One To Watch: Clare Nicolson

I am obsessed since discovering Clare Nicolson's products. Sweet and colourful her designs are heavily influenced by vintage textiles and beautiful patterned paper. Founded in 2004 Clare Nicolson has been going from strength to strength. I was lucky enough to meet this talented designer last week at the Home London show. What a lovely lady indeed, so friendly and charming just like her pretty patterns.

 

Here Clare tells us a little bit more about her lovely self.

 

  

When did you realise you had a passion for design?
I’ve always been creative since childhood. I was always making something! When I learned to knit and sew as a child I always had several projects on the go (most of them unfinished) making gifts for friends or things for my bedroom.

Where do you inspirations come from?
I’m heavily influenced by vintage textiles and ceramics, particularly from the 60s and 70s. Pattern was just so much more exciting back then. So many beautiful colours and florals! I’m also very much inspired by birds which are featured in most of my designs. I’ve always found them fascinating to watch and to create through textiles. They have such a familiar and friendly shape.

 

What has been the highlight of your career so far?
I think the highlight is getting recognition for my designs from lots of different magazines and being stocked in shops that I only ever dreamed of selling in when I started.

What do you hope to achieve in 5 years time?
I’d love to develop the range over the next few years to include more than just textiles. I’d love to have my designs on ceramics, and develop a successful homeware brand that will hopefully become a household name.

What famous artists/designers do you admire or inspires you the most?
I’ve always admired the work of collage artist Sara Fanelli. I also love Alexander Girard and illustrator Alain Gree

In five words how would you describe yourself ?
Independent, pattern obsessed, colourful, vintage-inspired, giggly.

What 5 things couldn't you live with out?

Guacamole, my sewing machine, high-waisted jeans, my camera, hot sauce.

 

 

Today I'm Loving... Rebecca J Coles

I discovered Rebecca J Coles this year at Origin. A paper artist whose work currently focuses on the reinvention of entomological cataloguing, display and the assemblage of shapes. By de-constructing various paper ephemera, Rebecca creates unique works of art. I found her designs to be totally enchanting and captivating. I literally was completely mesmerised and summered when seeing her work at the exhibition. Astounded by the delicate details, as each piece must take forever to compose. This really reflects her passion in what she does. Here are a few images of her work...

One To Watch: Mini Moderns

I have some lovely chaps over on the blog today, Keith and Mark from one of my favourite brands, Mini Moderns. Fun, eclectic and completely original is best to describe their style. I am a big fan of theirs and am so proud of their success over the years. I adore their quirky designs as they just get better and better. Their wallpapers are always so inspirational with a feeling of nostalgia. Here they spend a little time answering a few questions.

When did you realise you had a passion for design?

When I was very young I was always really good at drawing and would design alternative record covers for my brother's and sister's record collections. I always dreamt of being able to do this as a career. When you are young everything is inspiring so it felt like I was bombarded with creativity from an early age, my sister was also artistic so I think it rubbed off on me too. She would do amazing interior designs in her bedroom from large murals to what we would now call upcycling. Taking junk shop finds and customising things to her taste. I then went through the usual route of foundation course onto a degree in Graphic design but my passion was always textiles and pattern. When I left college I combined  my skills and with my interests, working as a graphic and pattern designer in the fashion industry.

Mark's interest in design also started with a love of album cover graphics especially Peter Saville's work for Factory Records. In those days covers were much more tactile than cd covers or downloadable graphics therefore from an early age Mark had an appreciation of print quality and interesting production techniques with paper. When he was a student Mark earned summer money by teaching himself to wallpaper (a skill which was to prove useful to us later) He would also decorate for friends and family, often giving advice on colour schemes and interior design, aided by his vast collection of Habitat catalogues, which are now at Mini Moderns HQ. Ranging from 1971, which is a particular favourite of us both. After graduating Mark was the first of the Mini Moderns team to set up an independent designer-maker business, creating home furnishings which sold in Heal's and Harvey Nichols.

Where do your inspirations come from?

We always say this, but it's true, we take inspiration from everywhere, It can be from TV shows we watched when we were younger, holidays as children, toys, and vintage textile designs. We don't have a decade that we are most interested in - we are very eclectic in the way we work. We may be inspired by something from the 1950's for example but mix it up with something from say the 1970's and colour it up in contemporary colours.

Our work always manages to look familiar but totally new at the same time, I think it is easy to spot a Mini Moderns print design.

What has been the highlight of your career so far?

This year has been an incredible year for Mini Moderns, as well as our online shop achieving sales, we could never have imagined 6 years ago when we started, that we are also starting to be recognised as a brand. We have steadily expanded our collections and have had an amazing response. This year we were also nominated for the British Design Awards in the Best British Design Brand category which was an amazing accolade when we saw who we had been shortlisted with.

What do you hope to achieve in 5 years time?

We would hope that Mini Moderns would continue to grow and that we would continue to gain in reputation, both at home and internationally but without losing our personal touch. We would like to be able to fund all the ideas we currently have to expand the brand, which could also mean exciting collaborations like the recent ones with Clothkits, Rob Ryan, Rug Designer, Brume, Magpie, London Transport Museum, Transport for London, Southbank Centre and Courtauld Gallery. Eventually we would like a physical Shop as well as the online version, as we always get a great response to the quality of our products when customers actually see them in the flesh.

What famous artists/designers do you admire or inspires you the most?

In terms of pattern we are inspired by designers from all design periods ranging from Omega workshop/the Bloomsbury set from the turn of the last century, Lucienne Day, David Parsons, Marian Mahler, Alexander Girard, Robert Stewart, the Festival Pattern Group, Celia Birtwell, Ossie Clark, Susan Williams-Ellis, Hilde Smith, Sir Terence Conran to name a few. 

In five words how would you describe yourself?

It is really difficult to try and describe Mini Moderns in 5 words, we like to think we are fun, approachable and contemporary - but ultimately the five words that best sum us up are: WE CREATE STUFF WE LIKE  and it seems to be working...

What 5 things couldn't you live with out? 

1. Our space - over the past few years our home, studio and warehouse has allowed us to grow Mini Moderns within our means and without having to worry about costly storage. It has also been photogenic and has provided us with instant locations for shoots.
2. Mark
3. Keith (says Mark)
4. Our sense of humour
5. Manhattans, we are writing this on a Friday which we always earmark for Manhattans....

Thank you Keith & Mark, for finding the time in your hectic schedules. Good luck with everything and continue doing what you love, it sure is paying off :)

Friday Inspiration With Esther Coombs

Yay it's Friday friends :) I will probably still be working over the weekend but I am hardly going to complain as I really enjoy what I do. I just wanted to leave you guys with some images from a lovely designer that I finally got to meet at Origin. Esther Coombs is the girl in question, a homewares designer and illustrator whose quirky style is so adorable and so original.

Have a fabulous weekend and see you Monday x

Today I'm Loving... Michelle Griffiths

I have spotted her work awhile ago during Last year's Origin Craft Fair, (here is an old post showing my highlights from the show). Her unusual textiles did catch my eye and her use of whites and creams, I find very calming. Michelle Griffiths is a professional artist based in South Wales where her work explores the natural rhythm of traditional shibori techniques (Japanese term) where she creates contemporary three dimensional sculptures. Michelle did spend some time in Japan to watch and master this technique and adopted it for her designs with a modern twist. I love her diversity and the way she plays with the textures.

What do you think? don't you think they are unusually pretty?

Images via Shibori.

Cardboard City with Giles Miller

I am a huge fan of Giles Miller's work. He creates the most unique and creative surfaces you could imagine. I love all of his work and I find him such an innovative designer, a breath of fresh air. One of my partuclar favourite pieces has to be his cardboard butterflies....so pretty! 

Here are a few examples of his work.