I’m Aisling — a creative specialist
& small business owner (just like you).

I’ve spent over a decade working in agencies and startups, designing for different mediums; coding responsive, user-friendly web experiences; and converting customers into loyal audiences. Now, I am so excited to bring those years of experience to your project.

Pretty Content is a boutique brand and web agency for creatives and creative small business owners. Technically, Pretty Content was formed in 2017, but came of age in 2020 when I was furloughed from my full time design job. I found the global shift toward small businesses, self-employment, and side hustles to be super inspiring, so not only did I join in, but I decided to focus on helping fellow creative small businesses succeed in this brave new world.

I’m that friend that you can always find sitting in a café, working away at her latest project, waiting for you to drop by for a chat. I love talking through problems (and finding solutions!), giving advice, or just having a catch-up.

Originally from Calgary, Canada, for the last 8 years, I’ve called the beautiful South Coast of England home. Currently, I reside in central Worthing with my partner of 5 years, K. I love autumn, musical theatre, and the 1940s. I am an ENFJ, Enneagram 6, and enthusiastic dog person.

If you’re looking for me, I’m usually on either my personal Instagram or the Pretty Content Instagram.

Vintage vibes, not vintage values*

You might notice my love of vintage design and style, but this does not correlate to the values I hold. I am a LGBTQ+ woman living in a country that I was not born in, so it should go without saying that I am pro-LGBTQ rights (emphasis on the T), pro-women’s rights and anti-racist. If you aren’t also these things, I am not a good fit for your project.

* A slightly modified version of the quote made popular by Dandy Wellington.

A little history lesson

I was one of those nerdy preteens who started coding at the turn of the century (1999, to be exact). The glow of my computer running Windows95 kept me warm through many cold Canadian nights. I created my first paid freelance website in 2002. It was made on Angelfire.

I was very active in the blogging community of the day, where layouts changed every week or so and heavily featured celebrity images styled as “blends.” It was a bit like the Wild West.

In 2007, I started to take things much more seriously when I joined a forum of mostly young women who enjoyed blogging and became very interested in coding. We were all about valid HTML and not violating copyright infringement laws. Some of these women are still some of my best IRL friends today.

Near the end of 2008, my blog design was featured in a roundup by popular web design online mag Smashing Magazine, which, in turn, led to it being featured on a lot of other websites. At this point I thought about making it my career, and I enrolled to study design in post secondary.

In June 2011, I graduated with a solid design foundation and a job offer, and the rest is history! I’m not exaggerating when I sat I’ve done it all. I’ve worked for marketing, web and digital product agencies, worked in-house at a few companies in both marketing and product design roles, and now work on digital projects for the UK Government.

My work has been seen on the tiniest screens to massive billboards alongside the highway. Once, I spotted my work in my doctor’s office waiting room. Another time, I saw it drive by in the form of a bus. Now, it is used daily by thousands of people.

So, why all that and Pretty Content? Well, because working with small businesses, specifically creative small businesses, is my passion.

Plus, I’m a bit of a know-it-all with a socialist streak — so sharing what I’ve learned from working with big brands with the small business community brings me joy!

Office hours

Pretty Content is a passion project that I am building alongside a full-time job as a User Experience and Product Designer. This means that I only take on selected projects that are a really great fit. It also means that my office hours generally fall into evenings and weekends!