5 Portfolio Projects You Can Start This Week—No Client Needed
I’ve enjoyed posting different prompts every week in my blog, and I aim to do more. I also wanted to start bringing more encouragement and help to those creatives who may be looking for work, or continuing to build their portfolio. If you're a designer, illustrator, copywriter, or all-around creative.
If you're unemployed, between contracts, burned out, or just trying to get noticed—this is your sign to create anyway. Not someday. This week.
You don’t need permission. You just need a little momentum and a project that gets your curiosity going.
Here are 5 self-initiated portfolio project ideas you can start right now to sharpen your skills, showcase your style, and position yourself for the kind of work you want to be hired for.
1. Rebrand a Business You Love (or Hate)
Why it works: It shows initiative, strategic thinking, and your ability to apply design or branding principles to real-world businesses. Hiring managers want to know you can take something existing and make it better.
How to start: Think of a local shop or national brand you interact with often. Maybe it’s that corner coffee shop with great lattes but terrible signage. Or a podcast you adore but has branding stuck in 2009. These make for rich starting points because they already exist in the real world—but you can envision a better version.
What to include in your portfolio:
Logo design
Color and typography system
Social media mockups
A simple brand style guide
Optional: before/after comparison or rationale
Prompt to help you get going:
Choose a brand that hasn’t had a visual refresh in a while. Ask yourself: how would this business evolve if it opened today? What kind of customer is it trying to attract in 2025?
Pro tip: Don’t just redesign Nike or Apple unless you have a seriously unique take. Go niche. A quirky local brand will set you apart faster than yet another Starbucks redesign.
2. Design a Campaign for a Cause You Care About
Why it works: Passion projects tell people what you care about—and hiring managers love to see that. They want to know what moves you, and how you translate those emotions into clear, compelling design.
How to start: This is a chance to blend your creative skill with your personal values. Think about a cause that matters deeply to you. Maybe it’s mental health awareness, food insecurity, racial equity, or sustainability. Design a fictional (or real) campaign that brings awareness or sparks change.
What to include in your portfolio:
Campaign theme and message
Posters or ads
Instagram carousel or TikTok storyboard
Merchandise or event collateral
Prompt to help you get going:
What message would you put on a billboard if you could reach 1 million people tomorrow? Now design a campaign around that message. How would it look across print, digital, and real life?
Pro tip: Write a simple mission statement or tagline to tie the campaign together. Something bold and memorable like “Design for Good” or “Everyone Eats.”
3. Create a Product Brand from Scratch
Why it works: Inventing a product forces you to think holistically about branding, packaging, and audience. You’re not just designing a logo—you’re building a world.
How to start: Think of a product you wish existed. Maybe it's a calming tea brand for stressed-out creatives. Or a nostalgia-themed cereal for burnt-out millennials. Maybe a journaling app that writes back. You can get playful or stay practical. What matters is that you're the creative director and strategist here.
What to include in your portfolio:
Product logo and packaging
Brand voice and tone examples (social posts, headlines, etc.)
Mockup of a website or app interface
Ad campaign concepts
Prompt to help you get going:
Invent a product that solves a problem you have. Then name it, design its world, and write its story. Ask: who buys this, and why?
Pro tip: Treat this like a real startup pitch. Include moodboards, messaging, even a mini brand voice guide. It’ll show future employers or clients that you think beyond the screen.
4. Build a Mini-Series of Editorial Illustrations or Icons
Why it works: Shows consistency, storytelling, and adaptability. Whether you’re a digital artist, graphic designer, or brand designer, creating a set like this demonstrates discipline and voice.
How to start: Pick a theme that lets you reflect, laugh, or even poke fun at your own creative experience. Could be something like "Thoughts at 2AM," or "The Anatomy of a Designer’s Desk." The point is to capture a world in a series.
What to include in your portfolio:
Each illustration or icon with a short caption
Mockups in context (magazine layout, app screen, etc.)
Optional: show your sketch process or iterations
Prompt to help you get going:
Pick 5 recurring thoughts, habits, or obsessions you have as a creative person. Illustrate each one as if it were a New Yorker cartoon or editorial spread.
Pro tip: Package the series as a cohesive set. Use a similar color palette, style, or voice so it feels like a collection rather than one-offs.
5. Redesign an Everyday Experience
Why it works: Highlights UX thinking, empathy, and your ability to identify and solve real problems. This is especially powerful if you’re moving into product design or want to show strategic thinking.
How to start: We all have frustrating daily interactions—clunky apps, long checkout lines, confusing airport signage. Pick one and redesign it. You don’t need a full case study. A simple redesign with annotated notes can show how you think.
What to include in your portfolio:
Problem statement
UX journey map
Wireframes and visual mocks
Screens or flows with annotations
Optional: usability testing insights (even if informal)
Prompt to help you get going:
Choose a daily task that takes longer than it should (ordering food, booking a doctor’s appointment, finding parking). What would a better version look like—for your mom? For a 10-year-old? For someone in a hurry?
Pro tip: Don’t forget to show the before and after—even in sketch form. Storytelling is key.
Final Thoughts: Start Where You Are
You don’t need perfect tools, a huge following, or someone’s permission to make something great. You just need a little direction and a willingness to explore.
Remember, your self-initiated work is just as valuable as client work—sometimes even more so, because it reveals your taste, voice, and vision.
Pick one of these five ideas, set a one-week deadline, and treat it like a real brief. Then put it out into the world. Share it on Behance, LinkedIn, Instagram—or even better, write about it on your own blog.
That dream job or client you’ve been waiting on? They might just be waiting to see this project.
Photo by Pavel Danilyuk: https://www.pexels.com/photo/close-up-photo-of-different-kinds-of-brushes-6925089/