Issue 4: Lunch Break

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Lunch BreakFeaturing Lindsey

Rempalski

Lunch Break is a monthly segment in which we interview icons, creatives, and influencers frommarginalized groups. We ask them to take us to their favorite lunch spot to talk about their background,their creative process, and what it’s like being on the job.

Lindsey Rempalski is a graphic design student at Chapman University and a YouTuber. Lindsey is from Orange County, California, and plans to pursue her career as a graphic designer. Her influence on YouTube as a designer has inspired many other artists, which is prevalent in her loyal fan base. She currently has 348k subscribers on YouTube, where she talks about her life as a student, fashion, beauty, her vegan lifestyle, and openly discusses her anxiety. Lindsey will be graduating Chapman University in the spring of 2019, and will be continuing her passion for design once she graduates.

BTC: You allow yourself to be soft while still being empowered and hard working. At what point did you realize that you can be both? LR: It’s kind of just the way I’ve always been. I’ve always been a sensitive and emotional person, I think it comes with being an artist. But I don’t think you have to hide that in order to be accepted or successful. I love seeing more and more people online be open about their struggles. BTC: Being a graphic designer, what is your main goal for audiences? LR: With my last merch collection, it was really from the heart, in terms of the cards that are on the merch, such as “letting go will set you free”, “thank your lucky stars”, and “good luck”. Although this collection was very much me making art for myself, I wanted it to be something that my audiences could relate to. It was just things that I would tell myself, memories, and things that made me feel empowered. I wanted other people to feel empowered by their emotions, softness, and just being themselves. BTC: Working for Too Faced and having an internship in London, what was your favorite part of being a designer during those times? LR: From my internship at Too Faced, I loved learning from the talented, boss women there. I also loved the office culture, they would talk about things going on in their life and it was the first time I realized an office doesn’t have to be boring. I also learned more cool tricks on the computer - like keyboard shortcuts and things like that. In London, it was a very different experience, it was a lot more corporate. I was the project manager of 17 people, which was the largest group of people I have ever managed, and was a big learning experience in terms of, “I can do that”. I learned a lot of different things; they were two completely different experiences. BTC: Many creatives claim that once you’re paid to do something you love, the love you have doing it stops. What’s your opinion on this, having experience in a work environment of something you love? LR: I get that all the time in terms of school projects that I get assigned in class that I’m not into. From the beginning, I won’t enjoy it and even by the end just don’t like the outcome of what I did. It just depends, if I’m super into the project, I’ll work super fast and ahead of time, but I think when you’re

being paid there’s even more motivation to do it because you don’t really have a choice. When I worked at Too Faced, I often made edits to people’s work and enjoyed it because I felt like part of a team. But for school, when you have to do a project you don’t like, it can be exhausting. BTC: I know that your love for graphic design was sparked when you did yearbook in high school. What was a turning point for you to decide to study graphic design? LR: I started yearbook in seventh grade and did it all the way through my senior year of high school. In seventh and eighth grade, I helped take photos and put the cover together on InDesign which was my first experience ever doing something like that. Back then, I realized “I like this, what is this?” I didn’t know there was a career path for graphic design, but I knew I liked fonts and looking at different letters, and I found things fascinating that a lot of people didn’t, and I realized that this was something cool. At Chapman’s Discover Day for new students, where you can learn about different majors, I attended the graphic design meeting and it convinced me to rescind my application, put together a portfolio, and reapply within that month, so I did. BTC: Attending Chapman, it’s known for producing creatives in design, film, and more. What’s the best part of being surrounded by people who are so inspiring? LR: I love it, I can’t imagine going to a school that isn’t like that. It is really inspiring and amazing to see what everyone creates. I have a lot of friends in the film program, people are always collaborating, and they are so invested in what they do. Being around people who love what they’re learning and doing everyday is a really different environment than being surrounded by students just trying to get through it. Especially being around my best friends, makes me want me to keep doing what I’m doing.

BTC: Your friend group is full of designers who all support each other. How important is it for you to have a support system as such? LR: I know I’m extremely lucky; it’s so rare we all found each other. It’s really lovely because we all understand the love and the pain that graphic design is, and we’ve all had classes together since we were freshmen, so we know each other’s styles. BTC: Is there any new projects coming up that you’re excited about? LR: Bits and pieces, I’ve been working on making enamel pins. New merch pieces are always on the forefront, I really wanna make stickers but it’s really hard to get them produced. Hopefully having more free time to make videos as well. Also, graduating! BTC: Thank you, Lindsey!

Interview conducted by: Sarah HarwellPhotography by: Ethan Vovan