Designfruit's story

Origins and Early Days

In 2003, Jason Gaylor founded Designfruit as a blog to share hand-crafted, high-resolution Photoshop brushes with designers and hobbyists. What started as a personal project—creating brushes to embellish his own designs—quickly evolved into something much larger. Jason noticed a growing need for design resources, and rather than keeping his creations to himself, he began sharing them on Designfruit.com.

At the time, Jason was a designer who had studied graphic design at Missouri State University and co-founded Departika, an interactive agency. The early vision for Designfruit was simple: share resources with the design community. But as well-known bloggers and thought leaders began to highlight Jason’s work, Designfruit experienced an unexpected surge of traffic, rapidly transforming from a niche blog into a widely recognized resource.

Early Products and Services

Initially focused on Photoshop brushes, Designfruit soon expanded into vector elements. These resources quickly gained recognition, being described as "a great source of royalty-free brushes, vectors, and more" (Digital Artist Magazine) and "perfect for creating subtle backgrounds or adding an aged look to photos" (Web Designer Magazine).

A major turning point came when designer Cameron Moll requested exclusive use of one of Jason's designs and encouraged him to start charging for his work. This advice, along with mentions in influential design blogs, helped spark a wave of interest that turned Designfruit into a bustling hub for digital design resources. Standout collections like Japanese Foliage, Mellow Mess, and Fresh Foliage became favorites among users, and the site’s audience continued to grow.

Growth and Recognition

As Designfruit gained momentum, the platform was featured in several major design publications, including Digital Photo, Computer Arts, Photoshop Creative and Simple Scrapbooks magazines. This widespread recognition wasn’t the result of just one event—it was a mix of press releases, outreach, and organic attention from the design community. Together, these efforts contributed to increasing traffic, brand awareness, and a growing reputation for high-quality resources.

Designfruit’s product offerings also expanded beyond brushes and vectors. Jason opened an Etsy store, offering vinyl wall decals featuring designs of robots, birds, schools of fish, and other patterns. With hundreds of sales and a consistent stream of 5-star ratings, the Etsy store demonstrated that Designfruit’s impact went beyond digital products, blending Jason's design skills with a hands-on, tactile experience.

Jason also experimented with various pricing strategies, offering personal-use Photoshop brushes and license agreements. Eventually, managing individual licenses became too time-consuming, leading to the decision to allow royalty-free usage—as long as users didn’t resell the designs in the same way Designfruit was selling them.

Impact and Collaborations

Designfruit’s designs didn’t just remain within the design community—they transcended into the mainstream. Jason’s work appeared on 7Up, Sunkist, and H&M products, though these uses were often discovered after the fact through fan emails. Jason’s designs became recognizable on a global scale, from soft drink packaging to high street fashion—with an appearance on H&M clothing. Notably, Focus Features reached out directly and licensed Jason’s Tasty Tattoo set for the Eastern Promises movie trailer, and Blue Man Group used his designs for their promotional items.

These collaborations solidified Designfruit’s reputation as a force in the design world, further elevating its influence. Over 25 magazines featured or referenced Designfruit’s work on accompanying multimedia CDs and in articles. Fans praised the quality of Jason’s designs, and his commitment to customer service earned the platform glowing testimonials:

"Thank you so much for this awesome decal. You went above and beyond to ensure the color was right, and we are thrilled with the bird on our glass door. It was easy to apply, looks fantastic, and is a fun addition to our space." —Customer review from Etsy.

”Thank you so much! I used these recently to "rough up" some text & make it look more realistic on digital paper.” —Customer review from Discus comment on Mellow Mess

”I love the subtlety! Thanks for your great work and generosity.” —Customer review from Discus comment on Mellow Mess

These testimonials, combined with consistent praise in design publications, positioned Designfruit as a leader in the digital design resource space.

Recent Developments and Legacy

Today, Designfruit’s journey is nearing its end. With no future plans for the platform, Jason is working on capturing the essence of its history before officially shutting it down. As new methods and technologies emerged, the relevance of Designfruit waned, and Jason shifted his focus to other ventures, including product design for tech startups.

While Designfruit may no longer be at the forefront of digital design, its legacy remains impactful. It was a pioneering resource in the early days of digital brushes and vectors, and its influence reached far beyond what Jason initially envisioned. This story serves as a tribute to Designfruit’s journey—a reflection on the creativity and passion that shaped its impact on the design world.