My last published ‘PJRC Blog’ was on July 6th 2020. Previous attempts to complete this blog began in August 2020, (then November 2020, April 2021 & June 2021 whichall ground to a halt). To finally reach the end of this blog fills me with joy - it became a bit of an epic as I had so much to say - you can decide what is relevant!
Grab a cuppa - you might need one and settle in.
It’s now July 20th, 2021 (I know, I know)...
As it’s my fourth attempt to complete this blog (now fifth and final attempt as it needs splitting due to the size of this thing and it's the 9th of August ???) it will be a bit of a mix-and-match effort using various aspects of my other scribbles from my failed attempts.
So here we are, it’s the day after ‘Freedom Day’ (the second one - as the first one was cancelled - yawn!) with the end of Covld restrictions coming and going once again. Life is as upside down now as it was a year and a half ago when somebody played ‘pass the parcel’ with a bowl of Bat soup or some other dodgy activity in the East!
There are still so many issues unresolved - the rate of infection is still going up and hospital entries are starting to climb to worrying levels. Do we - don’t we wear masks, if so where and when, will we get into trouble by not wearing them? Are we vaccinating children, are we singling out non-vaxers... Who knows?
At least the shops and bars are open and as from yesterday the ‘nightclubs’ are too after an awful long time and as the late, great David Bowie sang ‘Let’s Dance’ - oh hang on a second, Boris has had another thought, well you can ‘dance’ but just for a fortnight or so then we are changing the rules again so you will have to show your vaccine passport (whatever that is) confirming that you have been double-darted or you cant come in!
This perfectly illustrates the problems that businesses have had to deal with for the past 18 months. No one knows whether they are ‘coming or going’ - one minute you can the next you can’t, how do you possibly plan any strategy for moving forward when you haven’t got any solid ground underfoot?
Just to clarify that you would only catch me dancing at a drunken wedding!!
Let me take you back to March last year when ‘Normal’ changed forever.
Covid life, after the initial downturn wasn’t too bad, a couple of our clients still had some large projects planned and with the phones not ringing constantly, they had some time to sort their briefs out (not their knicker draws) and fire them through to us. Another client took the advantage of quieter times to work on some internal projects which had been cast aside due to their very busy schedules which was a huge bonus for us as it would keep us busy for a while.
We were very lucky, we know that now, as we watched companies less fortunate than ourselves struggling, some closing their whole operations and placing the whole payroll on furlough, other companies working reduced hours and staff working half weeks which was awful to see. It was all tinged with a sense of guilt we hadn’t really dropped off much at all.
Life was unrecognisable, very strange indeed!
This section will guide you through office life at PJR - what stage the world was at, what we listened to, reading habits and inspirations and what we got up to... with some client comments and work examples in here too! The first 3-4 months were covered in our previous blog so not wanting to repeat myself are a little lighter, I hope you find some points of interest!
MARCH 2020
PJRC JOBS BOOKED IN : 8 (3 cancelled) COVID JOBS: 0
THE STATE OF COVID-19
16 March Boris says “now is the time for everyone to stop non-essential contact and travel”
19 March PM says the UK can “turn tide of coronavirus” in 12 weeks
23 March PM announces the First lockdown in the UK, ordering people to “stay at home”
26 March Lockdown measures legally come into force.
Record of the month:
A blast from the past... Welcome to the pleasuredome -
Frankie Goes To Hollywood.
We cranked up their debut (1984) many times on the office turntable many times this month enjoying the singles Relax and Two Tribes at the max. The title track and the Power of Love were huge hits too and brought back great memories. #fgth
This month's reading matter:
Sweet Sorrow - David Nicholls
"Sweet Sorrow [is]... an ideal blend of the gently humorous and utterly heartfelt. It made me feel like something had swollen up inside my chest, and readers are liable to find their thoughts drifting over their own misspent school holidays or crushingly ardent first loves. Bag a copy immediately, because this has got "perfect summer read" smeared all over it like so much factor 30." -Independent
PJRC CREATIVE LIFE...
Life at PJR was great - we were just coming to the end of our 2nd full year in business with a turnover exceeding our projections by 20K+
As I have already mentioned (my previous blog), work at PJR gradually reduced in the first couple of ‘Lockdown’ months as furlough kicked in for most of our clients and events were cancelled or postponed (we lost 26 jobs to Covid that were booked in before the first month of ‘Lockdown’. Events at Beamish Museum that I was working on had to be cancelled as the Museum was mothballed, a nice job for a golf club's signage job was postponed, a large brochure for a heating engineer was temporarily postponed (and still hasn't happened) Fortunately, we were still busy getting our teeth into the big projects that I mentioned earlier - we couldn’t have been more thankful.
PJRC life was still quite good in adversity!
Design is a journey of discovery - the clients are the points of interest along the way. (Inside style)
My inspiration this month comes from 'Typography Sketch Books' which featured a Dutch Graffiti artist and designer Niels Shoe Meulman with his sketched 'Calligraffiti' style which fascinates me...
APRIL 2020
PJRC JOBS BOOKED IN : 6 (3 cancelled) COVID JOBS: 1
THE STATE OF COVID-19
16 April Lockdown extended for ‘at least’ three weeks. (WONDERFUL).
30 April PM says “we are past the peak” of the pandemic (really Boris?)
Record of the month:
Nostalgia - Annie Lennox
A great covers' album featuring George Gershwin's 'Summertime', 'I Put a Spell On You' by Screamin' Jay Hawkins and Billie Holiday's 'God Bless the Child'.
This month's reading matter:
Tuesdays War - David Fiddemore
This wasn’t to be the last time that we left pieces of aeroplane all over Germany, but you remember your first time. It’s just like your first kiss. It is 1944 and as their battered Lancaster Bomber limps home to base in thick fog, an RAF crew are horrified to find a second Bomber just moments in front. It is too close for their own pilot to react, but in one skilful move their forerunner swoops out of the way and the crew’s lives are saved. Back on the runway the seven, thankful young men eagerly await their saviour’s return and are stunned, when the pilot climbs down from the cockpit, to find themselves face to face with female Air Transport Auxiliary pilot Grace Baker. Grace quickly befriends the crew, introducing them to their new Bomber, ‘Tuesday’s Child’...
PJRC CREATIVE LIFE...
Slowly, but surely people were settling in to their ‘WFH’ routines and work started to pick up. Clients were changing their lines of attack and required different materials - we were more than happy to help obviously!
A couple of our clients changed direction completely starting new (ad)ventures which required new logos, graphics and promotions which we accepted with an abundance of smiles. Workdays were the new ‘steady’, flat out for four hours or easy paced for seven (our daily choice) we did both - It was all client dependent...
Some work crashed and burn't...
A set of menu's for a North East pub/restaurant (which we started and sent first
stage proofs off and received feedback from the client) which are still sitting unfinished and and unpaid for 16 months later!
We also received this lovely review...
I've worked with Peter and PJR Creative for a number of years now and I'm always impressed with Peter's attention to detail, diligence and professionalism. I regard Peter and his business as one of my most trusted suppliers and could not recommend PJR Creative highly enough. 5/5
Craig Smith - The Big Picture People (Director)
MAY 2020
PJRC JOBS BOOKED IN : 7 (1 cancelled) COVID JOBS: 4
THE STATE OF COVID-19
10 May PM announces a conditional plan for lifting lockdown, and says that people who cannot work from home should return to the workplace but avoid public transport (? - so how exactly).
Record of the month:
Discovered this last week and it's just brilliant! In New York (Collected Recordings) - Lloyd Cole #lloydcole #underratedIn New York (Collected Recordings) - Lloyd Cole #lloydcole #underated
This Collection of songs is the first time they have been released as they were originally intended and cover the period 89-94 displaying the progression and development of Lloyd’s music over this time and some of his best work.
PJRC CREATIVE LIFE...
We seemed to be the opposite of everyone around us as the first lockdown ended and things started to pick up we dropped off?
The work was still there but with so many clients now working from home, the turnaround times were getting stretched and proofs that would normally arrive back in you inbox within three days weren’t returning for a week or too which was elongating some projects by months in some cases which in return was stretching cashflow too.
Slowly - the first signs of new (covid) work started to arrive, a client had set up a Covid deep cleaning company which need branding, advertising and pricelists.
Clean Facilities. (logo left)
Back to School promotions were needed and a few scraps were bobbing around...
JUNE 2020
PJRC JOBS BOOKED IN : 9 (1 cancelled) COVID JOBS: 3
THE STATE OF COVID-19
1 June Phased re-opening of schools in England
15 June Non-essential shops reopen in England
23 June PM says UK’s “national hibernation” coming to an end – announces relaxing of restrictions and 2m social distancing rule
29 June Matt Hancock (remember him?) announces that the UK’s first local lockdown would be applied in Leicester and parts of Leicestershire.
Record of the month:
Other Aspects, Live... - Paul Weller
Weller just keeps going...
Loved this from the moment the postman handed it over at the front door.
All glossy and a triple gatefold LP to boot. Great musicianship and some really nice reworkings of classic Weller.
This month's reading matter:
Things The Grandchildren Should Know -
Mark Oliver Everett
How does one young man survive the deaths of his entire family and manage to make something worthwhile of his life?
A truly inspiring and remarkable story, full of hope, humour and wry wisdom - oh and a bit of death too.
The best autobiograpghy I've read - what a life E's had! #eels #unbelievable #crazy #survival
PJRC CREATIVE LIFE...
We did some nice jobs this month but work was a little scarce. We created our first podcast graphic for one of our clients who was branching out into something different...
I was trying to maintain a routine for my own mental state and was catching up on some projects as well as updating my blogs (as you are witnessing now - which obviously didn’t come to fruition, nearly a year ago) and updating our tees website with some new tees focusing on being nice to each other and talking #bekind #talk #ask #listen.
Why not take a look if you haven't already www.pjr-creative-tees.com and if you have - take another look - we've added loads of new stock lately.
We started to think we were on the up with the relaxing of restrictions which offered the Nation hope, schools and shops had re-opened and the promise of pubs and restaurants with outdoor spaces were given the go-ahead to dust off their tables...
We also received another lovely review this month...
I have worked with PJR Creative on a number of projects and find them to be excellent, the quality of work is outstanding. I am always impressed by the creativity that is displayed. They consistently hit deadlines and budget. Keep up the great work. 5/5
Mike Morley - DJMS (Director)
JULY 2020
PJRC JOBS BOOKED IN : 13 (2 cancelled) COVID JOBS: 4
THE STATE OF COVID-19
4 July UK’s first local lockdown comes into force in Leicester but more restrictions are eased in England, including reopening of pubs, restaurants, hairdressers.
18 July Local authorities in England gain additional powers to enforce social distancing
Record of the month: Diamonds & Pearls - Prince
I'm sure you can see the connection, we listened to an awful lot of Prince this month after reading (and stroking) this book.
Diamonds just got the nod!
This month's reading matter: The Beautiful Ones - Prince (one of the most beautiful books I’ve held, the book wasn’t finished due to Prince’s untimely death but they made up for the lack of story with the presentation!
PJRC CREATIVE LIFE...
It’s the hope that kills you though...
A few months in, few would have expected the impact that the Covid-19 would have on each and every one of our lives. By this point, the government was handing out much neaded 3-month self-employed payments and the first one was due to land in the next few days (phew!).
Work picked up a little in July so I was feeling a bit more positive...
The phone started ringing again - restaurants wanting menus for the Governments latest brain wave. Clients changing their line of attack and branching out on new ventures! I had logo requests coming in from everywhere...
A couple of those logos were part of an NHS Covid pack for pin badges...
We go through a few logos including a friends craft logo who was making a fresh start
after a serious of health issues - it's lovely to be able to help a friend in need.
With new regulations coming out all the time 'Social Distance Signage' (right) was appearing more and more in our schedules.
We were creating signs for all kinds of Covid regulations such as sanitising stations, outdoor directional notices, one way systems - work was very varied...
Fortunately, we always seemed to pick up one large job a month which really helped us keep faith in what we were doing!
AUGUST 2020
PJRC JOBS BOOKED IN : 12 (2 cancelled) COVID JOBS: 2
THE STATE OF COVID-19
3 August Eat Out to Help Out scheme, offering a discount on meals , begins in the UK
14 August Lockdown restrictions eased further, including reopening indoor theatres, bowling alleys and soft play.
Record of the month:
Letter To You - The Boss
Wow! and that's just the presentation. A beautiful gatefold album sleeve with printed tracing paper inners and a luscious lyric booklet again with tracings inserted between beautiful printed material and lovely imagery... the album is half decent too!
This month's reading matter: A Life In Parts - Bryan Cranston (you might know him as Walter White). I don't normally do back to back autobiographies but Prince was pretty short - about 5'4" (how he laughs).
After eventually completing 'Breaking Bad' a couple of years late I began to read this autobiography - I didn't want to start it before I'd completed the series in case of spoilers (it's more a short stories book really) He is always good value for money and this book was wildly amusing in places as well as some tender stuff too. A good read!
PJRC CREATIVE LIFE...
Covid started to pick up pace again and you got the feeling that the country would soon be head first into another crisis situation, (not that we had got out the first one really).
Clients didn’t know whether to stick or twist all over again...
I was getting sick of Deja-Vu. We also lost a huge project when a festival we had been working on fell victim to Covid.
SPOILER ALERT (it has just happened again this year!)
On the positive side we received another self-employment grant this month which helped to offset our losses.
We had a nice little logo to do this month too for 'Ian and John' (regular clients) who were setting out on a new venture as a multi-choice delivery kitchen. They're great clients and nice people too!
Here's their final logo...
...and some photography too which I supplied for them to use on social media with after they provided us with a free meal which was absolutely stunning!
Their menu is increasing week by week as they test the water - you should check them out at:
SEPTEMBER 2020
PJRC JOBS BOOKED IN : 5 (0 cancelled) COVID JOBS: 2
THE STATE OF COVID-19
14 September ‘Rule of six’ – indoor and outdoor social gatherings above six banned in England
22 September PM announces new restrictions in England, including a return to working from home and 10pm curfew for hospitality sector
30 September PM says UK at a “critical moment” in the crisis and would “not hesitate” to impose further restrictions if needed.
Record of the month: Earth To Dora - Eels
A return to form for Mr E.
It's a little bit sweary in places (as is pretty much all their stuff) so I had to be vigilant with the remote control if any clients happened to call for a chat...
PJRC CREATIVE LIFE...
July through to September was better than the figures illustrated as we had three huge projects on the go so we were still very busy which really helped as September was pretty barren as far as booking jobs in goes - we had to wait until the 14th for the first one and it was worth the wait...
Fortunately one of the five jobs booked in this month was huge!!!
I was also given a challenge by a client!
He was thinking of a quick-fire project to try and rectify some unforeseen Covid losses but wasn’t sure whether to pursue it. As it was just a pipe dream he didn’t want to throw much money at it so he rang me around 11:30am - the call went a little like this...
“Pete, how busy are you right now? (I had a couple of things on the go, but nothing I couldn’t put off). Would you be willing to create a logo for me for 4:00pm tonight, just create one logo - the first design you come up with and I will pay you £100.00 whether I like it or not - I’m looking at building and selling Social Pods to sell to venues with outside space so that they can still entertain if no one is allowed inside, I’m going to call it ‘Social Huts’ what do you think? ‘Great idea, challenge accepted’ I said.
So, off I set scribbling an idea down, that works I thought - then to the computer and I started creating the shape and in no time at all, I had the basics of the logo plotted out. Now for a colour pallette - this is going too well I thought, the colours fitted perfectly and within a couple of hours I had created their logo.
A couple of embellishments later I was ready to fire it over to my client - he loved it and Social Huts has been a huge success all over the UK - Job Done!
I also got a nice little leaflet, some web headers and an order for branded plaques too (see below).
OCTOBER 2020
PJRC JOBS BOOKED IN : 11 (0 cancelled) COVID JOBS: 1
THE STATE OF COVID-19
14 October A new three-tier system of Covid-19 restrictions starts in England (didn't that work well!)
31 October PM announces a second lockdown in England to prevent a “medical and moral disaster” for the NHS (here we go again)!
Record of the month:
Live Drugs - The War On Drugs
Woo-hoo - what a belter. Possibly the best live album I own, I just love it! Swirling guitars, great hooks, they sound like they are loving every minute and you feel like your in the front row... just typing this has made me stick it back on the turntable now!
Just for reference the cover and inlays are rubbish, apart from a touch of spot varnish!
PJRC CREATIVE LIFE...
...begins with my choice of books that I have read this month.
I discovered Austin Kleon! It sounds impressive to say I read three books this month - that or I have taken early retirement but they aren't the biggest books ever written but I love them...
I have taken so much inspiration from this guy - I've even started my own journal #dayone after reading his books, he just makes things easier to understand and helps to bing your creative life into focus - I think. #genius
He is correct, nothing is original!
Every day does start from scratch, he's also taught me that if no one actually reads this - its the process of writing it all down that matters (and I feel great).
Feeling energised by Austin Kleon we had a great start to the month with two big projects booked in to keep us out of trouble which eased any worries about twiddling our fingers through the month. HEAD DOWN and crack on... and keep reading.
NOVEMBER 2020
PJRC JOBS BOOKED IN : 9 (0 cancelled) COVID JOBS: 1
THE STATE OF COVID-19
5 November THE SECOND LOCKDOWN BEGINS!
24 November PM announces up to three households will be able to meet up during a VE-day Christmas period of 23 to 27 December (mmm... watch this space or Pinocchio's nose).
Record of the month: Live At The Royal Albert Hall - Arctic Monkeys
Some classics from Alex and the boys bashed out in the Royal Albert Hall - a truly fabulous venue.
I have been fortunate to visit on a few occasions 'way back when' - it takes your breath away when you step in and look up at the cavernous space below the ceiling.
PJRC CREATIVE LIFE... We’ve gone international this month!
We are designing a logo for a veterinary surgery in Sydney would you believe - the power of the internet.
Not the normal animals that you would you to illustrate a Veterinary Surgery in the UK!!!
Lizards, snakes, birds, cats and dogs. Clients loves it!
We also had a few decent jobs to get ‘busy’ with as well as the resumption of an 80pp Education Brochure that had been mothballed in March as the schools closed, which was nice to get back in to which saw us nicely through the month.
DECEMBER 2020
PJRC JOBS BOOKED IN : 4 (0 cancelled) COVID JOBS: 0
THE STATE OF COVID-19
2 December Second lockdown ends after four weeks and England returns To a stricter three-tier system of restrictions
15 December PM says Christmas rules will still be relaxed but urges the public to keep celebrations “short” and “small”
19 December PM announces tougher restrictions for London and South East England, with a new Tier 4: ‘Stay at Home’ alert level. Christmas mixing rules tightened.
21 December Tier 4 restrictions come into force in London and South East England
26 December More areas of England enter tier 4 restrictions
SAVE THE BIGGEST UNTIL LAST!
The 1st VACCINE APPROVED, has someone found their torch batteries, I swear I can see a light at the end of that tunnel!
Record of the month: The Doves - The Universal Want.
A great (Northern - ie past Watford) band banging out some great tunes. A little bit Blur/Gorillaz in places.
It was a gift from my youngest brother for my 37th birthday (as if!!!)
This month's reading matter: A set of books by Radim Malinic - Beautiful books, lovely colours and nice layouts. A bit style over substance but still useful. Not as inspirational or to the point as Austin Kleon who does't do filler and everything is there on merit.
PJRC CREATIVE LIFE...
December looked a little bleak on the job front, but we had two larger jobs had several elements to them which would take care of a good few hours, another job was a set of four leaflets so it wasn't as bad as it looked on paper and we were still in the middle of three ongoing projects from October and November.
One of the leaflets for 88 Kitchen.
After a busy start to December the month started to whimper to an end a bit earlier than normal as activities ground to a halt as there had been no big events in the run up, no Christmas Festivals as such and no advertising or last minute promotional wall planners or calendars like any usual year.
It was easy to figure out where the problem lay with our lack of work - the real headache to figure out was the 'Tier' system currently in place which had the whole country in uproar trying to understand and follow different rules, it was a nightmare and it was to get worse when the Christmas rules were thrown into the mix.
We ended up spending Christmas with just my father-in-law (our bubble) and had to forfeit my family thanks to the PM, Bubbles and Tier Systems, it wasn’t to be the Christmas that anyone planned after family time was reduced from 5 days to one!
JANUARY 2021
PJRC JOBS BOOKED IN : 9 (1 cancelled) COVID JOBS: 0
THE STATE OF COVID-19
Vaccine uptake is going well...
4 January PM says children should return to school after the Christmas break, but warns restrictions in England will get tougher
6 January ENGLAND ENTERS LOCKDOWN 3
Record of the month:
Short Stories Vol 1 - Ricky Ross
The lead chanter from Deacon Blue reworking a few of their classics and some of his solo work on a piano... #rickyross #raintown #deaconblue
This month's reading matter: Tall Tales and wee stories -
Billy Connolly
A read that entirely fits the personality of the extreme personality who wrote it, Connolly's raucous run through his life is as furious, funny and foul-mouthed as you'd expect. His stand-up knack for easy storytelling shines through ― Sunday Times
Happy New Year!
PJRC CREATIVE LIFE...
We welcomed the New Year in a with few nice jobs...
We had a proper mixed bag this month, an A4 leaflet, Window Vinyls, a 60 page Presentation, an interactive powerpoint game, Catalogue pages, Gold Profile Lettering, Golf Tees, a game pack and two large mounted graphic panels for 'Clapham Common'.
We even had time to start designing some pub gameboards for ourself... the problem will be finding time to advertise and promote them and then hopefully sell them!
FEBRUARY 2021
PJRC JOBS BOOKED IN : 10 (0 cancelled) COVID JOBS: 0
THE STATE OF COVID-19
15 February Hotel quarantine begins for foreign travel.
22 February PM issues roadmap out of Lockdown
We can go on holiday/oh no we can’t go on holiday/we can go on holiday but we have to come back straight away/or even stay as long as you want but your you have to pay 2k and quarantine for a fortnight on landing back in the UK
Record of the month: Shore - Fleet Foxes
What an absolute dream of an album - especially side one. Beautifully arranged, delicate rhythms with wispy chords all sitting under gentle echoey vocals creating picture box folk pop. It's a perfect collection of tunes to enhance a balmy summer evening around a small fire flickering in tandem with twinkly lights with a delicate G&T or a glass of refreshing Prosecco in your hand...
Sorry got carried away there!
Book read: I Spy : My Life - Tom Marcus
His second book on living and breathing MI5 was another superb read (I read the first book a couple of years ago which was also superb) - it still scares me stiff to think what could be going on under your nose...
PJRC CREATIVE LIFE...
One of the ‘ten’ jobs booked in this month just happened to be a translation job (my favourite) #irony - converting a large job that I had previously created for one of my most loyal clients into 19 languages!!! (I have just heard that I may have another to book in - this one one will be less challenging though... more later)
It was a proper marathon of a job - there was issues with the translators, the fonts, the downloads... this list of problems - none of which were my clients fault grew with each translation. The languages ranged from Mandarin to Portuguese Brazilian to Russian - not your run of the mill languages and it was a long haul (2-3 week) challenge but we got there in the end and the client was very happy once it was complete and we both got it out of our hair.
We had a nice little 24pp Brochure for one of longest serving clients - due to WFH and Furlough this job dragged on so long that the girl who briefed me and proofed the job actually left before we managed to complete. #covidpitfalls
I also made a start on our first PJRC Brochure... another long drawn out job!
MARCH 2021
PJRC JOBS BOOKED IN : 15 (0 cancelled) COVID JOBS: 2
THE STATE OF COVID-19
8 March Planned return to school for primary and secondary school students in England
8 March People allowed to leave home for recreation and exercise outdoors with their household or support bubble
29 March Outdoor gatherings (including in private gardens) of either 6 people (the Rule of 6) or 2 households will now be allowed.
Fancy a quick holiday - oh sorry you can’t go there its on the banned list - I think it is Amber... Eh?
Record of the month: Tom Grennan - Evering Road or Maximo Park - Nature Always Wins (couldn't decide)
PJRC CREATIVE LIFE...
March was a busier month, my Client was getting prepared to start promoting their Festival again (while chewing their nails and praying) after last years cancellation.
I also got a nice job creating some book covers for an author friend who also needed a logo too, the second of the month (see below).
It was a varied month again with some Alfresco dining flyers, some Covid forms for a Northumberland hairdressers who needed to follow new Government legislations for re-opening, some coloured plaques and some 10 inch round vinyl stickers for a caterer.
We had 60 golf markers to artwork and produce, some chalet signs, a sail graphic and some charity work too - all of which kept us out of trouble.
Just had my first Astra Zeneca dart in my arm... very thorough due to my nut allergy and I’m on my way to freedom central.
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