Rock on!  I know you’ve been waiting for Part II – here it is.

(If you missed Helen Dardik - The Blue Q Interview, Part I, click here): 

Deborah Sims: You have designed some of our most popular water bottles and bags.  Did you know of Blue Q before you got our call?

Helen Dardik: Yes. I’ve seen, admired and purchased a few of BlueQ products way before I got the call.

DS: What has the process been like working on Blue Q Product?

HD: Fun! When I work on BlueQ products – I know that I’m the demographic, so I design for myself… and that comes easy and makes the process very enjoyable.
 
DS: What is your favorite product you have designed for Blue Q?

HD: Definitely the People Power water bottle. That is my favorite project of 2009. 

DS: That’s my husband’s favorite too!  Mitch art directs  via doodle and scan, what is that process like? 

HD: Oh, I love Mitch’s art directions. He’s usually very clear about what he wants and gives me plenty of creative freedom. Love getting his little doodles.

DS: Can you explain your process?  Do you start with pencil and paper or do you go right to the Mac?

HD: I have a paper free process. No pencil… just mouse and an Adobe Illustrator. I’m planning on getting a Wacom tablet in hopes to reduce repetitive stress to my wrist.  I only sketch on paper if the client insist on it. I find that I than get married to the sketch and while working on the final I lose the fun part of ‘I don’t know where this is going’.  I like it to feel fresh. I go with the flow most of the time.
 
DS: Your work is very warm and organic.  What inspires it to be that way?

HD: Mmmm… warm and organic… that must be my favorite word combination. Maybe because I like everything warm – climate, people, blankets….etc., And organic, because   I like the natural flow that occurs in nature.
 
DS: You are working on something new for us right now….but we can’t tell anyone yet!  Shhhhh!
 
Thanks Helen for your time and talent.

Helen Dardik is the illustrator of all these gorgeous Blue Q products: Drink the Drops and  People Power Stainless Steel Water Bottles, Pink and Brown Shoulder Tote, Creature Comfort Shopper, Woodland Overnighter, and Forest Home Zipper Pouch.

Blue Q’s Manager of New Product Development, Deborah Sims, interviews illustrator Helen Dardik. Part One of a Two part Series.  Take it away Ms. Sims!
Deborah Sims: Tell me about the fabulous places you have lived. They seem so exotic to me.

Helen Dardik: Aaaah… exotic…. Well, not all of them were exotic. Siberia, for example, is neither fabulous nor exotic. Cold and dark. As a kid I’ve always thought that I would certainly leave and live somewhere exotic. How ironic it is to find myself living in Canada… dealing with the same ‘dark and cold’ for most of the year. I’ve also lived in Odessa (Ukraine) – right by the Black Sea (best climate on the planet), and Haifa (Israel) – probably the most exotic out of the bunch.

DS: How have these parts of the world influenced your work?

HD: Russian folklore tends to slip into my work even if I don’t look into it for inspiration.

DS: Where did you train?

HD: I have attended a graphic design high school in Israel and got a graphic design college degree in Canada. Mostly I’ve figured things out on my own… which is the best way.

DS: You are one of the most prolific illustrators ever AND you have 3 young daughters. How do you manage to produce so much work AND be a very attentive Mom?

HD: He he:) Attentive Mom. That’s a sweet assumption, but it’s not exactly the case. I’m a good mom, but I wouldn’t win any prizes for outstanding achievements in the field of motherhood. I love my girls to pieces and I spend as much time with them as I can, but my husband takes most of the heat. He let’s me work and do what I love… indulging me in my workaholism. I’m like the Sixties Don Draper-like dad, only better:)

DS: If you were not an Illustrator what do you think you would do?

HD: It would have to involve travel, lack of supervision and a healthy dosage of fun…so, an entertainer of some sort. Circus… maybe, or interior designer… these two are very similar.

DS: What is your favorite number? I like 4 and Mitch is crazy about the number 5.

HD: Eleven.

DS: If you were an animal, what would you be?

HD: I’d be a cheetah. Fast, strong and good looking. Would be nice… for a change:)

DS: What are 5 things you can’t live without?

HD: Can’t live without: my family, my mac, colors, humor, caffeine

Stay tuned for Part II – and while you wait, check out Helen’s NEW Dishtowels for Blue Q too!