Make and Design with Carina Gardner

Each spring, Carina conducts a “spring edit” across her shops. In today’s episode, she shares how she approaches it and what she chooses to do and not do to keep the process manageable.Links to help new designers:What’s New: https://www.carinagardner.comUniversity of Arts & Design: http://uad.education Get my free gift to you here: https://www.designsuitecourses.com/intentional

Carina is currently teaching a Design Leadership class at the University of Arts & Design, which has prompted her to reflect on the lessons she has learned as a leader. Learn more in today’s episode.Links to help new designers:What’s New: https://www.carinagardner.comUniversity of Arts & Design: http://uad.education Get my free gift to you here: https://www.designsuitecourses.com/intentional

Winning is rarely about talent, luck, or working more hours. In this episode, we break down the three things consistently happening behind the scenes for creatives and entrepreneurs who are actually moving forward and seeing results. Join Carina as she tells you what she is seeing from successful designers.Links to help new designers:What’s New: https://www.carinagardner.comUniversity of Arts & Design: http://uad.education Get my free gift to you here: https://www.designsuitecourses.com/intentional

Most creatives think productivity comes from working harder or longer. In this episode, we flip that idea on its head. A defined design process is what creates clarity, momentum, and finished work you can actually use and sell.This episode is for designers, artists, and makers who feel scattered, overwhelmed, or stuck starting over every time they sit down to create. Links to help new designers:University of Arts & Design: http://uad.educationWhat’s New: https://www.carinagardner.com Get my free gift to you here: https://www.designsuitecourses.com/intentional

Carina’s guest Elizabeth Chappell is the founder of Quilter’s Candy. She helps creatives write sewing patterns and build their businesses. She talks about the pivots she made in her business and how she has simplified to make more. Learn more about Elizabeth:Website: https://quilterscandy.com/ Waitlist for Quilt Pattern Writing Course: https://quilterscandy.myflodesk.com/kickstart-eventInstagram: https://www.instagram.com/quilters_candy/___Get Carina’s new bookThe Intentional Design Year here: Paperback: https://amzn.to/43XTRLGHardback: https://amzn.to/4isrefmPrompt Journal Paperback: https://amzn.to/4osha7JPrompt Journal Hardback: https://amzn.to/4rvrG0uLinks to help new designers:What’s New: https://www.carinagardner.comUniversity of Arts & Design: http://uad.education Get my free gift to you here: https://www.designsuitecourses.com/intentional

Transformation is not just about changing habits. It is about changing how you see yourself. In this episode, we explore what real transformation actually requires and why most people struggle to become who they say they want to be.If you feel called toward a different version of yourself but are unsure how to get there, this episode will help you understand what needs to change first.Get Carina’s new bookThe Intentional Design Year here: Paperback: https://amzn.to/43XTRLGHardback: https://amzn.to/4isrefmPrompt Journal Paperback: https://amzn.to/4osha7JPrompt Journal Hardback: https://amzn.to/4rvrG0uLinks to help new designers:What’s New: https://www.carinagardner.comDesign Bootcamp: http://www.carinagardnercourses.com/designbootcampUniversity of Arts & Design: http://uad.education Get my free gift to you here: https://www.designsuitecourses.com/intentional

This is a transparent and reflective episode about what is truly happening behind the scenes at Design Suite and the University of Arts & Design.Carina talks honestly about growth, challenges, decisions, and the realities of building educational institutions and creative programs at scale. This conversation is for anyone building something meaningful who wants a realistic look at leadership, responsibility, and evolving vision.Get Carina’s new bookThe Intentional Design Year here: Paperback: https://amzn.to/43XTRLGHardback: https://amzn.to/4isrefmPrompt Journal Paperback: https://amzn.to/4osha7JPrompt Journal Hardback: https://amzn.to/4rvrG0uLinks to help new designers:What’s New: https://www.carinagardner.comDesign Bootcamp: http://www.carinagardnercourses.com/designbootcampUniversity of Arts & Design: http://uad.education Get my free gift to you here: https://www.designsuitecourses.com/intentional

Owning a business is often portrayed as freedom, flexibility, and fulfillment, but the reality is more nuanced. In this episode, Carina talks honestly about what business ownership actually requires and why simplicity is often the missing ingredient.If you are running a business or thinking about starting one, this episode offers clarity without hype and truth without discouragement.Get Carina’s new bookThe Intentional Design Year here: Paperback: https://amzn.to/43XTRLGHardback: https://amzn.to/4isrefmPrompt Journal Paperback: https://amzn.to/4osha7JPrompt Journal Hardback: https://amzn.to/4rvrG0uLinks to help new designers:What’s New: https://www.carinagardner.comDesign Bootcamp: http://www.carinagardnercourses.com/designbootcampUniversity of Arts & Design: http://uad.education Get my free gift to you here: https://www.designsuitecourses.com/intentional

Creativity often gets all the attention, but clarity is what actually moves ideas forward. In this episode, Carina explores why clarity matters more than creativity when you are building meaningful work, making decisions, and leading a business or creative practice.This episode is for designers, artists, and entrepreneurs who feel busy but unfocused and want a calmer, more intentional way to move forward.Get Carina’s new bookThe Intentional Design Year here: Paperback: https://amzn.to/43XTRLGHardback: https://amzn.to/4isrefmPrompt Journal Paperback: https://amzn.to/4osha7JPrompt Journal Hardback: https://amzn.to/4rvrG0uLinks to help new designers:What’s New: https://www.carinagardner.comDesign Bootcamp: http://www.carinagardnercourses.com/designbootcampUniversity of Arts & Design: http://uad.education Get my free gift to you here: https://www.designsuitecourses.com/intentional

Designers often think they need more talent, better tools, or the perfect strategy. But what if the real issue is attention?In this episode, we explore why attention is one of your most limited creative resources and how splitting it between fear, comparison, and pressure quietly sabotages your work. Drawing from psychology and neuroscience, we talk about why mindset gets in the way of clarity, why overthinking blocks creative flow, and how focused making changes what you see and what you believe is possible.This conversation is for designers who feel capable but scattered, creative but stuck, and who sense they are missing something they cannot quite name. Paying attention is not just a productivity skill. It is a creative advantage.Get Carina’s new bookThe Intentional Design Year here: Paperback: https://amzn.to/43XTRLGHardback: https://amzn.to/4isrefmPrompt Journal Paperback: https://amzn.to/4osha7JPrompt Journal Hardback: https://amzn.to/4rvrG0uLinks to help new designers:What’s New: https://www.carinagardner.comDesign Bootcamp: http://www.carinagardnercourses.com/designbootcampUniversity of Arts & Design: http://uad.education Get my free gift to you here: https://www.designsuitecourses.com/intentional