Kerbel Design

Kerbel Design Kerbel Design is a small Toronto-based graphic design and sign painting business run by Lauren Kerbe

Customers struggling to find your space? Here's how I can eliminate that problem once and for all: I paint a GIANT sign ...
04/02/2024

Customers struggling to find your space? Here's how I can eliminate that problem once and for all:
I paint a GIANT sign to install on your shop façade with a design that customers can't miss. *It has to be so big that it can barely fit into the frame for an Instagram post.*

You know when customers say: “We saw your sign and just had to stop in to check you out”? Yeah, you’ll be hearing that a lot.
Ready to get your business noticed? Fill out the inquiry form on my website to tell me about your space.

Vandalism is such a pain in the ass for business owners. This client had been targeted by vandals multiple times in a ma...
03/15/2024

Vandalism is such a pain in the ass for business owners. This client had been targeted by vandals multiple times in a matter of months, and wanted to be able to advertise her business while protecting it after hours. I knew it was only a matter of time before graffiti would appear on the new metal shutters, so I suggested painting her branding above the shutters to keep it out of reach. Now customers know exactly who is and what they sell, thanks to their hand-painted windows during the day, and exterior sign at night.

Need help with your own signage dilemma? Send me a DM with any questions you have about your space.

One of the biggest compliments I get from new clients is that they were really drawn to my particular style of hand-pain...
01/16/2024

One of the biggest compliments I get from new clients is that they were really drawn to my particular style of hand-painted signs. Every painter's style is different, and working with someone who really gets your design sensibility can make the whole process smoother for everyone.

My style was definitely influenced by working in the beauty and wedding industries, but it's also based heavily on my personal taste in both fashion and interior design. When it comes to clothes, I like clean lines, expert tailoring and high quality fabrics in muted colour palettes. For interiors I'm always drawn to a mix of nature-inspired minimalism with antique and feminine touches. Starting to see a pattern here?

In my work this translates to classic lettering styles, intense precision, luxurious touches of gold leaf, elegant colour palettes with custom-mixed paint colours, and selective use of 3D effects. I like to describe the style of my work as clean, elegant and timeless with a feminine touch.

Curious about how a hand-painted sign or mural could work in your commercial space? Check out some examples on my profile and DM me if you have questions.





An unintentional addition to the 36 Days of Type mix. When I started teaching myself graphic design, I read about the id...
04/11/2023

An unintentional addition to the 36 Days of Type mix. When I started teaching myself graphic design, I read about the idea of doing "copy work" to practice and improve design skills. It's something that I've kept doing as I continue to learn about sign painting, especially for practicing drawing letters. This one was inspired by a page in the Vintage Graphic Design book by Louise Fili & Steven Heller. Swipe to see a few pics of the process, the tools I used and a snap of the page I used as inspiration.

After university I moved to London for grad school and stayed for a couple of years. It's always been a second home to m...
04/03/2023

After university I moved to London for grad school and stayed for a couple of years. It's always been a second home to me, and the design and architecture of the city has been a huge influence on my style. I had no idea what sign painting was at the time, and definitely didn't consciously appreciate the hand-painted beauties all over the city. The timeless style and character that hand-painted signs bring works well in any city, which is why I love adding hand-lettered touches to businesses here whenever I can.

I've been trying to get back to the UK since April 2020, but it hasn't worked out yet (thanks Pandemic). Looking forward to hopefully getting back soon so I can soak it all in, and reunite with some of the Letterheads I met back in Porto in 2019.

This was taken by the talented , who's lovely photos frequently end up on my inspiration boards for projects.

Also, does anyone know who painted this one in London?

Swipe to see some painting progress shots from painting back in December 2022.
03/22/2023

Swipe to see some painting progress shots from painting back in December 2022.

People often ask me how I got into sign painting, and the answer is never short, because my career path has looked more ...
03/20/2023

People often ask me how I got into sign painting, and the answer is never short, because my career path has looked more like an aimless ramble. Ultimately I learned something at every stage that I needed in order to run the business that I do today. I'm grateful for every part of my path and I love where it's led me.

The various stops along the way of this crazy career journey:
1. Makeup artist turned beauty blogger
2. Beauty magazine writer and editor
3. Graphic designer
4. Wedding calligrapher
5. Sign painter

Q: How do you transfer your designs to the surface you're painting on?A: I use a variety of methods, but one of the trad...
03/17/2023

Q: How do you transfer your designs to the surface you're painting on?

A: I use a variety of methods, but one of the traditional methods that I keep going back to a pounce pattern and powder. It saves a lot of time on site, it's easy to remove after painting, and allows you to place your design onto a surface really quickly.

The way this photo edit turned out is giving me real "vintage Instagram" vibes. Imagine kids: in my day we posted heavil...
03/15/2023

The way this photo edit turned out is giving me real "vintage Instagram" vibes. Imagine kids: in my day we posted heavily filtered photos of our food, and people liked them just...because! But seriously, look how cute that hand-painted sign looks from the inside!
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Photo by

The crazed look of a sign painter who's gilding looks like a mirror. –Photo by
03/08/2023

The crazed look of a sign painter who's gilding looks like a mirror.
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Photo by

Upper windows can use some love too! If you look closely, this shot from 1929 (when hand-painted signs were everywhere i...
03/06/2023

Upper windows can use some love too! If you look closely, this shot from 1929 (when hand-painted signs were everywhere in Toronto) shows how the dentist office on the second floor used their windows to advertise their business.

Can you spot the lovely painted glass panels on the restaurants façade below too?

Image: Toronto Archives

Branding your space is a great way to really make it feel like your own. We painted the logo on the wall in their old o...
03/03/2023

Branding your space is a great way to really make it feel like your own. We painted the logo on the wall in their old office and it really pulled the whole space together, giving some character to a big empty wall.

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+1 416-902-1211

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