S/Creative Studio

Branding- styling and digital experiences for small business owners and entrepreneurs. The result? Authentic branding that your clients will fall in love with.

I’m Sylvia – globetrotter and creative designer with a passion for all things design. Through SCREATIVE, I help entrepreneurs and small business owners translate their identity into a strong brand design. Though my heart lies in Rotterdam - I now work remotely all over the world. My style is minimalistic, personal and creative. I believe that nature is one of our greatest sources of inspiration, s

07/08/2023

A brand new website for Broadcroft Design - happy launch day 🥳

15/07/2023

Experience a great 4x4 outdoor adventure! Recent work for another long term Dutch client .nl 🛻

Photos from S/Creative Studio's post 23/05/2023

Souris / Cheese and Wine Dining 🧀🍷 A creative collab with bringing this beautiful brand to life!

02/02/2023

And just like that SCREATIVE turns 8 today! It’s crazy how fast the years have gone by. I know that anyone starting a business can relate to the doubt and worry you experience when you first make the leap. It is exactly how I felt when I started my freelance design biz.

Will I ever be good enough? Can I get enough clients/work? Is everyone better than me?

Although everyone talks about going through those stages - there is always this wonder if the running your own biz thing is going to work for YOU. I mean it is most definitely not for everyone.

Taking a moment after 8 years to reflect on my business I have realised that it really has worked out the way I hoped. By this I mean I have become the creative/designer I have always wanted to be and I have a business that is successful by my own definition.

It has been a wild ride so far and I am so grateful to be in the place that I am today. It’s all down to my amazing clients - creative community and collaborations: thank you for supporting me. It means the world to me.

📸 Hannah Prewitt Photography

Photos from Hannah Prewitt Photography's post 16/01/2023

A few personal branding shots from last month in the studio 📸👩🏻‍💻💃

13/06/2022

If you could give one piece of advice to other freelance creatives - what would it be? My advice would be try very hard to find your own thing, style, voice, embrace your weirdness and focus on making it great. Your clients will come.

📸 Hannah Prewitt Photography

12/06/2022

My business is currently in such a changing and growing phase 🙌🏻 Winter just started on the Sunshine Coast and autumn had so much momentum. I have so many plans for spring and I can’t wait to share. It’s an exciting time but also slightly scary and out of my comfort zone (even for me 🤪) It takes a lot effort to check in on myself and making sure I’m not losing myself in all of it. But all in all I am SO SO happy to be in this place after 8 years of running my own freelance biz 🙏🏻 Excited for the next chapter and to keep learning from all the many mistakes that I know I still have to make. 



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12/06/2022

Can’t wait to refuel my creativity and find some new spots in Europe to take inspiration from 🇵🇹

12/06/2022

No - I am not a business coach and I never will be. BUT… in the last 7 years I did learn a thing or two about running my own creative business and I do think I am very capable of helping other creative freelancers starting up their business. I am and always will be a hardcore designer but I do enjoy tapping into the creative mentor role and sharing from my personal experience.

One of the first things I always want to know is why. Why do people want to start their own business and take the freelance leap? For example - my why has nothing to do with money but everything with (creative) freedom.

I want to live by my own rules and write my own script for life. Being a high-achiever I used to find myself some days just checking off tasks cos I felt like I was supposed to do them or other people expected me to.

The truth is you are probably supposed to be doing a lot of things…. but the only way you are going to run a successful business is by doing things the way you want to. There is no one else in the world who can do what you do and exactly the way you do it. What I want is to run a business that still allows me to live more and have creative freedom.

Yes I love my clients - each one of them. A lot of times it is more than just a work relationship and I care about them and their business. I want to give them everything I got and the best experience when it comes down to creating their authentic brand. I am also one person which means I want to allow myself to not always try and do more and more. I need to rest and recharge but also handle all the things life throws at me.

Committing to a freelance career and building a business by my own rules allows me to take a second and realise that my entire biz is not going to crumble if I take a day off work to do whatever I want. Even if that means doing nothing. My business needs to support my life and not the other way around.

So… take the weekends off if you want. Work 5 hours a day if you want (or less). Take a month holiday to Indo if you want. The beauty of running your own business is you can do whatever you want. You are the boss and you call the shots.

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01/06/2022

A note from me to you - the freelance newbie. Some of my thoughts to help you get through your first year (or two) of your freelance career!

There will be moments where you question yourself and wonder why you ever thought you could actually pull this off. But you can. You are capable of so much more than you think!

You will keep surprising yourself. Time after time. At some point you won’t have to fake confidence anymore.
�None of it will be easy and I guarantee you will think about quitting once or twice. And you won’t always like your work. More like you will really hate some of it and that is completely fine.
�Just remember this: everything will pass. The crappy moments. The stress. That s**t project sucking the energy out of you. Believe that better projects or clients will come.
�You are not alone in this even though it might feel that sometimes. There are a lot of freelancers out there going through exactly the same thing - or have been.
�Life works in mysterious ways and freelancing / running your own business is not for everyone. But if you made it so for it means you are exactly where you need to be. You are unique - you can build your business however you want to and you are more than qualified.

Photos from S/Creative Studio's post 01/06/2022

Only a tad excited about this new branding….. 🌞

01/06/2022

What does your font say about your business? A crucial ingredient in a brand - fonts can evoke emotions and showcase a brand’s best side - if you choose them correctly.

Font psychology is real. How can something that you interact with every day - without even realising it - have such a profound impact on the way you purchase but also navigate and scroll? How can something so innocent have such a powerful connection with an audience?

Fonts tell your story before you do: they have personalities. You can understand the message or branding before you've even comprehended the words. They set the stage for the words the reader is about to process. Fonts are the first impression for your possible future clients - so finding fonts that portray the business brand really is that important.

01/06/2022

2.5 years ago I made the decision to use the gram as a business tool rather than just sharing my personal life. I am slowly growing my audience and figuring out my online strategy - but by no means do I rely on it. If they decide to take Instagram down tomorrow it will most likely not effect my business at all. For that reason I reckon every small business owner or freelancer needs a website - but that is a story for another time.

Since I started to gain a bit more traction on the gram I also started dealing with a lot of project enquiries in exchange for exposure. At certain times those requests really p**s me off cos asking for this is indirect implying my work is not good enough to pay for it. Exposure is not payment. My skills have value.

Exposure pitches come in all shapes and sizes. Basically - someone will ask you to provide a good or a service to them without any intention of paying you and your work will be seen by a new audience. Sometimes it can be beneficial and the start of a partnership. A lot of times it’s just a waste of your time and resources.

For example. As a designer it goes a little like this: will you design my business cards/logo/website for free? I will give you credit and tell everyone to use your services.

I’m not saying exposure itself is a bad thing. Exposure is great! It is what allows us to find new clients. I love exposure! What I don’t love is when people/businesses/opportunists think exposure is a replacement for money.

Exposure is not money. Exposure does not guarantee money will find you. Exposure doesn’t pay the bills. Exposure by itself is not a fair trade for your services. Sure - sometimes exposure pays off and you get access to the right audience or connections that eventually lead to a sale or professional relationship. BUT exposure is not a guarantee.

So for all creatives who need to hear this: exposure is a gamble. Maybe you will get something out of it, but most of the time the person offering you the exposure will get the better end of the deal. When an exposure opportunity presents itself, make sure it’s the right kind.

📸 Hannah Prewitt Photography

23/05/2022

Layers of palmtrees giving me all sorts of vacay vibes 🌴☀️

Photos from S/Creative Studio's post 17/05/2022

Cheers to another bad ass woman who decided to start her own business 🙌🏻 Feeling blessed to be your friend and honoured you are trusting me to design your visual identity + website ☺️

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17/05/2022

As a small business owner - entrepreneur or freelancer outsourcing your branding and/or website design is one of the best decisions you can make for your business. But why can working with a designer be such a valuable investment?

🎥 .productions
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17/05/2022

Over 7 years of freelancing and clients all over the world. But… I will never forget those first clients and/or friends who hired me. The ones who paid my full rate and told everyone in their network I just launched my own business. Those clients who are still here and support me online. Every share - like and referral helps a small business owner. So hire your friends. Support small business owners. Pay their full rate. There really is no greater gift than believing in someone’s dreams 💚

11/05/2022

A project so close to my heart which deserves all the attention and love. Joy & Memory Holiday is a new travel concept in energetic Bodrum (Turkey) for people post cancer treatment or who have been in remission for a little while now. The purpose of Joy & Memory Holiday is to feel alive. To feel the joy of life. Working on the brand identity and website for this new company hit me right in the feels and brought back a lot of memories. But it also gave me hope. Hope that people will survive cancer and are able to enjoy a trip with ⭐️

- I can’t wait to see you in Bodrum and celebrate. You created something special and I am so grateful to be a part of it ❤️

05/05/2022

Look who has a brand new website! Happy launch day Hello Honey Australia 🤩 Had such a blast working on this one with my bestie Hannah Prewitt Photography 👏🏻

27/04/2022

Say yes to working with a small design studio instead of a bigger design agency! ✨

A lot of (small) businesses don’t really consider the advantages of employing a freelance designer to design their marketing materials or website. They opt for hiring an agency because they have just Googled “website design” and approached the first few agencies that came up in the search results. Other clients prefer the comfort factor of hiring an agency - but for many smaller businesses this may not be the best approach for commissioning work. In fact - I reckon smaller businesses should always work rather with freelance designers instead.

🎥 .productions
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24/04/2022

A pitch deck is a tool that every startup business or entrepreneur needs. A presentation that you will use to help explain or showcase your product or service and potentially drives sales or investment. It needs to be polished and professional to do the job well. But how important is the design of your pitch deck really?

When people look at pitch decks and see one that is attractive - they naturally pay closer attention. Instead of breezing through it, looking for a reason to reject, they read it closer to see what the business is about. The design is very important for getting your message across. In conceptual thinking, presentation and user experience. It also gives your business personality.

Sending out a pitch deck to potential clients/investors is like posting a profile on Tinder. You’re dating now, trying to attract clients, so put on your best clothes. Even if you can’t afford those designer clothes yet - at least make sure you look the part. Yes… in the end what matters is inside, but you have to get past swipe left first. An attractive deck is more than just superficial dressing. A well-designed deck is not only easy on the eyes but also easy to follow. Graphics are designed not just to be pretty but to convey complex information at a glance.

What makes a deck attractive are the same things that make it easy to understand. Fonts and colours that are easy to read, with caps, sizing, highlighting and bullet points showing the eye how to follow the story. Colours have meaning too and invoke a subconscious response. Good colour coordination and plenty of white space evoke a sense of calm - while a jumble of colours and blocks of text spattered across the page leave you feeling screamed at from all directions.

So yes. It is just a set of slides but that first impression matters. Because that first impression maybe the only impression you’ll get 😉

Trade Presenter / Pitch Deck design for

24/04/2022

Last week I was chatting to one of my old uni friends from home and he said something that really jumped out to me. I was talking about how excited I am with my thoughts for my business next year and that I want to mentor more creative freelancers and how everything I have been doing lately has significantly contributed to my progress in getting closer to where I want to be. His response: yep! You’re probably feeling great because you want to contribute more than you consume. DAMN. YES?!

In the early years of running my freelance biz I was very much just consuming - especially on socials. Inevitably this creates self doubt - comparison and total blocks the creative juices from flowing (at least in my case). But now I know exactly how to use it to my advantage and my biz doesn’t rely on it. I have been super creative lately and am finding ways to contribute. To add value and to have purpose in all that I do. Which also connects to my core values that I have been working on lately.

I feel like so many people are online and consuming and basically repeating content for the sake of it. There is no meaning or thought behind it. Not sure if I am the only one who feels like that. I definitely noticed in the design world - where trends are picked up so quickly due to social - that everyone is kind of doing the same designs lately. Meaning all the same colour palettes and fonts are being used for example. I’m not saying that this is necessarily a bad thing or that I haven’t taken inspiration from one of those trends… but I do think we can all consume a little less and focus more on our own purpose. There could be more juicy content that can be created?

So be an adventurer, an inventor, an entrepreneur, an artist. Suggest your own ideas instead of reacting to everyone else’s. Be an active participant in life and contribute to the world around you. Make good conversation. Make good art. Make good adventure. But above all: make something ✨

17/04/2022

Got to love a well designed biz card 💜

17/04/2022

Very excited to be working on this new project - webshop launch in the next few months! 💖

12/04/2022

The best business ideas come from solving a problem you've personally experienced. Something new on the way 🤩

12/04/2022

Getting all of my creative people together to create something special very soon 🎥 .productions ♥️

11/04/2022

How would you describe your design style?

When I started out as a designer I always felt a little frustrated trying to find my own style. It seemed to me as if there was this pressure from bigger designers to find my own style - most of them with decades more experience than myself. But here is the thing: your own style isn’t something you can come up with from today to tomorrow. Usually your style will naturally evolve. Other people will tell you about your style first before you even recognise it yourself. It’s something that just happens.

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Video's (alles zien)

SCREATIVE - Q&A 12
Say yes to working with a small design studio instead of a bigger design agency! ✨A lot of (small) businesses don’t real...
How would you describe your design style?When I started out as a designer I always felt a little frustrated trying to fi...
SCREATIVE - Q&A 9
SCREATIVE - Q&A 8
SCREATIVE - Q&A 7
SCREATIVE - Q&A 5
SCREATIVE - Q&A 3
SCREATIVE - Q&A 2One of my fav work related subjects which I mention almost every time when having a conversation with a...
SCREATIVE - Q&A 1
Personal Branding Video
The Inquisitive

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