The very first Designer of the Month for the Creative Designer Directory is one that holds a special place in my heart. When I launched this directory, I sent it out with hope, that people would see it’s potential. Then, like a beacon, Chanel from Vanilla + Oak emerged as the very first designer to sign up. Her immediate support and thoughtful feedback were more than just a validation—they were a turning point.
As entrepreneurs, we understand the gravity of that first step—the first Instagram follower, the first email subscriber, the first person who believes in your dream when it’s still taking shape. Chanel was that person for me. The people who stand by us at the very beginning, when everything is uncertain, are the ones who leave an indelible mark on our journey. I am deeply honoured to know Chanel. Not only is she a visionary designer, but her story is one of courage, creativity, and grace. Dive into Chanel’s inspiring journey below.
Where did you grow up, and how did you get into design?
I’m very lucky to have grown up in North Vancouver in beautiful British Columbia, Canada! I am so grateful to have grown up having access to a major downtown core, mountains, and ocean all in one city.
I travelled with my family quite a bit growing up, and I always thought I wanted to work in hotels at the front desk. I applied to go to university for tourism hospitality, but didn’t get in due to low math grades in high school.
I was determined to work in a hotel anyway, so I applied for a few front desk jobs on Craigslist in the ski resort Whistler BC, and just a few hours away from my hometown. I got a front desk job at a big chain hotel within 24 hours, gave my work place 2 days notice, packed my bags and I have been in Whistler now for 11 years.
This kickstarted a career in tourism for me, which in all honesty, I hated from the jump. After a number of years across different tourism roles, I just started to get a feeling that I wasn’t meant to be in the tourism industry for the rest of life, and I was struggling financally. I didn’t really know what I was going to do next, but I was for sure of 2 things. 1. I had to find a different career path, and 2. I needed to make more money than what my 9-5 was ever going to pay me.
So I did some self reflection, and thought starting a travel blog would be THE thing for me, since I got great travel perks through work and lived in a tourism hot spot. Then came time to build my website. And that’s when everything clicked. After I created my first website, I created another with a different style, then another, then a third and I started to get more into things like creating a logo, and putting together font pairings, importance of colours, flow, etc. I loved all of it and in the first time in a long time I was exciting about something.
It wasn’t long after that I learned people actually PAY people to do things like create a logo and a website. I dove in head first learning graphic design and web design, then the pandemic hit. While I was lucky to keep my job, I lost over half my income as it was all in booking commissions. That’s when I started to think I could actually start a business out of my design work, and hopefully people would pay me to design things for them, and I’d never have to rely on a soul sucking tourism job ever again.
I launched Vanilla + Oak in April of 2020 and had my first client within 3 weeks. I left my 9-5 tourism job at the end of 2021 to go full time in my business, and now along with design services also offer Showit website templates and Canva templates.
What are your most notable projects and any awards or recognitions you’ve been a part of.
I recently became a Showit Design Partner in May of 2024! This was a huge goal for me since I started using Showit early in my business. There were a lot of ups and downs and roadblocks to get here, but I couldn’t be more proud of myself for this achievement. Being self taught, nothing feels better then having the website platform you design on certify your designs and skills.
Share your favorite projects or collaborations and what made it special.
My favourite project is a recent template customization for Mackensey Alexander Photography.
While I’ve been doing template customizations for a few years, this one holds a special place in my heart because it was my first template customization using my own template design. It really pushed me creatively to see what changes I could make to the template to make it one of a kind for Mackensey, and really let her brand shine through and compliment her work.
It’s one thing to use another designers template and have no connection to it, or know exactly what you want to change, but when it’s your own work you need to leave your ego at the door and think of new creative solutions. You might have think you thought of every soulution 100 times over when you first designed the template, but when someone comes in with a whole new vibe it’s really exciting to bring it to life and think outside the box you created. And I think we did a fantastic job.
Also, Mackensey as a person is just wonderful and kind and incredibly talented, and it was so easy to work with her and I am grateful that I got to know her through this project. I see how important the work she is doing for her clients and I am excited to even just be a small part of her business.
What do you most love about working with your clients.
I mostly work with photographers, and what I love the most about working with them is being a small part of what they bring to the world. I see how important the work they do for their clients is, and the value it brings. Whether that is capturing important memories or showing someone how beautiful they are. When collaborating on a project I really am just excited about their business as they are and even though it’s not my business I love that I kind of get to dabble in it and make creative decisions as if it were. And I especially love working with other creatives, because I feel like there is a certain level of understanding for each other. They respect and value my creative work and process, as much as I do theirs, and we usually have a lot more in common than, let’s say, a plumber. But in all honestly, anyone who has set out on their own to start a business I just have so much respect for, and usually we have the same sort of drive and passion and I love working with clients like this.
What advice for Aspiring Designers do you have?
“Creative people need time to just sit around and do nothing”.
My favourite quote is “Creative people need time to just sit around and do nothing”. And that’s the best advice I can give you. Some of my best work has been when I’ve left an idea, and come back to it with a fresh perspective. Newcomers, don’t be afraid to offer discounted rates to build your portfolio, or trades of services. Don’t forget to design just for the hell of wanting to design something. Passion projects have been some of my favourite projects. Tell everyone what you do, you never know where those connections can go. And for selling templates, don’t sleep on Pinterest.
What is your personal/business mission?
A huge part of my business mission is making websites easier and more accessible for business owners. I remember how overwhelming it was when I tried to launch my first website, and I just wish I had known there was an easier way to get a stunning and functional website that’s easy to customize without breaking the bank.
My personal mission and what drives me every day is creating a freedom based lifestyle. I have spent so many years working in an industry I hated, and it took it’s toll on me. I missed so many weekends, holidays, events, etc. because that’s just what it’s like in tourism and hospitality. I want to take my time back for myself and do something I actually enjoy doing, and have the freedom that allows me to spend time with my loved ones. And I not only want this for myself, I want this for every single client I work with.
Design Inspirations: What inspires your designs?
I am heavily inspired by natural elements and the beauty in simplicity. I like to create clean layouts with minimal clutter, that are a blend of warm and modern. Growing up on the west coast also heavily influences my easy going, relaxing design style inspiration.
How did you discover Showit or why do you use it?
My very first website was on WordPress. I cried trying to customize the theme. Then everyone kinda knows about Wix, so I gave it a go and it was easy to set up, but so many roadblocks when it came to getting the design to look exactly how I wanted it to.
After spending time being a part of the web design community on Instagram, I kept hearing about this “Showit” platform and gave it a go. Once I got a hang of the back-end, I knew it was something special. Now I exclusively design on Showit because I honestly believe it’s more often than not the best solution for service-based business owners.
The drag and drop interface is super intuitive even for the least techy user, and it’s super easy for anyone to make updates to their website on their own. Having complete control over how the mobile version of your site looks is also why I love Showit, since having a spectacular mobile experience these days is a must, not a want.
List your absolute favourite podcast, business books, or tool etc and why?
- Go to podcast for all things design: Better The Brand Designer Podcast with Jen Davis. Jen is so open and honest with her journey and podcast and it’s so refreshing and I love how non-scripted it is. Feels very genuine! But Shameless is my guilty pleasure podcast (can’t be all business 24/7!)
- Fav business book of all time: Big Magic by Elizabeth Gilbert (the audiobook is even better). I honestly think this book made a lot of sense of feelings I was feeling as a creative trying to make a creative career but didn’t know how to explain it.
- Fav business tool: Hotjar. Being able to see how visitors interact with a website gives me so much insight on how to make websites better. What might make sense to me, might not make sense to the average user so it’s great for testing things and making website updates (and make sure things are all working properly on your website from another perspective!)
Important Links
- Website: www.vanillaandoak.ca/
- Showit templates: vanillaandoak.ca/showit-templates
- Tiktok: tiktok.com/@vanilla_and_oak
- Instagram: .instagram.com/vanilla_and_oak
- Pinterest: pinterest.com/vanilla_and_oak/
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