Meet Lisa – calendar co-creator

Who am I then?

Hello! I’m Lisa Bamford, also known as Stoats & Weasels. I’m a graphic designer, greeting card publisher, calendar co-wrangler, and general lover of silly things. I live in Brighton with my husband Alex (a photographer and all-round lovely human) and our two belly-rub-obsessed cats, Squiggle and Doodle. I’ve been a designer for over 25 years now, since graduating from Kingston University with a degree in Graphic Design. Still love it. Still amazed I get to do it for a living.

What do I actually do?

I run a small graphic design studio, working with lovely clients on all sorts of things – logo design, brochures, branding, marketing materials, the lot. But you can only get away with so much silliness on a corporate brief, so a few years back I started designing greeting cards as a place to let out all the colourful, cheeky, daft ideas that didn’t quite fit into the ‘grown-up’ world of client work.

It started with just a few cards that I sold in our Artist's Open House each May, but over time it’s grown into full ranges of playful, colourful, mostly humorous designs. I'm proud to have my cards stocked in amazing high street retailers such as Waterstones, Oliver Bonas and Scribbler and in brilliant independent shops all over the UK (and beyond).

Take a look at my online greeting card shop for colourful, cheeky designs.

Take a look at my graphic design portfolio site, it's very out of date in that way that all busy designer's websites are, ahem!

And the calendar?

Taking on the Brighton & Hove Calendar has been a proper joy. Alex has been a contributing photographer for many years, as well as designing the last few editions, so it's been on our kitchen wall for years. It's always been such a thrill to see Alex's name in the credits, and now I'll get to see my name in there too! Alex and I are very aware we’re looking after something that means a lot to people, and we’re doing our best to keep that spirit alive. 

Other (very, ha) important things you should know about me:

I love beige food. I love cheese. I love videos of a raccoons eating grapes and beavers munching lettuce. Sea dipping. Even in winter. Yes, I do own an enormous coat and yes I will tell you that I go in the sea in winter. I take my work very seriously and also strongly believe in allowing your inner child to play, and not being afraid of silliness. The joy of silliness and the everyday small joys are the essential joy of living. Innit!

So that’s me. Design, cards, calendar, cats, cheese. Not necessarily in that order.