Snippets’. Chats with Creatives. We are back with series two! Here at Digital Fabrics we love everything print, pattern and colour and we love to know what makes designers tick. This second series is all about asking some fun and different questions and learning about the inspirations and ideas behind the artist and their work. We hope to inspire others by sharing snippets of these creative stories. We gave the artists and designers featured a varied and different set from series one list of questions to choose from so we will learn something new from everyone involved, should be fun!
Today on snippets we are talking to Bianca from Bianca Smith Designs who creates artworks that are about empowering women and combine her love for theatre, ballet and beauty in a majestic and magical way. Her style is very unique and she creates a variety of artworks that translate across mediums.
Tell us a bit about yourself, your brand/label name what your creative practice is, how and when you began:
My name is Bianca, known affectionately by friends as ‘Bi’, which I also use to sign all of my work.
I’m a Graphic Designer and Visual Artist by trade and I am based in Adelaide. I’ve been a Graphic Designer for close to 20 years where I am able to use my flair for design, but my true passion is art, so over the past 10 years I have invested every moment I can into refining and developing my visual art skills. I love to draw, paint and create. My utopia is producing art all day every day!
My art work always addresses the empowerment of women – almost a goddess status. Bringing together my love of theatre/ballet and beauty, I try to capture the strength and beauty of my characters in an almost theatrical way. I take inspiration from the novels that I read featuring female heroines as well as the inspiring women that I meet. My use of dramatic light and beautiful models assists in portraying the strength and resilience of women.
Drawing from my other love, fashion, I did a series of illustrative for Australian Fashion Labels. My works focused on capturing the strength and confidence of the girls that wear their clothing, whilst portraying the playful essence of the brand. By mixing monotone drawings with a splash of colour, I aimed to change the tone and strength, creating images of women who are powerful yet delicate. This is universally at the core of what I produce.
Where do you call home?
Adelaide
What 3 words best describe your creative style.
Illustrative, Modern, Contemporary.
Which part of the creative process is your favourite and why?
I love the conception of a piece of artwork. The tumbling of images in my mind, which eventually form and crystallise from an idea, a concept, into a clear vision. That vision then becomes an obsession, a desperate struggle to be formed with exact replication. I obsess over sharing my image with precision and that drive continues throughout the process, that desire to replicate perfectly is a bitter, sweet scuffle.
How would you describe your work, and what influences your style?
Although my artistic style can, and does vary, depending on my life and surroundings, I’m also heavily influenced by fashion illustration and my own passion for clothing. The textures, the colours, the cut, and the design all inspire me. I predominantly work in pastel and watercolour and although I create every piece of artwork by hand, I then use the finished original image, together with various digital techniques to create a series of pieces, combining my art with my design skills.
Fashion and women heavily influence my style. I love, love, love fashion, perhaps another personal obsession!
What does a typical creative day look like for you? How do you stay on plan and organised?
After getting up at the crack of dawn to exercise and then get my kids ready and off to school, I usually start my working day with a much-needed coffee and the checking of emails. Unfortunately, the reality of life means some days I don’t leave my computer, but whenever time permits, I surrender to my obsessive desire to escape to my studio and create.
Depending on which stage in the process a piece of artwork is, you will either find me upstairs in my studio drawing life into an image or enhancing that original piece of art in Photoshop as I design something for my unique collection of diary covers, pillows, cards, and homewares.
I’m a deadline kind of a girl, it’s the only way I can stay on task. That’s why I love projects where there is an objective and a deadline. I thrive under pressure and produce my best work with adrenaline, conflicting priorities and a little chaos.
What would your dream creative project look like? Who or what is your dream project, client or job? Tell us about why you would love to collaborate with them and what you find inspiring about their work.
My absolute dream creative project would be working collaboratively with a ‘fashion house’ to illustrate their models and garments for window display and the associated promotional campaign. Having unrestricted access to their design method, the inner workings of a label and seeing their creative process unfold would be nothing less than inspirational. To then have the honour of representing that in art form, bringing that vision to life is my ultimate goal.
If you could spend a day in another artist’s studio shoes who would that artist be?
Kelly Smith of ‘Birdyandme’ fame, works with all the top fashion labels around the world and I’m a massive fan of her work. If I could be in her shoes for a day I would honestly be living my dream. Or Gabriel Moreno – who is an AMAZING artist overseas. He has a remarkable ability to capture the delicacy, strength, and sensuality of women in his drawings. They are just astonishing! I would love to even have a day in his studio to watch him work.
What would you say is the biggest challenge when working for yourself ?
Staying positive about your work!
Social media can be a double edge sword as it both inspires and intimidates. It is full of people posting about their successes and digital platforms have a knack of focusing on the positives whilst minimising or eliminating the negatives, the sacrifices, struggles and setbacks. It is easy to assume “their” life is perfect, easy, and unattainable when there a no posts about failure.
The truth is, for every success there has usually been many challenges, rejections, and disappointments. It’s important to learn from them all and allow it to fuel your growth, stretch you, and inspire you. I often question my skills and direction, but sometimes you just need to believe in yourself and your vision. And then of course practice, practice and practice some more until your craft is refined to its full potential.
If you could go back and tell yourself one hot tip or piece of advice when you started out what would it be?
Believe in yourself and follow your heart
What has been your proudest creative business achievement to date?
Doing an artist residency with Australian Fashion Labels. I worked from their creative hub in Adelaide City for 3 months, putting together a dedicate exhibition, which was then displayed in their store windows throughout SALA (South Australian Living Artist).
What projects or collaborations from last year stuck out, good or bad and what is coming up this year that you would like to plug!
The project that stood out for me last year was doing all the illustrations for the wine labels of an established winery in Mclaren Vale. They will be launching very soon, I cant wait to share them.
You can follow what Bianca is up to: Website, Instagram, Facebook.
Snippets’. Chats with Creatives. We are back with series two! Here at Digital Fabrics we love everything print, pattern and colour and we love to know what makes designers tick. This second series is all about asking some fun and different questions and learning about the inspirations and ideas behind the artist and their work. We hope to inspire others by sharing snippets of these creative stories. We gave the artists and designers featured a varied and different set from series one list of questions to choose from so we will learn something new from everyone involved, should be fun!
Today on snippets we are talking to Bianca from Bianca Smith Designs who creates artworks that are about empowering women and combine her love for theatre, ballet and beauty in a majestic and magical way. Her style is very unique and she creates a variety of artworks that translate across mediums.
Tell us a bit about yourself, your brand/label name what your creative practice is, how and when you began:
My name is Bianca, known affectionately by friends as ‘Bi’, which I also use to sign all of my work.
I’m a Graphic Designer and Visual Artist by trade and I am based in Adelaide. I’ve been a Graphic Designer for close to 20 years where I am able to use my flair for design, but my true passion is art, so over the past 10 years I have invested every moment I can into refining and developing my visual art skills. I love to draw, paint and create. My utopia is producing art all day every day!
My art work always addresses the empowerment of women – almost a goddess status. Bringing together my love of theatre/ballet and beauty, I try to capture the strength and beauty of my characters in an almost theatrical way. I take inspiration from the novels that I read featuring female heroines as well as the inspiring women that I meet. My use of dramatic light and beautiful models assists in portraying the strength and resilience of women.
Drawing from my other love, fashion, I did a series of illustrative for Australian Fashion Labels. My works focused on capturing the strength and confidence of the girls that wear their clothing, whilst portraying the playful essence of the brand. By mixing monotone drawings with a splash of colour, I aimed to change the tone and strength, creating images of women who are powerful yet delicate. This is universally at the core of what I produce.
Where do you call home?
Adelaide
What 3 words best describe your creative style.
Illustrative, Modern, Contemporary.
Which part of the creative process is your favourite and why?
I love the conception of a piece of artwork. The tumbling of images in my mind, which eventually form and crystallise from an idea, a concept, into a clear vision. That vision then becomes an obsession, a desperate struggle to be formed with exact replication. I obsess over sharing my image with precision and that drive continues throughout the process, that desire to replicate perfectly is a bitter, sweet scuffle.
How would you describe your work, and what influences your style?
Although my artistic style can, and does vary, depending on my life and surroundings, I’m also heavily influenced by fashion illustration and my own passion for clothing. The textures, the colours, the cut, and the design all inspire me. I predominantly work in pastel and watercolour and although I create every piece of artwork by hand, I then use the finished original image, together with various digital techniques to create a series of pieces, combining my art with my design skills.
Fashion and women heavily influence my style. I love, love, love fashion, perhaps another personal obsession!
What does a typical creative day look like for you? How do you stay on plan and organised?
After getting up at the crack of dawn to exercise and then get my kids ready and off to school, I usually start my working day with a much-needed coffee and the checking of emails. Unfortunately, the reality of life means some days I don’t leave my computer, but whenever time permits, I surrender to my obsessive desire to escape to my studio and create.
Depending on which stage in the process a piece of artwork is, you will either find me upstairs in my studio drawing life into an image or enhancing that original piece of art in Photoshop as I design something for my unique collection of diary covers, pillows, cards, and homewares.
I’m a deadline kind of a girl, it’s the only way I can stay on task. That’s why I love projects where there is an objective and a deadline. I thrive under pressure and produce my best work with adrenaline, conflicting priorities and a little chaos.
What would your dream creative project look like? Who or what is your dream project, client or job? Tell us about why you would love to collaborate with them and what you find inspiring about their work.
My absolute dream creative project would be working collaboratively with a ‘fashion house’ to illustrate their models and garments for window display and the associated promotional campaign. Having unrestricted access to their design method, the inner workings of a label and seeing their creative process unfold would be nothing less than inspirational. To then have the honour of representing that in art form, bringing that vision to life is my ultimate goal.
If you could spend a day in another artist’s studio shoes who would that artist be?
Kelly Smith of ‘Birdyandme’ fame, works with all the top fashion labels around the world and I’m a massive fan of her work. If I could be in her shoes for a day I would honestly be living my dream. Or Gabriel Moreno – who is an AMAZING artist overseas. He has a remarkable ability to capture the delicacy, strength, and sensuality of women in his drawings. They are just astonishing! I would love to even have a day in his studio to watch him work.
What would you say is the biggest challenge when working for yourself ?
Staying positive about your work!
Social media can be a double edge sword as it both inspires and intimidates. It is full of people posting about their successes and digital platforms have a knack of focusing on the positives whilst minimising or eliminating the negatives, the sacrifices, struggles and setbacks. It is easy to assume “their” life is perfect, easy, and unattainable when there a no posts about failure.
The truth is, for every success there has usually been many challenges, rejections, and disappointments. It’s important to learn from them all and allow it to fuel your growth, stretch you, and inspire you. I often question my skills and direction, but sometimes you just need to believe in yourself and your vision. And then of course practice, practice and practice some more until your craft is refined to its full potential.
If you could go back and tell yourself one hot tip or piece of advice when you started out what would it be?
Believe in yourself and follow your heart
What has been your proudest creative business achievement to date?
Doing an artist residency with Australian Fashion Labels. I worked from their creative hub in Adelaide City for 3 months, putting together a dedicate exhibition, which was then displayed in their store windows throughout SALA (South Australian Living Artist).
What projects or collaborations from last year stuck out, good or bad and what is coming up this year that you would like to plug!
The project that stood out for me last year was doing all the illustrations for the wine labels of an established winery in Mclaren Vale. They will be launching very soon, I cant wait to share them.
You can follow what Bianca is up to: Website, Instagram, Facebook.
Snippets’. Chats with Creatives. We are back with series two! Here at Digital Fabrics we love everything print, pattern and colour and we love to know what makes designers tick. This second series is all about asking some fun and different questions and learning about the inspirations and ideas behind the artist and their work. We hope to inspire others by sharing snippets of these creative stories. We gave the artists and designers featured a varied and different set from series one list of questions to choose from so we will learn something new from everyone involved, should be fun!
Today on Snippets we are talking to Kate Blairstone, a US based artist, illustrator and designer who’s work can be seen across textiles, wallpaper and art prints with a unique and nostalgic botanical theme running throughout.
Tell us a bit about yourself, your brand/label name what your creative practice is, how and when you began:
I design custom wallpaper and draw lots of stuff (mostly plants) under my own name. My formal education is in Printmaking – I build up images in layers, sometimes using ink on tissue, sometimes digitally. My business launched officially in the Fall of 2016.
I worked behind the scenes in restaurants for years before going full freelance. In that time I accumulated every possible creative hobby (leatherworking, beadwork, gardening) before figuring out that I could combine all those things into surface design and illustration. The restaurant where I worked always needed design help, so I resurrected my art degree to maintain their menu and website. Eventually when we opened a new location, the owner gave me the opportunity to help design the space, including a huge focal wallpaper.
Where do you call home?
I live in the St. Johns neighborhood of Portland, Oregon with my husband and 15 month old son.
What 3 words best describe your creative style?
Lush, Loud, Adventurous.
Which part of the creative process is your favourite and why?
I enjoy combing the visual world for inspiration, building color palettes, finding unexpected ways to communicate with color. Taking time to draw from life, getting into a meditative headspace and using my pencil to observe how a thing is structured. Mark making, especially with brushes and black india ink, where color isn’t a consideration at all, and I can just focus on the shape my brush makes. Twist my arm, and I might say my absolute favorite part is coloring my images, when I’ve been through all these other steps and the pieces finally come together.
How would you describe your work, and what influences your style?
I think of what I do like looking at the world through tinted glasses, or at a photograph that’s yellowed as it’s aged. The color of light has a wonderful way of evoking memory and a sense of time and place; it’s a distorted reality. My palettes are designed to enhance this feeling. I spend lots of time looking at plants and working in my garden, and when I travel I pay particular attention to how the plants I grow are contextualized differently in other places, through both landscape and surface design traditions. It helps me to see things anew. I’m delighted by the cycles of my garden, of food and of fashion – I especially love when an iconic style can be seen through the lens of another era or culture and across media, like 70s Victorian Revival, or Art Deco Architecture via Latin America, or 60s MOD as seen through Italian Horror. My husband is a comic book artist: we are always playing with mashups to describe our work and find new inspiration.
If you could go back and tell yourself one hot tip or piece of advice when you started out what would it be?
Though I’ve always been creative and went to art school, it took me a long time – too long, maybe – to really own it. And it took me a long time to find a medium that really took hold of me the way that illustration has. Looking back, I can say confidently that everything I dabbled in has its place in my creative heart, and made my work what it is now. But I wish that I hadn’t been so scared to call myself Artist, to give myself to making things with my whole being. For years I thought I needed some kind of credential; the only thing that mattered ultimately was the permission I gave myself. An Artist is a person who makes art, and that’s what I do. If this resonates for you, go read Elizabeth Gilbert’s “Big Magic.” Living a creative life is what it’s all about, y’all. Also a reminder to myself, always: doing your life’s work is a long game, give yourself the time and make the commitment to get there.
What has been your proudest creative business achievement to date?
It gives me great pride to have built my portfolio to a point where my clients recognize my style, see what I can do for them and – for the most part – give me the freedom to do it. As a commercial artist there is sometimes enormous pressure to conform in order to get enough paid work to make it. It is such a privilege to have this kind of trust, and an absolute joy to deliver on it. Also I hired an accountant this year, which felt like such a big girl move, I literally teared up in the parking lot after our first meeting.
Which other artists/ designers/ makers, artists or creative people are you enjoying at the moment?
Right now I’m inspired by Petra Borner, Andy Dixon, Tyler Keeton Robbins, Michelle Morin, Sonia Pulido, Marisol Ortega, Anisa Makhoul, and Gucci Gucci Gucci. All great follows.
What would your dream creative project look like? Who or what is your dream project, client or job? Tell us about why you would love to collaborate with them and what you find inspiring about their work.
For me, great projects involve trust, the opportunity to solve good problems, research and analysis, collaboration, strategy and beauty. I’ve been lucky enough be a part of a few such projects in my career; those experiences have shaped the way I find meaning in what I do, and defined the kind of work I’m looking for going forward. I love to participate in translating feelings visually – I get really excited about differentiating brands. There are so many small-scale production methods available to us now, why use the same stuff when we can be fantastically different?
My dream clients are great collaborators, passionate about what they do, confident in communicating their vision, and hire the right people for the right job. The beauty of seeing my work this way is that there are lots of dream clients to be had out there, but if Gucci wanted to hire me I might literally throw myself at Alessandro Michele’s feet.
You can follow what Kate is upto: Website, Instagram
Snippets’. Chats with Creatives. We are back with series two! Here at Digital Fabrics we love everything print, pattern and colour and we love to know what makes designers tick. This second series is all about asking some fun and different questions and learning about the inspirations and ideas behind the artist and their work. We hope to inspire others by sharing snippets of these creative stories. We gave the artists and designers featured a varied and different set from series one list of questions to choose from so we will learn something new from everyone involved, should be fun!
Today on Snippets we are talking to Kate Blairstone, a US based artist, illustrator and designer who’s work can be seen across textiles, wallpaper and art prints with a unique and nostalgic botanical theme running throughout.
Tell us a bit about yourself, your brand/label name what your creative practice is, how and when you began:
I design custom wallpaper and draw lots of stuff (mostly plants) under my own name. My formal education is in Printmaking – I build up images in layers, sometimes using ink on tissue, sometimes digitally. My business launched officially in the Fall of 2016.
I worked behind the scenes in restaurants for years before going full freelance. In that time I accumulated every possible creative hobby (leatherworking, beadwork, gardening) before figuring out that I could combine all those things into surface design and illustration. The restaurant where I worked always needed design help, so I resurrected my art degree to maintain their menu and website. Eventually when we opened a new location, the owner gave me the opportunity to help design the space, including a huge focal wallpaper.
Where do you call home?
I live in the St. Johns neighborhood of Portland, Oregon with my husband and 15 month old son.
What 3 words best describe your creative style?
Lush, Loud, Adventurous.
Which part of the creative process is your favourite and why?
I enjoy combing the visual world for inspiration, building color palettes, finding unexpected ways to communicate with color. Taking time to draw from life, getting into a meditative headspace and using my pencil to observe how a thing is structured. Mark making, especially with brushes and black india ink, where color isn’t a consideration at all, and I can just focus on the shape my brush makes. Twist my arm, and I might say my absolute favorite part is coloring my images, when I’ve been through all these other steps and the pieces finally come together.
How would you describe your work, and what influences your style?
I think of what I do like looking at the world through tinted glasses, or at a photograph that’s yellowed as it’s aged. The color of light has a wonderful way of evoking memory and a sense of time and place; it’s a distorted reality. My palettes are designed to enhance this feeling. I spend lots of time looking at plants and working in my garden, and when I travel I pay particular attention to how the plants I grow are contextualized differently in other places, through both landscape and surface design traditions. It helps me to see things anew. I’m delighted by the cycles of my garden, of food and of fashion – I especially love when an iconic style can be seen through the lens of another era or culture and across media, like 70s Victorian Revival, or Art Deco Architecture via Latin America, or 60s MOD as seen through Italian Horror. My husband is a comic book artist: we are always playing with mashups to describe our work and find new inspiration.
If you could go back and tell yourself one hot tip or piece of advice when you started out what would it be?
Though I’ve always been creative and went to art school, it took me a long time – too long, maybe – to really own it. And it took me a long time to find a medium that really took hold of me the way that illustration has. Looking back, I can say confidently that everything I dabbled in has its place in my creative heart, and made my work what it is now. But I wish that I hadn’t been so scared to call myself Artist, to give myself to making things with my whole being. For years I thought I needed some kind of credential; the only thing that mattered ultimately was the permission I gave myself. An Artist is a person who makes art, and that’s what I do. If this resonates for you, go read Elizabeth Gilbert’s “Big Magic.” Living a creative life is what it’s all about, y’all. Also a reminder to myself, always: doing your life’s work is a long game, give yourself the time and make the commitment to get there.
What has been your proudest creative business achievement to date?
It gives me great pride to have built my portfolio to a point where my clients recognize my style, see what I can do for them and – for the most part – give me the freedom to do it. As a commercial artist there is sometimes enormous pressure to conform in order to get enough paid work to make it. It is such a privilege to have this kind of trust, and an absolute joy to deliver on it. Also I hired an accountant this year, which felt like such a big girl move, I literally teared up in the parking lot after our first meeting.
Which other artists/ designers/ makers, artists or creative people are you enjoying at the moment?
Right now I’m inspired by Petra Borner, Andy Dixon, Tyler Keeton Robbins, Michelle Morin, Sonia Pulido, Marisol Ortega, Anisa Makhoul, and Gucci Gucci Gucci. All great follows.
What would your dream creative project look like? Who or what is your dream project, client or job? Tell us about why you would love to collaborate with them and what you find inspiring about their work.
For me, great projects involve trust, the opportunity to solve good problems, research and analysis, collaboration, strategy and beauty. I’ve been lucky enough be a part of a few such projects in my career; those experiences have shaped the way I find meaning in what I do, and defined the kind of work I’m looking for going forward. I love to participate in translating feelings visually – I get really excited about differentiating brands. There are so many small-scale production methods available to us now, why use the same stuff when we can be fantastically different?
My dream clients are great collaborators, passionate about what they do, confident in communicating their vision, and hire the right people for the right job. The beauty of seeing my work this way is that there are lots of dream clients to be had out there, but if Gucci wanted to hire me I might literally throw myself at Alessandro Michele’s feet.
You can follow what Kate is upto: Website, Instagram
Snippets’. Chats with Creatives. We are back with series two! Here at Digital Fabrics we love everything print, pattern and colour and we love to know what makes designers tick. This second series is all about asking some fun and different questions and learning about the inspirations and ideas behind the artist and their work. We hope to inspire others by sharing snippets of these creative stories. We gave the artists and designers featured a varied and different set from series one list of questions to choose from so we will learn something new from everyone involved, should be fun!
Today on Snippets we are talking to Katelyn Tso, the textile designer behind Indigo Thread, a beautiful brand creating homewares, accessories and clothing as part of the slow fashion movement.
Tell us a bit about yourself, your brand/label name what your creative practice is, how and when you began:
I’m Katelyn, the designer and maker behind Indigo Thread. I’ve always loved design. All through high school I would make my own clothes, screen printing, sewing and adjusting op shop finds. After school I started studying Interior Design, however after the first year I realised that interior design wasn’t for me, rather I loved designing individual textile products. It wasn’t until I became a mum that I found the time to sew again and I started Indigo Thread. I’m now a self-taught textile designer, making accessories, homewares and a clothing range coming soon.
Where do you call home?
I currently live in Sydney but I grew up on The Central Coast of NSW and it still feels like home to me.
What 3 words best describe your creative style.
Simple Shapes – Fun Prints (sorry that’s more than 3 words)
Which part of the creative process is your favourite and why?
Seeing the finished product come together for the first time. Sometimes I skip ahead, not completing the steps in the most effective order because I’m so excited to see the finished product.
How would you describe your work, and what influences your style?
Simple designs and shapes with stylised and fun floral prints inspired by Australian native flowers. My desire for practical yet attractive products fuels my designs.
What does a typical creative day look like for you? How do you stay on plan and organised?
Being a work from home/stay at home mum means that it can be a bit all over the place and my work is very disrupted. I have a little more time now that my eldest has started preschool 3 days a week but I still have to fit work into small time slots throughout the day. I stay organised by writing lists. Daily, weekly and monthly to-do-lists help me keep focused.
Depending on the time of year and if I have a market to prep for, I could be just sewing sewing sewing. Whereas other quieter times I get a chance to design some new products and fabrics, so it varies a lot.
Tell us about your creative space, what are your tips for keeping a creative studio space organised.
My studio isn’t really a studio. It’s a big desk in the living room of my 2 bedroom apartment. My husband hates that I take up so much space in our home, especially when I take over the dining table as well (it’s the perfect place for screen printing and cutting out fabric). I would love to have a studio one day, or at least a separate room that I can shut the door on the mess but for now it’s working for me. I don’t mind a little bit of creative clutter but I do regularly have to re-organise so that I have the space to work and I always feel like I can work better with a clean workspace. The best tip I have is get a good storage system. I have these amazing deep drawers in my work desk (custom built by my dad out of an old pallet) that store all my sewing bits and pieces as well as a cupboard full of fabric.
What/who inspired you to take the leap in to your creative venture, how did you get started?
I just started Indigo Thread as a hobby while I was on maternity leave and I think that made it not feel like a leap, it just kind of happened naturally. I didn’t have the pressure to make money from it straight away which was nice and I think I’ve enjoyed the process more because of it.
Tell us about how you get your creative juices flowing, what is your process?
I am inspired constantly by the beautiful world around me. By colours, shapes and nature. I’m often taking photos of flowers or colour combinations to reference later as well as looking at clothing styles and figuring out how they were made.
What projects or collaborations from last year stuck out, good or bad and what is coming up this year that you would like to plug!
I loved working with my bestie, Nicole from Better Together Paper, on a collaboration of Prezzie Sacks last year. We love a chance to catch up and be creative together.
This year I’m so excited to be launching a range of women’s tops. I’m currently still in the design phase but they will be released in the next month or so. Think simple boxy tops in my Australian botanical fabrics.
You can follow what Katelyn is upto: Website, Instagram, Facebook.
Snippets’. Chats with Creatives. We are back with series two! Here at Digital Fabrics we love everything print, pattern and colour and we love to know what makes designers tick. This second series is all about asking some fun and different questions and learning about the inspirations and ideas behind the artist and their work. We hope to inspire others by sharing snippets of these creative stories. We gave the artists and designers featured a varied and different set from series one list of questions to choose from so we will learn something new from everyone involved, should be fun!
Today on Snippets we are talking to Katelyn Tso, the textile designer behind Indigo Thread, a beautiful brand creating homewares, accessories and clothing as part of the slow fashion movement.
Tell us a bit about yourself, your brand/label name what your creative practice is, how and when you began:
I’m Katelyn, the designer and maker behind Indigo Thread. I’ve always loved design. All through high school I would make my own clothes, screen printing, sewing and adjusting op shop finds. After school I started studying Interior Design, however after the first year I realised that interior design wasn’t for me, rather I loved designing individual textile products. It wasn’t until I became a mum that I found the time to sew again and I started Indigo Thread. I’m now a self-taught textile designer, making accessories, homewares and a clothing range coming soon.
Where do you call home?
I currently live in Sydney but I grew up on The Central Coast of NSW and it still feels like home to me.
What 3 words best describe your creative style.
Simple Shapes – Fun Prints (sorry that’s more than 3 words)
Which part of the creative process is your favourite and why?
Seeing the finished product come together for the first time. Sometimes I skip ahead, not completing the steps in the most effective order because I’m so excited to see the finished product.
How would you describe your work, and what influences your style?
Simple designs and shapes with stylised and fun floral prints inspired by Australian native flowers. My desire for practical yet attractive products fuels my designs.
What does a typical creative day look like for you? How do you stay on plan and organised?
Being a work from home/stay at home mum means that it can be a bit all over the place and my work is very disrupted. I have a little more time now that my eldest has started preschool 3 days a week but I still have to fit work into small time slots throughout the day. I stay organised by writing lists. Daily, weekly and monthly to-do-lists help me keep focused.
Depending on the time of year and if I have a market to prep for, I could be just sewing sewing sewing. Whereas other quieter times I get a chance to design some new products and fabrics, so it varies a lot.
Tell us about your creative space, what are your tips for keeping a creative studio space organised.
My studio isn’t really a studio. It’s a big desk in the living room of my 2 bedroom apartment. My husband hates that I take up so much space in our home, especially when I take over the dining table as well (it’s the perfect place for screen printing and cutting out fabric). I would love to have a studio one day, or at least a separate room that I can shut the door on the mess but for now it’s working for me. I don’t mind a little bit of creative clutter but I do regularly have to re-organise so that I have the space to work and I always feel like I can work better with a clean workspace. The best tip I have is get a good storage system. I have these amazing deep drawers in my work desk (custom built by my dad out of an old pallet) that store all my sewing bits and pieces as well as a cupboard full of fabric.
What/who inspired you to take the leap in to your creative venture, how did you get started?
I just started Indigo Thread as a hobby while I was on maternity leave and I think that made it not feel like a leap, it just kind of happened naturally. I didn’t have the pressure to make money from it straight away which was nice and I think I’ve enjoyed the process more because of it.
Tell us about how you get your creative juices flowing, what is your process?
I am inspired constantly by the beautiful world around me. By colours, shapes and nature. I’m often taking photos of flowers or colour combinations to reference later as well as looking at clothing styles and figuring out how they were made.
What projects or collaborations from last year stuck out, good or bad and what is coming up this year that you would like to plug!
I loved working with my bestie, Nicole from Better Together Paper, on a collaboration of Prezzie Sacks last year. We love a chance to catch up and be creative together.
This year I’m so excited to be launching a range of women’s tops. I’m currently still in the design phase but they will be released in the next month or so. Think simple boxy tops in my Australian botanical fabrics.
You can follow what Katelyn is upto: Website, Instagram, Facebook.
Snippets’. Chats with Creatives. Here at Digital Fabrics we love everything print, pattern and colour and we love to know what makes designers tick. This series is all about asking some fun and different questions and learning about the inspirations and ideas behind the artist and their work. We hope to inspire others by sharing snippets of these creative stories. We gave the artists and designers featured a varied list of questions to choose from so we will learn something new from everyone involved, should be fun!
Today on Snippets we are talking to Lara Cross, the textile designer behind Glorybox Designs, a bright and eclectic range of fabrics, fashion and jewellery based on prints. She has a vibrant passion for colour and her quirky style is evident throughout her work.
The Snippety Snips:
Tell us a bit about yourself and what your creative practice is, how and when you began:
Looking back on my upbringing, it seems so obvious that I would end up being a textile designer- but really, I didn’t even know it was a thing until I was in my third year of studying fashion. Even fashion design was a late start for me, I had initially planned on being some sort of creative director and studied Drama and Film at uni, then lived in China for five years and came home to ‘start’ my life. It took a long time to find that field where my skills just clicked in to place, but I did have a great time getting there! Being surrounded by beautiful textiles, colours and prints was just normal to me, I didn’t know that I could be ‘good enough’ to do that too. I think I have always struggled to prove to everyone that so-called normal people can love colour, and that just because you’re creative it doesn’t mean you’re an idiot. It’s probably not your experience if you grow up in a city, but I grew up in a small town and there is certain pressure to conform- so a lot of my work and ranges tend to have a story behind them, a little provocation and thought to give it meaning as well as beauty.
I enjoy word-play, puns and often have a bit of tongue-in-cheek when I come up with a new theme- my last range was called ‘Iconoscopy‘ which was a tribute to our aging rock icons, and the next range is battle Armor for modern feminists, so no doubt there will be subtle references to female anatomy as well as some more blatant imagery. I have been compiling war words that we use daily, and I’ll start sketching off those, from there I’ll probably end up in mixed media experimentation and move into digital. I work with both screen and digital prints, but the designs always go through the computer before they get there. Digital design is definitely one of the late great discoveries of my life. I use my prints in my clothing and in my resin jewellery, I am very hands-on.
Which part of the creative process is your favourite and why?
I love colour mixing when I screen print. I don’t really plan ahead I just go in with an open mind and play. I was also pretty surprised to discover how much I love the minutiae of digital design and getting right into the pixels to create repeats. It’s a secret language. There’s lots to enjoy.
What would your dream creative project look like?
The day I get the phone call from Romance Was Born to collaborate on a range….that will be a pretty great day. (Just to be clear, they can also email me)
Which other Australian designers, artists or creative people are you enjoying?
I am thoroughly enjoying the work of Haus of Dizzy and Doodad and Fandango– they are both forging great paths in sticking it to the patriarchy, all while looking awesome. The rise of dressing for yourself is something that really appeals to me and my customers.
In another life what natural talent would you wish for?
I would love to write raunchy high-society books like Jackie Collins and Rebecca Chance. Maybe I still will….
Love your Locals:
City/Town/Village where you currently reside:
Dulwich Hill (Sydney’s hipster Inner West)
Favourite spot for a bite:
IKEA, not a popular choice I know but I get really freaked out by how obsessed people are with “good’ coffee or things served on wooden boards.
Secret Inspirational spot:
I love the run-down and industrial, behind my house there is a derelict lot that has lots of tire piles, runaway bamboo and fabulous rusty things. It’s being demolished bit by bit (there was an amazing old warehouse I could sketch in and spray paint on) but for now it still a bit of a secret garden of crap that I can enjoy.
You can follow what Lara is upto: Website, Instagram, Facebook
Snippets’. Chats with Creatives. Here at Digital Fabrics we love everything print, pattern and colour and we love to know what makes designers tick. This series is all about asking some fun and different questions and learning about the inspirations and ideas behind the artist and their work. We hope to inspire others by sharing snippets of these creative stories. We gave the artists and designers featured a varied list of questions to choose from so we will learn something new from everyone involved, should be fun!
Today on Snippets we are talking to Lara Cross, the textile designer behind Glorybox Designs, a bright and eclectic range of fabrics, fashion and jewellery based on prints. She has a vibrant passion for colour and her quirky style is evident throughout her work.
The Snippety Snips:
Tell us a bit about yourself and what your creative practice is, how and when you began:
Looking back on my upbringing, it seems so obvious that I would end up being a textile designer- but really, I didn’t even know it was a thing until I was in my third year of studying fashion. Even fashion design was a late start for me, I had initially planned on being some sort of creative director and studied Drama and Film at uni, then lived in China for five years and came home to ‘start’ my life. It took a long time to find that field where my skills just clicked in to place, but I did have a great time getting there! Being surrounded by beautiful textiles, colours and prints was just normal to me, I didn’t know that I could be ‘good enough’ to do that too. I think I have always struggled to prove to everyone that so-called normal people can love colour, and that just because you’re creative it doesn’t mean you’re an idiot. It’s probably not your experience if you grow up in a city, but I grew up in a small town and there is certain pressure to conform- so a lot of my work and ranges tend to have a story behind them, a little provocation and thought to give it meaning as well as beauty.
I enjoy word-play, puns and often have a bit of tongue-in-cheek when I come up with a new theme- my last range was called ‘Iconoscopy‘ which was a tribute to our aging rock icons, and the next range is battle Armor for modern feminists, so no doubt there will be subtle references to female anatomy as well as some more blatant imagery. I have been compiling war words that we use daily, and I’ll start sketching off those, from there I’ll probably end up in mixed media experimentation and move into digital. I work with both screen and digital prints, but the designs always go through the computer before they get there. Digital design is definitely one of the late great discoveries of my life. I use my prints in my clothing and in my resin jewellery, I am very hands-on.
Which part of the creative process is your favourite and why?
I love colour mixing when I screen print. I don’t really plan ahead I just go in with an open mind and play. I was also pretty surprised to discover how much I love the minutiae of digital design and getting right into the pixels to create repeats. It’s a secret language. There’s lots to enjoy.
What would your dream creative project look like?
The day I get the phone call from Romance Was Born to collaborate on a range….that will be a pretty great day. (Just to be clear, they can also email me)
Which other Australian designers, artists or creative people are you enjoying?
I am thoroughly enjoying the work of Haus of Dizzy and Doodad and Fandango– they are both forging great paths in sticking it to the patriarchy, all while looking awesome. The rise of dressing for yourself is something that really appeals to me and my customers.
In another life what natural talent would you wish for?
I would love to write raunchy high-society books like Jackie Collins and Rebecca Chance. Maybe I still will….
Love your Locals:
City/Town/Village where you currently reside:
Dulwich Hill (Sydney’s hipster Inner West)
Favourite spot for a bite:
IKEA, not a popular choice I know but I get really freaked out by how obsessed people are with “good’ coffee or things served on wooden boards.
Secret Inspirational spot:
I love the run-down and industrial, behind my house there is a derelict lot that has lots of tire piles, runaway bamboo and fabulous rusty things. It’s being demolished bit by bit (there was an amazing old warehouse I could sketch in and spray paint on) but for now it still a bit of a secret garden of crap that I can enjoy.
You can follow what Lara is upto: Website, Instagram, Facebook
Snippets’. Chats with Creatives. Here at Digital Fabrics we love everything print, pattern and colour and we love to know what makes designers tick. This series is all about asking some fun and different questions and learning about the inspirations and ideas behind the artist and their work. We hope to inspire others by sharing snippets of these creative stories. We gave the artists and designers featured a varied list of questions to choose from so we will learn something new from everyone involved, should be fun!
Today on Snippet’s we are talking to Sara Johnson, the artist behind ‘Travelling Alice’ a printmaker based in Sydney who designs and prints her own fabric before making it into unique accessories.
The Snippety Snips:
Tell us a bit about yourself and what your creative practice is, how and when you began:
Travelling Alice is a range of hand printed travel accessories, made in my Sydney Studio.
I studied Fine Arts just out of High School as I just wanted to Draw, while there I learnt Printing (wow ) I could turn my drawings into prints.
At nineteen I got the opportunity to volunteer in India for three months, and this is where my love of fabrics and Crafts came from and of course my travelling obsession began, seeing all these amazing artist, crafts people. Traveling Alice Started from a need to make light weight and colourful travel accessories for myself and friends. I am such an organised traveller I like to pack things so they are easy to find but of course they have to look good as well.
Which part of the creative process is your favourite and why?
Drawing drawing and drawing. My Mum is a sign writer so I have always been around pencils, pens and brushes my whole life so it feels as natural as eating. By the way I have the worst hand writing, so I did not get this talent.
How would you describe your work, and what influences your style?
I design fabric that I can sew into accessories. Travel definitely influences my style and my life. I became obsessed with it when I first travelled to India when I was 19. This was also where my love of Fabrics and pattern came from, you get exposed to colour and patterns, it’s a feast for the eyes.
If you could have your portrait painted by any artist dead or alive, who would you choose?
Louise Bourgeois, that would be amazing and fun, she was known for her Sculptures but I love her printmaking. Louise Bourgeois was also known for her dry humour so we could have a laugh at the same time.
Love your Locals:
City/Town/Village where you currently reside:
Sydney South
Favourite spot for a bite:
I am a Coffee lover so food is a second thought so my favourite place to get coffee is White Horse Coffee in Sutherland
Secret Inspirational spot:
To be honest I find inspiration anywhere and anytime of the day or night. I have numerous note books so I can quickly write the inspiration down.
You can follow what Sara is upto: Website, Instagram, Facebook
Snippets’. Chats with Creatives. Here at Digital Fabrics we love everything print, pattern and colour and we love to know what makes designers tick. This series is all about asking some fun and different questions and learning about the inspirations and ideas behind the artist and their work. We hope to inspire others by sharing snippets of these creative stories. We gave the artists and designers featured a varied list of questions to choose from so we will learn something new from everyone involved, should be fun!
Today on Snippet’s we are talking to Sara Johnson, the artist behind ‘Travelling Alice’ a printmaker based in Sydney who designs and prints her own fabric before making it into unique accessories.
The Snippety Snips:
Tell us a bit about yourself and what your creative practice is, how and when you began:
Travelling Alice is a range of hand printed travel accessories, made in my Sydney Studio.
I studied Fine Arts just out of High School as I just wanted to Draw, while there I learnt Printing (wow ) I could turn my drawings into prints.
At nineteen I got the opportunity to volunteer in India for three months, and this is where my love of fabrics and Crafts came from and of course my travelling obsession began, seeing all these amazing artist, crafts people. Traveling Alice Started from a need to make light weight and colourful travel accessories for myself and friends. I am such an organised traveller I like to pack things so they are easy to find but of course they have to look good as well.
Which part of the creative process is your favourite and why?
Drawing drawing and drawing. My Mum is a sign writer so I have always been around pencils, pens and brushes my whole life so it feels as natural as eating. By the way I have the worst hand writing, so I did not get this talent.
How would you describe your work, and what influences your style?
I design fabric that I can sew into accessories. Travel definitely influences my style and my life. I became obsessed with it when I first travelled to India when I was 19. This was also where my love of Fabrics and pattern came from, you get exposed to colour and patterns, it’s a feast for the eyes.
If you could have your portrait painted by any artist dead or alive, who would you choose?
Louise Bourgeois, that would be amazing and fun, she was known for her Sculptures but I love her printmaking. Louise Bourgeois was also known for her dry humour so we could have a laugh at the same time.
Love your Locals:
City/Town/Village where you currently reside:
Sydney South
Favourite spot for a bite:
I am a Coffee lover so food is a second thought so my favourite place to get coffee is White Horse Coffee in Sutherland
Secret Inspirational spot:
To be honest I find inspiration anywhere and anytime of the day or night. I have numerous note books so I can quickly write the inspiration down.
You can follow what Sara is upto: Website, Instagram, Facebook