Hey! We’re Yikes Design.

Yikes Design is a Cleveland, Ohio-based creative design studio co-founded in 2020 by Maddie Harbert and Grace Blackley. We create to connect with others, challenge design expectations, and have fun! We have 5+ years of professional experience designing for brands of all sizes in agency, small studio, and in-house settings. Our combined knowledge and skillset allow us to create effective designs that are distinct and compelling.

We’d love to hear about your project — keep reading to learn more about our services or shoot us a message to let us know what you have in mind. We look forward to working with you and can’t wait to become your design BFFs!

Our Services

Yikes specializes in creative brand design, illustration, and graphic design. We use a research-based approach and a wide range of styles to ensure our work is unique and completely tailored to you. Read on to learn more about our services. If what you’re dreaming about isn’t listed, reach out and let us know — we love new creative challenges!

  • A logo is nothing without a thoughtful brand behind it. We’ll build a comprehensive identity system so your brand is cohesive and recognizable across all touchpoints.

  • Print design will never die! Yikes can take care of all of your print design needs such as flyers, postcards, business cards, posters, booklets, signage, packaging, and more.

  • As children of the digital age, staying up to date with the ever-changing digital landscape is second nature to us. Our digital design services include presentation design, digital ads, and social media graphics to name a few.

  • Stand out with custom illustration! We specialize in a range of styles to ensure we create artwork that aligns with your brand. Illustration can be a standalone service or combined with other services such as poster design, merchandise design, or flyers.

  • Need some merchandise to represent your company, band, or event? We do the standard stuff like t-shirts, hoodies, hats, totes, stickers, buttons, enamel pins, and stationery. If you’re dreaming big, let us know what you have in mind and we will see if we can make your vision a reality!

  • Your beautifully-branded product deserves packaging that stands out on the shelf. We’ll help you create packaging based on industry-standard specifications or create a completely customized dieline for your packaging.

  • Looking for some social media guidance? We can create social media graphics to get you started or a set of templates for software like Adobe Illustrator and Canva so you can do it yourself.

  • We’re not developers, but we do know a thing or two about web design. Our front-end web design service includes static page designs for desktop and mobile. We export all of the assets and prep a CSS style sheet so you can work with a developer and get your site launched as soon as possible. If hiring a developer isn’t in the cards, we can help you get your site published on Squarespace or Shopify.

  • Capture your band’s personality with high-quality live music photography. Perfect to pair with your website, social media, or poster design project.

  • Promote an event, your band, or bring a vision to life! We specialize in illustration, photography, and typography to ensure every poster design is unique to you.

  • Don’t see the service you’re looking for? Let us know what you’re dreaming about and we’ll see if we can make your dream a reality. If not, we likely know someone who would be a good fit.

Meet the Team

Maddie Harbert

Co-Founder / Design Lead

Maddie is Yikes’ design wizard, obsessive list-creator, and non-stop planner/dreamer. She has a BFA in Visual Communication Design from Kent State University and has agency and small studio design experience. Her areas of expertise are branding and typography, and she uses her small studio experience to keep projects running smoothly.

She has a cat, Miss. Jilly Bean, and enjoys cooking, making seasonal Spotify playlists, attempting to garden, and exploring Cleveland.

Maddie intends to create beautiful and unique design work, and provide an effortless and fun creative process for Yikes’ clients. As Yikes grows, she’s excited to take more risks, meet new people, and become involved in the local art community.

Grace Blackley

Co-Founder / Illustration Lead

Grace is Yikes’ illustration master, creative explorer, and relationship builder. She has a BA in Visual Communication Design with a minor in fine arts from Kent State University with professional in-house design experience. She specializes in illustration, creative design, and client relationships.

She has a cat named Boots who is a local legend. She enjoys playing her Nintendo Switch, watching Tik Tok, deep cleaning her house, and visiting new hiking spots in her free time.

Through her practice at Yikes, Grace hopes to create work for people who want their brand to reflect their spirit and is excited to make cool art in the process!