{"id":15249,"date":"2024-01-03T19:58:02","date_gmt":"2024-01-03T19:58:02","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/blog.tubikstudio.com\/?p=15249"},"modified":"2026-02-19T17:54:36","modified_gmt":"2026-02-19T17:54:36","slug":"picture-book-illustrations-design","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/tubikstudio.com\/blog\/picture-book-illustrations-design\/","title":{"rendered":"Case Study: Fairytale. Picture Book Illustrations and Design"},"content":{"rendered":"

There\u2019s something disarming about working on a picture book. You sit down at your desk\u2014same desk where you\u2019ve designed dashboards, landing pages, branding systems\u2014and suddenly you\u2019re thinking about first-day-of-school anxiety. About how it feels to be small in a big hallway. About whether a puppy\u2019s ears should droop more when he\u2019s nervous.<\/span><\/p>\n

That was Fairytale. A children\u2019s picture book project where we handled the full scope: writing, character art, illustrations in multiple formats, and graphic design. A complete creative process, from the first idea to the final book spread.<\/span><\/p>\n

The project was created by Maryna Solomennykova, Marina Yalanska, and Arthur Avakyan, with art direction by Sergii Valiukh. It felt less like \u201ca task\u201d and more like stepping into a small universe we had to build carefully\u2014emotionally and visually\u2014from scratch.<\/span><\/p>\n

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Idea and Story<\/h2>\n

At the center of the story is Little Puppy, preparing for his first day at primary school. He\u2019s worried. Unsure. Overthinking every possible disaster. Through a day full of small challenges, he discovers friendship and learns three simple but powerful lessons.<\/span><\/p>\n

Classic kidlit territory\u2014animals with human traits, a soft moral arc, a fairytale tone. But \u201cclassic\u201d doesn\u2019t mean easy, it means precise. Preschool and early school readers feel everything deeply. The emotional tone has to land exactly right.<\/span><\/p>\n

We began with the idea and plot. What kind of fear are we talking about? Is it loud panic or quiet worry? Is Little Puppy shy or impulsive? What does \u201cfriendship\u201d mean in a six-year-old\u2019s world\u2014sharing crayons? Defending someone on the playground? Sitting together on the school bus?<\/span><\/p>\n

We started with the script. We needed to understand the rhythm of the narrative before touching visuals: where tension rises, where it softens, where silence says more than dialogue.<\/span><\/p>\n

Writing and illustration evolved together. We cut lines because a single classroom illustration could carry the emotion better. We adjusted scenes because they needed stronger visual anchors. It was collaborative, iterative, occasionally messy \u2014 in the best way.<\/span><\/p>\n

Once the story felt alive, we moved to visual development.<\/span><\/p>\n

Sketches and Character Development<\/h2>\n

We began with scene sketches: morning at home, the school bus, the classroom, recess. At this stage, composition is everything. Where does the eye move? Where does the text sit? Does the character lean inward or pull away from the page?<\/span><\/p>\n

At the same time, we shaped Little Puppy. He had to look vulnerable but not fragile, curious but not clueless. Expressive enough that a child who can\u2019t yet read could still understand his feelings instantly.<\/span><\/p>\n

Small adjustments changed everything\u2014a softer curve of the snout, slightly lowered ears, a subtle shift in posture. In picture book illustration, micro-details define emotional clarity. We also treated the characters as a system. They appear across multiple spreads, in different moods and environments. Consistency mattered as much as charm.<\/span><\/p>\n

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Even at the sketch stage, we planned text placement directly within compositions. Typography and illustration aren\u2019t rivals in children\u2019s book design\u2014they share the stage.<\/span><\/p>\n

A lot of erasing happened here, too. That was a good sign. And then came color.<\/span><\/p>\n

Illustrations and Character Art<\/h2>\n

When the major scenes were locked and character development felt stable, we moved into full illustrations. Colors, textures, patterns. Atmosphere.<\/span><\/p>\n

The palette was vibrant and multicolored\u2014because childhood is rarely beige. But it wasn\u2019t chaotic. We balanced contrast carefully so spreads remained eye-pleasing and readable.<\/span><\/p>\n

Home scenes had warmth\u2014softer tones, gentle transitions. School introduced more dynamic colors. Playground moments were brighter, more saturated. Subtle visual cues help young readers distinguish environments even before they consciously register them.<\/span><\/p>\n

One of our favorite parts of children\u2019s book illustration is environmental detail. Small objects. Wall decorations. A backpack leaning slightly to the side. A window view suggesting traffic beyond the school bus. In picture book storytelling, illustrations often do the heavy lifting. When a parent reads aloud, the child scans the visuals, invents side stories, connects with background characters. We layered the world with intention\u2014not clutter, but texture.<\/span><\/p>\n

Patterns, soft textures, and gentle imperfections gave the spreads warmth. The world of Fairytale grew scene by scene, until it felt cohesive and lived-in.<\/span><\/p>\n

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Book Design<\/h2>\n

We chose typography that feels playful yet highly legible. Readability was non-negotiable. Bright illustrations were balanced with lighter text areas to maintain clarity and visual comfort.<\/span><\/p>\n

There was no strict grid forced across the book. Each spread was designed individually, responding to the illustration\u2019s composition and emotional weight. Some pages breathe with open space. Others lean into richer visual storytelling. Consistency came from rhythm\u2014margins, spacing, type hierarchy\u2014rather than rigid structure.<\/span><\/p>\n

We designed the cover and endpapers with equal care. Everything\u2014text, illustration, layout\u2014had to move in sync.<\/span><\/p>\n

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What Working on Fairytale Taught Us<\/strong><\/h2>\n

Children are honest audiences. They don\u2019t fake it. If something feels off, they close the book and disengage. That\u2019s why every decision here carried weight: the composition, the color palette, the illustration style, the emotional tone. It all had to feel real.<\/span><\/p>\n

We also learned that writing and visual storytelling shouldn\u2019t be separated by departments. When the illustrator is involved in the writing stage and the writer considers visual rhythm, the result feels cohesive and alive.<\/span><\/p>\n

And most of all, we felt the privilege of shaping a story that might sit in a child\u2019s hands the night before their first day of school. A story that says: it\u2019s okay to be nervous. It\u2019s okay to be small. Friendship will find you.<\/span><\/p>\n

Fairytale was bright and cheerful, yes. But it was also careful. Thoughtful. Built on craft and curiosity. And sometimes, the most meaningful design work begins with a little puppy who\u2019s afraid of his first day at school\u2014and ends with a book that makes that fear feel manageable.<\/span><\/p>\n

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More Design Case Studies<\/h2>\n

Explore more case studies where we break down the thinking, illustration techniques, and graphic design decisions behind the work our Tubik team brings to life:<\/p>\n

Nova Post. Interactive Christmas Advent Calendar UI Design<\/a><\/p>\n

Book Illustrations for Visual Storytelling<\/a><\/p>\n

MYWONY. Storytelling with Brand Intro Design<\/a><\/p>\n

Tubik in Paris. Design Process for Narrative Illustration<\/a><\/p>\n

KOISI Tokyo. Packaging Design for Japanese Restaurant<\/a><\/p>\n

PierSide. Packaging Design for Tinned Fish Brand<\/a><\/p>\n

Sidra Vivo. Vibrant Packaging Design for Cider Brand<\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

A picture book project where writing, character design, illustration, and book layout evolved together to shape a warm, emotionally precise story about a puppy\u2019s first day at school.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":10003,"featured_media":15258,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[4,6],"tags":[57,447,59,529,100,569,138,578,147,579,168,580,170,584,212,626,213,627,216,628,219,629,248,630,249,26,425,37,434,38,440],"coauthors":[634],"class_list":["post-15249","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-case_study","category-illustration","tag-case-study","tag-tubik-studio","tag-character-design","tag-visual-storytelling","tag-design","tag-2d-illustration","tag-design-process","tag-illustration-case-study","tag-design-studio","tag-illustration-process","tag-digital-art","tag-tubik-arts","tag-digital-illustration","tag-book-cover-design","tag-graphic-design","tag-picture-book","tag-graphic-design-article","tag-book-illustration","tag-graphic-design-process","tag-design-for-children","tag-graphic-designers","tag-kidlit","tag-illustration","tag-character-art","tag-illustrator","tag-art","tag-storytelling","tag-book","tag-theme-illustration","tag-book-design","tag-tubik"],"acf":[],"yoast_head":"\nCase Study: Fairytale. 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