byOliviaBell started with a biro, a dog called Zara, and no real plan at all

I studied illustration and graphics at Loughborough University and always assumed I'd build a creative career. Instead, life took me somewhere quite different. I found myself working in clinical psychology — first as an administrator, then completing a master's degree, then training as a neurofeedback clinician. I gave it everything I had for years.

After a period that took its toll, I stepped away and needed to start again. A friend who runs a dog walking company gave me a lifeline — and for over a year I walked and boarded dogs through the Surrey countryside. It was exactly what I needed. Being outside, being with animals, doing something simple and real. I started to feel like myself again.

Then one afternoon during a house sit, I picked up a biro and started drawing one of the dogs. Her name was Zara. I wasn't thinking about a business — I was just drawing because it felt good. Because it was something I actually wanted to do.

What surprised me was how well the biro worked. I'd always loved the depth and gradient you can get from pencil and graphite — but here in one simple, everyday tool I could achieve the same thing. Light lines, dark lines, real shading. All from something you'd find in any kitchen drawer. I liked that.

Looking at Zara, I thought — I could draw all of them. All the dogs I'd walked and cared for. That idea became a collection. The collection became byOliviaBell.

Drawing is genuinely important to me. It feels real in a way that a lot of things don't. Every card I make is hand-drawn, and I care about the time and care that goes into each one. I'm not trying to make something fast. I want you to be able to feel that someone sat and made this, properly, for you.

These days I work alongside my own dog, Edie — a 16 month old miniature schnauzer who has become both muse and chief distraction. byOliviaBell is still growing, but it has always come from the same place: coming back to something genuine, after a long time away from it.

Olivia Bell — illustrator, dog lover, and devoted biro convert.