The Design Trust’s favourite email newsletters for creatives

We love a good creative email newsletter!

They are a great way to get information about opportunities, they inspire us to get things done, and motivate us with the latest tips about running and growing creative businesses, and they feed our soul with things we are passionate about. And sometimes we like them just because we love gorgeous images of creative products or want to have a giggle!

We have selected our own favourite email newsletters for creatives below – to inspire you and to make your own newsletter more exciting (!) and for you to subscribe and get extra news and creative business tips and inspiration.

Any why not take a look at how three creatives use email marketing for their own businesses in this insightful blog post.

(Don’t forget to sign up for The Design Trust email newsletter too on our home page!)

1854

1854 is a digital media company that publishes British Journal of Photography, the world’s oldest and most influential photography title.  For stunning images, and the most beautifully designed read with sophisticated editorial, their newsletter is inspiring, educational and a feast for the eyes.

Austin Kleon

Known as ‘A Writer Who Draws’, Austin Kleon’s emails make you smile. He is the best-selling author of books like Steal Like An Artist, and his emails are in the same recognisable style – full of his creative work, observations and blacked-out word collages.  He has over 85k subscribers getting details about new art, writing, and interesting links every week. Definitely one of our favourite email newsletters coming from a creative!

Crafts Council

The weekly round-up from the Crafts Council HQ.  An easy-to-read compilation of what is happening in the world of crafts in the UK, who said what (incorporating an online article), what has been made (usually something quite extraordinary), a selection of great opportunities open to makers for exhibiting, selling and competing, plus a profile on an upcoming event. You can also select the kind of news you get; the general round up, maker opportunities, and / or updates on cultural, economic, political, and technological research that affect makers and the craft sector

Crafts Curator

If you are interested in handmade, sustainable design-led products from across the globe then check out Irene Vermeulen’s Crafts Curator website. Her regular newsletter shows gorgeous images of handmade products from around the world, together with trend forecasts and information about international trade events.

Creative Boom

An independent online magazine that celebrates and supports the creative community, set up by designer Katy Cowan in Manchester. Creative Boom‘s focus is on art, crafts, design, illustration, and photography.  The weekly newsletter shares emerging and established talent, resources such as the latest tools and books, interviews with creatives and inspiring workspaces, and tips and insights to help you at every stage of your career. They also throw in the latest travel and shopping ideas, recommending creative products, destinations and cultural events.

Creative Review

From the print / online magazine Creative Review comes a free daily weekday newsletter with an extra dose on a Sunday. Really interesting and varied curated content with creative insight – inspiring stories from creatives across all media; creative inspiration – reviews and previews of exhibitions; and the fantastic CR podcasts covering everything from music to advertising.

D&AD

D&AD aims to inspire a community of creative thinkers by celebrating the best in design and advertising. They host Professional Awards, which are recognised globally as a creative accolade with the famous Yellow Pencils.  As a non-profit advertising and design association, all profits go straight into programmes such as New Blood, which inspires the next generation of creative talent. Their weekly newsletter includes videos on diverse aspects of running a creative business from presenting your work to digital marketing.

DOWNTIME (formerly Girls Night In)

This is self care straight to your inbox. Downtime is based around the concept that the busier your life gets the more you have to look after yourself. So, sign up for a Substack email gift in the form of interesting reads and trustworthy recommendations on articles, books, recipes, products, and more. And relax!

GeekOut

We love this newsletter! It’s fun and easy to read and breaks down all the latest social media marketing news into bite-sized chunks. Matt Navarro’s Geek Out weekly newsletter curates all the latest social media platform news, tips, tricks, tools and new features. Keeping you ahead of what’s what!

HANNAH NUNN – THREE SOMETHINGS

This is such a beautiful idea for a newsletter and we are here for it. Hannah Nunn is a paper artist and each week sends three somethings; something she has made, something she is making, and something she has noticed. Simple and effective.

Hole & Corner

A lifestyle brand celebrating and promoting creativity, craftsmanship, heritage, and authenticity through digital, events and retail,  Hole & Corner is dedicated to stories of craft, beauty, passion, and skill.  Hole & Corner’s entire ethos and approach is to create and share content that is the antithesis of algorithm-driven media.

Every week, they share a newsletter that leads with a story from their archive to provide you with the escapism/joy/insight/inspiration (or all of the above) that was originally intended. They also share regulars such as ‘My Hole & Corner’ and Listen Weekly themed playlists, as well as keeping you up-to-date with events and recommendations.

Later

If you want to keep up with what’s going on in the world of social media, then sign up (along with 4 million others) to Later’s super informative newsletter. Later is an all-in-one social marketing platform for the top social platforms. It enables you to plan, analyse, and publish your content. The email out twice a week fantastic trends, tips and tricks across all social media channels.

Living Beautifully

Alan Moore’s Beautiful Business is a regular newsletter to share and inspire a different way of looking at the world. What would our world look like were we all to make it a little more beautiful?

Newsette

This is for women everywhere. Compiled by a media company and creative agency with the aim to empower, motivate, and inform women every morning, The Newsette content is engaging and digestible news from beauty to business to interviews, all with a cheeky twist and all for free.

The Doers

The Doers is a brand marketing consultancy, founded by brand marketing consultants, Jess Sims and Laura West, and powered by freelancers. They send out a monthly, easy to read and navigate e-mail with useful freelancing tools, places to work from, essential hashtags, business tips and tricks and more!

The DO Lectures

The Do Lectures is an annual event taking place in Wales. Three days of inspiring talks for a group of about 50 people covering money, fitness, time-management, and figuring your sh*t out. In other words – to get you DOING! The talks are filmed and then made available for free.  A weekly newsletter includes some of these talks – an inspiring curation of stories. The Do Lectures were set up by David and Clare Hieatt who also run Hiut Denim company in rural Wales.

The Hyphen

Author, podcaster and educator, Emma Gannon’s relatively new newsletter is perfect if you are interested in living “a life more curious”. The Hyphen on Substack arrives in your inbox on the first Sunday of each month and is full of tips for your working life, insights into the creative industry, and suggestions for podcasts and books.

The Marginalian

Created and still written exclusively by Maria Popova, The Marginalian (formerly Brain Pickings) covers art, science, psychology, design, philosophy, history, politics, anthropology, and more with the aim of using these different disciplines to enhance our understanding and ability of how to live, and how to live well. The Sunday newsletter contains Maria’s choice of the most interesting and inspiring articles across all topics, whilst the Wednesday newsletter highlights one essay from Maria’s vast archive – a pick-me-up for heart, mind, and spirit.

What are your favourite email newsletters for creatives? Do share with us in the comment box below as we would love to add some more practical business advice tips, inspiration, and humour to our inbox!