See the inspiring journey of the designer and co-founder of The Printerie, Aya Limbo.
Who is Aya Limbo?
Aya Limbo is the 28-year-old graphic designer and co-founder of The Printerie. She also owns the sleepwear line Private Storey. She graduated with a master’s degree in business, which equipped her with fundamental business skills. However, it was her dad, Raphy Limbo (owner of Boon Prints Enterprises), who taught her all about graphic design.
Her hobbies include drawing designs and patterns, taking long walks, watching mysterious/thriller shows, dancing, swimming, and ice-skating. She also loves traveling and going to the beach.
Aya’s Journey
Aya remembers she was just five years old when she began using Microsoft Paint on these large computers and copying her dad. She’d hang out in her dad’s office, watch the graphic designers, and then go down to the machines to observe how the colors came to life in each pass of their Heidelberg offset machines.
As a schoolkid, she remembers how happy she was to make her book tags and bag tags. Her dad used to make these tags for her, but she chose the designs and colours. Eventually, he showed her how to do them, and Aya was nine years old when she started doing the tags herself. As the years passed, Aya gradually learned how to edit text, enhance photographs, remove colours, create shapes, change backgrounds, and so on. She didn’t have any formal training, but she had years and years of watching and learning from her dad.
When Aya was 15, her dad got her a laptop, and that’s when she started to explore different programs like Adobe Photoshop, Adobe Indesign, and Adobe Illustrator. She learned these programs while her dad gave her helpful advice and ideas. She recalls adding borders and colours even to a simple school project, such as a book report.
As Aya grew her skills, she proceeded to designing patterns, wallpaper murals, and sleepwear sets for Private Storey. To this day, she continues to collaborate with her dad and enjoys rediscovering new methods of creating new designs, forms, and styles. Nowadays, you’d see Aya sketching on her iPad and scanning her drawings into high-resolution photos.
Aya’s Passion & Inspiration
Aya is very passionate about designs, patterns, and fashion. She gets her ideas for fashion and wallpaper design from nature. Aya is always fascinated with nature’s colour palette—sunsets, the water, butterflies, and autumn leaves; she marvels at the graceful blend of colors in nature.
Aya also considers the influence of culture, fashion, and architecture from the countries she has visited.
And lastly, Aya draws inspiration from another remarkable woman, none other than her mom, Marion. Her mom plays a very important role in influencing Aya’s love for design. Her mom had a penchant for bright clothing and would take Aya to lovely shops and places when she was younger.
“Find your passion, find your inspiration, and be inspired to create something out of your passion. You will be happy and feel fulfilled in your life. You received God’s given talent for a reason.” - Aya