The coolest thing about a classroom is how you can learn from not just the teacher, but everyone else in the room.

The best way to learn about design is to do it. Hands on, make a mess (even if that mess is just pixels on a screen.) Our workshops are more than just a lecture, they're dedicated time to try something new and get feedback before you leave. Every workshop is focused on the WORK part. If you wanted to listen to us talk you could just watch a YouTube video.

What is it?

Our workshops are, usually, 4-hour events with a small group. We spend about half the time on instruction and the rest doing and sharing with our workshop buddies. The topics are narrow on purpose to make the most of our time, and we offer a variety of workshops throughout the year. We find this basic formula works the best for learning design and design-adjacent topics. It's also just way more fun and you get to make some new design friends! Never under estimate the friends you can make along the way. If there is a topic you'd like to see a workshop on, let us know at hello@notjustprettypictures.com

What about Private Workshops?

We also offer private workshops, if you're a manager-type person who has some training budget and would like to have your teams all get together and learn something. Did we mention this is a great team-building exercise? We can put on one of our public workshops just for your group or if you'd like something a little more custom we will work with you to design a curriculum that fits your needs. If you're interested in a private workshop, book a consultation and we can talk details.

Upcoming Workshops

We're still cookin' on the next set of workshops. Check back soon.

Past Workshops

A billboard style ad for the Build an Awesome portfolio workshop. A close up of the teacher's face making an exaggerated thinking pose is on the left and he's looking at the text that says 'Build an Awesome Portfolio! Tell the right story! Know your audience! Answer their questions! Get the job! Take over the world!!!! (ok maybe not that last one)'

Build an Awesome Portfolio!

Your work is great. The visuals are clean and cool, you found a novel problem and came up with an elegantly simple solution, the bosses, customers, users and stakeholders all love it. It was, quite simply, a great success. So why the hell is your portfolio not landing you more interviews?!?! A great portfolio is about great storytelling. Join Tony as he shares all the things he's learned about what makes a stand-out portfolio while hiring designers at some of the biggest (and smallest) companies in the world. You'll leave with a revised case study and the tools to make your portfolio demand a call-back.

FAQs

  • How much do workshops cost? Each workshop is different, because they require a different amount of work to prepare and run. We always provide a sliding scale price structure for all our services to try and make them available to as many people as possible (while still being able to afford groceries ourselves.) Check the individual event page linked above for specific prices.
  • I want to do a private workshop about [topic], do you do that and how much does it cost? It depends. If you want a private version of a workshop we offer publicly, that's a faster and cheaper ask than having us develop a workshop specifically for you. Schedule a free consultation and we can give you some more specific answers.
  • Are the workshops all online? Do you do in-person workshops? All our public workshops are 100% online, that way people who don't live in Seattle can attend. Private workshops can be done in-person but any significant travel expenses will be part of the total cost. If you would like us to do an in-person, public workshop at your event drop us a line at hello@notjustprettypictures.com with the details.
  • Are the workshops available to watch online later? No. Not only is the workshop an interactive, live experience that wouldn't really work as a recording, but it would also violate the privacy of our attendees. What you do and say in the workshop stays between you and the other folks in the workshop. Not only do we not record the workshops, we ask attendees not to record either.