BudoGirl Design Shops
You can buy my designs on a variety of products, from t-shirts and laptop covers to wall art, phone cases and postcards. Check out some of the available products via the BudoGirl Design Shops below and don’t hesitate to contact me if you are interested in a custom made design.
BudoGirl’s Mission & Vision
The practice of budo – Japanese martial arts – has a positive impact on people’s quality of life. Yet the threshold for entering a dojo can be high, especially for people from minority groups. Therefore, my aim is to create graphic designs that show people that budo is for everyone.
My apprenticeship in graphic design kindly allowed me to follow the Domestika course “Creating an Illustrated Brand: From the Idea to Merchandising” by Vania Bachur. Thus the illustrated brand BudoGirl was born, with images of women and girls in various types of Japanese martial arts.
The look and feel of the collection is cheerful and positive. BudoGirl is happy, not aggressive. She likes martial arts, vegan “milk” and sushi, cats and fruits. She also likes the sun, moon, stars, planets, flowers, mountains and rainbows. Her colours are all sorts of blue, plus purple, black, off-white, yellow and sometimes pink. Supporting elements are Japanese calligraphy (shodo and sumi-e), like the enso circle, and empowering feminist quotes.
It is my wish that my designs will lead to the production of nice bags, key rings, phone cases, note books, pencil cases, wallets etc. for female budoka, and that these products will inspire, encourage and empower them.
Products in the BudoGirl Design Shops
Bring something new to your day with this Kobudogirl Hoodie. In this design, BudoGirl is training Bōjutsu (棒術), the martial art of stick fighting using a bō, which is the Japanese word for staff. All clothes are printed using low waste technology by a certified organic company in the UK. andcan be ordered via BudoGirl TeeMill.
This Tanto Geisha Wall Art features a Japanese inspired drawing, combining elements of geisha and samurai with the word “budogirl” in traditional Japanese kanji calligraphy. Sumi-e and Sho-do techniques, digitally enhanced. 21 mil Premium Professional Grade Canvas – matte finish.
Inspired by the Japanese cherryblossom aka sakura, I designed a range of products in the “Arigato!” line. Check them out if you need a special “thank you” for your sensei, senpai, kohai… and other loved ones. Via RedBubble BudoGirl.
I you love Japan, you will love this deluxe MacBook Air Cover with four different watercolour geisha. Also available as a sturdy laptop case, via BudoGirl Contrado.
Collaborations
I am super keen on collaborating with both individuals and organisations, to make the world a bit more beautiful – one design at the time. Among others, my arts and designs have been used by the Japan Fans Foundation, Japanese Cultural Centre Utrecht, Sakura Kai Utrecht, Kendo Jidai International, and the Dutch Kendo Renmei.
I designed the logo, header and posters for the 2022 Seminar Women in Kendo & Iaido, and had some of my drawings printed on marzipan, to create a special “cake-o” :
If you are looking for a special illustration and/or design for your dojo or you would like to collaborate on setting up a new product line (for the BudoGirl Design Shops or your own brand), please don’t hesitate to contact me.
For more information, ideas and examples, you can download the original BudoGirl StyleGuide by clicking on the image above. Of course, this product line is in constant development. Below you’ll find a moodboard for some of the forthcoming collections.
