Laura Lonsdale Designs

Laura Lonsdale Designs began with the need to find words for a difficult experience. Laura, who lives in Preston, went through six IVF cycles before having her daughter Penelope May. She found support on Instagram and noticed a lack of cards acknowledging those experiences. Her first collection grew from that background, turning design into a way to express care.

After becoming pregnant in 2019 and losing her job, Laura began developing fertility and IVF cards. Her husband suggested submitting designs to Thortful, which accepted them. The portfolio grew, and she opened her own online store in February 2021. The brand’s story connects the growth of her work with its creator’s circumstances and experiences.

Cards now cover birthdays, anniversaries, weddings, births, graduations, and thank-you messages. New homes and jobs, maternity leave and returning to work, surgery recovery, loss, and support messages add to the range. Fertility collections remain alongside humor, LGBTQ Pride, and family celebrations: the tone is chosen according to the relationship with the recipient.

Personalization allows birthday, Christmas, and other cards to be prepared, while art prints provide another way to bring a phrase or illustration into the home. The range includes humorous prints and messages such as Less Scrolling More Living, alongside graphic designs such as Tiger Teal. Options are organized into standard and personalized prints, separate from cards.

The pineapple in the logo refers to the project’s beginnings. Laura explains that she likes the fruit and recognizes it as a shared symbol within the fertility community she joined. It is an autobiographical reference within the visual identity, accompanying a collection that began with personal messages and the desire to share them with others.

Her designs are distributed through her own store and platforms such as Thortful, Moonpig, Funky Pigeon, Scribbler, and Boomf, according to her published story. Questions and ideas for new designs are received by email and contact form, and there is a stockist and wholesale section. The brand retains the connection between a small creative business and occasions when a card can say something difficult to express in conversation.