco-friendly inks and papers he uses, the handmade frames he sources locally, the national parks non-profits he partners with, the list goes on and on. As the brand has grown from David’s small attic studio in 2014, it’s shifted to be less about perfectly replicated hometown city streets — it’s more about the messy and memorable journeys we take, and the memories and experiences we bring with us when we’ve returned home. David brought us on to retool the brand to reflect where it stands now over a decade later, and to give it the same care and attention he gives each of his products. We created a suite of marks, illustrations, textures, icons and colors that feel equally at home in your living room or in a National Parks gift shop, and a flexible system of logos, colors, and typefaces that will continue to grow with Native Maps in the future. It’s always a joy to work on a brand project with a longtime collaborator, and that’s especially true when they have the clear vision and rock solid values to guide the process like David does. We’re excited to see what the next decade of Native Maps brings!

We are shocked, SHOCKED to report that the Beast of Rainbow Lake returned to the park this week...and that like any good aquatic mystery creature, this time it has merch! That's right, the Beast has been working with the team at @prettyuseful to market itself...and the only place to get your shirt is at Overton Park Conservancy's online store. Adult and youth sizes are available now at overtonpark.org/shop! Support your local cryptid and get yours today.

👆A new look for Native Maps. When I started Native Maps 10+ years ago, I developed a logo and design language on the fly and out of necessity. I’m sure small businesses out there can relate. I’m proud of that work, knowing that I did the best I could, and I somehow built a brand with staying power to get us through the next decade. That brand was mostly built around celebrating where you are from - your hometown - through our handprinted neighborhood map collection. Over the last couple years, we’ve evolved to also celebrate “the journey” - the adventures and memories that shape you - especially via our national parks and public lands. I wanted to refresh the brand based on our original values and new focus, so I reached out to our favorite designers @prettyuseful to help out. We’ll share more about the new look this week, but I wanted to start with my favorite part - this delightful spinning globe GIF. I love the globe as a brand mark because it’s one of the original timeless objects to broaden perspectives and “bring the world home”. 🫶 David

We’re excited to welcome Clare Freeman of Pretty Useful Co. to the Creative Works Pop-Up Market. Clare is a designer and co-founder of Pretty Useful, a studio built on a simple idea: Work should not only be attractive but useful. Defined as work that improves your life, makes you feel something, or aligns with what you believe, her practice blends function with expression—creating objects and ideas that are thoughtful, human, and intentional. Not perfect. Not overbuilt. Just… pretty useful. Come shop from, meet, and hang with Clare at the Pop-Up Market next month in Seattle. ⬅️ Swipe to see highlights of her work. 👤 Clare Freeman – Pretty Useful Co. 📍 Memphis, TN 📲 Instagram: @prettyuseful –––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––– CREATIVE WORKS POP-UP MARKET 📅 May 1+2, 10AM–5PM 📍 Cornish Playhouse at Seattle Center 🎟️ FREE & OPEN TO THE PUBLIC 🛍️ Learn more → link in bio Interested in vending? Tag your shop below. –––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––– 🔄 The algorithm won’t push this. People will. Share this with someone who should be there. #CreativeWorksWEST #PopUpMarket #DesignStudio #CreativeCommunity #PrettyUseful

Meet the Graphex 57 Judges: Student categories @clarebotanica is an illustrator, animator, and web developer focused on elevating brands through clear, compelling visual communication. After earning her BFA in Illustration from Memphis College of Art in 2013, Clare worked at several design agencies before going full-time with Pretty Useful Co. in 2020. Her work pairs thoughtful strategy with smart systems thinking and a playful point of view, creating brand experiences across web, motion, and print that are clear, cohesive, and full of personality.

Most websites look the same. This workshop shows you how to break the pattern. WORKSHOP: Breaking the Template — Strategies for Building Websites Off the Grid with Clare Freeman, Co-Founder, Pretty Useful Co. Learn how to build distinctive websites without relying on rigid templates, large budgets, or long timelines. Clare will walk through practical ways to express brand personality through layout, custom code, interaction, and light motion. Whether you’re new to code or looking to push your current approach further, this session focuses on making sites feel intentional, human, and original. Participants will learn: ✅ How to move beyond templates with flexible layout thinking ✅ Practical ways to introduce custom code ✅ Using interaction and motion to add personality ✅ Building websites that reflect brand, not trends ✅ Where to start if you’re new to code 30 seats. These will sell out. ––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––
CREATIVE WORKS WEST ’26 SOUL OVER SCALE 3 days to expand your perspective, sharpen your craft, and build with creatives who care. 📍 Seattle, Washington 🗓️ April 30–May 2, 2026 🎟️ Individual Pass: $299 ’til April 1 🧑‍🎓 Student Pass: $199 🎨 Workshops: $149 each 🏨 Hotel Group Rate: $149/night 🎟️ Secure your seat today → link in bio ––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––
🔄 The algorithm won’t push this. People will.
Please engage with and share this post so more folks will see it. #CreativeWorksWEST #WebDesign #Branding #DesignWorkshop #CreativeCareers

We were honored to bring home some very exciting hardware from the Memphis American Advertising Awards last weekend! Our Blue Bowl Bases poster series won Best of Illustration and gold for Illustration Series, and the Biodiversity Victory Garden Project’s Pollinator Pantone poster series brought home Best of Art Direction, gold for Illustration Series, and silver for Art Direction Campaign. Thank you to our clients @mybluebowl and @thebvgproject for collaborating with us to make work we love, let’s do it again in 2026 💪 Thank you to @red.deluxe for making possibly our favorite Best Of awards ever 💀🧠 and to @aafmemphis for throwing an amazing party as always! 🏆 Best of Illustration Blue Bowl Base Posters Blue Bowl Superfoods 🏆 Best of Art Direction Pollinator Pantone Poster Series The Biodiversity Victory Garden Project 🥇Gold Elements of Advertising / Illustration Series Blue Bowl Base Posters Blue Bowl Superfoods 🥇Gold Elements of Advertising / Illustration Series Pollinator Pantone Poster Series The Biodiversity Victory Garden Project 🥈Silver Elements of Advertising / Art Direction Campaign Pollinator Pantone Poster Series The Biodiversity Victory Garden Project

We’re excited to welcome Clare Freeman, Co-Founder of Pretty Useful Co., to Creative Works WEST ’26. Clare is an illustrator, animator, and web developer focused on elevating brands through clear, compelling visual communication. After earning her BFA in Illustration from Memphis College of Art, she worked at several design agencies before going full-time with her business partner Allie Mounce at Pretty Useful Co. in 2020. Together, Clare and Allie build brand experiences across web and print that are cohesive, intentional, and full of personality. Clare’s focus on development and systems thinking ensures the studio’s work is not just expressive, but functional, scalable, and built to last. At Creative Works WEST, Clare will lead a 3-hour hands-on workshop on building distinctive websites without rigid templates, massive budgets, or long timelines. She’ll cover layout, custom code, interaction, light motion, and where to begin if you’re new to code. The goal: sites that feel human, original, and built on purpose. That’s Soul Over Scale. ⬅️ Swipe to explore their work. 👤 Clare Freeman – Co. Founder at Pretty Useful 📍 Memphis, TN 📲 Instagram: @prettyuseful –––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––– CREATIVE WORKS WEST ’26 SOUL OVER SCALE 3 days designed to sharpen your craft, strengthen your work, and build alongside people who care. 📍 Seattle, Washington 🗓️ April 30–May 2, 2026 🎟️ Individual Pass: $299 ’til April 1 🧑‍🎓 Student Pass: $199 🎨 Workshops: $149 each 🏨 Hotel Group Rate: $149/night 🎟️ Join us → Link in bio –––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––– 🔄 The algorithm won’t push this. People will. Please engage with and share this post so more folks will see it. #CreativeWorksWEST #SoulOverScale #BrandDesign #Illustration #WebDesign

🍫💞Candy Hearts is a sweet little hand lettered sans with the perfect dose of whimsy. Expressive, chunky, and a touch cartoony, Candy Hearts is all caps with alternate “Loves Me Not” lower case characters, a full set of punctuation and numbers, plus more symbols and advanced characters than you can shake a rose at 🌹 It also comes with a silly set of printable Valentines, because we just love you that much 💋💘

NEW PRODUCT ALERT! 🚨 Ever said, “Thanks, I made it!”? For the knitter, crocheter, embroiderer, needlepointer, cross-stitcher or crafter-at-large, our magnetic “I MADE THIS” badge whispers from the rooftops that the beautiful object you’re wearing was made by yours truly. Wear it as a badge of honor to commemorate your hours of work and to spark conversation with fellow crafters. Designed with magnetic back so it won’t damage your fabric, and includes a one-inch ruler on the back for measurements on-the-go. P.S., obvi Clare knit that sweater!