Introducing... Lush Designs!

Meet Marie and Maria, the two lovely ladies behind Lush Designs. We simply can't get enough of their highly unique and alluring illustrations; from carrots to beetroot and foxes to wild pigs, there's even a bush baby thrown in to boot! Lush Designs kindly answered a few of our interview questions (and it's honestly true about the nuns)...

Tell us a bit about yourself... Who are you both, what do you do, and when/how did you start working together?

We met at art college and have worked together ever since, even staggering the production of our four children for convenience. We worked in community arts, the theatre, agit prop performance art, went to pottery classes, had terrible hairstyles. We’re the Morcambe and Wise of applied art.

You have a diverse range of products, from lampshades and tea towels to pillowcases and mugs. Do you have a favourite type of product that you like to design for, and why?

Tea towels are great to design for as they are a vehicle for our whimsical notions.

We have to explain them to tourists! "They are useful for drying dishes and cutlery or your hands – but they are a traditional souvenir and are meant to be displayed.” They stare blankly and explain that in Korea/Japan/Arkansas everyone has dishwashers.

“It’s a tray cloth!” I suggest brightly. This is invariably followed by a successful sale transaction.

We also love to design lampshades. The subtle interplay of opacity and translucency, the glowing of colour makes them a wondrous delight and the fact that it’s a panorama which meets itself coming round makes it an ideal vehicle for a narrative idea. Am I taking this too seriously?

What’s a typical day like for Lush Designs? Do you both work on the same designs, or tackle different subjects individually?

We tackle different areas of the business...

Marie: Maria designs and manages our shop and I tackle the wholesale and online with a bit of designing thrown in. Maria does most of the designing and I am hugely annoying as I have so many opinions on the progress of a design, but I will always defer to Maria on colour as she is usually spot on.

Maria: Marie is very organised and can corral my rogue ideas into work lists which ultimately become products. She tolerates my fanciful enthusiasms and isn’t even slightly annoying. We have a running joke whereby I say, "Marie’s my best friend” and Marie says “But Maria isn’t MY best friend”. I AM her best friend by the way.

Your typographical designs are ace – if you had to choose to only use one font for the rest of your lives, what would it be?

Helvetica of course. But no need because Marie has beautiful handwriting which she learned from nuns.

Pigs, horses, foxes, monkeys and birds; your designs seem to feature a lot of animals! If you were both animals, what would you be?
Marie: Craig (my husband) says I’d be a big white cat and I think Maria would be a chimp as they can see the same colours as humans and they are noisy and curious intelligent and social.

Maria: Yes, Marie would definitely be a white cat. Me, a noisy chimp.

We love your little Loris illustration that you created for a collection of stories to be published by Beautiful Books. Can you tell us a little more about the project?

Entitled Just When, the anthology is inspired by Kipling’s Just So Stories. Tamara Gray has collected contributions from writers including Michael Morpurgo and Hanif Kureishi; profits from book sales go to WildAid and the David Shepherd Wildlife Foundation.

Each story focuses on a different endangered species and the project is designed to draw attention to species that are driven to extinction by the actions of humans, in the hope that it will increase support for the agencies that campaign against the destruction of precious biodiversity.

Your shop in Greenwich Market looks like a wonderful treasure trove; how do you manage to tear yourself away and find time to work in the studio?

Maria: I use the shop as my studio. Its where I do a lot of my drawing. Meeting customers is a great way of stimulating ideas and has been the spawning ground for many a product. I put my drawings up on the wall behind the counter and visitors to the shop can see ideas in progress.

Marie: The studio is great as we are based at Cockpit Arts in Deptford and are surrounded by great designers. It’s a creative hotbed and the friendship and mutual support of fellow artists is amazing.

Do you listen to music whilst you design? If so, what kind of bands/artists do you like the most?

Marie: Sometimes I listen to Absolute 80s and will be enjoying the B-52s or Adam and the Ants but have to switch it off when Bryan Adams comes on. I listen to Radio 4 and today watched Celebrity Masterchef on BBC iPlayer.

Maria: I listen to all kinds of music from Rachel Unthank & The Winterset to N-Dubz. I’m going through a power ballad phase at the moment so I find myself with 'More Than a Feeling' turned up loud and on repeat when there’s no-one around to complain.

What books are you currently on your bedside tables and what are your favourite reads of all time?

Marie: Favourite book – Restoration by Rose Tremain and I've just read The Glass House. About to read The Good Soldier by David Finkel.

Maria: Just read Restless by William Boyd, and am reading Things Fall Apart by Chinua Achebe. My favourite book is probably Nicholas Nickleby by Charles Dickens, Lolita by Vladimir Nabokov or The Corrections by Jonathan Franzen. I also loved Engleby by Sebastian Faulks.

And finally, who does the washing up in your households (and do they dry the dishes with your Lush Designs tea towels)?

Marie: My husband does the washing up as I do the cooking – we always use our tea towels apart from the ones of London Underground map.

Maria: My teenage son Billy and I do the washing up and we always use Lush Designs tea towels.

Fancy finding out a bit more about Marie and Maria? Check out their website and blog (which is incredibly funny and full of super interesting bits and bobs)!

Dinosaur Day Out!

It was a bit dinosaurtastic in our household over the weekend; we've been out and about in Oxford, taking photos of some fantastic new dinosaur tea towels that we've just added to ToDryFor.com!

Produced for an exhibition in LA called 'When Superstars Ruled The World', Jay Jay Burridge's new dinosaur towels are a must for any palaeontologists, tea drinkers, or carnivorous design-lovers out there...

The lovely people over at Oxford's Natural History Museum gave us permission to pose with the Tea Rex tea towel in front of their marvellous T-Rex, although they probably hadn't bargained on their lifelike dino taking a chomp out of my head.

Andy, our super friendly local butcher, was very patient with us whilst we carefully positioned the Dino Meat Chart tea towel in between briskets. Triceratops sirloin, anyone?

Jay Jay's dinosaur tea towels are priced at £9.95 and are available in three different colourways per design. Check them out here...

Introducing... Julia Pott

For this month’s blog interview we've spent some time with the delightful artist/illustrator, Julia Pott. Julia’s work, which graces everything from cards, canvas bags and fake (and real) tattoos to uber-cool music videos and heart-wrenching short films, is intriguing and captivating, never failing to provoke an emotional response. Julia's My First Crush animation had us swooning! We were over the moon when Julia agreed to work with us last year on Bake Me, the first tea towel in our ToDryFor range!

Tell us a bit about yourself... Who are you and what do you do?
Hello! I'm Julia Pott and I'm a freelance animator and illustrator.

Have you always wanted to work primarily in animation?
I think deep down it was definitely always the plan. I used to tell people when I was little that I wanted to be a cartoonist for Disney. Sure I was 5 years old and didn't really know what that meant but I said it none the less so it must mean something!

What was the first animated film/cartoon that you remember making you think ‘I want to do that’?
I think it really clicked when I was working on my second project at Kingston. It was just a small 'animatic' project where you had to design your own character and make it move in the context of a story. I think I was really tired that day and just messed around on the lightbox, thinking there was no way the animation was going to work..and it did! And it was so so satisfying to see it moving, I was hooked.

What fun projects are you currently involved with, and which has been your favourite project to date (if you can choose)?
I can't really talk about what I'm working on at the moment, but it's an exciting project! It's definitely hard to say which project was my favourite to work on so far. My First Crush was definitely a memorable experience as it was my first short film, my first real animation really, and I learnt so much from it. The Decemberists was also a rad project, I had so much freedom to create a 16 minute animation for such an amazing album. And I was flown out to LA at the end of it, which isn't bad at all!

We really love the fact that your work personifies animals. If you were an animal, what kind of animal would you be?
Ha, um...I'd love to be a red panda or a fennec fox..because they're so soft and so cute. But I imagine if I actually WAS an animal, I'd probably be some kind cat. I tend to be a tiny bit closed off, like a cat who won't let you pick them up. I'm also very clumsy and from watching a lot of cats, they tend to be too!

Your work lends itself incredibly well to music videos. What kind of music do you listen to and who would be your favourite band/musician to work with?
Oh thank you! I'm a big music lover, I listen to a lot of Leonard Cohen, Of Montreal, CTFPA, Beach House, Radiohead, Hot Chip, Frightened Rabbit and when I'm feeling a little bit like I need some energy I put on the ridiculous hip hop music. I was actually really lucky and I got to work with one of my favourite bands a few years ago, Of Montreal, but only as an animator not a director, so I think I still hold a desire to make a video for them. Also Beach House would be great, or Metronomy.

New York v London? Coffee v Tea? M&Ms v Smarties? You get the idea... where do you feel more at home?
New York! Tea! M & M's! Ha I guess Tea is a bit of a wild card there. Iced Tea is quite American I suppose! I definitely feel more at home in New York, without a doubt. My mom is from new york and I have a lot of family over here and I really enjoy the way of life over here.

What book are you reading right now (and do you doodle in the margins)?
At the moment I'm reading Kafka's 'Metamorphosis and other stories'. I really love short stories, I draw a lot of inspiration from them about how to structure short films. I'm afraid I'm not a doodler, but I don't take very good care of my books, they always looks very disheveled!

What are your current obsessions? (Ours are car boot sales, wasabi peas and ginger beer...)
Good question! I'm hugely into Jamba Juice at the moment, it's a smoothie chain in the states that does this epically good smoothies that taste slightly like milkshakes. Just today I bought a 40 oz berry shake and dropped it as soon as I got on the train..it was a very embarrassing disaster! I also just started playing tennis again and it's rad, I love it! And one of my new found obsessions is toast with cream cheese and jam on it, can't get enough! It makes it taste like cake!

And finally, who does the washing up in your household (and do they dry the dishes with your Bake Me tea towel)?
My mom always said that I was supposed to be born a boy because I am quite boy like in nature. I can't cook, and I avoid washing up like the plague! So I do do the washing up because I live alone, but more often than not the plates will have developed a pretty gnarly crust before I get to them. The Bake Me tea towel I have is still wrapped in plastic I'm afraid, I'm too precious about it to use it on my scummy dishes, ha!

If you fancy finding out a bit more about Julia, and to see more of her amazing animations, why not check out her website, blog and etsy shop?!!

Living etc - we're in Heaven...

Deck the halls with boughs of holly, fa la la la la, la la la...erm...huh hum... Sorry, we're so excited we actually thought it was Christmas for a split second there!

We squealed (yes, Dave as well - he has quite a girly scream) when we saw what our postman had brought to us this morning. We flipped through the pages of the recent issue of Living etc to reveal one of our ToDryFor artist-commissioned tea towels featured in a fantabulous double-page spread (on pages 26-27)!

© Living etc Magazine, as featured in the August 2010 issue

Beautifully framed by John Jones of London*, Rob Ryan's breathtaking Heaven design looks equally glamorous when it's drying the dishes!

Rob Ryan's Heaven tea towel is available from ToDryFor.com here...

* John Jones worked with Living etc to frame 9 tea towels which have been presented as works of art in their own right. The frame designs were kept simple and fresh. Rob Ryan’s Heaven design was chosen to activate the whole arrangement in a hand coloured, ornamental dark blue frame. John Jones have recreated the Living etc feature in their main exhibition space in London, which will be on view until the end of August.

Tea Tea Tea Teatopia!

If, like us, you like tea, then you really have to head on over to the fabulous Teatopia exhibition at Museums Sheffield (funnily enough, it's in Sheffield)...

The exhibition delights in everything to do with tea, exploring its links with countries and cultures throughout history, tea-drinking customs around the world and, best of all (we think), it encompasses tea-related paraphernalia. That can only mean one thing... you guessed it, tea towels!!

Image © Museums Sheffield

Museums Sheffield share our viewpoint that the humble tea towel is a great canvas for graphic design; they even commissioned an amazing, up-and-coming local artist, Geo Law, to create a new design specifically for the exhibition. With a little bit of help from us Geo's wonderful Bird Bath design has been transformed into a tea towel (see below)! Heck, I couldn't imagine anything better than a bath full of tea (well, maybe a bath full of gin)...

Image © Geo Law

Geo's Bird Bath tea towel is on sale in Museums Sheffield's shop, and is also available here via ToDryFor.com.

Teatopia runs from 1st July - 24th October 2010. Why not make it a date and go for afternoon tea and cakes whilst you're there?

Finger on the PULSE...

Have you ever spent 7 days of your life gluing the equivalent of 1,600 washing up sponges to foam board, essentially creating a yellow brick wall? No? Well that's how Dave and I like to spend our bank holiday weekends.

We booked to attend Pulse (a super-hip design/gift trade show at Earls Court) at the very last minute, and only had a couple of weeks to come up with an idea for our stand. I suggested covering the back wall in rubber gloves, but Dave rightly pointed out that this would look really creepy! We decided on washing up sponges, bought them in bulk from a local supplier (after hours spent researching washing up sponge manufacturers - oh the glamour) and then, glue gun at the ready, proceeded to get hooked on the smell of adhesive. Et Voilà!

It was incredibly laborious to build, but we were pretty chuffed with it when it was finished (and it can always be re-used by local amateur dramatics groups for productions of The Wizard of Oz, should they need it)...

Whilst at the show, we came across so many lovely and talented people, including the ladies behind jewellery company Ridley & Dowse (I haven't taken off my new little cloud necklace since the exhibition - see above), Elsie Dodds (who makes the most amazing alphabet cushions in the world - see below), and also the ever wonderful Michelle Mason and Mary Fellows (thanks again, Mary, for letting us borrow your parcel tape)!

PS - thanks also to our lovely friend Davina (aka Miss Silver Whimsy) who gave us loads of help throughout the show and also put up with us waffling on about the flammability of sponges xxx

We've re-booked for next year so now have a little longer to come up with an equally ridiculous stand design! Any suggestions??!

Introducing... People Will Always Need Plates

It is a truth universally acknowledged, that a single man in possession of a good fortune must be in want of... plates (and tea towels)! Thank goodness then, for the existence of design duo, People Will Always Need Plates. Famous for their witty, thoughtful and stylish products depicting iconic landmarks, we recently discovered that their passion for concrete holds no bounds!


Tell us a bit about yourself...
Who are you both and what do you do?
We are Hannah and Robin. Hannah's background is ceramics - an MA in 'pots and bottles' from the RCA. Robin studied industrial design at Brunel, and then went off to play in the glamorous world of branding and exhibition design for many years before being led to the dark side of batch production and collaboration with Hannah. All that consultancy work combined with freelancing has made a good solid ground from which to build People Will...



We set up the company as an antithesis to consultancy work and veer towards exceedingly geeky subject matter that we love, rather than producing design that'll necessarily sell the best. We know this is a luxury and are endlessly appreciative that we've found an audience and customer base as enthusiastic as ourselves.

Which has been your favourite building to work on for People Will Always Need Plates?
Trellick Tower is undoubtedly our bestseller - but also particularly Hannah's favourite. She wrote her dissertation on brutalist architecture as an undergraduate and her enthusiasm for reinforced concrete just keeps on growing. It's an added delight that Trellick is the Marmite of our range - everyone has a strong opinion of it - and we've enjoyed numerous debates with customers about the pros and cons of Trellick and its sister tower in Bow.


You do a lot of bespoke, commissioned PWANP projects for unusual buildings up and down the UK. In the case of Sheffield’s Tinsley Cooling Towers (which have unfortunately since been demolished) do you feel like you’re doing your bit to try and protect and preserve part of England’s heritage (even if it’s only in memory)?

We tend to choose buildings that we love. Unfortunately, these are often much-hated concrete edifices that hold no value in the eyes of the conservator or developer and so they're all too frequently demolished to make way for McMansions and twee mock-Tudor boxes - the English dream. We hope that we raise the profile of brutalist architecture by celebrating it in a similar manner to that of Doulton or Spode's castles and cottages on their Victorian ware.

We've helped Twentieth Century Society by producing ware to be sold by them for fundraising as they actively promote and campaign to save the architecture we most love.

Do you have a favourite architectural style/period? Do you ever find yourself hankering after a bit of Victorian gothic or some medieval masonry?
We do sometimes draw a bit of Victoriana - the V&A nearly sent us blind with all its crenellations and mock-gothic detailing - and Liverpool Cathedral sent Robin slightly mad for a few days! Older architecture does suit our style surprisingly well, it's just that when commissioned it's often modernists that see the value in working with us. As previously mentioned, we're suckers for concrete from the 1960s, though a good dose of Georgian geometry comes in close second.


What other projects are you currently involved with?
We're very busy with commissions for the Peggy Guggenheim Museum in Venice, MARTa in Herford, Germany and new products as part of Hidden Art's Select range this year.

Do you enjoy straying away from your People Will Always Need Plates aesthetic, for example when you worked on products for Habitat?
We still freelance for the big boys now and again. It's refreshing to work on larger scale projects and not have to be wrapped up in the minutiae of production issues and the like. There are lots of other considerations when working for clients and it keeps us firmly grounded and disciplined in what is traditionally the job of the designer. Our current project is top secret for a super dooper client... but until it's launched in Heal's in August we have to keep schtum.


If you weren’t both designers, what do you think you would be doing instead?
Hannah - architect or grubby potter. I cannot let go of my craft-led roots.
Robin - definitely making something in a workshop with big machinery, or international motor racing star.

Town or Country (or seaside)?
Hannah - seaside. Ideally someplace warm enough to take a dip most of the year - and with mountains nearby. Did someone say Big Sur??
Robin - Yeah, San Francisco during the week, somewhere in Cow Hollow maybe, then Big Sur for the weekend.


And, almost relating to the question above, fancy restaurant or Sunday pub lunch (or fish and chips)?
Hannah - fancy restaurant to ensure good tableware. People will always need... a good table setting.
Robin - all of the above, I've never met a food I didn't like.

And finally, who does the washing up in your household (and do they dry the dishes with your tea towels)?
Hannah washes (mostly) and drying up is a shared chore - we have lots of Unity Peg tea towels in varying states of decay. We're hankering after some Lush Designs’ Foxes next though as they're a super hit on the mugs in our house with the wee'un.


You should head on over to the People Will Always Need Plates online headquarters, as they are currently having a brutal(ist) 50% off sale on all their remaining Ain't Concrete Great? plates.