Design directions, prepared for ARH Creative Works, October 2026

Four designs.
Each one argues why.

ARH Creative Works is a one-person communications and strategy practice, and the brief was clear about what that means: not a traditional marketing agency, not a graphic design studio, but a creative partner who thinks first. Warm pastels, strong photography, plenty of white space. Professional but not corporate. Creative but not trendy. Personal without feeling overly feminine.

So each direction below starts from a different honest answer to the same question (what should a small business owner feel in the first three seconds?) and is built to prove a different point about Annabelle's practice. None of them could be bought off a shelf.

[ 01 ] The thinking before the design

What the brief told us, and what it ruled out

Four facts from the brief shaped every decision that follows. They are why none of these designs look like an agency template.

[ 02 ] The four directions

Same content. Four positions.

Each direction is a complete, working homepage plus a Services page and a Contact page, built out in full rather than mocked up. Browse all four; they work on your phone too.

01

Light · Tactile · Personal

Paper Studio

The argument: the work is crafted by hand. Warm paper tones, Gloock serif headlines and torn-paper photo edges make the site feel like a beautifully kept studio notebook. Pastel swatch chips appear throughout, a nod to the mood boards Annabelle actually makes for clients. Of the four, it is the most tactile and personal: the one that says "a person made this, and a person will make yours."

Creative communications,
thoughtfully strategised.
Blush · Peach · Sage · Terra
Palette
Warm paper, blush, terracotta
Typography
Gloock over Albert Sans
Signature
Torn-paper edges, pastel swatch chips, soft squares
Feels like
A well-kept studio notebook
Best for
Positioning the craft and the person
View homepage Services Contact
02

Light · Playful · Approachable

Pastel Grid

The argument: working with Annabelle is easy. Where the others earn trust through restraint, Pastel Grid earns it through ease: a collage hero of overlapping tilted cards, rounded Baloo 2 type, sticker labels and paint-chip swatches. It exists for the client the others underserve, the small business owner who finds marketing intimidating and wants a partner who makes it feel light. Of the four, it is the most energetic and approachable, and the friendliest on a phone.

Creative communications,
thoughtfully strategised.
Start a conversation
Palette
Blush, peach, lilac, sage, butter
Typography
Baloo 2 over Nunito
Signature
Tilted card collage, sticker labels, paint-chip tiles
Feels like
A friendly studio wall of work
Best for
Approachability; clients new to marketing
View homepage Services Contact
03

Dark · Elegant · Portfolio

Dusk Portfolio

The argument: small does not mean less serious. Every freelancer site is bright and white; this one deliberately is not. Deep plum, lilac hairline rules and moon-dot bullets make the pastels glow like dusk light, and the full-bleed hero gives the work gallery weight. It exists to answer the doubt a client never says aloud: can one person really deliver? Of the four, it is the most elegant and portfolio-like, and the one that stands furthest apart from every other freelancer site a prospect will have open that day.

Creative communications,
thoughtfully strategised.
● STRATEGY · CONTENT · SOCIAL
Palette
Deep plum, lilac, blush, sage
Typography
Young Serif over Outfit
Signature
Lilac hairlines, moon-dot bullets, full-bleed hero
Feels like
A gallery at dusk
Best for
Standing apart; portfolio credibility
View homepage Services Contact
04

Light · Literary · Considered

Editorial Margin

The argument: strategy work is editorial work. This direction treats the site like a beautifully set magazine: Crimson Pro headlines, drop caps, a marginalia column with leader dots and photo plates. The margin notes do quietly what Annabelle does for clients, add the considered second layer that makes the main message land. Of the four, it is the most literary and distinctive: no communications freelancer looks like a printed journal, and the clients this suits (considered, word-led brands) will recognise themselves in it.

Creative communications,
thoughtfully strategised.
Experience ····· 5+ years
Palette
Blush white, terracotta, ink
Typography
Crimson Pro over Figtree
Signature
Drop caps, margin notes, leader dots, photo plates
Feels like
A beautifully set magazine
Best for
Word-led brands; maximum distinctiveness
View homepage Services Contact

[ 03 ] How to choose

Judge them the way your clients will

First three seconds

Open each homepage and trust the instinct before the analysis. Your clients will decide emotionally, then justify rationally. So should you.

On your phone

Most of your clients will first meet this site on a phone, often from a LinkedIn message. Every direction is built mobile-first; check them there too.

With your own photos

Imagine your real client work in each gallery. The imagery here is bespoke placeholder work; your photography will carry whichever direction you pick.

Nothing is frozen

Colours, type sizes, section order: all tunable after you choose a direction. Pick the argument you want to make, not the details.

Blending is allowed

If two directions both feel right, say so. The bones of any two can be combined; for example Paper Studio's palette on Editorial Margin's layout.

Then reply

One line back to us with the design number, or the two you'd like blended, and we build the full site on that direction, with your content in the CMS.