Behind the Designs | Entry 02 - Finding Patterns in the Details
Namaste, kind reader!
Welcome back to another little chapter of my design journey!
If you've read the first entry of Behind the Designs, you might remember my very first creation for Sparks & Noises - a geometric portrait inspired by the beauty of Indian classical dance.
It was an exploration of traditional ornamentation, expressive eyes, angular shapes, and a rather striking combination of blues and greens.
But while working with that visual language, I began noticing something interesting.
What if the smaller details of an illustration could become an artwork of their own?
What if the shapes that made up a dancer's jewellery, her headdress, and her expressive gaze could be rearranged into something entirely different?
That little thought became the starting point for my second product - Geometric Indian Medallion Pattern No. 1.
And today, I'd love to tell you how it came together.
Looking Beyond the Original Illustration
One thing I'm beginning to understand as a design student is that a design doesn't necessarily have to end where it begins.
Sometimes, a single illustration contains enough visual elements to inspire an entire collection.
In my first dancer portrait, the focus was the character herself. The jewellery, geometric shapes, and decorative details all worked together to create her identity.
But what happens when we remove those details from their original context?
Suddenly, the ornamentation can become a pattern.
The angular shapes can become a repeated rhythm.
And the eyes, which were originally the focal point of the portrait, can become an abstract decorative motif.
I found this transformation particularly interesting because the new design still feels connected to the original artwork, even though it serves a completely different purpose.
It's almost like taking a familiar story and telling it in another language.
The Design Language: Geometry, Rhythm, and Repetition
For this pattern, I wanted to explore how geometric forms could create a sense of movement without illustrating movement directly.
The design is built around repeating circular medallions, framed by angular shapes and jewellery-inspired details.
Look closely, and you'll notice the eye-like forms positioned within the medallions. They're a subtle connection to the dancer's expressive gaze from the original portrait.
Surrounding them are smaller diamonds, triangular arrangements, and ornamental structures that create a dense, almost mosaic-like composition.
What I find fascinating about repetition is how it changes the way we experience an illustration.
When we look at a single portrait, our attention naturally moves towards the face.
But in a repeating pattern, there isn't necessarily one central point of attention.
Instead, our eyes travel across the design, discovering relationships between shapes, colours, and spaces.
The medallions create a recognisable rhythm, while the smaller geometric details help connect one repeat to another.
And that brings us to one of the most important parts of this design.
Making the Pattern Seamless
A repeating pattern isn't simply an illustration copied several times.
For a pattern to work as a seamless repeat, its edges must connect so that the design can continue without obvious interruptions.
This is particularly important when working with a detailed geometric composition.
Even a small mismatch can disturb the visual rhythm of the entire surface.
With this design, the goal was to create a composition where the individual motifs could come together as a continuous visual arrangement.
The larger medallions provide structure, while the smaller geometric elements fill the spaces between them.
The result is a pattern that can extend across a surface while maintaining its visual identity.
It's also an interesting reminder that surface pattern design involves more than creating attractive motifs.
It's about understanding how individual elements interact when they become part of something larger.
The Colour Story: Familiar Colours, A Different Experience
If the colours look familiar, that's intentional!
I carried forward the blues, greens, white, and black from my original geometric dancer portrait.
But this time, the colours have a different role.
In the portrait, they helped define facial features, create dimension, and establish the character's personality.
In the pattern, they help organize repetition.
The bright blue creates a strong foundation, while the greens introduce energy and contrast. Darker blues add depth, and white separates some of the more intricate geometric forms.
Black provides definition, particularly around the eye motifs.
Together, these colours create a bold composition with a decorative, almost jewel-like quality.
I love how the same palette can feel completely different depending on how it is arranged.
It's one of those little discoveries that makes experimenting with design so enjoyable.
And it made me wonder...
What would this pattern look like if someone else chose the colours?
Well, I thought we could find out!
A Little Gift: Colour the Pattern Your Way!
For today's freebie, I've prepared a black-and-white geometric medallion colouring sheet, inspired by this very pattern!
Instead of the original blue and green palette, you'll receive an outline version that you can fill with your own colour combinations.
Perhaps you'd like to try a warm palette of terracotta, mustard, and burgundy.
Maybe you prefer earthy greens and browns, or something entirely unexpected.
You could even give each medallion a different colour story.
That's the wonderful thing about geometric patterns - changing the colours can completely transform their personality.
Download Your Free Geometric Pattern Colouring Sheet
[GET YOUR FREE COLOURING SHEET HERE]
Print the sheet and experiment with coloured pencils, fine-tip markers, or any other colouring materials you enjoy.
You can also colour it digitally if that's more your style.
The pattern contains quite a few small geometric details, so take your time with it. Think of it as a relaxing little design exercise rather than something that needs to be completed perfectly.
Show Me Your Colour Palette!
I would genuinely love to see how you interpret this pattern.
Once you've finished, share a photograph or digital version of your creation with me.
Instagram: @sparks.noises
Email: sparks.noises@gmail.com
You can also tag Sparks & Noises when you share your work on Instagram.
I'm especially curious to see whether you choose a coordinated colour palette or give each repeating medallion its own personality.
After all, one of the most interesting things about design is that the same starting point can lead to completely different outcomes.
From Colouring Exercise to Finished Surface Design
If you've enjoyed exploring the pattern, you might also like the original fully coloured version.
Geometric Indian Medallion Pattern No. 1 is available as a high-resolution seamless digital download in the Sparks & Noises shop.
Unlike the free colouring activity, the finished product is designed as a repeatable surface pattern.
It can be used for a variety of creative projects, including:
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Fabric and textile printing
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Gift wrapping and packaging
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Scrapbooking and paper crafts
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Digital backgrounds and branding projects
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Wallpaper and decorative surfaces
The downloadable file is a 12 × 12-inch, 300 DPI PDF, designed to repeat seamlessly.
Whether you're a fellow designer, a craft enthusiast, or someone looking for a distinctive pattern for a creative project, I hope it gives you something interesting to work with.
EXPLORE GEOMETRIC INDIAN MEDALLION PATTERN NO. 1
The finished design is available for personal and small commercial use under the product's stated terms.
One Pattern, Five Possibilities
There's another reason this particular design is special to me.
It's the first pattern in a five-part collection.
All five patterns in Series 1 explore a shared geometric language and colour palette, but each approaches the visual elements a little differently.
I wanted the collection to feel connected without making every pattern identical.
It's a small experiment in creating a design family - where individual pieces can stand on their own but also feel like they belong together.
And perhaps that's one of the most valuable lessons I'm taking away from this stage of my journey.
A strong visual language can grow beyond a single product.
It can become a portrait, a pattern, a background, or something entirely new.
The possibilities begin to expand once we start looking at our own designs from different perspectives.
A Little Reflection Before We Go
When I started Sparks & Noises, I was primarily thinking about creating individual digital products.
But working on this pattern helped me think more about collections, consistency, and the relationship between different designs.
I'm still figuring out how to build a coherent product range while giving myself enough freedom to experiment.
Some ideas work immediately. Others take a little more exploration.
But every new product teaches me something.
And that's what I hope to continue sharing through this series — not just the finished artwork, but the decisions, questions, and discoveries that come with creating it.
Thank you for joining me for the second entry of Behind the Designs.
Don't forget to download your free colouring sheet, and please share your colour experiments with me. I'd love to see what you create!
Until the next design,
Keep experimenting, keep creating, and don't be afraid to make a little noise.
With warmth and creativity,
Sparks & Noises
An evolving design journey, one creation at a time.